The Story Behind the Song Mariah Carey Co-Wrote for Daryl Hall

By 1993 Mariah Carey was on top of the (music) world. She already had four No. 1 singles from her 1990 self-titled debut, and by the time her third album, Music Box, came around she added on more hits with “Hero” and “Dreamlover” while writing songs for several other artists. A year earlier, Carey had her first hit, co-writing R&B singer and songwriter Trey Lorenz’s “Someone to Hold” from his 1992 self-titled debut, which peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Along with co-writing the majority of her biggest hits—”Vision of Love,” “Fantasy,” “Always Be My Baby,” “Emotions,” “We Belong Together,” her perennial holiday hit “All I Want for Christmas is You,” and more—Carey’s catalog spans more collaborations with Carole King, Diane Warren, Missy Elliott, George Michael, Whitney Houston, and more throughout her 30-plus-year career. 

[RELATED: 5 Songs You Didn’t Know Mariah Carey Wrote for Other Artists]

‘Soul Alone’

In the early ’90s, Carey also collaborated with Daryl Hall on his third solo album, Soul Alone from 1993. Co-produced by Hall, Michael Peden, and The Family Stand’s Peter Lord Moreland and V. Jeffrey Smith, Soul Alone was a more soulful and jazzy album for Hall and features the ballad “Help Me Find a Way to Your Heart,” co-written by Carey.

When Hall started working on Soul Alone, he was looking for some outside songs, and his then-manager Tommy Mottola suggested Carey, who he was also managing and wed that year.

Also featuring Carey on backing vocals, the song follows the struggle with an unreciprocated love.

Another day and I`m spending
Time alone
I called your place and there was
No one home
I`ve been laying low but I`m
Thinking of you
Out there by yourself trying to find
Something new

Girl, I thought what we had was so
Good that I`d never hear you say no
And for all that is worth, I can`t
Think about ever letting go
But I`m lost for the words that I
Need to get over the way I feel
I can`t do it by myself

Girl I really need you here
Help me find a way to our heart
Help me find my way, I can`t see
In the dark
Tell me if I`ve drifted too far
Am I warm? Am I cold?

Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images for iHeartMedia