It was a global success, becoming Carey's seventh chart topper on the US Billboard Hot 100, remaining there for eight weeks.
The song was the first of several of her lead singles that sampled older tunes as a musical bed, as seen in " Fantasy" (1995), " Honey" (1997), " Heartbreaker" (1999), and " Loverboy" (2001). "Dreamlover" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics, many of whom praised the song's incorporated sample, as well as Carey's carefree vocal style. Lyrically, the song pictures a protagonist calling for a perfect lover, her "dreamlover," to whisk her away into the night and not "disillusion" her like others in the past. This was partly in light of the mixed reception to her previous studio effort Emotions (1991), which featured gospel and 1960s soul influences. "Dreamlover" marked a more pronounced attempt on Carey's part to incorporate hip hop into her music, as was seen in her decision to work with Hall, who had previously produced What's the 411? (1992) by Mary J Blige. The song incorporates a sample of the hook from "Blind Alley" by the Emotions, previously used in " Ain't No Half-Steppin'" (1988) by Big Daddy Kane, into its melody and instrumentation. Its lyrics were written by Carey, with music composed by Carey and Dave Hall, and was produced by Carey, Walter Afanasieff and Hall.
" Dreamlover" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter, and record producer Mariah Carey, released on July 27, 1993, as the lead single from her third studio album, Music Box (1993).