Madonna is the eponymous debut studio album by American singer Madonna,released on July 27,1983,by Sire Records. In the late 1970s,Madonna had established herself as a singer in downtownNew York City;alongside her Michigan boyfriend Stephen Bray,she put together a demo tape with four dance tracks and began pitching it around local nightclubs. She managed to get Mark Kamins,the resident DJ at Danceteria,to play "Everybody" —one of the songs from the tape. The song was met with a positive reception from the crowd,and Kamins took Madonna to Sire Records,where label president Seymour Stein signed her on for three twelve-inch singles. Following its release on October 2,1982,"Everybody" found success on the dance scene,and the label approved the recording of an album.
For the album,Madonna worked with Warner Bros. producer Reggie Lucas,who had worked with artists like Roberta Flack and Stephanie Mills. Soon,however,problems between the singer and Lucas arose,as she was not happy with his production outputs. Madonna then invited John "Jellybean" Benitez,her boyfriend at the time,to work and remix the rest of the album. Madonna is mostly a dance-poppost-disco album,and features the newest technology of the time,including the LM-2drum machine,Moog bass and Oberheim OB-Xsynthesizer. Its songs talk mostly about love and partying. Five singles were released from the album:"Everybody" and "Burning Up" were published months before it was even completed;both songs failed to make a major impact on the charts. "Holiday","Lucky Star" and "Borderline",however,were international Top 10 hits,with the former being deemed Madonna's breakthrough.
Upon release,Madonna received generally positive reviews from critics,who highlighted its dance-oriented nature and sound. In the United States,it peaked at number eight on the Billboard 200 and was certified five-times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It reached the Top 10 of the charts in Australia,France,the Netherlands,New Zealand and the United Kingdom,and has sold an estimated 10million copies worldwide. Between 1983 and 1984,Madonna promoted the album and singles through a series of live appearances in nightclubs and television programs across the United States and Europe. The singles were also included on the Virgin Tour of 1985,Madonna's first concert tour. In retrospective reviews,Madonna has been referred to as one of the greatest debut albums of all time,and one of the best albums from the 1980s. Critics have also said that it helped to make dance music popular again,and "set the standard" of dance-pop for decades afterwards;its influence can be seen in the work of female artists such as Janet Jackson,Debbie Gibson,Kylie Minogue,and Lady Gaga.
Background
Madonna singing "Everybody" on the Celebration Tour (2023–2024). Released as her debut single,the song's success led her to be signed up and offered a record deal by Sire Records.
In 1979,Madonna was trying to establish her music career in New York City. She was the drummer of a band called Breakfast Club,which was headed by the Gilroy brothers,Dan and Ed.[3] The following year,after a dispute with Dan,Madonna left the band.[4] She then called her former Michigan boyfriend Stephen Bray,who "readily" agreed to join her on New York.[4] Along with Gary Burke and Brian Syms,they formed a band called The Millionaires. Then,when the Gilroy brothers rejoined the group,they changed their name to Emmy,another of Madonna's many nicknames.[4] In 1981,after attending one of Emmy's gigs at Max's Kansas City,Adam Alter and Camille Barbone from Gotham Records signed a contract with Madonna,who at this point already had a "small downtown cult following in the gay scene".[4] However,the association was short-lived and dissolved the following year due to creative differences between the label and singer:Gotham was interested in rock and roll whereas Madonna wanted to pursue disco.[5]
By 1982,the singer was living with Bray in an unused rehearsal studio.[6] After coming to the realization that "funkydance records were in style on the radio and dance floor",they created a demo tape with four dance tracks,including "Everybody","Burning Up",and "Ain't No Big Deal",which was described as a "bright Michael Jackson/Donna Summer confection".[5][7] With no record label to back her up,Madonna began pitching the tape on her own,visiting local nightclubs trying to get DJs to play it.[5][6] She managed to get Mark Kamins,the resident DJ at Danceteria nightclub,to play "Everybody",which was met with a positive reception from the crowd.[6][8] Kamins promised Madonna he would help her get a record deal on the condition that he would get to produce it.[8] As he was also an A&R scout for Island Records,Kamins took the tape to his boss Chris Blackwell,but he wasn't impressed nor interested in signing Madonna.[9]
"Madonna is great. She will do anything to be a star, and that's exactly what I look for in an artist: total co-operation... With Madonna, I knew I had someone hot and co-operative, so I planned to build her career with singles, rather than just put an album right away and run the risk of disaster".
—Sire RecordsA&R executive Michael Rosenblatt on working with the singer.[8]
Kamins then approached Sire Records president Seymour Stein, who at the time was at Lenox Hill Hospital recovering from a heart surgery.[9] Stein had his secretary send the tape to the hospital so he could listen to it; "I liked the hook, I liked Madonna's voice, I liked the feel [...] I liked it all and played it again", the executive recalled.[10] He signed the singer on for three twelve-inch singles with an option for albums;[11] she would get $15,000 for each one, but would also have to pay for all recording costs.[9] Sire A&E executive Michael Rosenblatt, who oversaw the entire process, wanted to release a double-sided single with "Ain't No Big Deal" as A-side and "Everybody" as B-side. "Ain't No Big Deal", however, "did not come out well", so Roseneblatt decided to put "Everybody" on both sides of the record: One version lasted 5:56, while the other was a dub form with a duration of 9:23.[6][8][12] Since he had recorded the demo, Bray argued that he should be the producer for the single, but Stein decided to appoint Kamins, "for the sheer interest of seeing where it would go".[10] Kamins, however, wasn't interested in producing, wanting to focus on A&R instead; he approached musician Kashif to see if he was interested in working on the song, but he turned down the offer.[13] "Everybody" was released as Madonna's debut single on October 6, 1982.[14] It failed to enter the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 107 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100.[15] It was more successful on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart, where it reached the third spot.[16] Music promotor Boby Shaw recalled that, "['Everybody'] made noise enough to give her an album deal".[12]
Development
According to Michael Rosenblatt, he wanted the album to have an "R&B feel", hence he brought in Warner Bros. producer Reggie Lucas, who had worked with artists like Roberta Flack and Stephanie Mills. Rosenblatt also felt Madonna needed to work with someone who "could really help her with her vocals. Mark [Kamins]'s strength was grooves, not working with a girl who's never been in the studio before".[11] Upon meeting her, Lucas wasn't impressed with the singer's "boho-punk style", and thought she didn't seem "particularly avant-garde".[17] "Everybody" was recorded at the Bob Blank's Blank Tape Recording Studios in April 1982, in a span of three days.[13][7]Barry Eastmond had been hired as the track's arranger, but left the project after getting into an argument with Madonna; she felt his work was "too slick", and lacked the "edge of the club-land grooves she was hankering after".[7] Rosenblatt made the decision to replace Eastmond's keyboard parts, and it was Arthur Baker, an assistant to Kamins, who brought in Fred Zarr to redo all the keyboards.[7][13]
"[S]he was unhappy with the whole [album], so I went in and sweetened up a lot of music for her, adding some guitars to 'Lucky Star', some voices, some magic. [...] I just wanted to do the best job I could do for her. When we would playback 'Holiday' or 'Lucky Star', you could see that she was overwhelmed by how great it all sounded."
The rest of the songs were recorded at the Sigma Sound Studios in New York.[18] Prior to entering the studio, Madonna wrote three more songs for the album: "Lucky Star", "Think of Me" and "I Know It".[19] The lyrics to "Lucky Star" were written on a yellow legal notepad, while the music was created on a Casiotone keyboard with a cassette player Kamins had given Madonna.[12][9] She wrote it as a thank you to him, and with the hope that he'd play it in his sets at Danceteria.[9][20] One of the earliest recorded versions of "Lucky Star" Madonna and Lucas created was described as being very "R&B-leaning", while another one was heavy on guitars, but due to a negative experience involving Madonna and a rock guitarist, was quickly discarded.[20] Soon however, the singer realized there were not enough songs for the record, to which Lucas then brought two compositions of his own: "Physical Attraction" and "Borderline", written specifically for Madonna.[8][21] The latter was the first song where Lucas used a drum machine instead of a drummer;[11] him and Madonna worked on the track while she was staying at artist Jean-Michel Basquiat's apartment.[11][21] Problems between the singer and Lucas arose, as she felt he was "moving [the songs] away from the sparse form of the original demos", something she did not approve of; the producer ended up leaving the project without altering the tracks.[8] The singer then invited John "Jellybean" Benitez, her boyfriend at the time, to work and remix the remaining songs.[8] In the case of "Burning Up" and "Lucky Star", Benitez added extra guitar riffs and additional vocals; for the latter he also added a "synthesizeddisco beat with soulful flourishes", and elements of New Wave.[8][22]
Another issue arose after Madonna learned Bray had sold "Ain't No Big Deal" to disco act Barracuda, thus rendering it unavailable for her album.[8] Benitez approached Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens-Crowder from band Pure Energy, and asked them for a song.[23] Titled "Holiday", the track was written by Hudson and Stevens-Crowder for Pure Energy, but their label Prism Records decided not to record it.[23] "Holiday" had been previously offered to Mary Wilson from The Supremes, and Phyllis Hyman.[24] After she was given the demo, Madonna quickly recorded the vocals. Benitez assembled the musicians, hummed the music to them, and asked the singer to sing in a "very soulful approach".[25] Hudson played guitar, and his brother Raymond the bass; Madonna herself played the cowbell that can be heard towards the beginning, while background vocals were provided by Norma Jean Wright and Tina Baker.[23] Just before it was completed, Benitez and Madonna took the tape to Zarr, so he could add what the singer referred to as "Zarrisms": "creative flourishes" that would provide the "finishing touches", which ended up being a piano solo towards the end.[26]
16-second sample of second track "Borderline". Lyrically, the song finds a woman complaining of her lover's chauvinism, while Madonna's vocals were noted as being "more refined" than on her other songs.[3][27]
"Burning Up" is a "yearning" New wave-influenced dance track, with lyrics that conflate sex with ambition. It has a "starker" arrangement brought about by bass, single guitar and drum machine.[30][3][7] Also present are tom-tom drum beats ―similar to the ones used on the work of Phil Collins― and electric guitars.[31][32] The refrain is a repetition of the same three lines of the lyrics, while the bridge consists of a series of double entendres that describe what she is prepared to do for her lover, showcasing that she "has no shame" and is "not like the others".[32] Fourth track "I Know It" features "shades of ’60s girl-group melodrama", with instrumentation from piano and saxophone.[32][33] In the song, Madonna brushes off a lover who's hurt her.[2] The next song is "Holiday", which talks about the "universal sentiment" that everybody needs a holiday from their daily lives.[32] It has been noted as being "devoid of any particular structure", and has a chord sequence comparable to that of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" (1984).[32] The refrain is sung by the singer in a "completely deadpan" way, while for the verses, she uses her lower register to give the lyrics a "more positive spin".[34] Present throughout the song are "Chic-styled" guitar flickers, electronic clapping, and synthesized strings.[32]
Sixth track "Think of Me" opens with high staccato piano notes, which are followed by the sound of drums.[32][35] The R&B influenced song features a "slinky" saxophone solo towards the middle, and has Madonna warning her lover to pay attention to her or else she'll leave him.[33][32] Lasting almost seven minutes, "Physical Attraction is the longest song the album.[33] It is a medium-paced track, in which Madonna "tellingly offer[s] her permission to take things to the next level" over a "libidinous" bass line.[2][35] Also present is a spoken section and "Collins-style" drums.[32] Madonna's vocals were doubletracked for album closer "Everybody", which, in her own words, talks about "getting people to dance and lose their inhibitions".[32][36]Billboard's Joe Lynch pointed out that the track "drops the bright, buoyant vibes that characterized the rest of the album and closes it on a dark, sensuous note".[35]
Artwork and release
According to Mary Cross, Lucky Star was the album's original title, but Madonna decided to change it, sensing a singular name could have more "star power". Her mother was also an inspiration, as she's "the only other person I have ever heard of named Madonna [...] It's pretty glamorous".[6] The original cover was shot by photographer Edo Bertoglio, while the sleeve was designed by Madonna's friend Martin Burgoyne.[37] According to Seymour Stein, however, Madonna dismissed this cover as it "just wasn't iconic enough".[38] The official cover was shot by photographer Gary Heery and directed by Carin Goldberg.[18] The image shows Madonna with short-cropped platinum hair, wearing a number of black rubber bangles on her hands and a dog chain around her throat.[39] A journalist from Radio & Records described the singer as looking like "Marilyn Monroe crossed with Jean Harlow" in the image.[40] The singer's navel is also prominent on the inner sleeve; she commented: "The picture inside the dust of sleeve of my first album has me, like, in this Betty Boop pose with my belly button showing. Then when people reviews the album, they kept talking about my cute belly button. [...] I think there are other unobvious places on the body that are sexy and the stomach is kind of innocent."[39] Regarding the album photoshoot, Heery recalled:
[Madonna] arrived at my Broadway studio in New York with a small bag of clothes and jewelry, and no entourage. Then, in front of the camera she was explosive, like a great model, but with her own unique style. She came over the next day to see some prints and the proofs, and there was shot after shot to choose from. We agreed on every choice and whittled it down to the album cover images. I had no idea what I had just been a party to.[41]
Madonna was released by Sire Records on July 27, 1983.[16] The singer dedicated the album to her father, Tony Ciccone, with whom her relationship had not been good up until the release. In an interview with Time magazine, Madonna explained: "My father had never believed that what I was doing here [in New York] was worthwhile, nor did he believe that I was up to any good. [...] It wasn't until my first album came out and my father started hearing my songs on the radio that he stopped asking the questions".[42] In 1985, in the "midst of 'Madonnanamania'", the album was re-released in the United Kingdom as Madonna: The First Album, with a different cover created by George Holy.[43][44] This image shows the singer with crucifixes as earrings. Of this, she said that, "[wearing a crucifix] is kind of offbeat and interesting. I mean, everything I do is sort of tongue-in-cheeks. Besides, [they] seem to go with my name".[6] On May 22, 2001, Warner Bros. released a remastered version of the album with its original artwork and additional remixes of "Burning Up" and "Lucky Star".[45][46] It was reissued on crystal clear vinyl on November 8, 2019.[47]
Backstage picture of Madonna and her entourage during the Virgin Tour.
Prior to the album's release, Madonna promoted the singles through a series of live appearances in nightclubs and television programs across the United States and Europe. She performed "Everybody" as part of Haoui Montaug's No Entiendes cabaret revue on December 18, 1982, on the second-floor stage of Danceteria.[48] In 1983, she travelled to the United Kingdom and presented "Everybody" and "Burning Up" at London's Camden Palace, and Manchester's The Haçienda.[49][50] "Holiday" was sung on June 4 at New York's Studio 54, and on October 13 at the Camden Palace.[48][51] The following year, Madonna performed "Holiday" on British television program Top of the Pops, where she was joined by her brother Christopher Ciccone;[52] she also sang it on Discoring, The Tube, The Haçienda, and on American television series American Bandstand and Solid Gold.[24][53][54][55][56] Finally, in February 1984, Madonna appeared on The Dance Show and performed "Borderline", joined by her brother, and dancer Erika Belle.[57]
The album's singles were included on the Virgin Tour, Madonna's first concert tour, which visited cities in the US and Canada from April to June 1985.[58][59][60] Warner Bros. wanted to cash in on the success of Madonna's second studio album Like a Virgin and officially announced the tour on April 6.[61][62] Despite mixed critical reviews, the tour was a commercial success, with Billboard reporting a gross of $3.3million ($9.35million in 2023 dollars[63]);[64] all 17,672 tickets for the concert at New York City's Radio City Music Hall sold out in a record-breaking 34 minutes.[65][66] On top of that, young girls would show up to the concerts dressed in a style similar to Madonna's.[67] One of the Detroit concerts was filmed and released in VHS as Madonna Live: The Virgin Tour.[68]
The twelve-inch single of "Everybody" was released on October 6, 1982.[14] Due to its R&B elements and not including Madonna's image on the cover artwork, marketing for the song gave the impression that she was a black artist.[11] That misconception was cleared with the song's music video, which was directed by Ed Steinberg, and shows the singer and two backup dancers performing at New York's Paradise Garage.[6] "Burning Up" was released in a double-sided single with "Physical Attraction" on March 9, 1983.[69] It was Madonna's first top twenty hit in Australia and, like its predecessor, peaked at number three on the Dance Club Songs chart.[70][16] The music video was directed by Steve Barron and shows the singer writhing submissively in the middle of the street.[7] Some authors noted that the visual was an introduction to the singer's "sexual politics".[7][9] The double-sided release of "Lucky Star" and "Holiday" was issued on mid August 1983, and became Madonna's first number one on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart.[16]
On September 7, "Holiday" was released as the album's third stand-alone single;[71] considered Madonna's breakthrough, it was her first entry on the Hot 100, where it reached the 16th position.[72] "Holiday" also reached the top ten in the United Kingdom, where it remains one of Madonna's best selling singles.[52] In Europe and the United Kingdom, "Lucky Star" was first published on September 8,[73] whereas in the United States it was released almost one year later, on August 8, 1984.[74] "Lucky Star" peaked at number four on the Hot 100, becoming the singer's first top-five hit.[75] The music video was directed by Arthur Pierson, and shows the singer, her brother Christopher, and Belle dancing in front of a white backdrop.[76] Following the clip's release, the singer's fashion and style became a trend among the young generation of the time.[20]
In the United States, "Borderline" was released on February 15, 1984, as the fourth single from the album;[57] in the United Kingdom, it was published as the album's fifth single on June 2, 1984.[19] To "keep the Madonna mania going on", a second European release was done in January 1986.[77][57] It was commercially successful: in 1984, it gave Madonna her first top-ten hit on the Hot 100.[75] The 1986 release saw success across Europe - it became the singer's second number one in Ireland, and reached the top 3 in the United Kingdom, Belgium and The Netherlands.[78] In the music video, which was directed by Mary Lambert, Madonna portrays the girlfriend of a Hispanic man, to whom she returns after being enticed to pose and model for a white British photographer.[27] Author Douglas Kellner pointed out that with the visual, the singer broke the taboo of interracial relationships.[79]
Video compilation
A VHS video compilation titled Madonna was made available in December 1984; it included the videos for "Borderline", "Burning Up", "Like a Virgin", and a "special extended dance mix" of "Lucky Star".[80] The release topped Billboard's Music Videocassette chart from April 13 to November 9, 1985, and was the year's best selling music videocassette.[81][82] Additionally, Madonna was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of 100,000 units, and was recognized as the "Best Selling Video Cassette Merchandised as Music Video" by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers.[83][84] According to The Saturday Evening Post, the video has sold over one million copies.[85] To promote the release, a party was held on Chicago's Cabaret Metro on February 9, 1985. Dubbed "The Virgin Party", it drew a crowd of around 1,200 people; attendees were encouraged to wear white, and for $5 admission fees, were able to view the Madonna videocassette and the music video of the then-upcoming "Material Girl". The event was organized as a drive to promote music videos, which at that point did not have a large market.[86]
Madonna received generally positive reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave it a perfect 5/5 rating and wrote: "This is [an album] where all of the elements may not particularly impressive on their own — the arrangement, synth, and drum programming are fairly rudimentary; Madonna's singing isn't particularly strong; the songs, while hooky and memorable, couldn't necessarily hold up on their own without the production — but taken together, it's utterly irresistible". He further singled out "Holiday", "Lucky Star" and "Borderline" among the album's best.[1] To the staff of Billboard, "the songs are pretty standard dance tunes, but [Madonna] has the pipes and presence to make them a bit special".[94] From Rolling Stone, Don Shewey expressed: "Madonna [...] has a voice that takes some getting used to. [...] Then you notice its one distinguishing feature, a girlish hiccup that [she] uses over and over until it’s irritating as hell. Finally, you get hooked, and you start looking forward to that silly little catch in her voice". The author also singled out the "pristine" production, ultimately concluding that, "without overstepping the modest ambitions of minimal funk, Madonna issues an irresistible invitation to the dance".[91] From The Plain Dealer, Laura DeMarco classiffied it as a "sparkly, lightweight release, full of club-disco joie de vivre paired with New York art-scene grit".[95]
Matthew Rettenmund, author of Encyclopedia Madonnica, deemed it "one of the most auspicious musical debuts of the 80s [...] a seamlessly sweet, lyrically coy, infectiously kinetic dance album".[43] Writing for the Evening Standard, El Hunt said it was a "disco-infused debut [that] feels wrenched straight out of Danceteria", which contains "all of the hallmarks of Eighties synth-pop, but still sounds futuristic in the process".[96] Similarly, The Quietus' Matthew Lindsay deemed it "both cutting edge and quaint by the time of its release". Lindsay went on to name it one of the singer's best works, and a "simple soundtrack to complicated times".[7] Jill Mapes for Pitchfork added that, "part of what gives Madonna such affecting rhythm is its use of electronic instruments that sounded like the future then and typify the '80s sound now".[90] Jim Farber from Entertainment Weekly opined: "[Madonna] might have wound up just another post-disco dolly if [the songs on the album] didn't announce her ability to fuse club beats with peerless pop".[89] Reviewing the album in 2001, Sal Cinquemani said Madonna sounds "just as fresh today as it did almost two decades ago".[31] The staff of Billboard felt that, "while it’s certainly not her most mature album, [Madonna] shows the nascent pop star at her most ebullient".[97]
Vice named it "just really fucking fun to dance to [...] bright, sexy, and unfussy pop [that] doesn't falter once".[98] To the Portland Mercury's Mark Lore, "despite the disco influence, Madonna is punk rock in attitude and even, to an extent, style [...] The synthesizers here are just as dark and bracing as those found on Devo and Gary Numan records".[99] According to Daryl Easley, In his book Madonna: Blond Ambition, "[Madonna] represents the heat and rush of a city (New York), and marks the last time [she] would be writing directly at street level".[100] While the staff of The Advocate highlighted the singles, they felt album cuts such as "I Know It" and "Think of Me", "sound like B-sides for a Lisa Lisa single".[101] Despite naming it, "at once endearingly cautious [...] and shockingly self-assured", Joseph Earp from Australian website Junkee referred to Madonna as "uneven, but in an exciting rather than disappointing way".[102] A mixed review came from Gay Times' Sam Damshenas and Daniel Megarry, who wrote: "This album is a classic, but [...] it lack[s] the innovation and direction of her later works".[103] Daryl Easley added that, "given the album's three producers and the relative lack of light and shade, the whole thing sounds a trifle flat".[104] Rikky Rooksby, author of The Complete Guide to the Music of Madonna, dismissed it as "musical candyfloss - okay in the right spot at the right time", further noting that the overall sound and production have aged and "now sound rather harsh"; "if you already own the singles or The Immaculate Collection, you can live without this album", he concluded.[8] Even though he praised its catchiness, John Murph from streaming service Tidal expressed that, "nothing [on the album] suggested someone who would become a worldwide icon with a career spanning four decades. The music was very much in the same spirit as the bubbly, synth-laced dance tracks released by the likes of Shannon, the System and Irene Cara".[105]
Commercial performance
In the United States, the album debuted on the Billboard 200 chart at number 190 on the week of September 3, 1983.[16] It had a slow and steady climb, ultimately peaking at number eight the week ending October 20, 1984, more than a year after its release.[106]Madonna also reached the 20th position of the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[107] Within a year, the album had sold 2.8 million copies in the United States.[108] By the end of 1985, it ranked 25th on the Hot 100.[109] After 17 years since its release, the album was certified five-times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipment of five million copies across United States.[110] With the advent of the Nielsen SoundScan era in 1991, the album sold a further 450,000 copies as of August 2010.[111] In Canada, the album debuted at number 87 on the RPM chart on March 10, 1984.[112] After 6 weeks, on April 14, it reached number 57.[113]Madonna re-entered the chart at number 95 on August 4;[114] it reached its peak at 16 during its 29th week on the chart, where it remained for a total of 47 weeks.[115][116]Madonna was 1984's 50th best selling album in Canada.[117]
In the United Kingdom, the record debuted at the 85th position of the albums chart on the week ending February 11, 1984;[118] almost two months later, on the week April 20, it reached number 37.[119] On July 13, 1985, following the Madonna: The First Album re-release, it re-entered the chart at number 91, eventually peaking at 6 five weeks later.[120][121] On December, the album was certified Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for shipment of 300,000 copies.[122] Throughout Europe, the record saw a moderate success; in Spain, despite not charting during its inicial release, it was certified Gold by the Productores de Música de España (PROMUSICAE) association for shipments of 50,000 copies.[123] It wasn't until November 2019 that Madonna entered the Spanish album charts at number 35.[124] The album reached the top ten of the charts in the Netherlands and France;[125][126] it saw less success in Sweden and Italy, where it barely cracked the top 50.[127][128]Madonna went on to reach the 14th spot on the European Top 100 Albums chart.[129]
"A sexy, forward-thinking record that took pop in a new direction. Its success showed that, with the right diva at the helm, music similar to disco could find a place in the white mainstream—a call to the dance floor answered by everyone from Kylie to Robyn to Gaga to Madonna herself".
—Pitchfork's Jill Mapes commenting on the album.[90]
Madonna has been referred to as one of the greatest debut albums of all time.[97][136][137][138] It has also been mentioned among the best albums from the 1980s.[139][140][141] With the album, the singer has been credited with "revolutionizing" dance music. Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote: "[Madonna's] eponymous debut isn't simply good, it set the standard for dance-pop for the next 20 years".[1] Erlewine went on to explain that the album was released in an era where disco was seen as an "anathema" to mainstream music; by incorporating "great pop songs with stylish, state-of-the-art beats", Madonna had a "huge role in popularizing dance music as popular music again", Erlewine concluded.[1] Similarly, Spin's Michaelangelo Matos said that it "reinvigorated disco for a generation that wanted nothing to do with polyester suits, ending an era and birthing a new one".[142] Rosenblatt himself went on to explain: "There was disco, and there was new wave. And there was nothing in the middle [...] Madonna was really coming out of the new wave clubs in a way that never really happened before. Nobody was doing the disco/new wave thing, [the] R&B thing the way Madonna did".[12] The staff of Rolling Stone added that, "[Madonna] put downtown New York electro grooves all over the Top 40".[136] In Vice's ranking of the "99 Greatest Dance Albums of All Time" —where Madonna came in at number 26— the staff concluded that with the record, the singer "provided the New York City dance scene a much needed post-disco palate cleanser and drew the blueprint for future dance pop".[98] Joey Guerra from the Houston Chronicle elaborated:
The album's blend of pop, disco, New Wave and R&B is ubiquitous today. But at the time, it was a revelation. Disco had been metaphorically demolished a few years earlier. New Wave was still seen by many as eccentric and weird. Madonna, who came up in New York City's club scene, tempered those sounds with her fierce ambition and desire to be a superstar.[143]
Rolling Stone credited the album for "pointing the direction" for female singers of the time, such as Janet Jackson (left) and Debbie Gibson (right).[144]
Santiago Fouz-Hernández and Freya Jarman-Ivens, authors of Madonna's Drowned Worlds, wrote that the album features "several key trends that have continued to define [Madonna's] success [...] a strong dance-based idiom, catchy hooks [and] highly polished arrangements". They came to the conclusion that the singer introduced a style of "upbeat dance music" that would prove "particularly appealing" to gay audiences.[145]Paste's Matt Michell declared: "Without Madonna, the landscape of dance music suffers greatly. It’s the best debut album of the 1980s by a woman, and, perhaps, one of the greatest debuts of all time".[137] Both Andrew Morton and Martin Charles Strong agreed that the album helped to make Madonna a household name and to establish her base as an artist.[49][146] According to some publications, the singer and album's influence can be seen in the work of other female artists such as Janet Jackson, Debbie Gibson, Britney Spears, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and Kylie Minogue.[144][90][143] Marcus Wratten from PinkNews added: "Her music is, and always will be, the blueprint for the best pop records of our generation. And it all began with Madonna".[33]
For Entertainment Weekly, Kyle Anderson wrote: "Madonna’s sound, and of course her look, would be heavily copied for years to come, but [the album] heralded something much bigger: the arrival of the pop diva as a singular force who put personality above all else".[147] Mark Lore added that, "[Madonna] had a confidence and sexuality that hadn't been captured since Donna Summer. It was just what pop music needed".[99] Finally, for Rolling Stone, the album's biggest achievement was "introducing the most important female voice in the history of modern music".[136]
↑ According to RPM, the album attained sales of over platinum-equivalent as of 1985.[175] A platinum meant 100,000 copies at that time in Canadian terms.[176]
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Madonna Louise Ciccone is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Commonly known as the "Queen of Pop", she has been widely recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting and visual presentation. Madonna's works, which incorporate social, political, sexual, and religious themes, have generated both controversy and critical acclaim. A prominent cultural figure spanning both the 20th and 21st centuries, she remains one of the most "well-documented figures of the modern age", with a broad array of scholarly reviews, literature, and art works about her, as well as an academic mini subdiscipline devoted to her called Madonna studies.
Like a Virgin is the second studio album by American singer and songwriter Madonna, released on November 12, 1984, by Sire Records. Following the success of her 1983 self-titled debut album, Madonna was eager to start working on its follow-up. She selected Nile Rodgers to produce the album due to his work on Let's Dance (1983) by David Bowie, which she was a fan of. To ensure it be exactly as she envisioned it, Madonna chose all the songs for the album: She penned six of her own, five of which were co-written with former boyfriend and collaborator Steve Bray, and six written by other artists. Recording sessions took place at Power Station Studio in New York City. Rodgers enlisted the help of his former Chic bandmates Bernard Edwards and Tony Thompson.
"Material Girl" is a song recorded by American singer Madonna for her second studio album, Like a Virgin (1984). It was released on January 23, 1985, by the Sire label as the second single from Like a Virgin. It also appears slightly remixed on the 1990 greatest hits compilation, The Immaculate Collection, in its original form on the 2009 greatest hits compilation, Celebration and Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones (2022). The song was written by Peter Brown and Robert Rans, while Nile Rodgers produced the track. Madonna explained that the concept of the song was indicative of her life at that time, and she liked it because she felt it was provocative.
True Blue is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Madonna, released on June 30, 1986, by Sire Records. In early 1985, Madonna became romantically involved with actor Sean Penn, and married him six months later on her 27th birthday. Additionally, she met producer Patrick Leonard while on the Virgin Tour, and formed a professional relationship with him. The first songs they created together were "Love Makes the World Go Round", and the ballad "Live to Tell", which was featured on At Close Range, a film which Penn starred. On late 1985, Madonna and Leonard began working on her third studio album; she also enlisted the help of former boyfriend Stephen Bray, with whom she had worked on her previous record Like a Virgin (1984). Titled True Blue, the record saw Madonna co-writing and co-producing for the first time in her career. Inspired by Madonna's love for Penn, to whom she dedicated it, True Blue is a dance-pop album that features influences of Motown sound, girl groups, and Latin pop.
You Can Dance is the first remix album by American singer and songwriter Madonna. It was released on November 17, 1987, by Sire Records. The album contains remixes of tracks from her first three studio albums—Madonna (1983), Like a Virgin (1984) and True Blue (1986)—and a new track, "Spotlight". In the 1980s, remixing was still a new concept. The mixes on You Can Dance exhibited a number of typical mixing techniques. Instrumental passages were lengthened to increase the time for dancing and vocal phrases were repeated and subjected to multiple echoes. The album cover denoted Madonna's continuous fascination with Hispanic culture.
"Let the Music Play" is a song recorded by American singer Shannon and released on September 19, 1983, as both her debut single and the lead single from her 1984 debut studio album of the same name. Written by Chris Barbosa and Ed Chisolm, and produced by Barbosa and Mark Liggett, "Let the Music Play" was the first of Shannon's four number ones on the US Dance Club Songs chart, reaching the top spot in October 1983. It also became a huge crossover hit in the US, peaking at number two on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1984. It was Shannon's only Top 40 hit in the US. Some mark "Let the Music Play" as the beginning of the "dance-pop" era. "Let the Music Play" was ranked 43rd on the 2009 VH1 Special 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 1980s, while Rolling Stone and Billboard featured it in their lists of "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time" and "500 Best Pop Songs of All Time" in 2022 and 2023. The song also appears in the video games Dance Central 3 and Scarface: The World Is Yours.
"Dress You Up" is a song by American singer Madonna from her second studio album, Like a Virgin (1984). It was released as the album's final single on July 24, 1985, by Sire Records. Written by Andrea LaRusso and Peggy Stanziale, and produced by Nile Rodgers, who also played guitar on the track, it was the final song to be added to the album. Rodgers had asked the writers to compose something similar to the work of his band Chic but, due to LaRusso and Stanziale being busy with other projects, the composition took time. When the lyrics were submitted, the producer initially rejected them, as he felt there was no time to compose a melody; Madonna, however, liked the lyrics and convinced him to include the song on Like a Virgin. Musically, "Dress You Up" is a dance-pop song whose lyrics are an extended metaphor for fashion and lust, comparing dressing up with passion.
Confessions on a Dance Floor is the tenth studio album by American singer and songwriter Madonna. It was released on November 9, 2005, by Warner Bros. Records. A complete departure from her previous studio album American Life (2003), the album includes influences of 1970s disco and 1980s electropop, as well as 2000s club music. Initially, she began working with Mirwais Ahmadzaï for the album but later felt that their collaboration was not going in the direction she desired. Madonna took her collaboration with Stuart Price who was overseeing her documentary I'm Going to Tell You a Secret. The album was mainly recorded at Price's home-studio where Madonna spent most of her time during the recordings.
"Like a Virgin" is a song recorded by American singer Madonna from her second album of the same name. The song was written and composed by Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg, and it was released as the album's lead single on October 31, 1984. A dance song with two hooks, Madonna sings in a high register while a continuous arrangement of synths are heard along the bassline. The song's lyrics are ambiguous, consisting of hidden innuendos and open to various interpretations.
"Lucky Star" is a song by American singer Madonna from her self-titled debut studio album (1983). Produced by Reggie Lucas, it was written by Madonna with the intention that her friend Mark Kamins would play it in his sets at Danceteria, where he was the resident DJ. In 1982, Madonna was signed on by Sire Records for the release of two 12" singles; after the success of first single "Everybody", the label approved the recording of an album, and the singer decided to work with Lucas. However, problems between Madonna and the producer arose and he ended up leaving the project; she then called John "Jellybean" Benitez, her boyfriend at the time, to work on the remaining songs.
"Borderline" is a song by American singer Madonna from her debut self-titled studio album (1983), written and produced by Reggie Lucas. In 1982, Madonna was signed on by Sire Records for the release of two 12-inch singles; after the success of first single "Everybody", the label approved the recording of an album, and the singer decided to work with Lucas. "Borderline" is a pop song with post-disco elements whose sounds recall the music of the 1970s, while the lyrics find a woman complaining of her lover's chauvinism.
"Holiday" is a song by American singer Madonna from her self-titled debut album (1983). It was written by Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens-Crowder for their own musical act Pure Energy, and produced by John "Jellybean" Benitez. Hudson came up with the lyrics of the song while watching negative news on television, and together with Stevens-Crowder worked on the music. They recorded a demo, which was turned down by their label Prism Records. Afterwards, Benitez pitched the track and offered it to several artists, including former The Supremes singer Mary Wilson, but it was rejected. Around the same time, Benitez was working with Madonna on her album; after realizing they needed a song for the project, Benitez thought of "Holiday" and approached Hudson and Stevens-Crowder.
"Burning Up" is a song written and recorded by American singer Madonna included on her debut studio album Madonna (1983). Written by the singer and produced by Reggie Lucas, the song was released as a double-sided single with "Physical Attraction" on March 9, 1983. In early 1980, Madonna was beginning her music career as a member of band the Breakfast Club; together with band drummer Stephen Bray, they formed a new band, Emmy and the Emmys, but shortly after, she decided to pursue a solo career. She and Bray created demos for three songs: "Everybody", "Ain't No Big Deal", and "Burning Up".
"Everybody" is a song written and recorded by American singer Madonna and produced by DJ Mark Kamins. In 1982, the singer was living with her former Michigan boyfriend Stephen Bray in New York, and since dance music was in style, they created a demo with four dance tracks, one of which was "Everybody". Madonna, who was not signed to any record label at the time, pitched the tape on her own: she would go to local nightclubs and try to convince the DJs there to play it. She met and befriended DJ Mark Kamins at Danceteria nightclub, who played "Everybody" to a positive reception from the crowd. Afterwards, Kamins took the tape to Sire Records, where Seymour Stein, the label's president, signed Madonna for two twelve-inch singles.
"Angel" is a song by American singer Madonna from her second studio album Like a Virgin (1984). It was released on April 10, 1985, by Sire Records as the album's third single. Written by Madonna and Steve Bray, it was one of the first songs developed for the project and, according to Madonna, was inspired by a girl who is saved by an angel, and she falls in love with him. "Angel" was released as a 12-inch single with "Into the Groove" in some countries and charted likewise. A music video was not filmed for "Angel", and instead, a promotional clip comprising segments of her previous videos was released in the United Kingdom.
"Into the Groove" is a song recorded by American singer Madonna, and featured on the 1985 film Desperately Seeking Susan. Written and produced by both Madonna and Stephen Bray, the main inspiration behind the song was the dance floor; the singer wrote it while watching a Latin American man to whom she was attracted. Its instrumentation features synthesizers and drum machines, with Madonna's voice being double tracked on the chorus. Sexual innuendos and undertones are present throughout the lyrics, which are written as an invitation to dance with the singer. Originally written for her friend Mark Kamins, Madonna later decided to use it on the film, as one of the scenes needed a dance song. It was later added to the 1985 international re-issue of her second studio album, Like a Virgin (1984), and remixed for her compilations You Can Dance (1987), The Immaculate Collection (1990), and Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones (2022).
"Vogue" is a song by American singer Madonna from her soundtrack album, I'm Breathless (1990). Written and produced by herself and Shep Pettibone, it was inspired by voguing, a dance which was part of the underground gay scene in New York City. The song was released as the lead single from the album on March 20, 1990, by Sire Records and Warner Bros. Records. "Vogue" is a house song with influences of disco, which contains escapist lyrics describing the dance floor as "a place where no boundaries exist". Its middle eight features Madonna name-dropping several actors from the Golden Age of Hollywood. "Vogue" was later included on three of Madonna's compilation albums: The Immaculate Collection (1990), Celebration (2009), and Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones (2022).
"Sorry" is a song by American singer Madonna from her tenth studio album, Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005). The song was written and produced by both Madonna and Stuart Price. It was released to hot adult contemporary radio stations in the United States as the second single from the album on February 6, 2006, by Warner Bros. Records. The song was later included on Madonna's compilation album, Celebration (2009). One of the first tracks developed for the album, it is a dance-pop and disco song, and lyrically talks about personal empowerment and self-sufficiency. For the single release, remixers such as Pet Shop Boys, Green Velvet, and Paul Oakenfold were enlisted to conceive remixes for the song.
"Deeper and Deeper" is a song by American singer Madonna from her fifth studio album, Erotica (1992). It was written and produced by both Madonna and Shep Pettibone, with additional writing from Anthony Shimkin. In Australia and most European countries, the song was released as the album's second single on November 17, 1992; in the United States, a release was issued on December 8. It was included on Madonna's second greatest hits compilation, GHV2 (2001). A dance-pop and deep house song, it has disco and Philadelphia soul influences; the bridge features instrumentation from flamenco guitars and castanets, and features background vocals from the singer's collaborators Donna De Lory and Niki Haris. Lyrically, the song talks about sexual desire, though it has been argued that it is actually about a young man coming to terms with his homosexuality, and includes a reference to Madonna's single "Vogue" (1990).
Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones is a remix album by American singer Madonna, released through Warner Records. Its abridged 16-track edition, simply titled Finally Enough Love, had a pre-release on streaming services on June 24, 2022, while the full 50-track edition and all physical formats were released on August 19, 2022. The album marks Madonna achieving a record 50 number ones on the US Billboard Dance Club Songs chart, the most number ones of any artist on any single Billboard chart. The title derives from the lyrics of her 50th number one, "I Don't Search I Find". It is also the first release in a multi-year reissue campaign with Warner, commemorating the 40th anniversary of Madonna's recording career.
↑ "LA NUEVA MADONNA". Somos (in Spanish) (832–848). Editorial Atlántida: 24. 1992. Archived from the original on September 27, 2021. Retrieved December 4, 2023– via Google Books. [c]uando en el ' 83 vendió 9 milloInes (millones) de copias de su primer álbum, nadie creía que Madonna podía ser capaz de superarse a sí misma [...] Sólo en la Argentina , se vendieron 140 . 000 placas del primer LP
↑ "אלבומים ומכירות בארץ"[Albums and sales in Israel]. LaIsha (in Hebrew). August 13, 2001. p.56. Archived from the original on August 10, 2023. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
↑ Ferraris, Gabriele (June 9, 1991). "Curva in discesa". La Stampa (in Italian). p.23. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2021. Fino a quel momento, Madonna era, anche per il mercado italiano, una stella in constante ascesa: 210 mila copie vendute dell' album d'esordio nell '83
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