Don't go for second best, baby. Put your ILM ARTIST POLL #31: MADONNA to the test.

balls reminded me: were Madonna to die suddenly in the next year I'd weep as if my mother died.

xp lol it's not even Babyface! It's fake Babyface!

disingenuous to suggest dave "jam" hall is fake babyface imo

Perhaps he isn't, but that song is.

madonna can't die perish the thought

she fucking better not

it was bad enough when Michael Jackson died, fuuuuuuuuuuck Madonna would wreck me

you know, i haven't listened to ray of light since college, when i wore it out. i had kind of developed a retroactive embarrassment about that album because of all the dumb stuff that was written at the time about how madonna had finally turned demure and classy and learned how to sing, but i listened to it this afternoon because of this poll, and it's really lovely. it's a good thing i didn't have time to vote in this because i have no idea how i would have done it.

yeah Ray Of Light has aged really nicely, I was afraid it would feel strange and dated

she's gonna die another day guys, you heard her

lol

yr username makes me happy, lex

$10 check is in the mail :)

My ballot

Tracks
1 Love Song 40
2 Bad Girl 36
3 White Heat 33
4 Angel 30
5 Til Death 28
6 Over and Over 26
7 True Blue 25
8 Open Your Heart 24
9 Burning Up 23
10 Express Yourself 22
11 Papa Don't Preach 21
12 Crazy For You 20
13 Lucky Star 19
14 Like A Prayer 18
15 Into The Groove 17
16 La Isla Bonita 16
17 Holiday 15
18 Deeper And Deeper 14
19 Like A Virgin 13
20 Hung Up 12

Albums
1 Erotica
2 Like A Virgin
3 True Blue
4 Madonna
5 Like A Prayer

Videos

1 Express Yourself
2 Frozen
3 Like a Virgin
4 Deeper & Deeper
5 Justify My Love

Top 20 songs:

Deeper And Deeper - 40
Borderline - 36
Vogue - 33
Music - 30
Get Together - 28
Crazy For You - 26
Holiday - 25
Bedtime Story - 24
Like A Prayer - 23
Into The Groove - 22
Lucky Star - 21
Sky Fits Heaven - 20
Forbidden Love (from Confessions) - 19
Angel - 18
Secret - 17
La Isla Bonita - 16
Hung Up - 15
Cherish - 14
Ray Of Light - 13
Skin - 12


Top 5 Albums:

Madonna - 10
Ray Of Light - 8
Confessions On A Dancefloor - 6
Erotica - 4
Like A Prayer - 2

Top 5 Videos:

Bedtime Story - 10
Human Nature - 8
Bad Girl - 6
Vogue - 4
Papa Don’t Preach - 2

Hey, the album version of "Express Yourself" is different than the video version! This totally fucking rules!

(sorry, first listen)

haha!

I always forget about the album version, but I like it.

"Boy, this sure is a skillful Prince rip...HOLY SHIT, IT IS PRINCE!"

How did a Prince/Madonna collaboration not make the front page of every publication at the time? I don't ever remember hearing that this existed.

i think it was maybe underwhelming at the time but listening to it recently i found it MUCH better than i remembered, certainly closer to matching the sum of its parts than say chuck d + sonic youth.

yeah Love Song is like the perfect musical venn diagram of Madge + Prince (at least for me, I adoooooore that song)

Tracks:
1. Borderline
2. Like a Prayer
3. Vogue
4. Open Your Heart
5. Ray of Light
6. Into the Groove
7. Live To Tell
8. Deeper and Deeper
9. Oh Father
10. Burning Up
11. Beautiful Stranger
12. Material Girl
13. Swim
14. Express Yourself
15. Music
16. Till Death Do Us Part
17. Candy Perfume Girl
18. Secret
19. Sorry
20. Papa Don't Preach

Albums:
1. Like a Prayer
2. The Immaculate Collection
3. Ray of Light
4. Erotica
5. Confessions On A Dancefloor

Videos:
1. Ray of Light
2. Vogue
3. Like a Prayer
4. Material Girl
5. Open Your Heart

Amazing graphics, can't wait to read this thread in detail. My only comment I wanted to add now is that I still imagine Sleater-Kinney doing an amazing "Ray of Light" cover. Also, I've made the argument for "Borderline" as the best video ever, so if I'd voted in that category, I'd have chosen that. First West Coast breakdancers in a video? East L.A. locations? Madonna casually creating an icon before our eyes? Story and texture? Oh, and I'd choose the one that won for album. My ballot:

Into the Groove - 40
Get Together - 36
Hung Up - 33
Borderline - 30
Ray of Light - 28
Deeper and Deeper - 26 (Glad this placed higher though, so maybe I should have bumped it up a notch.)
Like a Prayer - 25
Holiday - 24
What It Feels Like for a Girl - 23
Human Nature - 22
Take a Bow - 21
Beautiful Stranger - 20
Love Profusion - 19
4 Minutes - 18
I'm Addicted - 17
Don't Tell Me - 16
Material Girl - 15
Secret Garden - 14
Lucky Star - 13
Papa Don't Preach - 12

this is the punk rock "Ray Of Light" that almost makes me like the song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaQ4bQmTILA

I blame Tim F: his assertion that all ballots shd have two tracks from Erotica vs a number of ppl who have only heard two tracks from Erotica xxp

― Josh and D.A.M. (Drugs A. Money), Monday, 11 March 2013 16:12 (Yesterday) Permalink

Given "Justify My Love" isn't an Erotica track (and precedes it by two years) it appears that in fact you only know one track from that album. But blame me for whatever you like if it makes you feel better.

If and when Madonna actually dies, I hope her headstone just says "And you can dance."

o man carrie on verses, corin on chorus - man that would work.

So, by my count:

7
Erotica

6
Madonna
True Blue
Like a Prayer

5
None

4
Like a Virgin
Bedtime Stories

3
Ray of Light
Music

2
Who's That Girl
Confessions on a Dance Floor

Victory.

Sorry if this is hard to parse, but here are the full tracks results:

Into the Groove	6	48	1330
Open Your Heart	2	44	1167
Deeper and Deeper	8	42	1110
Borderline	7	33	1009
Live to Tell	5	35	970
Like a Prayer	2	39	938
Lucky Star	3	32	805
Burning Up	3	29	756
Holiday	3	30	753
Vogue	2	29	697
Crazy For You	1	31	670
Ray of Light	1	26	615
Papa Don't Preach	1	29	602
Hung Up	1	26	600
Justify My Love		26	567
Dress You Up	1	24	553
Human Nature	1	21	465
Cherish	1	22	463
Express Yourself		21	457
Beautiful Stranger	1	17	435
Oh Father	1	18	424
Bad Girl		17	415
Angel		18	409
Take a Bow		20	403
Frozen		18	381
What It Feels Like For a Girl		19	378
La Isla Bonita	1	18	367
Secret		16	349
Everybody		15	344
Till Death Do Us Part		16	337
Like a Virgin	1	17	334
Music		16	309
Material Girl	1	14	307
Don't Tell Me		15	284
Erotica		12	263
Get Together	1	11	246
True Blue	1	12	240
Bedtime Story		13	238
Rain		11	217
Causing a Commotion		11	201
Physical Attraction		10	195
Who's That Girl		11	194
Waiting		8	189
Secret Garden		7	161
White Heat		7	161
Die Another Day		7	149
Keep It Together		9	148
The Power of Good-Bye		8	144
I'll Remember		6	142
Words		7	136
This Used to Be My Playground		8	120
Over and Over		6	119
Love Song	1	6	117
Sorry		7	115
Think of Me		6	104
Where's the Party	1	5	100
Dear Jessie		5	96
Thief of Hearts		4	93
Skin		4	84
Drowned World/Substitute for Love		4	82
Sky Fits Heaven		4	82
Nothing Really Matters		5	79
Candy Perfume Girl		4	76
Love Tried to Welcome Me		3	72
Rescue Me		3	66
Jump		4	64
Swim		3	57
Let It Will Be		3	56
Jimmy Jimmy		3	54
Fever		2	53
Love Profusion		3	49
Give Me All Your Luvin'		3	47
Bye Bye Baby		2	43
Shanti/Ashtangi		2	38
Where Life Begins		2	37
I Love New York		2	34
American Life		1	33
4 Minutes		2	32
Sanctuary		2	32
Gambler		2	30
He's a Man		2	29
I Know It		2	29
I'm Addicted		2	29
Shoo-Bee-Doo		1	28
Love Don't Live Here Anymore		1	26
Future Lovers		1	25
Hanky Panky		1	23
To Have and Not to Hold		1	22
Act of Contrition		1	21
Inside of Me		1	21
Little Star		1	20
Forbidden Love (2005)		1	19
How High		1	19
Impressive Instant		1	19
Miles Away		1	19
Forbidden Love (1994)		1	18
Paradise (Not For Me)		1	17
Love Makes the World Go Round		1	16
Sidewalk Talk		1	16
Sooner or Later		1	15
Hollywood		1	14
Don't Cry For Me Argentina		1	13
Nobody's Perfect		1	13
Spotlight		1	13
Gang Bang		1	12
Gone		1	12

1 vote for "Act of Contrition"?

1 vote for "Inside of Me"?

(3 votes for "Give Me All Your Luvin"?)

nice to have a reminder that "4 Minutes" got the shaft

look at that cluster of ray of light songs together, lol at hollywood bookended by sooner or later and don't cry for me argentina

The haters have this much correct at least: "Deeper & Deeper" is not an objectively-great universal pop song in the same way that "Into Your Groove" or even "Open Your Heart" is.

Each of those songs express a kind of will-to-completeness, a desire for perfect union in love or on the dancefloor which I think is the kind of experience that anyone open to pop music hopefully can relate to and embrace.

"Deeper & Deeper" exhibits those emotions, but they're almost overwhelmed by the competing-yet-complementary senses of shock and relief: this is possible and right. This is possible and right. It's not merely the shock of love, of lust, of captivation on the dancefloor, but the shock of all of those things against a backdrop of a life of self-denial and self-control, of telling yourself that these experiences were both impossible and wrong. It's about subjugation to the law of expectation, and emancipation from that law into a new form of subjugation to the law of desire. In that moment, a transformation that might pass by unnoticed to some observers nonetheless forms one of the crossroad points in your life, a threshold that once passed colours everything ahead and everything behind. I fell in love with "Deeper & Deeper" when I was 15 and I allowed myself to acknowledge my own desires at the same age, and I can pinpoint a second which this song encapsulates for me. And I fell in love when I was 18 and rediscovered the import of this song again.

It's not universal at all. But it's my number one favourite song ever.

PS. amazing work on this poll Johnny.

i think it was maybe underwhelming at the time but listening to it recently i found it MUCH better than i remembered, certainly closer to matching the sum of its parts than say chuck d + sonic youth.

Indeed. "Word up" does not a collaboration make.

Not enough depth here for a proper rollout outside of the top few, so here are your raw remix subpoll results:

Sorry (Man With Guitar Mix)	9	66
Justify My Love (Beast Within Remix)	5	36
Open Your Heart Extended Mix	5	28
Burning Up 12" Mix	3	22
La Isla Bonita (Revenge Rework)	3	22
Bedtime Story (Orbital Mix)	3	16
What It Feels Like For a Girl (Above & Beyond Remix)	2	16
Over and Over (You Can Dance Remix)	2	10
Erotica (William Orbit 12" Mix)	1	10
Let It Will Be (Paper Faces Remix)	1	10
Express Yourself (Shep Pettibone Video Mix)	1	10
Music Sounds Better With You vs. Holiday (Stuntmasterz Mix)	1	10
Hollywood (Stuart Price Mix)	1	10
Ray of Light (Liquid Mix)	1	10
Impressive Instant (Peter Rauhofer's Universal Club Mix)	1	10
Hollywood (Jacques Lu Cont's Thin White Duck Mix)	2	8
Sky Fits Heaven (Sasha's The Drug Fits Face Mix)	1	8
Human Nature (Runway Club Mix)	1	8
Erotica (Confessions Studio Extended Mix)	1	8
Into the Groove (Extended Remix)	1	8
Erotica/You Thrill Me (Confessions Tour Mix)	1	8
I'll Remember (Guerilla Beach Mix)	1	8
Don't Cry For Me Argentina (Miami Mix)	2	6
Everybody (You Can Dance Extended Mix)	1	6
Drowned World/Substitute For Love (BT and Sasha's Bucklodge Ashram Remix)	1	6
Into the Groove (Dub Version)	1	6
Keep It Together (Single Remix)	1	6
Jump (Jacques Lu Cont Mix)	1	6
Get Together (James Holden Remix)	1	4
Nothing Really Matters (K&D Mix)	1	4
Fever (Edit One with 12" Intro)	1	4
Hung Up (Diplo Mix)	1	4
Love Don't Live Here Anymore (Remix)	1	4
Rain (Razor and Guido Rain Forest Mix)	1	4
Secret (Junior's Luscious Club Mix)	1	4
Justify My Love (Orbit 12" Mix)	1	4
American Life (Felix Da Housecat's Devin Dazzle Radio Edit)	1	4
Erotica (Masters at Work Remix)	1	2
Ray of Light (Sasha Ultra Violet Mix)	1	2
Erotica (Madonna's In My Jeep Mix)	1	2
Vogue (The Shep Pettibone Integral Mix)	1	2
La Isla Bonita (Extended Remix)	1	2
Love Profusion (Ralphi Rosario House Vocal Mix)	1	2

fantastic remix results // tim f otm re: deeper & deeper

Impressed by how deep the quality goes. You could have started the countdown at 70 and still had a strong line-up.

who was the Hanky Panky voter?

probably my dad

Just played that Open Your Heart remix Alfred was championing. Wow.

My ballot, which answers how's life's question.

Songs

01. Where’s the Party? - 40
02. Causing a Commotion - 36
03. American Life - 33
04. Open Your Heart - 30
05. Lucky Star - 28
06. Take A Bow - 26
07. Burning Up - 25
08. Live to Tell - 24
09. Hanky Panky - 23
10. Into the Groove - 22
11. Everybody - 21
12. Secret - 20
13. Bad Girl - 19
14. Papa Don’t Preach - 18
15. Justify My Love - 17
16. Love Makes the World Go Round - 16
17. Love Profusion - 15
18. Deeper and Deeper - 14
19. True Blue - 13
20. Bedtime Story – 12

Videos

1. Like A Prayer
2. Vogue
3. Cherish
4. Oh Father
5. Material Girl

Albums

1. True Blue
2. American Life
3. Like A Prayer
4. Madonna
5. Bedtime Stories

Vote for the songs you enjoy the most, that is the ILMer's creed.

ILMadonna

respect for voting for "American Life," wish i had done so in solidarity with you (i went for "Die Another Day" instead)

True Blue
Open Your Heart
Dress You Up
Borderline
La Isla Bonita
Live to Tell
Crazy for You
Papa Don't Preach
Into the Groove
Die Another Day
Ray of Light
Take A Bow
Cherish
Material Girl
Who's That Girl
Music
Burning Up
Holiday
Where Life Begins
Deeper and Deeper

I think I had the most fun exploring remixes, no wonder there were so many single votes. There's so much to choose from!

yeah there are a ton i haven't heard, looking forward to diving in

really hate that her label seem to have been the most efficient at scouring the internet free of rarities - i'd be happy to buy most of the old remixes on itunes but you can't even do that!

1 vote for "Act of Contrition"?

guilty! i'm actually surprised it didn't get more votes.

That's what I meant. I thought for sure 2 or 3 more votes on that one.