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

Madge/Police Academy crossover?

"And we went for it; I went for it. Treated him like a kid brother."

I never did my Madonna fandom origin story on the other thread, so here's a short version: my sister and I's frequent babysitter at the time was always playing TB and "White Heat" seemed to be a fave of hers. She even choreographed a dance to it which my sister definitely participated in. I can't remember if actually did, but I certainly hope so.

here's my Madonna fandom origin story:

- young DJP sees the video for "Borderline", thinks "oh this is catchy, I like this"
- young DJP sees the video for "Burnin' Up", thinks "holy shit, this must be puberty"
- young DJP sees the video for "Lucky Star", thinks "yup, this is definitely puberty"

Do remember hearing "Papa Don't Preach" before the babysitter thing (since I remember recognizing the song when she played it), but that was definitely my first Madonna song.

Mine:

Family took a vacation to Cocoa Beach to see a shuttle launch in 1985 and I had a boombox and ridiculously oversized headphones with me in the back seat, and I must have heard "Into the Groove" 50 times during that trip. That made a fan of that song, of her, and the art of catching a song on the radio WHILE you have a blank tape in the tape deck.

haha I went back and looked at my ballot and I had "White Heat" at #3

A social studies teacher tried to convince my grade 10 class that "Into The Groove" is about masturbation.

(Sounds like my ninth-grade English teach who couldn't stop talked about Frankie's "Relax.")

Mine:

Memorial Day weekend 1985: in the back seat while Mom and little sister sang "Into The Groove," me resisting the temptation to join them because - I"m not sure! I was embarrassed to be a boy who liked Madonna?

http://i.imgur.com/lfY33Mj.jpg

(TIE) 44. "SECRET GARDEN" from Erotica (1992) [7 votes, 161 points]

YES!

WOO!

(the highest ranking "deep cut" on my ballot)

jesus that pic

brb

YES

woah she has a bit of the look of beyonce in that image.

She had more looks during the Erotica cycle than any other, I believe.

I was "into" Madonna from the first singles, but I didn't realize my fandom until I insisted that my parents get me satin sheets for my new waterbed because of the lyrics of "Dress You Up" (lol Florida in 1985)

okay that's amazing

then your parents got you KFC because of the lyrics of "Where Life Begins"

Woo! I had both of of White Heat and Secret Garden, it feels good to be making a difference.

1. Sometime in the mid-80s, I heard either Lucky Star or Holiday in a Wisconsin roller rink owned by one of my mom’s friends from high school.
2. In 1987 or so, I was in our local Sam Goody. I was looking a hair metal cassettes, probably Motley Crue. Two teenage boys stop near me and start having a conversation about the new Madonna album, I can’t remember if it was True Blue or You Can Dance. I leave without any Madonna, because she’s a girl, but I am intrigued.
3. The Like a Prayer-era. Watch an hour of MTV every morning. Title track completely inescapable. Dislike Express Yourself though, which wears me down. Eventually she comes back with Cherish, which I really like. Still secretly though, because I am afraid of girls.
4. Dick Tracy: Vogue and Hanky Panky put me completely off of Madonna for a long time.
5. 1999: William Orbit connection (because I've confused him with Orbital) to Ray of Light prompts me to check out that album as well as her classic 80s stuff.
6. 2000: someone tries to awkwardly seduce me with a mix CD compiled from Erotica and Bedtime Stories. Sold.

i don't even know the first madonna song i heard (maybe "rain" or even "i'll remember"? they played the shit out of those on the adult alternative stations my mom listened to)

I guess I was one of the late votes for "Die Another Day". I'd never really given it a try until lex went on about it on some thread a while back, & I fell for it right way. great vid too.

I keep relistening to "I'll Remember" today. That sequenced synth and the bottom end are so deliciously warm.

her being a girl never occurred to me as a reason not to be a fan, but girls dressing like her circa Like a Virgin definitely solidified my fandom

my madonna story is i downloaded a bunch of madonna albums this must be the "cheapening" i've heard so much about

first time i was conscious of "oh this is madonna i'm listening to" was definitely "take a bow"

http://i.imgur.com/Xs5cZaa.jpg

43. "WAITING" from Erotica (1992) [8 votes, 189 points]

her being a girl never occurred to me as a reason not to be a fan, but girls dressing like her circa Like a Virgin definitely solidified my fandom

― Euler, Thursday, March 7, 2013 1:39 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I started a thread once about my early-life issues surrounding female musicians.

:D

William Orbit connection (because I've confused him with Orbital) to Ray of Light prompts me to check out that album

love this

oh i also hated "die another day" when it came out, and a few years ago when i read lex and tom going on about it i was like "how the hell do they get this much out of the hookless glitchy madonna bond theme"

then i listened again and i was like "ohhhh." like hearing it with new ears. could be a personal development but i mostly blame it on lex and tom, good critwork there. relistening to american life for this poll it jumped out at me as the liveliest thing on there.

the only erotica album cut i voted for was "words" but i'm super glad all these other tracks are showing up

her being a girl never occurred to me as a reason not to be a fan, but girls dressing like her circa Like a Virgin definitely solidified my fandom

― Euler, Thursday, March 7, 2013 1:39 PM

I was already scared of being outed, I realized later.

i don't remember exactly when i first heard madonna but i do have a memory of being...i guess 8?...and 'erotica' was all over the radio and one day i kept singing "erotic, erotic, put your hands all over my body" until my mom begged me to stop

i didn't vote in this poll because the idea of ranking madonna songs in order of preference gave me low-level anxiety btw

i hated "die another day" when it came out too and then loved it when i came back to it for this poll, but in between i listened to bands that were not weezer so that might have helped

i still haaaaaate "american life"

First Madonna song I heard - Crazy For You, sometime in 1991. I was already vaguely aware that she was both hugely controversial, not a family subject - not even a playground subject, 9-yr-olds at school tended to talk about Kylie instead - and in some realm of fame beyond my ken. I don't remember what I thought about the song.

This Used To Be My Playground was the first M single I consciously heard, I thought it was boring. I loved the Erotica singles but also knew more than ever that Madonna was *bad*, someone who would incur parental disapproval. Bedtime Stories was my first M album thx to a friend at school...

I'm really happy that I turned people on to Die Another Day!

I loved the Erotica singles but also knew more than ever that Madonna was *bad*, someone who would incur parental disapproval

consciously remember around when ray of light came out me telling my mom, as "frozen" eased out of restaurant speakers while we waited for a table, "oh mom, that's from the new madonna record! she's not gross and sexy anymore! i think you'll like it!"

bahaha

"secret" was an early "this might be my favorite song of all time" for me. i think it was preceded by the gloria estefan version of "turn the beat around"

I think I related some of my intro to Madonna on the voting thread but for posterity:

My first cassette purchased with my own money was a compilation called H'Its Huge 84 - second to last song on Side A. I don't remember if this was where I first heard Madonna or if I'd maybe heard her on the radio before then but 8 year old me LOVED Holiday. It was a fun song to dance to.
So the next year in 1985, at the ripe age of 9 the first single-artist cassette I ever purchased with my own money was Like a Virgin. It was a race between wearing out the cassette and wearing out the carpet in front of my dressing table mirror from dancing to it. I would go over to my friend's house and we would come up with dances to Stay and Pretender and pretend to slow dance to Shoo Be Do...even being so young I don't remember there was a song on that cassette that I didn't love.
I didn't own True Blue but a couple of girls in my class did, and they would bring a portable stereo to school and at lunchtimes and recess they would set it up in the alcove between two classrooms - it was just a like a big concrete dancefloor and we would dance to True Blue and Jimmy Jimmy and Where's The Party and White Heat (as well as the Bangles and Cyndi Lauper). But always, always paying special attention to coming up with 'actions' for all the songs, because we worshipped the dance-sign language Madge used in the True Blue video.

Also seeing my friend's 18 yo cousin dressed up in full Madonna Like a Virgin dancing-on-the-gondola outfit in my tiny small town blew my 10 year old mind. That was as close as I ever come to meeting Madonna, lol

*Holiday was the second to last song on Side A, oops

i don't remember exactly when i first heard madonna but i do have a memory of being...i guess 8?...and 'erotica' was all over the radio and one day i kept singing "erotic, erotic, put your hands all over my body" until my mom begged me to stop

When my son was 4 or 5, his favorite song was "3" by Britney Spears.

wait i just realized i totally do have a pre-soulseek madonna story because when i was nine a friend's parents dragged both of us to evita

idk what the general opinion of evita is amongst the wider population but i bet i can predict it amongst nine-year-old boys

Didn't vote, never even heard a whole Madonna record, but dig all the singles, and love a few of them. Lurking and learning (and listening).

http://i.imgur.com/Xet06M1.jpg

42. "WHO'S THAT GIRL" from the motion picture soundtrack Who's That Girl (1987) [11 votes, 194 points]