When Madonna released 'Borderline' in the early 1980's, I wonder how many people thought she would carve out a career which would span 3 decades and possibly more. Not many I bet, but she has, and she has released so many hit singles and albums that she has enough material to make a follow up to 'The Immaculate Collection' which showcased her earlier work. GHV2 is a collection of her music from the last 11 years since the release of the aforementioned 'Immaculate Collection'. The time between the two albums saw Madonna go from media darling to the target of a huge backlash and back to media darling again. Most of it her own doing I must add!
The album kicks off with the upbeat 'Deeper and Deeper' which was featured on the widely disliked 'Erotica' album. This is a song which goes back to her disco pop roots, and reels in the fans who loved her old material. 'Erotica' is taken from the album of the same name which I have just mentioned, and it is the track which I would say could be left out of this selection and the standard of the album would not suffer in anyway. The song was brought out at the same time as the highly controversial book of photos 'Sex', and I think that this was a direction Madonna deliberately took to try and shock people, but in my mind it backfired as the material released around this time was mostly overlooked as the focus was on her antics away from the music.
My favourite track from the 'Bedtime Stories'
album is 'Human Nature'. The style was a more watered down version of 'Erotica', as the subject matter was domination and bondage. Maybe it still was not mainstream enough as it certainly did not receive the commercial success it so deserved. I think if it had been released as the first single off the album then it would not have had to work so hard to get people to listen it, but fans and critics had applauded a change of style with a brilliant track 'Secret' which was the debut release from 'Bedtime Stories'.
'Evita' was the film that Madonna had longed to make for as long as she had been in music, so it was no surprise that she not only got the part, but also released 'Don't Cry For Me Argentina'. This track shows a new warmth and dimension to Madonna's vocals which are sometimes brought into question when she performs live. It is a rousing version of a well known song, but she still manages to leave her mark on it. It is a strange but welcome inclusion on this album, especially as it is just so different from anything else on here.
'Bedtime Stories' was released from the album of the same name, and was co-written by Bjork and renowned producer Nellee Hooper, a fact which was not widely publicised at the time. It is a track which grows on you with each listen, and gave hints that Madonna was starting to dabble her toes in the dance music waters. It signalled a mini comeback. For me, 'Ray Of Light' was the album which put Madonna right back on top in terms of popularity and media coverage. She had a huge image change (one of many we have seen over the years) and enlisted the help of renowned producer William Orbit, and the result was a collection of truly brilliant songs. The first song here from that album is the slow tempo 'The Power Of Goodbye'. It is a haunting track, and the lyrics are astounding. There are so many styles emerging from this track, and they all combine well to leave you under no doubt that you have just listened to pure brilliance.
The way to make money and guarantee yourself a hit these days, is to have your song feature on a movie soundtrack, and Madonna chose the Mike Myers comedy 'Austin Powers'. The box office success of this film guaranteed the sales for 'Beautiful Stranger', but I think that it would have done well even without the backing of the publicity from the film. It is a song which has dance, pop, rock and at times a jazz influence, but they fuse together and give a really funky track with more than a hint of a sixties feel to it.
1998 saw the release of 'Frozen' and this was the first track released from 'Ray Of Light'. It is very hard to try and pigeonhole this song because again it is a mix of so many styles. It is not a ballad, but it is a slow track. It is a track which no other artist could have done as well, and it just oozes a stylishness and classiness that sets it apart from so many other artists and their music. It was accompanied by a brilliant video, which showed a very sombre Madonna, but also very attractive.
Jumping back in time to 'Bedtime Stories', 'Take A Bow' is a touching ballad, and surprisingly it is the least commercially successful single of her career to date. It is a track where Madonna really lets her vocals melt into the music, and the result is truly engaging. Next up, is arguably the best song of Madonna's career. 'Ray Of Light' leaned heavily on the talent of William Orbit, and it was a travesty that it did not reach the top of the charts. It is a much harder sound than we are used to from Madonna, but it is a very welcome change.
Now onto the hugely successful 'Music' album and the track 'Don't Tell Me'. A much underrated song, with a real country and western meets pop feel to it. 'What It Feels Like For A Girl' would probably not be a track which would feature in the 10 best known Madonna songs, and that is not because it is a bad track, but it just has nothing to make you remember it. The lyrics pass you by without making you stop to think about them. A strange inclusion, which like 'Erotica' does nothing for the collection.
A track which always reminds me of the media coverage surrounding the death of Princess Diana is 'Drowned World/Substitute For Love', and I think it has more to do with the video rather than the song. It has the unusual style of merging two songs into one, but the end result is very impressive fusion of tracks. 'Music' ends the album on a high, and was the song that you heard nigh on everywhere you went in the new Millenium. It is funky, it is pop, it is a great track with a hint of humour, which I think will have a lot of staying power, and I love the opening line.
This album was not as well received by the critics or the record buying public as 'The Immaculate Collection' was, and I really cannot see the reason for this, as I certainly prefer it. It is a mix of styles, and is certainly never bland, although I wish (like many other people who have reviewed this album) that the excellent version of 'American Pie' had been included. I would recommend this album. It is thoroughly enjoyable, and the change in style and tempo means the interest levels are always at a high.
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I love Madonna - especially her old stuff! I was talking about her last night too saying she was going to go down as a legend eventually for the length of time she has been around. Also if I look as good as that in my early 40's I'll be laughing :-)
CatK 06.03.2003 17:30
I like all of Madonnas music so I might just be buying this in the near future! Cat x
quizzeyq 04.03.2003 03:21
I think Madonna is one of the true artists and has a great range of styles. This album sounds great. good op. x
Perhaps the most interesting decade in her career, GHV2 is a selection of the best songs ... more
from 1992's Erotica to Music in 2000. Throughout the 1990s, Madonna was well publicised for trying her hand at anything musical together with setting new styles an...
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