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Albumcover, shot by Mario Testino Album Bedtime Stories had already proven that Madonna had calmed down a bit after the raunchy Erotica period. On November 7th, 1995 she took it a step further and used her new-found calmness to release a collection of her best ballads. "... So without a lot of fanfare, without any distractions, I present to you this collection of ballads. Some are old, some are new. All of them are from my heart." Fans that love the controversial Madonna probably cringed while reading this. But it's a fact that Madonna made some great ballads. Most songs selected for Something To Remember came from a movie soundtrack and some hadn't even appeared on a Madonna album before. Crazy For You was from Vision Quest (and appeared on The Immaculate Collection), Live To Tell was from 'At Close Range' (and appeared on True Blue and The Immaculate Collection), I'll Remember had only appeared on the 'With Honors' soundtrack and This Used To Be My Playground was written for A League Of Their Own. Madonna added one of her early songs Love Don't Live Here Anymore (previously featured on Like A Virgin) and released it 12 years after recording the original. She also re-released Oh Father, from the Like A Prayer album. Something To Remember was a song from I'm Breathless and was probably included because of the convenient title. Rain was practically the only ballad on Erotica while Forbidden Love and Take A Bow were taken from the most recent album Bedtime Stories. The most interesting on the compilation album were of course the three new songs. Madonna collaborated with producer Nellee Hooper and Massive Attack for I Want You. This cover of the Marvin Gaye classic was initially intended to be released. Instead WBR opted for You'll See, a great song which became a fairly successful single, especially after the poor chart results of Bedtime Story and Human Nature. And finally, One More Chance was another new track, beautiful but often forgotten, that got a limited single release. Those last two tracks were produced by David Foster. The Japanese version, of the album contained La Isla Bonita as bonus track, while the 15th track on the Mexican version was Veras, the Spanish version of You'll See. In the album charts, Something To Remember reached #1 (Australia), #2 (Germany), #3 (France, UK), #4 (Canada), and #6 (US). In October 2000 it was last certified triple Platinum for shipments of 3 million US copies. Worldwide it sold about 8 million copies. Singles You'll See - November 1995 (US) / October 1995 (Eur.) Oh Father (re-release) - December 1995 (Eur.) Love Don't Live Here Anymore - March 1996 (US) One More Chance - March 1996 (UK, Japan, Australia)

Albumcover, designed by Jeri and John Heiden Photography by Herb Ritts Album By the end of the eighties Madonna had released four successful studio albums, a remix album and some movie soundtracks. She had already scored eight #1 hits in the US, seven in the UK and Canada, and eleven in Japan. With the Blond Ambition Tour Madonna's success was higher than ever; the timing for a greatest hits album was perfect. On November 13th, 1990 Madonna released The Immaculate Collection. The cheeky title referred to the Byblical 'immaculate conception' and showed Madonna's sense of humour after all the religious controversy surrounding her single Like A Prayer. On top of that she dedicates the album to "The Pope, my divine inspiration". The compilation album contained 15 of her greatest hits. Chronologically there were three singles from the first album, two singles from Like A Virgin, four singles from True Blue and three singles from Like A Prayer. There was also Crazy For You, which previously featured on the Vision Quest soundtrack. Into The Groove was from Desperately Seeking Susan, but had also appeared on the re-issue of Like A Virgin. Vogue was her latest #1, coming from I'm Breathless. Rather surprising was the absence of Who's That Girl, a #1 hit in the US, UK, Canada and Japan, and True Blue, which hit #1 in the UK and Japan and #3 in the US. Shortly after The Immaculate Collection was released, there was a CD single released, called 'The Holiday Collection', which contained the original album version of Holiday, plus three 'forgotten' tracks True Blue, Who's That Girl and Causing A Commotion (Silver Screen Single Mix). The tracks that did make the selection were mixed by Shep Pettibone, Goh Hotoda and Michael Hutchinson. Most notable are the different versions of Like A Prayer, Express Yourself and Vogue. To boost album sales, the compilation also contained two brand new tracks, which were both released as singles. Madonna collaborated with rock-star Lenny Kravitz for Justify My Love, which became a huge success and one of Madonna's most controversial singles (especially because of the video). Rescue Me often disappears in the shadow of that first single, but is a very powerful Madonna song, often underestimated. The greatest hits album shot to the top of the album charts. While it dominated the charts in Australia, Canada and the UK for several weeks, it stalled at #2 in the US and France. To date it has sold over 25 million copies worldwide, making it the best selling Madonna album and the best selling female greatest hits album ever. In October 2001 the RIAA honored Madonna with a Diamond Award, denoting sales of more than 10 million copies of The Immaculate Collection in the US. It was Madonna's second Diamond Award after receiving one for Like A Virgin in 1998. In the UK it was certified 12 times Platinum in January 2003. Singles Justify My Love - November 1990 (US & Eur.) Rescue Me - February 1991 (US) / April 1991 (Eur.)

** Ring My Bell (bonus track on Japanese edition) Albumcover, shot by Steven Klein Art work by Giovanni Bianco Album "I'm going to kick your ass, but it's going to make you feel good". That's how Madonna introduced her 12th studio album Hard Candy. "The title is a juxtaposition of tough and sweetness... And of course I love candy!" After her successful future disco record Confessions On A Dance Floor, she teamed up with some of the biggest names in today's hip hop scene: Pharrell Williams, Justin Timberlake, Timbaland & Danja. "I think Pharrell is a natural musician. I like his inventiveness - he would grab my acoustic guitar, which he couldn't play, but start playing percussion on it. He would find bottles and start playing them with spoons. [...] I can totally relate to Justin as a songwriter. We would sit down together and say OK, let's come up with a concept. What story do we want to tell? We would riff off to each other and play woth words. He likes to play with words and the rhytm of words and so do I. [...] I felt more introspective because I was writing with Pharrell and Justin. On Confessions, I just wanted to make a frivolous dance record, but with this one I had to dig deeper and go to a different place... For me, it's a true collaboration, intellectually and artistically." Madonna named Justin's second album FutureSex/LoveSounds as her main inspiration, which was produced by Timbaland & Danja. The record was released worldwide on April 28th, 2008 (some regions received it on the 25th or the 29th). It is her last studio album released under Warner Bros. Records. A special edition of the album was released at the same time and the Japanese version contains a bonus track called Ring My Bell, which was also available for fans who pre-ordered the album on iTunes. The lead-off single is 4 Minutes, which is a duet with Justin and was produced by Timbaland. The opening track Candy Shop, which was the inspiration behind the album title and leaked on the Internet in 2007 already, is one of Madonna's personal favorites. An early version of Beat Goes On also leaked but was later reworked, including a rap by Kanye West. 4 Minutes hit #1 pretty much everywhere, became Madonna's record breaking 37th Top 10 hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was certified double Platinum in August 2008 for 2 million paid downloads. The second single is Give It 2 Me, produced by The Neptunes, which hit big in Europe. Third and final single is the beautiful ballad Miles Away, which was a moderate hit around continental Europe. Hard Candy immediately became a huge success all around the world, reaching #1 in 27 countries, including Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK and US. It debuted on the US Billboard 200 with 280,000 copies and became her 7th US #1 album, while in the UK Madonna simultaneously topped the albums and singles charts for the 4th time in her career, which is unmatched by any other female artist. Hard Candy is Madonna's 10th #1 album in the UK, the most among female artists. In the US, Hard Candy was certified Gold in June 2008 and its hard sales already passed 700,000 copies, while it reached Platinum in the UK (more than 300,000 copies sold). Worldwide sales are well above 3 million, which put it among the top 10 best selling albums of 2008. Singles 4 Minutes - March 25th 2008 (Digital) / April 21st 2008 (Physical - UK) / April 28th 2008 (Physical - US) Give It 2 Me - July 14th 2008 (Physical - UK) / August 5th (Physical - US) Miles Away - November 24th 2008 (Physical - UK) / December 16th 2008 (Physical - US)

** Fighting Spirit (bonus track on limited edition) ** History (bonus track on Jump single) ** Super Pop (bonus track for ICON members) Albumcover, shot by Steven Klein Art work by Giovanni Bianco Album After working with him on her Drowned World Tour and Re-Invention Tour, Madonna teamed up with Stuart Price (aka Jacques Lu Cont) to produce her album Confessions On A Dance Floor. Pretty soon they knew they wanted to make a full-on dance record. No ballads, no messages, all dance. The result was a sound, described by Stuart as 'future disco' and it's 'where pop meets dance'. The 12 delicious tunes of pure 'unapologetic dance music' are all mixed together as one DJ set. As Madonna said: "I want people to jump out of their seats." Originally, Madonna planned to make most of the album with Mirwais, but she got a better vibe with Stuart Price. When Hung Up was written, Madonna was convinced to do an all-dance record. She did keep (and rework) two tracks from the Mirwais collaboration though: Future Lovers and Let It Will Be. Brother-in-law Joe Henry, who also wrote the original version for Don't Tell Me, joined the writers team for Jump. Madonna also worked with a lot of Swedes on the album; Swedish duo Bloodshy & Avant worked on How High and Like It Or Not, while Bagge & Peer did the original production of Get Together. Another Swedish nod: for the first single Hung Up, Madonna borrowed a sample from Abba's 'Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight)'. The video for that single is directed by Swedish Johann Renck (see also Nothing Really Matters). The album was released worldwide on November 14th, 2005 (some regions on the 11th, 15th or 16th). On the 15th it also became available on iTunes in both a mixed version (like the disc) and a version with separate tracks. Both versions were also available in a DeLuxe package, including the Hung Up video. ICON members received a bonus track called Super Pop. A limited edition was released on December 13th, 2005, containing a 40 page picture book, 80 page blank journal book, fanclub membership and a bonus track called Fighting Spirit. The release of the album and the first single was promoted by a never-seen marketing campaign. Hung Up featured in a commercial for the Motorola ROKR mobile phone (which featured Madonna herself as well) and was later available as ring tone. Madonna signed a deal with iTunes, which made available her entire back catalog. Another deal was made with MTV, who previewed the new material and who also screened the documentary I'm Going To Tell You A Secret. Subsequently, Madonna performed Hung Up live on the 2005 MTV Europe Music Awards in Lisbon. That was the kick-off for a promo tour, including several TV shows and club appearances. Hung Up immediately became a smash #1 hit all over the world, including Australia, Canada and most of Europe. Follow-up singles were Sorry (which was also a huge hit around the world), Get Together and Jump (with moderate success). The latter has a track as B-single from the recording sessions with Stuart that didn't make the album, called History. Madonna also earned four consecutive #1s on the Hot Dance / Club Play. Confessions On A Dance Floor received a Grammy Award in 2007 for Best Electronic / Dance Album. The album sold 350,000 copies in its first week in the US and 1,2 million copies worldwide. It reached #1 in 41 countries, including Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, UK (her 9th #1; certified 4 times Platinum in January 2007) and US (her 6th #1; certified Platinum in December 2005). Worldwide sales already passed 8 million copies. Singles Hung Up - November 7th 2005 (UK) / November 17th 2005 (US) Sorry - February 20th 2006 (UK) / February 28th 2006 (US) Get Together - July 24th 2006 (UK) / June 6th 2006 (US) Jump - November 6th 2006 (UK) / November 7th 2006 (US)

Albumcover, shot by Craig McDean Art work by Michael Amzalag Album After her Drowned World Tour, two movie projects and a West End play, Madonna returns to the music scene with her album American Life. Written and recorded over 1,5 year, it was the longest time Madonna ever took to make an album. Which has a positive effect on the reflecting state of it, she says. She collaborated again with Music producer Mirwais, who didn't only co-produce the album, but also plays guitar on several songs and even does some backing vocals for Love Profusion. Madonna also worked with some of her musicians from the Drowned World Tour; tour guitarist Monte Pittman co-wrote Easy Ride, while keyboard-player Stuart Price worked on X-Static Process. Tour choreographer Jamie King also assisted on the American Life video. For Nothing Fails, Madonna is backed up by the London Community Gospel Choir. But as said, Mirwais is the main collaborator, and the only producer on the album. This means that the album is much more consistent than her previous albums, when she worked with several collaborators at the same time. Though Madonna experiments with rap, she says the album is mainly a combination of electronic pop - which she experimented with on Ray Of Light and Music - and classical instruments, like acoustic guitars and strings. That's where string arranger Michel Colombier comes in. In contrast with the multi-layered Ray Of Light, this album is simple structured, and her vocals get priority over the instruments, much more than ever before. The title-track was released as lead-off single early april. Madonna decided to put modern technology to her advantage: after Music and Die Another Day leaked onto the Internet, she thought it wise to put American Life online herself. The "digital single" [MP3] was available for purchase on her official website (only for American fans unfortunately) and was sent out on March 24th, while the single premiered on the radio worldwide the same day. On April 14th, the songs Love Profusion, X-Static Process and Mother And Father officially premiered on the websites of AOL, Launch and MSN, as part of the huge promo campaign. The CD itself was in stores on April 22nd, 2003. The American Life album quickly became a big hit, reaching #1 in 17 countries, including Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, UK and US. Despite the backlash the album got in the US, it was already certified Platinum early July 2003. It's also Platinum in Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the UK. Due to explicit lyrics, the album cover features a Parental Advisory sticker. There's also a censored version and a limited edition of the album. While the single American Life was pretty successful in Europe and other territories, it got serious backlash in the US for its criticism on the country. Second single Hollywood was rush-released to forget American Life, with a video directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino. But this second single suffered even more from the album backlash, and it didn't even feature on the Billboard Hot 100. In an attempt to put these failures behind, Madonna put the focus on her children's books, and meanwhile hit the charts again with her duet with Britney Me Against The Music. After that WBR released Love Profusion (with video) and Nothing Fails (without video). In some territories, they charted together as a double A-side single, while in other territories they were released separately in different formats (but mostly with both singles appearing on the disc). The Nothing Fails maxi-single was also boosted with bonus remixes of Nobody Knows Me, which resulted in both songs appearing in the dance charts. Even though the album was - chartwise - considered a flop, Madonna broke a record by scoring 7 top 10 hits in the Hot Dance / Club Play chart from the same album: Die Another Day, American Life, Hollywood, Nothing Fails, Love Profusion, Nobody Knows Me and Mother And Father. In November 2003, Madonna also released the EP Remixed & Revisited, collecting rock and retro remixes of American Life, Love Profusion, Nothing Fails and Nobody Knows Me, plus the 2003 VMA performance of Like A Virgin/Hollywood, the Gap remix Into The Hollywood Groove, and a previously unreleased track from Bedtime Stories, called Your Honesty. While an EP is in some territories not eligible for the albums chart, it did get to #1 in the UK dance album chart. In Italy it charted at #2 on the singles chart, while in France it appeared on the top spot of the Top Mid Price Chart. Singles American Life - April 8th 2003 (US) / April 14th 2003 (Eur.) Hollywood - July 8th 2003 (US) / July 7th 2003 (Eur.) Nothing Fails / Love Profusion - December 8th 2003 (Eur.) Nothing Fails - December 9th 2003 (US) Love Profusion - March 16th 2004 (US & Eur.)

** Cyber-raga (bonus track on Asian/Australian version) ** Like An Angel Passing Through My Room (unreleased demo) ** Liquid Love (unreleased demo) ** Lo Que Siente La Mujer (Spanish version of What It Feels Like For A Girl) Albumcover, shot by Jean-Baptiste Mondino Album When the news about a new album got out, expectations from both fans and critics were high. With Ray Of Light, Madonna has re-invented herself again as a spiritual woman, expressing her feelings after the birth of her daughter. But she also set a high standard now. However, if anyone can top the success of Ray Of Light, it would have to be Madonna! And again she took a whole new direction. She strayed away from the spiritual, multi-layered Ray Of Light. This album was recorded late 1999, early 2000. Although it was ready by early summer, the release got pushed back because of Madonna's pregnancy with Rocco. In the meantime, only few official reports were released, giving wild rumours free play. Several names for the album circulated, 'Epiphany' being one of the best known. Also many fake tracklistings got around. One of the things that Madonna revealed was that she had collaborated with Ray Of Light-producer William Orbit again. In 1999, Orbit said they had worked on several songs, which had some similarities with the previous album. But Madonna isn't into repeating herself, so she hooked up with French producer Mirwais to work on a new sound. From both recording sessions, 3 Orbit-songs and 6 Mirwais-songs were selected. A tenth track was produced by Guy Sigsworth. Rumours about collaborations with Salt 'n Pepa and others proved to be just that - rumours. However, it seems true that a track was recorded with Sasha, but it was cut from the album. Music, Madonna's 8th full length studio album, was released worldwide on September 19th, 2000. The original 10-track version was only available in the US. For Europe there was a bonus track; American Pie, which originally appeared on the soundtrack of The Next Best Thing. Asia and Australia got a second bonus track called Cyber-raga. This new track was one of the cuts from the album, resembling Shanti/Ashtangi, the Sanskrit song from Ray Of Light. There's also a limited edition, in four different colors. This version is a booklet with the Music shield (see above) on a hard cover. It contains more inside pictures than the original, but the disc is the same. During the Drowned World Tour there was also a special tour edition, featuring the original disc plus an extra disc with remixes and the video for What It Feels Like For A Girl. None of the album editions provided lyrics; they were only available on Madonna's official website. The title track, though leaked on the Internet months before its release, was an incredible success. It topped the charts pretty much everywhere, something that hadn't really happened worldwide since 1990's Vogue. Where Music had the image of the ghetto-fabulous gangsta-diva, the second single Don't Tell Me elaborated on the album's cowgirl-theme and in What It Feels Like For A Girl Madonna appears as a violent nihilistic chick. Impressive Instant is the forgotten single; though very promising it never got a commercial release. Big mistake, because the promo with the Rauhofer remixes topped the Hot Dance/Club Play chart for two weeks, which also means the album had four #1 dance singles. Music was a hit on the album charts, debuting on #1 in Canada, France, Germany, UK and US. In its first week, 420,000 copies were scanned in the US, at that time it was the fourth-highest debut among female artists since May 1991. To this date, it has sold 11 million copies. In November 2005, it was triple Platinum in the US, while in February 2002 it was recertified 5 times Platinum in the UK. Singles Music - August 2000 (US & Eur.) Don't Tell Me - January 2001 (US) / November 2000 (Eur.) What It Feels Like For A Girl - May 2001 (US) / April 2001 (Eur.)

** Has To Be (bonus track on Asian/Australian version and Ray Of Light single) ** Gone Gone Gone (unreleased demo) ** Like A Flower (unreleased demo) ** No Substitute For Love (unreleased demo) ** Revenge (unreleased demo) Albumcover, shot by Mario Testino Album Four years after her last studio album Bedtime Stories, Madonna surprised the world with Ray Of Light. This album, being her 13th album and 7th studio album, was released worldwide on February 27th 1998, except in the States where it was released on March 3rd. Most critics agreed on one thing: this was a new Madonna. The controversy surrounding the Sex book and the Erotica album had faded away. The once called Material Girl had gone all spiritual. Major reason for this change was the birth of daughter Lourdes on October 14th 1996, which brought Madonna's life into a whole new dimension. "Having a child and questioning my own mortality and feeling incredibly responsible for someone else's life and being aware of how my behavior affects her - you have to step back and realize that we all affect each other". Madonna expressed these feelings in her songs. Drowned World/Substitute For Love and Nothing Really Matters tell about how her daughter changed the meaning of her life, how all of a sudden she became the center of Madonna's world, instead of the lady herself. Little Star is more explicitly dedicated to Lola. The first lines of Mer Girl sum up a lot of Madonna's feelings too, especially her fears. With all these new experiences and feelings, Madonna explored her spiritual horizons even further and turned to yoga and to the Kabbalah, a spiritual lifestyle. This resulted in another song Shanti/Ashtangi, which is sung entirely in Sanskrit. Madonna also wanted to limit the album to 13 songs, because 13 is a magical lucky number in the Kabbalah. A 14th track, the beautiful Has To Be was left off the album, but was included as a bonus track on the Asian/Australian release. For the making of Ray Of Light, Madonna turned to several songwriters. In May 1997 she got together with Babyface. They came up with a couple of songs, that related a lot to the Bedtime Stories album. But Madonna never wants to repeat herself and abandoned the project. Then she turned to Rick Nowels, with whom she wrote three songs that would appear on the album: The Power Of Good-Bye, To Have And Not To Hold and Little Star. Madonna's longtime collaborator Patrick Leonard cowrote four other songs of the album. But Madonna was looking for a new sound, a new vibe. She found it when she met William Orbit, who would end up producing the album. In Sp!n magazine, Madonna explains: "He would often give me tapes of snippets he was working on - 8-bar phrases, 16-bar phrases, stripped-down versions of what you hear on the record. And I'd listen to them over and over and it would inspire lyrics. I'd start writing a little bit and then I'd go back to William and say 'Okay, let's expand on this musical idea'. And as we expand on the music, I'd expand on the lyrics." The whole recording process took about four and a half months, the longest ever for Madonna. But the result was stunning. If Like A Prayer is considered Madonna's milestone of the eighties, then Ray Of Light had launched itself immediately as the milestone of the nineties. In the album charts, Ray Of Light debuted at #2 in the US and stayed there for two weeks, only the Titanic soundtrack kept it from the top spot. It did top the album charts in Australia, Canada, Germany and the UK. The album sold 15 million copies worldwide; 371.000 US copies in its first week. March 2000, it was certified 4 times Platinum in the US. In the UK it was recertified 6 times Platinum in January 2003. At the 1999 Grammies, Ray Of Light got six nominations and it received four Grammies: 'Best Pop Album', 'Best Short Form Music Video', 'Best Recording Package' for Art Director Kevin Reagen and 'Best Dance Recording'. Madonna was also the big winner at the 1998 MTV Music Video Awards, winning 'Video of the Year', 'Best Female Video', 'Best Direction', 'Best Editing', 'Best Choreography', 'Best Special Effects', 'Best Dance Video' and 'Breakthrough Video', all for the videos of Ray Of Light and Frozen. Singles Frozen - March 1998 (US) / February 1998 (Eur.) Ray Of Light - June 1998 (US) / April 1998 (Eur.) Drowned World/Substitute For Love - August 1998 (Eur.) The Power Of Good-Bye - September 1998 (US) / November 1998 (Eur.) Nothing Really Matters - April 1999 (US) / March 1999 (Eur.)

Albumcover, shot by Patrick Demarchelier Album The early nineties was the most controversial period in Madonna's career. In only a few years time she presented to the world the 'Sex' book, the Erotica album and the movies Truth or Dare and Body of Evidence. By 1994 the world had an overdosis of 'Madonna Erotica' and many thought the Queen of Exhibitionism had gone too far this time. Especially the 'Sex' book had given Madonna more damage than fame; sales of the Erotica album were pretty low for a Madonna album. By this time Madonna herself realized it was time for an image change again. She teamed up with four famous producers, Dallas Austin, Dave Hall, Nellee Hooper and Babyface to work on a new studio album. It was one of the very few occasions when she worked with well-known, established collaborators. The result was Bedtime Stories, an 11-track album released on October 25th, 1994. Like we're used of Madonna, the sound of the album differed from what she'd done before: it was a combination of R&B, New Jill Swing and 70s Groove. "I wanted a lot more of an R&B feel to this record," she explains. "The idea going in was to juxtapose my singing style with a hard core hip-hop sensibility and have the finished product still sound like a Madonna record. I began the process by meeting with the hip-hop producers whose work I most admired. I started working with Nellee later in the project, but because he was so innovative and creative, I went back with him to rework some of the earlier songs. I took the string arranger I used for Nellee's songs and put him on the material Dallas had produced. Everyone was influencing everyone else." The image associated with Bedtime Stories was no longer sex-oriented, but rather cool and clubby. The first single Secret and its video represented this image best. For Take A Bow her image was more conservative and glamourous, though part of the video shows her in lingerie as well. Those two singles shot to the top of the charts, a welcome change after the backdrops in the early nineties. In fact, Take A Bow (which is her longest running #1 single in the US with its 7 weeks at the top spot) helped the album to stop falling down on the Billboard album chart. However the two other singles, Bedtime Story and Human Nature, scored pretty low again. Many see the album as one of the less important madonna albums, and rather as a transition from the Erotica period into Evita and Ray Of Light. Especially with Bedtime Story we discover a new experimental Madonna sound, which she expanded years later with William Orbit. In the album charts, Bedtime Stories reached #1 (Australia), #2 (UK, France), #3 (US), #4 (Germany), and #7 (Canada). In November 2005 it was certified triple Platinum for shipments of 3 million US copies. Worldwide it sold about 6 million copies, less than Erotica in most countries with the notable exception of the US, probably because of the American-oriented R&B sound of the record. The album also got a Grammy nomination, but didn't win any actual awards. Singles Secret - September 1994 (US & Eur.) Take A Bow - December 1994 (US & Eur.) Bedtime Story - April 1995 (US) / February 1995 (Eur.) Human Nature - June 1995 (US) / August 1995 (Eur.)

Albumcover, shot by Steven Meisel Album It's beyond any doubt that controversy in Madonna's career peaked in the early nineties. Controversy had been around from the very beginning: rolling on the floor in the Like A Virgin wedding dress, promoting materialism in Material Girl (or that's what the critics thought), the peep show in Open Your Heart, the pointy Gaultier corsets from the Who's That Girl Tour and Blond Ambition Tour, singing about teenage pregnancy in Papa Don't Preach, kissing a black priest in Like A Prayer and chaining herself to the bed in Express Yourself. But in the nineties the controversy became more sexual and more explicit. Justify My Love was the starting point of a raw sex period, where Madonna talked openly about all kinds of sex and sexuality. The 'Sex' book and the movies In Bed With Madonna and Body Of Evidence showed a Madonna pushing the boundaries further than ever, maybe even too far. It was in this period - on October 20th, 1992 - that Madonna released her Erotica album. After the concept album I'm Breathless Madonna wanted to make a real dance album, so she teamed up with producer Shep Pettibone, whom she collaborated with for Vogue and Rescue Me, and who was a real expert in dance music. Later Andre -Dre- Betts joined the team and added a hip hop sound to the album. The result was a catchy album with 14 tracks with R&B, house/trance, dance and hip hop influences. The album was promoted by no less than six singles: Erotica, Deeper And Deeper, Bad Girl and Rain were released worldwide; Fever and Bye Bye Baby got a limited release. Unfortunately many people thought Madonna had gone too far this time. Despite a great album and great videos the album and the singles weren't that successful. The title track was the first ever lead-off single from a Madonna album that failed to get to #1; the other singles failed to get to the top 5 in the charts. Only the club scene showed some appreciation: Erotica, Deeper And Deeper and Fever were all #1 in the Hot Dance / Club Play chart. In the US there were two different versions of the Erotica album: the 'clean' version, which doesn't include Did You Do It? and the original version, including the rap song, while carrying a parental advisary sticker on the cover. In the album charts, the album got to #1 (France, Australia), #2 (US, UK), #3 (Canada), and #5 (Germany). In the US it was certified double Platinum in January 1993 for shipments of 2 million copies. To date it only sold about 5 million copies worldwide. Singles Erotica - October 1992 (US & Eur.) Deeper And Deeper - November 1992 (US & Eur.) Bad Girl - February 1993 (US & Eur.) Fever - March 1993 (Eur.) Rain - July 1993 (US & Eur.) Bye Bye Baby - November 1993 (Japan, Australia, Germany)

Albumcover, shot by Patrick Demarchelier Album On May 22nd, 1990 Madonna released I'm Breathless, a studio album that is often seen as the soundtrack of Dick Tracy. However, only three songs are actually from the movie: More, Sooner Or Later and What Can You Lose, which are written by Stephen Sondheim and produced by Madonna and Bill Bottrell. The other songs are "inspired by" the film Dick Tracy and all written and produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard. Since the sound of all the tracks is very similar - all retro cabaret-jazz with an ironic twist - it's a very conceptual album. The only song that breaks with this concept is Vogue, which doesn't really belong on the album. It was released as a single two months before the release of I'm Breathless and was added to the album at the last moment because of its huge success. In June Hanky Panky was released as a single, but it was destined to stay in the shadow of its predecessor Vogue. It probably was Vogue as well that boasted album sales to 2 million US copies (double Platinum) and 5 million copies worldwide. In the album charts it climbed to #1 (Australia, Germany, Japan), #2 (UK, US, Canada), and #3 (France). Singles Vogue - March 1990 (US & Eur.) Hanky Panky - June 1990 (US) / July 1990 (Eur.)

Albumcover, shot by Herb Ritts Album With True Blue, Madonna had set herself a much higher standard than her first two albums. The huge success of the album encouraged her to continue making her music both lyrically and musically strong, provocative, emotional and yet dancy. She also felt comfortable to write about her personal problems, and those she had a lot. Her next album would become one of her most personal albums ever. Just like with True Blue she opted again to work with both Steve Bray and Patrick Leonard for production and writing. Most of the texts came from herself though. She wrote about her bad marriage with and divorce from Sean Penn (Till Death Do Us Part), her love-hate relationship with her father (Oh Father) and the importance of family (Keep It Together) and for the first time about the tragic death of her mother (Promise To Try, Oh Father). The album was also dedicated to her mother "who taught me to pray". The album Like A Prayer was released on March 21st, 1989. Only weeks earlier the lead-off single had caused big controversy within religious groups. Both single and album became a big hit soon. The second single was another milestone: Express Yourself stirred opinions on feminism. Far from controversial was the love song Cherish. In the winter of 1989/1990 the US got two more singles: Oh Father and Keep It Together, while Dear Jessie was released in Europe. While the first 3 become big hits, the last 3 were soon forgotten. The original issue of the album contained a 'The facts about aids' leaflet. The inner sleeve was infused with the scent of patchouli oil. Track no. 10 was titled Spanish Eyes. This was renamed in later issues to Pray For Spanish Eyes. With this album Madonna first got a huge critical acclaim. It still stands as one of Madonna's best and most personal albums in her career, and a favorite among fans. Ray Of Light, released 9 years later, is often seen as the "Like A Prayer of the nineties". The critical acclaim was also translated into a few awards. At the 1989 International Music Awards, Madonna was named 'Best Female Artist' for recording Like A Prayer. At the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards, she received a career achievement 'Artist Of The Decade', as well as awards for 'Viewers Choice' (for Like A Prayer), 'Best Direction', 'Best Art Direction', 'Best Cinematography' (all for Express Yourself). Oh Father also received a Grammy nomination for 'Best Short Form Video'. After Like A Virgin and True Blue, Like A Prayer was Madonna's third album to top the album chart in both the US and the UK. It also reached #1 in Canada, France and Germany. In July 1997 it was recertified 4 times Platinum for shipments of 4 million US copies. Worldwide sales surpassed 14 million copies. Singles Like A Prayer - March 1989 (US & Eur.) Express Yourself - May 1989 (US & Eur.) Cherish - August 1989 (US) / September 1989 (Eur.) Oh Father - October 1989 (US) Dear Jessie - December 1989 (Eur.) Keep It Together - January 1990 (US)

Albumcover, shot by Steven Meisel Album When Madonna released her first album in 1983 she already had enough material for another album. But because of the success of that first album it wasn't until November 12, 1984 that Madonna released her second album Like A Virgin, which would soon become a big hit. She chose Nile Rodgers as producer of the album. Their collaboration worked very well and together they built on the image and sound that Madonna had created with her first album, which was very much disco- and pop-oriented. The first two singles would become landmarks in her career. Like A Virgin was her first #1 hit; the song and the video were a clear representation of Madonna's image at the moment, full of sexual ambiguities. Memorable was her performance of the song on the MTV Video Music Awards, crawling on the floor in a wedding dress. The second single Material Girl was inspired by the glamourous looks of diva's from the fifties, in particular Marilyn Monroe; in the video Madonna wears an exact replica of Monroe's dress in 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'. Originally Into The Groove wasn't included in the album. Released from the movie Desperately Seeking Susan it became a huge hit, so it was included in the European re-release of the Like A Virgin album in 1985. In 2001 the album was remastered, having the original tracklisting without Into The Groove but including extended dance mixes of Like A Virgin and Material Girl as bonus tracks. The album - dedicated to all the virgins in the world - was her first to hit #1 in both the US and the UK. It also got to #1 in Germany, #2 in Australia and France, and #3 in Canada. In 1998 it received the Diamond Award (the highest certification given by the RIAA) for sales of 10 million US copies. Only The Immaculate Collection equaled this success. Worldwide the album sold more than 18 million copies. However, the critics were not really convinced of Madonna's skills and described her as an 'unimportant annoying one-hit-wonder' with a voice similar to 'Minnie Mouse on helium'. Also at the award shows Madonna was left in the cold; although she did get some nominations at the MTV Awards, she lost out on each one of them. Singles Like A Virgin - November 1984 (US & Eur.) Material Girl - January 1985 (US) / February 1985 (Eur.) Angel - April 1985 (US) / September 1985 (Eur.) Dress You Up - July 1985 (US) / November 1985 (Eur.)

Albumcover, shot by Gary Heery Album After the successful release of her first two singles Everybody and Burning Up, Warner Records gave Madonna the permission to produce her first album. Though New York DJ Mark Kamins had discovered Madonna and produced Everybody, Madonna decided to work with Warner producer Reggie Lucas for the rest of the album. They started recording Lucky Star, a song written by Madonna, and Borderline, which was a composition of Lucas. Soon both realised they couldn't cooperate that well. Lucas produced the album his way, while Madonna complained that she had different concepts and ideas. She took the finished but unsatisfactory album to her friend John -Jellybean- Benitez, who remixed and rearranged the whole album. He also added a song written by Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens: Holiday. This song would establish Madonna as the new dance act of the early 80s. Of course later it would grow into one of Madonna's best classics. Though the album at first got the name 'Lucky Star', it was released on July 27th, 1983 simply as 'Madonna'. Madonna dedicated the album to her father. On the album charts, it reached #6 (UK), #8 (US, France), and #10 (Australia). The album spent a total of 168 weeks on the Billboard 200. In October 2000, it was certified 5 times Platinum in the US, while selling over 8 million copies worldwide. In September 1985, the album was re-issued under the name 'The First Album', using different art work (see cover on the right). In 2001 the album was remastered with improved sound and remixes of Burning Up and Lucky Star, and also using the original art work (see above). Singles Everybody - October 1982 (US) Burning Up - March 1983 (US) Holiday - October 1983 (US) / February 1984 (Eur.) Borderline - February 1984 (US) / June 1984 (Eur.) Lucky Star - August 1984 (US) / April 1984 (Eur.)

Albumcover, shot by Herb Ritts Album The third album can be crucial for an artist. A second album can still rely on the success of the debut, but with the third album, the audience starts to have high expectations. If the artist sticks with the same style, (s)he risks to lose the intrest of the public. If (s)he tries something new, there's the risk the audience just won't like it. For Madonna this crucial album was True Blue. After her debut album she scored high with Like A Virgin, but would the audience want to taste another album like that? Madonna would now show a characterictic that would be one of the most important elements of her career: the ability to re-invent herself and that way produce a more developed and mature sound, different from the previous material. True Blue would become the album with which the critics finally started taking Madonna serious as an artist. Also typical would be the choice of her producers: an old one and a new one. Steve Bray, who she had collaborated with for years, co-produced 3 tracks on the album. Patrick Leonard was the new guy in the picture who co-wrote and co-produced 5 other songs. Only Where's The Party was produced by Madonna, Bray and Leonard together. The competition between Bray and Leonard resulted in 9 great tracks, with a more mature sound than the two first albums. The album was released on June 30th, 1986. Madonna had recorded the album after she got married to Sean Penn in 1985. She dedicated the album to him, referring to him as 'the coolest guy in the universe'. Witty Madonna would use the same reference to her hubby Guy Ritchie when she dedicated I Deserve It on her 2001 Drowned World Tour. Live To Tell, the first single of the True Blue album, was originally written for the movie At Close Range which starred Sean Penn. The movie flopped but the song became a big hit. Papa Don't Preach equaled this success and became #1 as well. The title track was a rather different sound, but then she was back at the top with Open Your Heart. How many hits can one album have? In any case, the fifth single was a classic too: La Isla Bonita. Those five singles gave Madonna three #1 hits in the US, the UK, Canada and Japan and one in Australia. No surprise that True Blue topped the album charts in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, UK and US. It was certified 7 times Platinum in the US (1995) and worldwide it sold about 24 million copies, which still stands as her best selling studio album. In 2001 the album was digitally remastered and the Color Mix of True Blue and the Extended Remix of La Isla Bonita were added. The same year of its release, True Blue received a Juno Award for Best International Album. Singles Live To Tell - March 1986 (US) / April 1986 (Eur.) Papa Don't Preach - June 1986 (US & Eur.) True Blue - September 1986 (US & Eur.) Open Your Heart - November 1986 (US) / December 1986 (Eur.) La Isla Bonita - March 1987 (US & Eur.)

I think you wanna come over Yeah I heard it through the grapevine Are you drunk or you sober Think about it, doesn't matter And if it makes you feel good then I say do it I don't know what you're waiting for Feel my temperature rising There's too much heat I'm gonna lose control Do you want to go higher, get closer to the fire I don't know what you're waiting for Come join the party, yeah 'Cause everybody just won't do Let's get this started, yeah 'Cause everybody wants to party with you Boy you got a reputation But you're gonna have to prove it I see a little hesitation Am I gonna have to show you That if it feels right, get on your marks Step to the beat boy that's what it's for Put your arms around me When it gets too hot we can go outside But for now just come here, let me whisper in your ear An invitation to the dance of life Come join the party, it's a celebration 'Cause anybody just won't do Let's get this started, no more hesitation 'Cause everybody wants to party with you Haven't I seen you somewhere before You look familiar You wanna dance, yeah I guess I just don't recognize you with your clothes on What are you waiting for Come join the party, it's a celebration Anybody just won't do Let's get this started, no more hesitation 'Cause everybody wants to party with you Come join the party, it's a celebration Anybody just won't do Let's get this started, no more hesitation 'Cause everybody wants to party with you Boy you've got it, it's a celebration 'Cause anybody just won't do Let's get it started, no more hesitation 'Cause everybody wants to party with you Boy you've got it 'Cause anybody just won't do Let's get it started, no more hesitation 'Cause everybody wants to party with you