Today is a big day for Madonna fans as Madame X, the icon's 14th studio album of her career, comes out. Because it's Flashback Friday, we're going to save a new track for tomorrow, but we've still got to celebrate somehow, and that's with Living For Love, the debut single off of her last record, 2015's Rebel Heart. Check it out...
One of my favorite songs ever is Madonna's Wash Over Me, but not the version from the Rebel Heart album, the Avicii remix which was tragically never released. Our honoree of the week, the late Avicii, took a drab, but beautifully written song and turned it into an inspirational dance masterpiece. I don't know how long this will stay up here because many previous incarnations of the mysteriously guarded tune have disappeared, so take a listen while you can...
Okay, so I made it to four, four very different, but equally great, Madonna songs in this little Flashback Friday Madonnathon. This last post is from her latest, 2015's Rebel Heart, and in this video we see our star as bullfightress holding off some pretty muscular looking...bulls? Hmmm....anyway, check it out...
It's hard to believe that it's been three days since Madonna already. This is the first time since then that I've had any time to write about it, so...
A lot of my fellow Madonna fans aren't going to like some of the things I'm going to say here, but I feel I must. From the initial reviews and the reactions of my friends who were at the show, it seems I am in a tiny minority when it comes to what I thought of the Rebel Heart Tour. Perhaps it's because I love her so much I may be overly critical, and I've seen her often enough that maybe I'm just used to something different, but I didn't see the show as all that great.
That's not to say that I didn't enjoy it. On the contrary, I was up and dancing and having a good time all night long. Any Madonna concert is not just any old concert. Her shows, starting with the Blonde Ambition Tour way back when, have been downright legendary and an unparalleled experience in live entertainment. That being said, the Rebel Heart Tour, to me, wasn't as legendary as, say the Reinvention Tour or even the MDNA show.
Before I even discuss the show,, check out the setlist, as arranged in four separate acts:
7. “Body Shop” 8. “True Blue” 9. “Ghosttown” A10. “HeartBreak City” / “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore” 11. “Like A Virgin”
Act Three: Latin / Gypsy
12. “SEX” contains excerpts from “Justify My Love” 13. “Living For Love” 14. “La Isla Bonita” 15. “Deeper and Deeper” 16. “Music (Get Stupid)” 17. “La Vie En Rose”
Act Four: Party / Flapper
18. “Candy Shop” 19. “Who’s That Girl” 20. “Rebel Heart” 21. “Illuminati” 22. “Material Girl” 23. “Unapologetic Bitch” 24. “Holiday” Pretty cool, right? You know, from the looks of the songs and from the reviews I've seen so far, this tour seems like it might be a greatest hits tour. She's performing a lot of songs she hasn't done in a long time, and the nostalgic tone she's taken on stage so far would seem to suggest that as well. Well, the setlist would seem to please those fans of her earlier work, but for those of us who've followed her all along, more recent stuff was sorely missing. That was just one of the beefs I have with the show. Here are five suggestions that would have made me happier with the Rebel Heart show. Perhaps if these elements were present I'd have been on StubHub this afternoon now trying for tickets to tonight's show at Barclay Center in Brooklyn...
1 - A Stronger Opening
Madonna opened the show with Iconic, from the Rebel Heart album. One of the key elements of any Madonna tour is drama, especially in the opening, and I thought this one was a poor choice in that department, especially in comparison to the Girl Gone Wild opener at MDNA. Iconic is not my favorite tune off the album. It probably will never reach single status either. Living For Love, the upbeat debut single, would've made a much better choice to open the show. On a side note, Bitch I'm Madonna was done way too early in the show. Being that it's her latest single, and it's a lot of fun, perhaps it would've been better done right before Holiday at the end.
2 - What Happened to the Last 15 Years?
With the exception of Candy Shop and of course the current album, the most recent song she did was 2000's Music and before that 1992's Deeper and Deeper. In this fan's opinion, I would much rather have seen performances of maybe Ray of Light, Human Nature, Celebration or Revolver, Hung Up, or perhaps a ditty from the last album. Turn Up the Radio would've been cool! Of the older stuff, True Blue was refreshing, Burning Up rocked, and Material Girl was fun, too! I could've done without La Isla Bonita and yet another subpar version of Like a Virgin (though this one was much better than the last time!). I know Madge's catalog is deep and wide, and I am sure it must be difficult to narrow things down, but to forget all about three of the last four albums. Eh!
3 - No Showstoppers
I remember once upon a time, I saw the Confessions Tour in Miami with my nephew and his young Brazilian wife. Aricalea had never seen a concert before and I took great pleasure in watching her face light up as she watched the spectacle that was that show. Almost every Madonna concert has numbers where the entire audience is up on its feet, in awe at the happenings on stage. Unfortunately, to me none of the numbers in this show had that something special.
The closest thing that came to a showstopper was during Illuminati, which was really an interlude played over the speakers as the icon went backstage for a change of costume. As the lights went up, several flexible poles were fixed on the stage, each with a different dancer standing atop. The choreographed number was pretty darned cool and one of my favorite parts of the entire show...and Madonna wasn't even on stage!
4 - No Ghosttown?
I said in my review of Ghosttown that it was one of the biggest power ballads Madonna ever performed, as big as Live to Tell or Rain. Though it was on the setlist, she skipped that one on Wednesday.
5 - Encore Encore
The last time Madge played the Garden, I had complained that she didn't even hit the stage until around 11 p.m. This go around was much better, as the festivities began shortly around 9, a much more conducive hour, especially for a weeknight. This night, however, it also seemed that the concert was made ever so much shorter as there was absolutely no build-up between the finish, Unapologetic Bitch (which to me was sort of anti-climactic, even when she brought out opening act Amy Shumer to the stage and officially dubbed her a member of Madge's gang), and the encore, Holiday. It seemed that within a minute of finishing the former, the singer returned to the stage with her very first big single, an appropriate finish, but the whole thing was way too abrupt.
So there, I think I do have some legitimate beefs with the Rebel Heart Tour, and this particular stop at MSG. If any of you die-hard Madonna fans take offense to any of my suggestions, please don't. I've been following Madonna since day one...her songs are a huge part of the soundtrack of my life since I was a teen. It may not sound like it, but I did have an awesome time the other night. I think I just could've had an even better one...
Madonna Mania has begun once again! After what has seemed like eons since the first tracks from Rebel Heart came out, Madonna fans who have been waiting patiently for the start of the tour, will finally get their chance to check out the icon's newest show. Last night the Rebel Heart Tour officially opened in Montreal, and though there's been little reported about it as of the time of this writing, I am sure it was spectacular! Madonna shows always are! I will get the chance to see it for myself in just six short days at Madison Square Garden in New York and I can't wait.
So I took the road-less traveled by
And I barely made it out alive
Through the darkness somehow I survived
Tough love, I knew it from the start
Deep down in the depth of my rebel heart
BreatheHeavy posted a possible setlist just a couple of days ago and it looks like Madge'll be dipping into the old, sprinkled in with the new on this go around, reviving such classics as Dress You Up, La Isla Bonita, Music, Holiday and more! For the entire published setlist, click here. In the meantime back to our Song of the Day...
I’ve spent some time as a narcissist
Hearing the others say “Look at you, look at you!”
Trying to be so provocative
I said “Oh yeah, that was me!”
All of the things I did, just to be seen
The title track to Rebel Heart exemplifies why Madonna was named by Rolling Stone as one of the top 100 songwriters of all time. It's an autobiographical look at the singer's life, describing the very person I and so many others have been awed by over these past 30+ years, and it's a pretty damned good song, to boot! The acoustic version, if you can find it, is simply da bomb! Check out Rebel Heart...
Traveling down, this road Watching the signs as I go I think I'll follow, the sun Isn't everyone just
Traveling down, their own road
Watching the signs as they go
I think I'll follow, my heart
It's a very good place to start
Madonna didn't become the iconic superstar she is by chance. No, there are plenty of reasons why she stands where she does today. Of course, she's been a notorious provocateur over the years, which is unfortunately what many people think of when they think of Madonna, but that's just a small part of who she is and has been. That's the part that yes, perhaps got her a lot more attention than she might have gotten otherwise, but without talent she'd be nowhere today.
Music, makes the people, come together...
Just recently Rolling Stone Magazine published its list for the best songwriters of all time, and Madonna has landed at #56. Now, what I've already known for years and years is finally official!
From those earliest days in New York, when she broke out with Everybody in the early eighties, Madonna's music had that extra something that made people pay attention, whether it was the dancey music track, the lyrics, the persona, or all of them put together in one package. I remember a family road trip to New Jersey once where I'd forced my dad to play Madonna's first album from start to finish in the van, telling everyone that she was going to be big, and although people naturally don't like to hear music they don't know in such a situation, they all enjoyed it.
I made it through the wilderness
Somehow I made it through
Didn't know how lost I was
Until I found you
Lyrics are oftentimes the most important ingredient in a song, and throughout the years, Madonna has had so much success in large part due to her lyrics. They've reflected her own life at the time and almost always struck major chords with her fans, including me. I won't say that I know every Madonna lyric she ever wrote, but there's definitely a huge file in my brain somewhere that contains her many, many lyrics.
When the world starts to get you down
And nothing seems to go your way
And the noise of the maddening crowd
Makes you feel like you're going to go insane
And for those out there (and I know there are plenty of you!) who say that "Oh, I don't like her new stuff. It's just not as good," take a look at these lyrics. They're from a song off of Rebel Heart called Wash All Over Me, and I posted these words on Facebook a couple of weeks ago, without commentary or reference to Madonna...
In a world that's changing I'm a stranger, in a strange land There's a contradiction And I'm stuck here in between
Life is like a desert, An oasis, to confuse me So I walk this razor's edge Will I stand or will I fall
Through a blind eye I try to pretend that Nothing is what it seems Torn between the impulse to stay Or running away from all this madness
Who am I To decide what should be done If this is, the end, then let it come
Let it come, let it rain Rain all over me Like the tide, let it roll Let it wash all over me Over me...let it wash all over me
Some of my friends actually thought I wrote it. "Amazing!," one of them said. Yup, that's Madge! Now check out the tune...
Here's the very good first single from Rebel Heart. The tune was Madge's 44th #1 song on Billboards Dance Songs Chart, a record tie-er for any artist on any chart (She tied George Strait, but has since broken that record with her #45 chart-topper, Ghosttown.). I've said this before, but this was a much better choice for the opening single than she had for M.D.N.A. (The cheer-leading Gimme All Your Luvin') Turn Up the Radio, a similar type of high-energy dance tune, should have opened that album. Anyway, love this...
Have you seen Madonna's new video for Bitch I'm Madonna, yet? Well the vid for the third single off Rebel Heart dropped with great fanfare earlier this week and reviews are decidedly mixed. First of all, as I said earlier, this tune is not my favorite track off of the album, though I don't hate it either...
This one's similar in scope to the MDNA track, I Don't Give a F***, which also featured Minaj, and is even more frenzied than their prior collaboration. Bitch I'm Madonna is a lighthearted and fun track, and it sounds like they all had a good time making it. It's not my favorite of the new tracks, but it does remain in the brain for awhile after a listen and it does have a great hook, too!
On the YouTube page to this video, the page owner has the words "official remix better than the original." Man, he is soooo right!!! After hearing the remix version of Wash All Over Me at the Ice Palace last weekend, I'd found a while new appreciation for this tune and I've been playing it virtually non-stop all week long. Judging by the reaction on and around the dance floor last Sunday I realize that I'm not the only one who loves this tune. If this one doesn't catch on, I don't know what will....it's the perfect dance tune, and in classic Madonna style...earthy, groovalicious, and just oh so danceable! Check it out...
Rolling Stone has reported today that Madonna has postponed the first five dates of her upcoming tour in support of the new Rebel Heart album. The singer announced the postponements of the five shows, in Miami (August 29th and 30th), Atlanta (September 2nd), and Puerto Rico (September 5th and 6th), stating that "assembling all the elements [of the show] will take a lot more time than we realized." Here's the full statement:
As my fans already know, the show has to be perfect. Assembling all of the elements will require more time than we realized. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause my fans. I can promise you that this show will be worth the wait. Can't wait to share it with all my Rebel Hearts out there.
I'm sure the fans in Miami, Atlanta and Puerto Rico will be disappointed, but as one who's seen all of her shows since the Who's That Girl Tour in 1986, I can attest to the fact that a Madonna concert is not just any ordinary show, and if she says it'll be worth the wait, it certainly will be!. Check out Rolling Stone for the full story and stay tuned for more on Rebel Heart.
When it all falls, when it all falls down I'll be your fire when the lights go out When there's no one, no one else around We'll be two souls in a ghosttown
It's been awhile since I've talked about anything Rebel Heart, even though it's still what I'm listening to the most in my spare time (I haven't been too happy lately with the new music scene...ugh!). Any who, Madge has appropriately chosen Ghosttown as the album's second single, and she even shot a video for it, though I'm puzzled by the toofus thingy she's got going on in it...great song anyway! Here's Ghosttown...
There was a really nice surprise the other night at the iHeart Radio Music Awards show when Taylor Swift appeared onstage with Madonna to accompany her on guitar for Ghosttown. Swift is the latest in a myriad of stars to join the icon onstage, following the likes of Brittney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Miley Cyrus, Babyface, M.I.A., Nicki Minaj, Cee Lo Green, and I'm sure more to come. I said in my review of the song, Ghosttown is a very good song, which says a lot because I do not generally like ballads. But you can see how powerful a tune this one is in this performance...
Madonna/Taylor Swift Collaboration on the Way?
Hollywood Life reports the possibility of a future collab between the two superstars, this time in the studio. Now that could be interesting! Check out the article right here.
I heard on one review of Rebel Heart that Inside Out was a throwaway song, and I wouldn't necessarily say that, though the song almost surely won't be any sort of hit. The tune is mid-tempo and a bit of a snoozer and it was most certainly meant to be filler. Honestly, in my daily listening routine I've already deleted this one out of my Currents folder, so that should tell you something. There are several other tunes that had been leaked that are more worthy to be included on this set than this one, so take it for what it's worth. This one's not available anywhere on the Internet for you to preview, so I guess you'll just have to get the album to make your own judgement.
In the meantime, check out the rest of my reviews of the tracks from Rebel Heart...
Religious themes have always been a part of Madonna's overall scheme, but never so much as on Rebel Heart. By my own count, there are at least four tunes on this record that relate in some way to religiosity, and it would seem that the religious nature within her upbringing and throughout her life have brought her to a place where she's become reflective and is putting the pieces of the puzzle together in a way she never really has before.
That being said, Holy Water may sound like it's religious, but it's pretty risque, too. The tune is, to me, very 80's sounding. It's slow moving and deliberate, and not really an easy one to like. In fact, it doesn't come up on the favorites list of any of my Madonna friends, but I do like it, even if it's for the one, bitch get off my pole line, which is repeated over and over throughout. It is soooo her! Anyway, the song has morphed into a dancey vibe for the album, and so it's a much faster-paced jam than on the previously leaked version. Check it out...
I posted Madonna's Body Shop as Song of the Day on Saturday and found out that some of my fellow Madge fans aren't so crazy about it. I guess as far as Madonna songs go, the subject matter and lyrics are kind of...well, different...maybe even a little silly. Well that's nothing new for this singer, who's penned and performed such inane classics as I Love New York, Spanish Lesson and maybe even Jimmy Jimmy. I admit I liked those songs, despite their, to some, silliness, but that's just Madonna being silly, which is exactly what you get with this one.
What I love most about this song is the accompaniment of the Indian sitar to go along with the lyrics. Madonna's always employed international flavors to her music and I love the sound of the sitar. What makes this one stand out is the combination of this sound with lyrics about...automotive things.
You can polish the headlight
You can smooth out the fender
You can start the ignition
We can go on a bender
Okay, so just typing those words out made me see how absurd the words may sound, but what can I say, it's still catchy and appealing. I'm pretty sure it won't make any sort of chart appearance, and it'll probably be skipped on many a Rebel Heart listen, but not on mine. Check it out for yourself....
Check out my other Rebel Heart track reviews, so far...
Now that the full Rebel Heart album is out, it's about time I got down to the rest of the tracks. The 10th song on the track listing is the torchy Heartbreak City. Well, torchy songs are never really my thing, even when it's Madonna, but if you like that kind of stuff, then this is a song for you. Honestly, there were other songs from the leaks that I'd have put on the finalized version ahead of this one, but it's not my album, lol. Anyway, check it out for yourself...
And here are my other Rebel Heart track reviews, so far...
Here's a Rebel Heart song that you can only find on the super-deluxe edition of the album. I first discovered it via an early leak and it's one of my favorite tunes. It's sweet, inspirational, and the lyrics are so singable! Check out Graffiti Heart...
