BEDTIME STORIES - 1994


1. Survival
2. Secret*
3. I'd Rather Be Your Lover**
4. Don't Stop*
5. Inside Of Me
6. Human Nature**
7. Forbidden Love
8. Love Tried To Welcome Me**
9. Sanctuary*
10. Bedtime Story
11. Take A Bow***

Produced by Nelee Hooper and Madonna
* Produced by Madonna and Dallas Austin
** Produced by Madonna and Dave "Jam" Hall
*** Produced by Madonna and Babyface

After the beating she took with EROTICA (and not the good kind), Madonna bounced back with this melancholy, R+B flavoured album. To say the album is lonely is an understatement: it even ends with an aching "Say goodbye". Its beautiful melodies and downbeat grooves make it Madonna's quietest record, but it says a lot. Armed with softer vocals and new co-writers and producers, Madonna embraces her sorrow like never before, and the pure heartache in her vocals in tracks like Love Tried To Welcome Me and Inside Of Me make the lyrics almost irrelevant, great as they are. Indescribably beautiful, BEDTIME STORIES is a musical revelation, a whole new brand of pop perfection, and the critics who tore her up when they misunderstood EROTICA put her back on their pedastals, praising the album's honesty and power.

Survival - "I'll never be an angel/I'll never be a saint its true/I'm too busy surviving/Wether its heaven or hell/I'm gonna be living to tell" just about sums up this attractive song of determination that opens BEDTIME STORIES and introduces us to a higher singing voice than we're used to (its great) and the tone of the album.

Secret - The first single went to #3 in the US, but was a phenomenal #1 smash in Canada where it topped the charts for an astonishing 10 weeks! This melodic departure about a secret shared with a lover showed fans that Dita had been chained up for good and a softer Madonna had emerged. Melodie McDaniel's subtle video has Madonna as a bar singer entertaining a small audience as she slowly overcomes a drug addiction and returns to her family. Shot in Harlem, this is an especially well-photographed video.
I'd Rather Be Your Lover - A song of a stong love bordering on an obsession, this is an up-tempo song of love with an extended solo by Me'Shell NdegeOcello (a Maverick artist).
Don't Stop - A more mellow dance track from the dancing queen, Don't Stop recieved a lot of airplay but was never released as a single. Its a shame, really, because this track ranks with the best of them.
Inside Of Me - Part of Madonna's Missing Mother Troika that includes Promise To Try and Mer Girl, Inside Of Me again breaks your heart, but this time Madonna can work through the sadness and move on ("When my world seems to crumble all around/And fooling people try to bring me down/I just think of your smiling face/And I'm flying"). Or it could be about a lost romantic love, but that's less poignant.

Human Nature - Madonna has taken a lot of flack over the years and she finally talks back. She's not sorry and she never will be. Deal with it. Everyone can relate to this and I've even used the line "I'm not your bitch don't hang your shit on me." It's such a shame that radio stations couldn't play that line (not that they played it much anyway, Human Nature sank at #46, 4 spots lower then previous low Bedtime Story. It did hit the top ten in the UK, though.) If you don't love this song there is something wrong with you and if the video doesn't make you giggle, nothing will. Jean-Baptiste Mondino (Justify My Love) directed this self-mocking masterpiece where a leather clad Madonna and dancers jam against a stark white background. Madonna laughing hysterically while spanking a dancer tied up is a blast. Remix highlight: The I'm Not Your Bitch Mix samples that line as a dance hall chant. As her opening whispers order: "Express yourself don't repress yourself."jaksdfl
Forbidden Love - A vague song (why is the love forbidden?) and all the richer for it (this way you can apply it to any forbidden love you involve yourself in), Forbiden LoveM is a lush, if routine, ballad with the brilliant line "Rejection is the greatest aphrodesiac". Warner Bros. pushed this tune to be released as a single, but Madona refused, only wanting to release tracks that showed her artistic growth. Good for her. Bad for charts.
Love Tried To Welcome Me - The longing in Madonna's vocals clearly show her lonliness and regret at turning away in fear when tue love finally comes to her. A haunting string arrangement helps to raise this above the level of other lonely regret-filled songs and proves once again that Madonna is the queen of loneliness and despair.
Sanctuary - One of the most beautiful songs that Madonna has ever recorded, Sanctuary finally has Madonna finding her love and finally being at peace. "Surely whoever speaks to me in the right voice/Him or her I shall follow". Its a love so powerful that as the song seques into

Bedtime Story - words can no longer express hoe she feels. Its a bond so powerful that it goes beyond sex to cries of "Let's get unconcious". The single followed Take A Bow's seven week rule of the charts and died at #42 (#4 in the UK) ending Madonna's string of top 40 hits started way back with Holiday despite its incredible video directed by Mark Romanek (Rain). Its the most elaborate and expensive of her career. In a futuristic setting, an unconcious Madonna dreams of haunting images such as a skeletal embrace, a woman with strange scars on her back,a floating, ghostlike Madonna and most disturbing, a distorting moment where Madonna's eyes and mouth trade places. An unforgettable shot of a pregnant Madonna opening her stomach to free a flock of birds is sensual, maternal and freeing. Unbeatable.

Take A Bow - At #1 for seven weeks, Madonna's longest stay at the top, Take A Bow ruled the spring of 1995 with its lost love lyrics and aching delivery on par with Live To Tell. Telling a lover who has lost interest to go deservedly reigned over the charts (although in the UK is stalled at #16 ending her string of top 10 hits started with Like A Virgin. In fact, the only Madonna single to chart lower in the UK was Borderline) in many countries and is still popular on radio. The MTV video music award winning clip featured Madonna as an Evita like star who has an affair with a matador. Shot in Spain, this lush video was followed by a rare video sequel - You'll See.


Go Ahead To SOMETHING TO REMEMBER - 1995


Go Back To EROTICA - 1992


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