I liken this release as her "rnb" album.

Anyone remember the print ads where it stated that "Madonna wants to tuck you in? That's tuck with a "t""?

xlr8r said:

I remember those It was a clever marketing strategy.

xlr8r said:

lol. yes. and i still have that ad. the one i have was in the back of Billboard magazing. i have 3 copies of this album. the right side up cover, the upside down cover and the velvet pack. or is there one more

I want it on vinyl!

CHIC0 said:

Maybe statistically they are? But neither of those songs felt that big at the time of their releases. I don't remember them having the same kind of impact say like a song like 'Music', 'Like A Prayer', 'Ray of Light' etc.

Arnotts said:

that's what i was going by.

CHIC0 said:

Its weird that statistics don't always match reaction. How does that happen?

Arnotts said:

well..everyone goes out on a release date and buys the song/album. so you get huge sales. song might be big at the moment or highly anticipated.
but a lesser selling song/album may stand the test of time better. just like movies that debut at #1 at the box office but no one remembers them a week later.

"Hung Up" hit #1 in something like 45 countries. so that's a massive hit. and i think in Guiness Book of Records too. but yes. she'll be associated with other songs before that one is mentioned.

xlr8r said:

I'd say no. Remember, when she came out with "Holiday" on the radio, and no one knew her face, they thought she was black, not a white girl from Detroit suburbs. Her first album was very R&B as well.

There's a circulating track of "I'd Rather Be Your Lover" with Tupac Shakur on it. MeShell Ndegeocello played bass, and ended up doing a rap on it. Tupac did his cut, but had gotten into some trouble just before the album's release. Madonna and her peeps didn't want the negative attention attached with Tupac and subsequently her album. The rap is totally different from Meshell's too. They both wrote their own stuff on it. Tupac's is a tad more racy. Here it is:

Love this album!!!

CHIC0 said:

it's not a coincidence that "Hung Up" is the first track on the 'Celebration' disc.It's her most successful worldwide hit single.

Arnotts said:

Maybe you just can't remember clearly. Here in the states, "Take a Bow" was virtually inescapable when it was released. Radio, video... the song was everywhere.

violetblues said:

Well said! I do think this is the least dated pre-2000 M album.

I have to side with those who don't think "Secret" is all that, it's nice but I do think it's not one of her biggest lead off singles. "Take A Bow" should have been that, but I guess it was better to save it for the winter to spark album sales.

"Forbidden Love" is amazing and still can't believe it was not a single! Would have been a hit as opposed to BS or HN.

LiveToTell86 said:

These are the songs that I would have chosen as the singles,in this order:

"Secret"
"Take A Bow"
"Forbidden Love"
"Survival"
"Human Nature"

Alot of fans will disagree,but I think it was a mistake to release the title track as a single It was a little too edgy for pop radio.

ernestsewell said:

This is by far most R&B sounding album. Those that thought she was she was a black girl, where mostly white people and some blacks that did not have a clue. "Bedtime Stories", had a sound all of it's own. She took chances on that CD that she had not taken before and unfortunately has not taken since....Damn shame.

The title track might be her least appealing single commercially speaking (not counting low-key and random singles like LDLHA, OMC or NF/LP). It was just about Madonna wanting a slice of Bjork and she probably pushed it to be a single because she had a fantastic video idea. Madonna supposedly wanted it as the first single (remember she always wants title tracks as lead off singles, even "Ray Of Light" & "Candy Shop") and the video was already in production when "Take A Bow" started to climb the charts.

The video did push her art to a higher level but the song was overshadowed and outside UK and Australia it was her biggest flop ever at the time. What's actually interesting in that is the single came out TWO MONTHS before the video premiere (and the US release) in the UK because TAB was her lowest peaking single of her at the time so they rushed it out, and it became the highest charting single of Bedtime Stories album in the UK, thanks to it being February, a fantastic set of singles (including the famous double-case limited edition with a "bedtime story") and its second week was backed by her only live performance of the single, at the Brit Awards (which is based on the Junior Vasquez remixes).



What I never liked is that certain ROL fans usually dismiss the whole BS album except the title track, saying it was the only "artistic" thing on that album and foreshadowed her electronica direction, making the R&B sound "unimportant".

LiveToTell86 said:

Some Madonna fans have a problem with her doing R&B,even though it's a genre of music that she personally likes These fans want her to stick with electronica/pop but the thing is,Madonna likes to blend many different styles into her music.That's what makes her catalog so interesting.

ernestsewell said:

Madonna's uptempo r&b / hip hop music just doesn't cut it for me.

Her r&b ballads are far better.

I love most things about this album.The videos are wonderful, the cover artwork was fresh, and her image for this era was great - meshing up classic Hollywood glamour with a trashy /blingy edge.

I think the problem with the BS album is that it is a little disparate. Obviously a result of working with so many different producers - and she's said it was the hardest album for her to make, in terms of melding all the sounds together. I also think it has only 2 really strong single contenders, the rest are very much album tracks.

I feel that her 90's records were all 'vibe' records. Records to put on and get lost in the ambience of, as opposed to pop songs to get you on your feet and sing along to. Certainly the second half of the album has a gorgeous melancholic vibe to it - she was clearly going through something of an emotional low period, post Sex & Erotica, and trying to find her feet career wise and in her personal life.

My favourite tracks are Secret (obviously), Sanctuary, Inside Of Me, Take A Bow & Forbidden Love. Bedtime Story was totally ill fitting for her - though did lend to the vibe appropriately.

i think there should be a remastered edition. alternate cover, liner notes, add "your honesty" , "let down your guard", feat. TuPac...etc.

I also remember thinking this can't possibly be the same Madonna from her first album or two, cause she completely changed

shorttrini said:

thank you

xlr8r said:

She has not done an album like this since. I listen to it, to this day!!

shorttrini said:

I just LOVE this album. Interesting how many Madonna slaves hate it.

AlexdeParis said:

xlr8r said:

Well, it's not a bad album. I'm just glad she hasn't revisited it. Too much of it is boring IMO.

AlexdeParis said:

listen with your heart!