TrivialPursuit said:

bonatoc said:

As a LP, it's great. As an EP (the first three songs), it's nothing short but a masterpiece.
Out of nowhere, Madonna liberates all the eighties teen-agers, in under fifteen minutes.
Madonna celebrates their first love bliss, warns them about the narcissic pervert,
and tell them (everybody, in fact) it's OK to have the hots.

What a Lady.
Happy ReleaseDay, Madge.

I love when there is an EP within an LP. I think the first side of Sheila E.'s third album, minus the first track, is an EP to itself. I think on MJ's Dangerous from "Who Is It" to "Gone Too Soon" is an EP, or drop "Gone Too Soon" and add the title track.

As far as Madge records, I'd have to stew on that for a while. I think of the first 5 or 6 of Erotica like that.

Yes. Dangerous is almost an LP made of 3 EPs, it's almost too much (suddenly there was this urge to fill the whole 72 minutes on a CD, The Love Symbol album and Erotica are certainly guilty of that) to digest in one listening session.

Other albums in this category include :

Prefab Sprout's Steve McQueen (first four songs),
Texas' White On Blonde (first five),
New Radical's Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too (first three).

But I want to be specific: it counts only if the original tracklist order is kept intact.
2 great songs followed by a meh followed by a great song doesn't count.
The original intended flow/sequencing should be part of the magic.
Like a killing spree (the videogame type, please).

I have never heard those long albums as containing a sequence of EPs. I only considered "side A" or "side B" to be separate paths SOMETIMES.

Cinny said:

I have never heard those long albums as containing a sequence of EPs. I only considered "side A" or "side B" to be separate paths SOMETIMES.

Agree. 1999 and SOTT had very specific sides, sometimes you would spend weeks on just one.

https://youtu.be/r3J8rg1urHE?t=8

Madonna was ready to release "Like a Virgin" during the Summer of 1984, but Borderline just started taking off in the Midwest after its original peak. Then, stations started playing "Lucky Star" and it was a guaranteed hit, so Warner Brothers had to release it. I wonder what would have happened if Warner Brothers kept milking that first album. Would Madonna still become as big of a star? I think the timing of the "Like a Virgin" release is important to Madonna's career.

phillymonster said:

Madonna was ready to release "Like a Virgin" during the Summer of 1984, but Borderline just started taking off in the Midwest after its original peak. Then, stations started playing "Lucky Star" and it was a guaranteed hit, so Warner Brothers had to release it. I wonder what would have happened if Warner Brothers kept milking that first album. Would Madonna still become as big of a star? I think the timing of the "Like a Virgin" release is important to Madonna's career.

You saw her talking about this on MTV in the diner? madonnaunderground "Madonna RAW The Early Years 1984 interviews rare TV Special" ~3:00 she says June 1984. ~4:30 she says "as soon as Borderline.. fizzles out... please" *praying hands*


I personally think the timing of the MTV VMAs performance was pivotal.

TrivialPursuit said:

Madonna's eponymous debut album celebrates its 35th anniversary July 27. It was released in 1983 by Sire Records, and peaked at #8 on the Billboard 200. It went five times platinum (RIAA). In 2008, it was ranked number five in the top 100 albums of the past 25 years. It utilized the Linn-1 drum machine, Moog bass, and OB-X synth.

Producer Reggie Lucas had ignored many of M's suggestions for the final mixes, putting too many instruments on the songs. She contacted Jellybean to remix the available tracks as we know them now. Due to a conflict of interest, Stephen Bray sold "Ain't No Big Deal" making it unavailable to Madonna.

However, Jellybean found a new track floating around New York written by Pure Energy bandmates Lisa Stevens and Curtis Hudson. The song had been turned down by Phyllis Hyman and Mary Wilson (The Supremes). It was literally the last minute that fellow producer and arranger came in to record the piano solo at the end of the song. That song was "Holiday".

Can you even imagine Madonna without "Holiday" on it?! I can't.

Singles: "Everybody"

"Burning Up"

"Holiday" / "Lucky Star" (released a day apart)

"Borderline"

Bonus - "Everybody" from The Girlie Show

I remember hearing Holiday in the clubs in late 1983, I didn't know who it was. I thought is was band, like the SOS band or something.

phillymonster said:

Madonna was ready to release "Like a Virgin" during the Summer of 1984, but Borderline just started taking off in the Midwest after its original peak. Then, stations started playing "Lucky Star" and it was a guaranteed hit, so Warner Brothers had to release it. I wonder what would have happened if Warner Brothers kept milking that first album. Would Madonna still become as big of a star? I think the timing of the "Like a Virgin" release is important to Madonna's career.

I remember not understanding seeing Borderline and Lucky Star after Like A Virgin came out, I thought they were such extraordinary songs and it was very surprising to see them as singles way before I knew there was a first album.
Madonna was a bit like Prince to me, with stuff you couldn't hear on an album (for a brief period, friend's cassettes is all you had), like Gambler, Crazy For You, today they're all packaged under a convienent form, but it was great to see her all over the place, with such great singles.

I agree, it's (alas) a mastermind marketing move, Madonna appearing as a bride on the MTV Awards was phenomenal. Just like Motown's 25. It's a TV legendary moment. WB had flair and balls around that time. It's like they were trashing the first album, as good it was, because they still thought in terms of future back-catalog. A concept that has become anachronic and non-sensical today.

bonatoc said:

phillymonster said:

Madonna was ready to release "Like a Virgin" during the Summer of 1984, but Borderline just started taking off in the Midwest after its original peak. Then, stations started playing "Lucky Star" and it was a guaranteed hit, so Warner Brothers had to release it. I wonder what would have happened if Warner Brothers kept milking that first album. Would Madonna still become as big of a star? I think the timing of the "Like a Virgin" release is important to Madonna's career.

I remember not understanding seeing Borderline and Lucky Star after Like A Virgin came out, I thought they were such extraordinary songs and it was very surprising to see them as singles way before I knew there was a first album.
Madonna was a bit like Prince to me, with stuff you couldn't hear on an album (for a brief period, friend's cassettes is all you had), like Gambler, Crazy For You, today they're all packaged under a convienent form, but it was great to see her all over the place, with such great singles.

I agree, it's (alas) a mastermind marketing move, Madonna appearing as a bride on the MTV Awards was phenomenal. Just like Motown's 25. It's a TV legendary moment. WB had flair and balls around that time. It's like they were trashing the first album, as good it was, because they still thought in terms of future back-catalog. A concept that has become anachronic and non-sensical today.

Another very great stand-alone single was Beautiful Stranger... albeit much later

Happy 60th B'day Madonna

Madonna - Over and Over from the Virgin Tour (1985)

Awesome, awesome album - one of her best and one of the best debuts ever, IMO. "Burning Up" is still my favorite Madonna track.

TheFman said:

bonatoc said:

.

Another very great stand-alone single was Beautiful Stranger... albeit much later

High five, I adored that single.

The James Bond was not bad, was it Mirwais?

In a sense, even "Vogue" and "American Pie" are stand-alone singles attached to concept albums.

Madonna - Sticky & Sweet Tour (2008)

Madonna tweeted, " Madonna’s first album enters Billboard’s TOP 200 Albums chart. Remember the first time you saw the album in stores?"

The album didn't sell well initally, and it only sold 3 million by the end of 1985, her second album sold double that by the end of 1985. The singles of the album sold well. But the market in the US was at the crossroads, of changing into more of an albums marktet back in 1983. MJ, Prince, Lionel all sold over 10 million...Cyndi sold 4 m, Madonna 6 m, Tina 5m. Then the big debut came Houston 8 million, with 9 by the end of the decade. Paula Adbul 7 m, Mariah Carey 9 m.... PPl were waiting for 3 hits singles and then albums started to really sell. By the end of the decade (1989) the RIAA lowered the certification level of a gold single to .5 million from 1 million.

phillymonster said:

I would love if more artists had their eight-song albums ready to release as soon as the last album starts to plummet.

I've always been under the impression that this record and 1999 were crucial in defining and influencing the sound of the 80's, and to some extent the sound of dance music for many more years to come. IDK, maybe I give too much credit to Madonna (the album not the artist), but it seems to me that there was a before and an after.