i think American Life is a good disc. A dark, quirky, strange little album... it didn't sell particularly well, but i think in time it will be more appreciated.

P's Come album cums to mind as a parallel, in my opinion anyway. Looking back now I think alot of P fans consider Come to be a fine album, sortof a hidden gem. American Life I think will be an album that 10 years from now alot of Madonna fans will point back to as being undervalued, just like alot of P fans do now with Come.

I was thinking about this today, just relistening to American Life. It's a really really solid album... I think it was hurt by the controversy about the video and the packaging... and the "rap" segment of the title song i think just didn't work. If Hollywood had been the first single, followed by Nothing Fails, it would've been a very different result as far as sales for this album.


Or maybe even Nothing Fails as the first single... it would've been different, that's for sure. Harkens back to Like a Prayer... mixed w/ a bit of Frozen, perhaps... such a great song. A ballad as first single worked for RAy of LIght, why not American Life?

Oh well. Just some random thoughts.

"Erotica" reminds me more of "Come", not just for the obvious reasons...Madge has more anger on that album, it's closer to the surface. Heck, even "Bedtime Stories" is more like "Come" to me than "American Life"...

Erotica and AL both remind me of Come albums for all the reasons you've stated and then some..Erotica first though..AL is more her Exodus maybe?

I enjoy it much more than Ray and Music doe..its a return to her fun music to me--err as fun as she had for a while at least

rdhull said:

I would say that Music is the most fun of the last 3 releases. Ray of Light and American Life are dead serious.

That said, I feel that American Life is the equivalent of The Truth. Angry, honest, simple acoustic albums that are more for the core audience. Totally unapologetic and misunderstood. Them at their most real.

rdhull said:

likewise here, rd...i play AM much more than Music or Ray...

TRON said:

Oh the content is serious for her, yeah..but I meant the actual music/instrumentation seems fun to me..blips bleeps and all..the bouncy beat is back in her music so to speak.

mrdespues said:

I love 'em all. The best of her career other than Erotica. She's on a roll.

rdhull said:

First time I heard the album, it scared the shit out of me. It seemed so harsh and cold. But it quickly became my favorite Madonna album.

Notice also between American Life and The Truth that they contain probably their best thought out statements on politics and spirituality. They're both very accomplished and mature works.

"Erotica" and "Come" also go well together for the sub-bass. "Erotica" is probably her funkiest and jazziest album too. That alone makes it more Princely.

TRON said:

Nothing Fails is clsoing in on being my fav tune of hers I think..and Ive been with her from the beginning--that song ..makes me want to pray (pun intended and not)

What It Feels Like For A Girl..has been surpassed at least..for me that is

rdhull said:

Same here. Right now it's #3, right behind Substitute For Love and Like A Prayer.

At first I hated the main remix, but now I can't get enough of it.

Actually,I consider 'American Life' to be Madonna's 'Lovesexy'.It doesn't deal with religious themes as heavily as 'Lovesexy',but it's got the same spirit and feel.Both albums didn't sell that well,and for good reason.Neither album is really commercial,and they both feature very personal lyrics that had many fans scratching their heads.


I've been listening to 'American Life' alot lately and it's really a great album.The songs all fit together,there's not really any song that I would consider filler.It's like a concept album.I used to think that "I'm So Stupid" and "Intervention" were the only weak songs,but now I love those songs too.


You know what's funny though? I remember right before 'Ray Of Light' came out,Vibe magazine had a long review of it.They weren't too impressed with it ("her most soulless album to date") saying that it probably wouldn't appeal to many people.They predicted that it would fail and look what happened...lol

Actually, I think the "Come" analogy works quite well, in that the album has the same strengths and weaknesses. Both discs are packed with songs that, taken individually, are fantastic. The problem with both is that many of the songs don't flow well into each other, making the albums sound a bit disjointed.

Both also contain lyrics of an artist dealing with new stages of their life and career (Madonna is trying to find her niche as a mother/wife, as well as an artist. Prince was entering into his battle with Warners).

DavidEye said:

Funny, I always thought of ROL to be more in the veign of "Lovesexy", since it dealt with spirituality and a newfound love of life.

rdhull said:

I think 'Music' was her attempt at making a "fun" album,after the emotionally profound 'ROL' album.But with 'American Life',she's become all serious again.I wonder what frame of mind she will be in for the next CD?