Category Archives: Madonna

{Note: The Madonna Timeline is an ongoing feature, where I put the iPod on shuffle and write a little anecdote on whatever was going on in my life when that Madonna song was released and/or came to prominence in my mind.}

Bitch, I’m loca (Y yo loco, loco)
Bésame la boca (¿Y tú qué me das?)
Bitch, me gusta (Y yo te provoco)
Mucho que me asusta (Por eso no te vas)

One of the weaker tracks from Madonna’s ‘Madame X’ opus, ‘Bitch I’m Loca’ is another duet with Maluma, who shone to far better effect on ‘Medellín’. This one has a grittier edge to it, closer to the work they did for his own album at the time. I enjoy the rawness of it, I only wish it came with a slightly better melody, and a more creative title. (Didn’t she get all the bitches out of her system with the ‘Rebel Heart’ album?)

As for my own memories of this song, they aren’t strong and they aren’t many. Mostly because I skipped is every time it came on. The summer of ‘Madame X’ had more joys and enchantments to bother with than this filler track.

So nice to meet you, Mr. Safe
So nice to meet you, Mrs. Crazy
Where do you want me to put this?
Um, you can put it inside

Song #166 – ‘Bitch I’m Loca’ ~ Summer 2019

{Note: The Madonna Timeline is an ongoing feature, where I put the iPod on shuffle and write a little anecdote on whatever was going on in my life when that Madonna song was released and/or came to prominence in my mind.}

Peeking out of the turret in Usen Castle, I envision whirling dervishes spinning in the sky, all crushed purple velvet and tiny darkened spectacles – wisdom in motion, divinity enthralled. They spin and spin, leaping from crescent moon to star in some astrological dance intent on rearranging the firmament as we know it. Like cardboard scenery, the sky shifts, impossibly painted on paper in the most outrageous shades of blue and indigo, ocean and air and the bottomless and topless abyss called space. Future and past clash in fantastical surreality, and the dream of the latest Madonna song, ‘Bedtime Story’, plays out as if this was all actually happening, as if it were all actually real. Looking back at that March pocket of 1995, I’m no longer what did or didn’t happen. All that feels true is simply that – a feeling, a notion, the causing of a commotion.

Inspired by Madonna’s touring persona, I ambled around upstate New York and called it a Friendship Tour, stopping to see friends at Potsdam, Rochester and Ithaca – just as March proved to be mostly winter instead of spring. Bandages around my wrists, and adorned with golden charm bracelets, accentuated the silk pajamas I wore to bed: the madness of Norma Desmond coupled with her frail sadness, and an indefatigable battalion of earnest if misguided hubris. What kingdom was this? On what throne did I pose while Ann took my picture and her mother laughed at my nonsense? It was wooden and high-backed, and I feel it solid and real in my hands, immovable beneath my body. An actual throne, to kick off anything but an actual tour, and in my head the two blurred, and I began to believe the myth I had made for myself.

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY THAT I’M USING WORDS

THEY’VE GONE OUT, LOST THEIR MEANING

DON’T FUNCTION ANYMORE…

LET’S…

LET’S…

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS HONEY…

Ann and I drive north, into the snowy land of Potsdam, winding through the backroads and braving the snow and ice and brutal sun. It’s the tail end of my sophomore year at Brandeis and I’m already spent. Reading Rabelais has put me in a foul and mischievous mood, at odds with many of my friends and family, and so I rely on Ann, who loves me no matter what comes out of my mouth (or goes into it). We laugh and sing along to Aretha Franklin’s ‘Freeway of Love’ and Belinda Carlisle’s ‘I Feel the Magic’ while the snowy banks rush by in a blur. When we arrive at our friend Missy’s dorm, she is nowhere to be found, and this being in the time before cel phones, we simply hunker down in the hallway and wait. I spin in a circle for a few more pictures, my ridiculously shredded red sweater flailing about in tattered strips – some vague homage to Salome via Norma Desmond – and all the while Ann lifts my sunken spirits, heals my wounded wrists, and brings me back to life.

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY THAT I’M USING WORDS

THEY’VE GONE OUT, LOST THEIR MEANING

DON’T FUNCTION ANYMORE…

T R A V E L I N G . . .

LEAVING LOGIC AND REASON

T R A V E L I N G . . .

TO THE ARMS OF UNCONCIOUSNESS

Madonna does her part too, though I’m not sure if her new song is a help or a hindrance on my emotional state of mind. ‘Bedtime Story’ is the title track from her latest album, ‘Bedtime Stories’ – a trippy little nugget of music penned by Bjork and eons away from anything Madonna had ever done. It was a cosmic left-fielder on the R&B/New Jill Swing sound of the rest of the album, and a thrillingly new sonic adventure from a woman whom some had already written off in the aftermath of ‘Erotica’ and ‘Sex’. Here she was, bravely and defiantly moving forward, holding onto her pop crown, and not for nearly the last time, as she put out a spectacular video of instantly iconic poses and looks. If the song itself wasn’t a #1 smash like its predecessor ‘Take A Bow’, it held a special place in the hearts of her die-hard fans. It also informed this very tender time in my life, when I sought solace in the arms of friends, forgoing lovers as much as I might have liked one. When on the brink of self-obliteration, first-time lovers are not usually much help.

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS HONEY

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS HONEY

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS…

While Ann is staying with Missy in her dorm, I’ve secured a hotel room nearby. I’m still not quite ready to be around people, even those who love me most. Wrestling with personal demons, in the deep dark of night, is not a communal affair. Such battles must be fought alone, if they are to be won for good. I cannot explain it then; I cannot explain it now. Ann understands, and leaves me to the war in solitude.

WORDS ARE USELESS, ESPECIALLY SENTENCES

THEY DON’T STAND FOR ANYTHING

HOW COULD THEY EXPLAIN HOW I FEEL?

Alone in the hotel room, after friends have departed, I lower the lights and confront the silence. The appalling silence. The silence that dares to try to comfort me after all its betrayals. And after banishing everyone from my space, I suddenly panic at the thought of not marking this time, and so begin the nagging attempt of immortalizing the moment on 35 mm film. Sinking down to the floor in a silk robe, I sit in the shallow pool of light that falls from the bathroom door, looking at the ground, pondering the position of a young man willing himself out of the world.

T R A V E L I N G . . . T R A V E L I N G . . .

I’M TRAVELING

T R A V E L I N G . . . T R A V E L I N G . . .

LEAVING LOGIC AND REASON

T R A V E L I N G . . . T R A V E L I N G . . .

I’M GONNA RELAX

T R A V E L I N G . . . T R A V E L I N G . . .

IN THE ARMS OF UNCONSCIOUSNESS

My sleep, when it finally comes, is restless. It feels like it snows a bit as my eyes wander to the window, but I don’t know if I’m dreaming that. Pulling the curtains open and closed and open again, as the gray light of a dying winter seeps into the room, I’m no longer sure if I’m sleeping or awake, whether it’s night or morning, if I’m actually there or actually not.

The room should feel cold on such a night, and maybe it does. Physical sensations have always been secondary to emotions, and it’s already made a mess of my young life. If we only knew to survive first and feel things later, so much danger might have been avoided.

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS HONEY

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS HONEY

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS…

That next day, we rise early. The sky is overcast but bright – the lightest of grays that is a cover of clouds but doesn’t quite look like it. It is simply as if the sky has drained itself of color, leaking every bit of sacred blue into some hidden sea. Whatever I had hoped to find or discover on the previous night’s voyage of solitude proved annoyingly elusive. As my friends arrive, I have nothing to show for it. Still, I remember that night. To this day, I remember it, and remarkably better than so many other nights with so many other forgotten people. Maybe I made peace with at least one of my demons. Maybe I had too many then to even notice.

We climbed into the car, a rack of costumes hanging in the back seat. We were heading to Rochester for the next stop. A mosaic-patterned scarf in reds and purples flew like a flag from the car antenna – the closest we would get to any sort of recreation of the bus extravaganza from ‘The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert’. It took flight, and in its silly way lifted my spirits.

AND INSIDE WE’RE ALL STILL WET

LONGING AND YEARNING

HOW CAN I EXPLAIN HOW I FEEL?

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS HONEY

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS HONEY

LET’S GET UNCONSCIOUS…

Rochester, future city and site of a multitude of sins and mistakes, was right then a refuge, and Ann’s dorm room at RIT felt like home. With her band of misfit friends, I settled in and simply allowed myself to exist. The show would go on, and I would start assembling a vision of myself that wasn’t quite there yet, one that wasn’t quite real, filled with dramatic pomp and manipulated circumstance, which would carry me through the next few difficult years, as on the wings of a dream. With Ann by my side, I took off, and all those grand delusions would prove more than ephemeral ghosts.

T R A V E L I N G . . . T R A V E L I N G . . .

IN THE ARMS OF UNCONSCIOUSNESS

AND ALL THAT YOU’VE EVER LEARNED

TRY TO FORGET

I’LL NEVER EXPLAIN AGAIN.

SONG #164 – ‘Bedtime Story’ – March 1995

{Note: The Madonna Timeline is an ongoing feature, where I put the iPod on shuffle and write a little anecdote on whatever was going on in my life when that Madonna song was released and/or came to prominence in my mind.}

THERE ARE TOO MANY QUESTIONS
THERE IS NOT ONE SOLUTION
THERE IS NO RESURRECTION
THERE IS SO MUCH CONFUSION

AND THE LOVE PROFUSION
YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE ME KNOW
AND THE LOVE VIBRATION
YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE IT SHINE

By April 2003 we had been in our home for just over a year, and our first spring traditions were starting to take form. The opening of the pool, the preparing of the gardens, and the general spring cleaning that accompanied this time of the year made for an exciting moment – the release of a new Madonna album added to the energy, but not in the bombastic way most people associate with Madonna, especially in the mayhem surrounding the release of that album.

The final song from the ‘American Life’ album’ to be featured on the Madonna Timeline is ‘Love Profusion’ – fortuitously timed as this is the same time of the year when that infamous album was released. For all the incendiary talk and controversy the lead title track inspired, ‘Love Profusion’ was more indicative of the electronic pastoral that Madonna had conjured with ‘American Life’ – and the classic sonic vibe of her work with Mirwais.

THERE ARE TOO MANY OPTIONS
THERE IS NO CONSOLATION
I HAVE LOST MY ILLUSIONS
WHAT I WANT IS AN EXPLANATION

AND THE LOVE PROFUSION
YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE ME KNOW
AND THE LOVE DIRECTION
YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE ME SHINE

YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE ME SHINE, YOU MAKE ME FEEL

‘Love Profusion’ captured that happily hazy period when spring was ripening into summer, but the evenings and mornings were still chilly. I put the quieter ballads together and played them on repeat to lull us to sleep at night. This was one of those songs – a sweet love song, the kind that always felt like a throwaway to Madonna in the vein of ‘True Blue’ or ‘Cherish’ – where she would perform them on one tour then retire them for decades. (Still waiting on that ‘Cherish’ resurrection…) ‘Love Profusion’ didn’t even get a tour performance, and I’m cool with that.

I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN
I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN
I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN
I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN

The lyrics feel lazy, but today I’ll take it for something lighter, and more innocent and hopeful. Back in 2003, we were ready for that, and in 2021 we are even more ready for it. That doesn’t mean it’s particularly special or groundbreaking, but even when Madonna is pleasantly unremarkable, she’s still a joy to hear.

THERE IS NO COMPREHENSION
THERE IS REAL ISOLATION
THERE IS SO MUCH DESTRUCTION
WHAT I WANT IS A CELEBRATION

AND I KNOW I CAN FEEL BAD
WHEN I GET IN A BAD MOOD
AND THE WORLD CAN LOOK SO SAD
ONLY YOU MAKE ME FEEL GOOD

The video for this is one of my least favorite Madonna videos. I almost wish she didn’t even bother, and the less said about it the better.

I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN
I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN
I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN
I GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN

AND THE LOVE PROFUSION
YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE ME KNOW
AND THE LOVE INTENTION
YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE ME SHINE

YOU MAKE ME FEEL
YOU MAKE ME SHINE, YOU MAKE ME FEEL

Song #163 – ‘Love Profusion’ – Spring 2003

The advent of Lent (only true Catholics will rejoice at what I did there) makes this a bit of a Madonna moment, so entwined has some of her music been with the Catholic religion. Her most spiritual albums have been released in the month of March – see ‘Like A Prayer‘ and ‘Ray of Light‘ – and she recently re-issued some ‘Like A Prayer’ remixes that are positively divine. I’m treating you to the ‘Churchapella’ version here for a lovely almost-acoustic take on her epic song – a song that has stood the tests of time and controversy to stand alone as a piece of perfect art. Just like a muse to me…

{Note: The Madonna Timeline is an ongoing feature, where I put the iPod on shuffle and write a little anecdote on whatever was going on in my life when that Madonna song was released and/or came to prominence in my mind.}

I’M TIRED OF BEING FAR AWAY FROM HOME
FAR FROM WHAT CAN HELP
FAR FROM WHERE IT’S SAFE
HOPE IT’S NOT TOO LATE
RUSH, RUSH, RUSH ON YOU
LOVE, LOVE, LOVED ON YOU
LOVED YOU LIKE A FOOL
PUT MY TRUST IN YOU

Vines of chartreuse splendor wind down from the shade-giving canopy, while spires of new banana leaves rise from a bulky terra-cotta-hued pot. Together they form a veil of green, behind which the sparkling surface of the pool beckons, sometimes playfully, sometimes teasingly, and sometimes annoyingly when it’s dancing with rain. A hummingbird will come to visit, darting its tongue into the deep throats of the fuchsia and salvia, while robins will make a more bothersome and bold presence. To this, friends and family will add their joyous noise and bustle, enlivening the home and the yard and the summer itself.

It was the summer of 2019 – the last summer before the world stopped, before we were all stranded at home, suspended in place, our lives on pause.

‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
THE FEELINGS NEVER FADE
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
SAID COME, COME GIVE ME STRENGTH
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT FOR THIS
‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS

OOH (OOH), MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
OOH, I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
OOH (OOH), MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
OOH, I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT

Recent cravings for Madonna had her timeline returning to the blog, and the next cut is already up: ‘Crave’ from 2019’s ‘Madame X’ opus. That summer was the last one when the world felt semi-sane and whatever normal was before the pandemic. We couldn’t know that then, and so this breezy memory is sweeter and hazier than usual. Would we have made more indelible memories if we’d known what was to come? I don’t know, it may have been better that we didn’t have a clue. Ignorance is often bliss. Like the mythical sole passenger who survives a car crash because they were asleep and their body just stayed limp instead of tensing up and causing more damage – maybe it was best that no one knew what was in store for us. And so the summer of 2019 passed in all its innocent bliss, with this song rocking gently inside and outside the house, as we opened things up for the season of the sun.

‘CAUSE I’M JUST ME (YEAH), THAT’S ALL I CAN BE (OOH)
SOMETHING REAL (YEAH), SOMETHING I CAN FEEL
YOU KNOW I JUST CAN’T CHANGE, THIS IS HOW I’M MADE
I’M NOT AFRAID, TAKE ME TO THAT PLACE

YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE (CRAVE)
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
THE FEELINGS NEVER FADE
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
SAID COME, COME GIVE ME STRENGTH
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT FOR THIS
‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS

It was back in the days when being alone and staying home was a choice, a deliberate and intentional decision to spend the weekend by ourselves, an indulgent bit of privacy that today is commonplace and necessity, taking away much of the joy and treat of the thing. And of course, now we miss that company, especially in the summer.

YOU’RE ON ME, I DON’T THINK YOU SHOULD WAIT (WAIT)
YOU’RE ONLY ONE PULL UP AWAY (AWAY)
YOU’RE DOWN TO RIDE, YOU RIDE ME LIKE A WAVE (RIDE, YEAH)
I GAVE YOU A SENSATION (OOH)
A LONER, DAYS WE USED TO CHASE
IT’S DO OR DIE, YEAH, MY LOVE LIFE CAN GET CRAZY (CRAZY)
IT’S ON THE LINE, GIRL, YOU’RE RISKING EVERYTHING (THING)
IT’S OVER-X-RATED

Swae Lee was part of the 2019 summer soundtrack thanks to this one and the glorious ‘Sunflower’ – both subtle and insinuating tracks that lulled the summer days into nights, the way summer eases into just about everything. Nothing was rushed or hurried, nothing was worrying – the world eased into the sunny season and everyone put the work away. By the pool, we read and ate, idly dipping in when the height of heat overwhelmed. Friends stopped by when they could, family joined us for patio dinners, and no one had an idea of what was to come…

RAN SO FAR TO TRY TO FIND THE THING I LACKED AND THERE IT WAS
INSIDE (SIDE) OF (OF) ME (ME)
RAN AND RAN AND RAN SO FAST, A THING TO LAST, AND THERE IT WAS
I HEAR (HEAR) YOU (YOU) BREATHE (BREATHE)

‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE (CRAVE)
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
THE FEELINGS NEVER FADE
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
SAID COME, COME GIVE ME STRENGTH
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT FOR THIS
‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS

IT’S ON THE LINE, GIRL, YOU’RE RISKING EVERYTHING 

SONG #162 – ‘Crave’– Summer 2019