Best Albums Ever: Madonna, Ray of Light
Continuing my Best Albums Ever series, I just had to include a Madonna album. Yes, I know; it’s Madonna. She’s not even what you’d call a fantastic vocalist (some would say far from it). She’s an incredibly savvy businesswoman, innovator, and a great performer who’s made a career out of reinvention and shock factor. But there was a moment I wish she’d stopped reinventing herself; when she created Ray of Light.
Since the moment it hit store shelves in February of 1998, Madonna's Ray of Light has been one of my top ten albums. Nearly two decades later, I still listen to the album in its entirety, losing myself in the rich melodies, insightful lyrics, and Madonna's superb vocal performance.
As far as I'm concerned, Madonna has never sounded better than she did here. She was fresh off vocal lessons for 'Evita', a role that won her an Academy Award for Best Original Song ("You Must Love Me") and a Golden Globe for Best Actress. For the first time, Madonna was taken seriously as an artist. She was on top of the world, respected as a performer, and had recently become a mother. Consequently, she explored spirituality and craved a deeper understanding of love and life. Everything seemed to magically fall into place, and the pieces were set for a fantastic creation.
Madonna began recording sessions for Ray of Light with Babyface (whom she'd recently collaborated with on Bedtime Stories), but early takes sounded like variations of "Take A Bow". Unhappy with the results, Madonna went looking for something new and found it with Rick Nowels. In need of additional creative inspiration and hoping for something really unique, Madonna recruited English production mastermind, William Orbit. It was this partnership that ultimately gave the album its slick, polished and unique vibe.
From the opening melodies of the haunting "Drowned World/Substitute For Love" to the funky and energetic title track "Ray of Light" all the way to the mysterious closer "Mer Girl", this is an album that simply works. It’s magic. The music, the lyrics, the emotions, the imagery (it won the Grammy Award for Best Recording Package)... everything is cohesive and powerful. In a time where boy bands and teeny-bop artists dominated, this album came in like a breath of fresh air and took over the charts with an entirely different electronic sound.
My obsession for electronic music started here. This album changed my life and my perspective on musical artistry. I was 16, incredibly impressionable, and looking for something deep and meaningful. I'd never heard anything like this. I was awestruck.
“Drowned World/Substitute For Love”. This is one of my favorite songs, ever. I still remember how moved I was the first time I heard those sweeping, airy chords and subdued arpeggios. A curious vocal sampling, "you see", taken from "Why I Follow the Tigers" by The San Sebastian Strings, entices the listener. The rhythm kicks in with pulsing electronics, and then it starts. A rich bass, and Madonna's amazingly and surprisingly rich vocals. Critics noted her fuller sound, and its clarity is immediately obvious here. Madonna takes us on her conflicted journey between love and fame, raw and passionate and sweet. I keep this song in my back pocket as a vocal warmup. It's simple, but extremely strong underneath all that subtlety. Intensity builds, with strong guitars, piano, catchy drum fills and cool atmospheric swells. This is sexy and real and sensitive, and it all makes for an unforgettable opener. Oh gosh, that bridge: it's just perfection.
"Swim". Take it down. Get a little funkier. Another stylish track, this gets your foot tapping and bounces around in your head long after it's finished. Everything on this album is so slick, including this echoey track. That bass, the guitar, the reverb... they all merge into a perfectly rich and encouraging, spiritual statement. Production is flawless. There's never too little or too much. The balance of sound is perfect. And again, Madonna sounds effortless. Carrying on nicely.
On to one of my anthems from yesteryear (and still a major favorite), the title track, "Ray of Light". I don't know how to put into words what this song did for me personally. I was a major Spice Girl fan at the time, and this just amplified my enthusiasm and confidence. I sang this like I was that girl, "faster than a speed of light, she's flying". Right away, guitars bouncing along, you know something's coming, and you know it's massive. Then those drums come in and we're off, Madonna's voice stronger and brighter than ever. Any song that begins with the word 'zephyr' gets my thumbs up. Again, production is right on the edge of divine, teetering, at times, on the side of too much. But somehow, it works; bass and layered guitar licks and riffs and drums everywhere. Not to mention those extremely powerful and pulsing synths, sweeping up and down, and... that siren! I went to the ends of the earth to find every single "Ray of Light" club remix (and I think I succeeded). Thankfully, those mixes are an extension (some of them 10 or more minutes long) of the brilliance that's captured in these 5 minutes and 21 seconds.
Easily the sexiest track (because every Madonna album must have at least one), "Candy Perfume Girl" is next. This song has some of my favorite lyrics on the entire album: "young velvet porcelain boy", "the sacred nerve is magic poison"... awesome. Repetitive and distorted pulses and guitars keep the drive going, in deep, powerful beats. It's very sexy and lush, putting Madonna's vocals front and center. I feel dangerous listening to this, like I should be a Charlie's Angel or something. It's dark, and still sweet, the perfect balance of innocent and devilish. I absolutely love the acoustic guitars that burst in during the second verse! And that little music box interlude? Inspired. A little weird and totally unexpected, but exactly what's needed at that moment.
"Skin". Much more exotic and more electronically inspired than the previous tracks, this is where we really get a taste of the album's diverse sounds and experimentation. Vocals fade in and out, with Madonna crooning "put your hands on my skin" early on, very reminiscent of Erotica. The pounding beat screams dance floor, but the the arrangement give this more of a classical or mideast flavor. There's no guitar in sight, and the core is definitely the syncopated, busy percussion. Vocal effects are everywhere, every few seconds. I wish Madonna had done some remixes of this; I can imagine how awesome they'd have been.
More pop, "Nothing Really Matters" is distinctly Madonna and harkens back to earlier albums such as Like a Prayer. Still more sophisticated than your typical radio-ready track, Madonna reflects on her earlier, selfish years, and how she's come to rely on the love she and her daughter share as motivation. It begins soft and delicate, flickers of sound and gentle pulses shuffling along until the addictive dancebeat kicks in, a bit retro but timeless. The bridge features a piano solo that always gets my attention. If you haven't checked out the remixes, go do it. You won't regret it.
"Sky Fits Heaven" feels very much like a sequel to the previous track, in part because it's in the same key, but also in style and content. Madonna continues to express thoughts and feelings centered around love and motherhood, tied with spiritual enlightenment. This track, however, is much more experimental, ominous, and powerful than its predecessor; it's progressive. My Mom has always loved this song. Me? I love driving fast with it blaring through the speakers. It's intense with syncopated synths, an unrelenting bassline and ethereal chords driven by a delicate piano. The vocal production here is genius, with Madonna sounding both near and far from the listener.
Madonna's never been one to shy away from spiritual statements in her material. In "Shanti/Ashtangi", a Hindu Sanskrit prayer, she effortlessly sings lyrics that flow warmly over distorted beats and exotic drums. I remember singing this over and over to learn those words, which I never understood, but belted anyway. This track feels unique on the album, but contains elements of the now-familiar electronic production: the soul of the opener, the playfulness of track four, and pop appeal like track six.
Production doesn't get much better than on "Frozen". Pulsing chords and emotional strings tug back and forth, as Madonna expresses sadness and pain in the potent lyrics. Sounds that you wouldn't imagine working so wonderfully together work wonders here, tinges of eastern influence and deep, echoed basslines scattered around the subdued melody. This was always a song I sang when I wanted to stretch my voice before a performance; Madonna's delivery is straight, sensitive and real. The first time I heard this, I was surprised: it wasn't what I expected. Nonetheless, I loved it. It's definitely a highlight. Beautiful, divine, inspired.
"The Power of Good-Bye" became an anthem of sorts. I remember (briefly) hearing it on the radio, on several TV spots, and my friends particularly liked it. Something about it is universally appealing. Maybe it's the lyrics that speak of losing. Maybe it's that glittering acoustic guitar or the sparkling electronic piano or the addicting arpeggios. It sounds quite rich and glittery, despite its content. All of the album's best sounds and intensity build to greatness in this track. It's simple, but beautifully effective, and I consider it one of the album's best tracks. It was the last single taken from Ray of Light, and though its existence on the charts was brief, it made a dark, memorable statement.
Spookiness comes alive in "To Hand and Not to Hold", a jazzier, quieted latin-infused number with shuffling rhythms and somber vocals. It's muted style is a stark contrast to some of the album's earlier tracks. I love the ghostly oohs that open and carry the song, creating a backbone of melodies to build upon. There's a tainted quality here that gives the impression of something once great that's become damp and cold, another example of the stellar production. And again, Madonna sounds gorgeous, singing with a tenderness not often heard prior to or since this album. There are very few standout sounds in this song, another testament to the quality of Madonna's singing.
Ah yes, "Little Star", one of my favorites, and a song that I love playing on my violin. From the opening flickers to the warm, welcoming repetition of the rich melodies, I adore this little track. Madonna sings of the love and joy for her daughter, Lourdes, who in her eyes will always be the biggest, brightest source of hope. I love the sentiment, and how it plays throughout this track. On the surface, this is a basic lullaby-like pop song, but underneath, there's a depth and beauty that transcends your typical radio-ready tune. It's very spiritual, a personal prayer for a daughter's happiness and safety. It's ethereal with a lovely bridge of strings twinkling against Madonna's sweet voice. I just love this. It's the perfect blend of happy, optimistic and airy. I swear, there were once some legit remixes of this song, but they continue to elude me.
"Mer Girl" closes the journey; scarily, hauntingly, beautifully, and all-too-real. The structure is more like a poem, lacking a consistent beat or pattern, like a rusty heartbeat. This gives the song its eerie quality. It's the perfect backdrop as Madonna sings of her mother's death, and the effect it ultimately had on her own attitude and actions. She constantly sings of running, searching, and we get the sense that a part of her died with her mother. The delivery is beautiful, the sounds are perfect. Really, it's an impressive track that you would never expect to hear from Madonna. Echoes of "Live to Tell" exist here and there, with the same rich effects and seriousness. I remember when this ended the first time I'd heard it, I was captivated, amazed and impressed. It was a strange sensation of unsettling completeness, a spiritual journey I was glad to have been witness to.
And I played the album again from the beginning, over and over. And I still listen to every song, all the way through.
To this day, there's been nothing quite like this. Artists continue to innovate, trying new things, experimenting with interesting sound effects and vocal dubs, but this can't be beat. Copycats tend to be overproduced, overzealous and inferior. Ray of Light is perfectly engineered, with just the right balance of blips and bleeps, atmospheric swells and Madonna's voice front and center. It was before the time of pitch correction overload, and sounds so much more real and passionate than many current albums going for the same effect.
Despite its brilliance, Ray of Light never made it to number one; it was held to number two by the massively successful Titanic soundtrack. But I maintain it’s easily Madonna’s best piece of work. First week sales of the album were the biggest ever for a female artist at that time, and it won four Grammy Awards (out of six nominations), including Best Pop Album.
There are recent releases from artists; albums and songs that I adore, that I love, that I really respect and enjoy. But something about Ray of Light makes it superior. It always grabs me and takes me in. When I want to listen to something that sounds gorgeous, stylish, and embodies depth and meaning, I always come back to it. It never gets old, it's timeless, it's sleek and cool and chic and innovative. I can't say enough about it! I just love it.
Psst: here's the rare(r) album b-side, "Has to Be", which was on the Japanese version.
And for more kicks, here's an edit of "Drowned World / Substitute for Love" (BT & Sasha's Ashram Remix), one of my favorite running tracks.
Since the moment it hit store shelves in February of 1998, Madonna's Ray of Light has been one of my top ten albums. Nearly two decades later, I still listen to the album in its entirety, losing myself in the rich melodies, insightful lyrics, and Madonna's superb vocal performance.
As far as I'm concerned, Madonna has never sounded better than she did here. She was fresh off vocal lessons for 'Evita', a role that won her an Academy Award for Best Original Song ("You Must Love Me") and a Golden Globe for Best Actress. For the first time, Madonna was taken seriously as an artist. She was on top of the world, respected as a performer, and had recently become a mother. Consequently, she explored spirituality and craved a deeper understanding of love and life. Everything seemed to magically fall into place, and the pieces were set for a fantastic creation.
Madonna began recording sessions for Ray of Light with Babyface (whom she'd recently collaborated with on Bedtime Stories), but early takes sounded like variations of "Take A Bow". Unhappy with the results, Madonna went looking for something new and found it with Rick Nowels. In need of additional creative inspiration and hoping for something really unique, Madonna recruited English production mastermind, William Orbit. It was this partnership that ultimately gave the album its slick, polished and unique vibe.
From the opening melodies of the haunting "Drowned World/Substitute For Love" to the funky and energetic title track "Ray of Light" all the way to the mysterious closer "Mer Girl", this is an album that simply works. It’s magic. The music, the lyrics, the emotions, the imagery (it won the Grammy Award for Best Recording Package)... everything is cohesive and powerful. In a time where boy bands and teeny-bop artists dominated, this album came in like a breath of fresh air and took over the charts with an entirely different electronic sound.
My obsession for electronic music started here. This album changed my life and my perspective on musical artistry. I was 16, incredibly impressionable, and looking for something deep and meaningful. I'd never heard anything like this. I was awestruck.
“Drowned World/Substitute For Love”. This is one of my favorite songs, ever. I still remember how moved I was the first time I heard those sweeping, airy chords and subdued arpeggios. A curious vocal sampling, "you see", taken from "Why I Follow the Tigers" by The San Sebastian Strings, entices the listener. The rhythm kicks in with pulsing electronics, and then it starts. A rich bass, and Madonna's amazingly and surprisingly rich vocals. Critics noted her fuller sound, and its clarity is immediately obvious here. Madonna takes us on her conflicted journey between love and fame, raw and passionate and sweet. I keep this song in my back pocket as a vocal warmup. It's simple, but extremely strong underneath all that subtlety. Intensity builds, with strong guitars, piano, catchy drum fills and cool atmospheric swells. This is sexy and real and sensitive, and it all makes for an unforgettable opener. Oh gosh, that bridge: it's just perfection.
"Swim". Take it down. Get a little funkier. Another stylish track, this gets your foot tapping and bounces around in your head long after it's finished. Everything on this album is so slick, including this echoey track. That bass, the guitar, the reverb... they all merge into a perfectly rich and encouraging, spiritual statement. Production is flawless. There's never too little or too much. The balance of sound is perfect. And again, Madonna sounds effortless. Carrying on nicely.
On to one of my anthems from yesteryear (and still a major favorite), the title track, "Ray of Light". I don't know how to put into words what this song did for me personally. I was a major Spice Girl fan at the time, and this just amplified my enthusiasm and confidence. I sang this like I was that girl, "faster than a speed of light, she's flying". Right away, guitars bouncing along, you know something's coming, and you know it's massive. Then those drums come in and we're off, Madonna's voice stronger and brighter than ever. Any song that begins with the word 'zephyr' gets my thumbs up. Again, production is right on the edge of divine, teetering, at times, on the side of too much. But somehow, it works; bass and layered guitar licks and riffs and drums everywhere. Not to mention those extremely powerful and pulsing synths, sweeping up and down, and... that siren! I went to the ends of the earth to find every single "Ray of Light" club remix (and I think I succeeded). Thankfully, those mixes are an extension (some of them 10 or more minutes long) of the brilliance that's captured in these 5 minutes and 21 seconds.
Easily the sexiest track (because every Madonna album must have at least one), "Candy Perfume Girl" is next. This song has some of my favorite lyrics on the entire album: "young velvet porcelain boy", "the sacred nerve is magic poison"... awesome. Repetitive and distorted pulses and guitars keep the drive going, in deep, powerful beats. It's very sexy and lush, putting Madonna's vocals front and center. I feel dangerous listening to this, like I should be a Charlie's Angel or something. It's dark, and still sweet, the perfect balance of innocent and devilish. I absolutely love the acoustic guitars that burst in during the second verse! And that little music box interlude? Inspired. A little weird and totally unexpected, but exactly what's needed at that moment.
"Skin". Much more exotic and more electronically inspired than the previous tracks, this is where we really get a taste of the album's diverse sounds and experimentation. Vocals fade in and out, with Madonna crooning "put your hands on my skin" early on, very reminiscent of Erotica. The pounding beat screams dance floor, but the the arrangement give this more of a classical or mideast flavor. There's no guitar in sight, and the core is definitely the syncopated, busy percussion. Vocal effects are everywhere, every few seconds. I wish Madonna had done some remixes of this; I can imagine how awesome they'd have been.
More pop, "Nothing Really Matters" is distinctly Madonna and harkens back to earlier albums such as Like a Prayer. Still more sophisticated than your typical radio-ready track, Madonna reflects on her earlier, selfish years, and how she's come to rely on the love she and her daughter share as motivation. It begins soft and delicate, flickers of sound and gentle pulses shuffling along until the addictive dancebeat kicks in, a bit retro but timeless. The bridge features a piano solo that always gets my attention. If you haven't checked out the remixes, go do it. You won't regret it.
"Sky Fits Heaven" feels very much like a sequel to the previous track, in part because it's in the same key, but also in style and content. Madonna continues to express thoughts and feelings centered around love and motherhood, tied with spiritual enlightenment. This track, however, is much more experimental, ominous, and powerful than its predecessor; it's progressive. My Mom has always loved this song. Me? I love driving fast with it blaring through the speakers. It's intense with syncopated synths, an unrelenting bassline and ethereal chords driven by a delicate piano. The vocal production here is genius, with Madonna sounding both near and far from the listener.
Madonna's never been one to shy away from spiritual statements in her material. In "Shanti/Ashtangi", a Hindu Sanskrit prayer, she effortlessly sings lyrics that flow warmly over distorted beats and exotic drums. I remember singing this over and over to learn those words, which I never understood, but belted anyway. This track feels unique on the album, but contains elements of the now-familiar electronic production: the soul of the opener, the playfulness of track four, and pop appeal like track six.
Production doesn't get much better than on "Frozen". Pulsing chords and emotional strings tug back and forth, as Madonna expresses sadness and pain in the potent lyrics. Sounds that you wouldn't imagine working so wonderfully together work wonders here, tinges of eastern influence and deep, echoed basslines scattered around the subdued melody. This was always a song I sang when I wanted to stretch my voice before a performance; Madonna's delivery is straight, sensitive and real. The first time I heard this, I was surprised: it wasn't what I expected. Nonetheless, I loved it. It's definitely a highlight. Beautiful, divine, inspired.
"The Power of Good-Bye" became an anthem of sorts. I remember (briefly) hearing it on the radio, on several TV spots, and my friends particularly liked it. Something about it is universally appealing. Maybe it's the lyrics that speak of losing. Maybe it's that glittering acoustic guitar or the sparkling electronic piano or the addicting arpeggios. It sounds quite rich and glittery, despite its content. All of the album's best sounds and intensity build to greatness in this track. It's simple, but beautifully effective, and I consider it one of the album's best tracks. It was the last single taken from Ray of Light, and though its existence on the charts was brief, it made a dark, memorable statement.
Spookiness comes alive in "To Hand and Not to Hold", a jazzier, quieted latin-infused number with shuffling rhythms and somber vocals. It's muted style is a stark contrast to some of the album's earlier tracks. I love the ghostly oohs that open and carry the song, creating a backbone of melodies to build upon. There's a tainted quality here that gives the impression of something once great that's become damp and cold, another example of the stellar production. And again, Madonna sounds gorgeous, singing with a tenderness not often heard prior to or since this album. There are very few standout sounds in this song, another testament to the quality of Madonna's singing.
Ah yes, "Little Star", one of my favorites, and a song that I love playing on my violin. From the opening flickers to the warm, welcoming repetition of the rich melodies, I adore this little track. Madonna sings of the love and joy for her daughter, Lourdes, who in her eyes will always be the biggest, brightest source of hope. I love the sentiment, and how it plays throughout this track. On the surface, this is a basic lullaby-like pop song, but underneath, there's a depth and beauty that transcends your typical radio-ready tune. It's very spiritual, a personal prayer for a daughter's happiness and safety. It's ethereal with a lovely bridge of strings twinkling against Madonna's sweet voice. I just love this. It's the perfect blend of happy, optimistic and airy. I swear, there were once some legit remixes of this song, but they continue to elude me.
"Mer Girl" closes the journey; scarily, hauntingly, beautifully, and all-too-real. The structure is more like a poem, lacking a consistent beat or pattern, like a rusty heartbeat. This gives the song its eerie quality. It's the perfect backdrop as Madonna sings of her mother's death, and the effect it ultimately had on her own attitude and actions. She constantly sings of running, searching, and we get the sense that a part of her died with her mother. The delivery is beautiful, the sounds are perfect. Really, it's an impressive track that you would never expect to hear from Madonna. Echoes of "Live to Tell" exist here and there, with the same rich effects and seriousness. I remember when this ended the first time I'd heard it, I was captivated, amazed and impressed. It was a strange sensation of unsettling completeness, a spiritual journey I was glad to have been witness to.
And I played the album again from the beginning, over and over. And I still listen to every song, all the way through.
To this day, there's been nothing quite like this. Artists continue to innovate, trying new things, experimenting with interesting sound effects and vocal dubs, but this can't be beat. Copycats tend to be overproduced, overzealous and inferior. Ray of Light is perfectly engineered, with just the right balance of blips and bleeps, atmospheric swells and Madonna's voice front and center. It was before the time of pitch correction overload, and sounds so much more real and passionate than many current albums going for the same effect.
Despite its brilliance, Ray of Light never made it to number one; it was held to number two by the massively successful Titanic soundtrack. But I maintain it’s easily Madonna’s best piece of work. First week sales of the album were the biggest ever for a female artist at that time, and it won four Grammy Awards (out of six nominations), including Best Pop Album.
There are recent releases from artists; albums and songs that I adore, that I love, that I really respect and enjoy. But something about Ray of Light makes it superior. It always grabs me and takes me in. When I want to listen to something that sounds gorgeous, stylish, and embodies depth and meaning, I always come back to it. It never gets old, it's timeless, it's sleek and cool and chic and innovative. I can't say enough about it! I just love it.
Psst: here's the rare(r) album b-side, "Has to Be", which was on the Japanese version.
And for more kicks, here's an edit of "Drowned World / Substitute for Love" (BT & Sasha's Ashram Remix), one of my favorite running tracks.
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