SOMETHING TO REMEMBER - 1995


1. I Want You*
2. I'll Remember**
3. Take A Bow
4. You'll See***
5. Crazy For You
6. This Used To Be My Playground****
7. Live To Tell
8. Love Don't Live Here Anymore
9. Something To Remember
10. Forbidden Love
11. One More Chance***
12. Rain
13. Oh Father
14. I Want You (Orchestral)*

* Produced by Nellee Hooper
** Produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard
*** Produced by Madonna and David Foster
**** Produced by Madonna and Shep Pettibone

After the success of Take A Bow (and the bombing of the more creative works Human Nature and Bedtime Story) it seemed like the perfect time to release a controversy-free, mainstream collection of ballads. One of ehr most endlessly listenable albums, SOMETHING TO REMEMBER has one amazing track after another. Madonna's ballads have always been her most lyrically deep songs and this collection showcases that. If there is a cd in my collection that could be worn out from listening to this is it (EROTICA and LIKE A PRAYER would be fighting for second place). The three new tracks rank with her very, very best. A must-own for fans this collection sold almost 7 million copies worldwide.



I Want You - Intended to be a single (problems with Mowtown Records stalled that plan) I Want You is an erotically charged remake of the Marvin Gaye tune. Again Madonna's unmatched power to sing it like she means it elevates this track to spectacular heights. Earle Sebastian's video contains some of Madonna's best silent acting as she anxiously awaits a call from a lover. The final shot of her sadly leaving the phone off the hook is heartbreaking.

I'll Remember - A welcome change after EROTICA, I'll Remember was a #2 hit for 4 weeks six moths before BEDTIME STORIES came out. A simple ballad of gratitude and thanks, the video is a screaming letdown! Madonna with short black hair performs as a video is made around her. Sound familiar? It should, Rain came out less then a year before. Why Madonna and Alek Kesheshian would allow this to happen is baffling, although Madonna coming out of a sound booth to watch another Madonna perform the song is pretty neat. My classmates don't know it yet, but this is going to be our graduation song.

You'll See - A beautiful I-will-survive type ballad defiantly stands up to the man who broke her heart. A Spanish version of this song called Veras was released as the b-side to the maxi single and you may not understand the lyrics, but Madonna's voice makes it clear what the song's about. Indescribably great. The video by Michael Haussman of Take A Bow continues the tale of Madonna and the Matador. As the angry matador roams the city, Madonna leaves the country and her former love behind.

This Used To Be My Playground - A #1 song from A Leauge Of Their Own this was recorded after EROTICA, but released before. This nostalgic and simple song full of mourning over a lost friendship and is the song I want played at my funeral (hopefully a long way off). "I can see your face/In our secret place/Your not just a memory/Say goodbye to yesterday". The video, a creative way to inroduce movie clips, was directed by Alek Kesheshian (Truth Or Dare) and features a man's hans turning the pages of a photo album, each one a moving picture of Madonna or from the film. The final shot -of the man mournfully resting his head on the album- perfectly captures the song's theme of friendship through time and distance.

One More Chance - A musical departure for Madonna, the folk-rock sounding One More Chance showcases the vulnerability that is the true appeal of Madonna, not the iron-hard disco diva (although she's damn cool too). She begs her lover whom she underestimated for one more chance, with its final heartbreaking plea "If you care for me/Be there for me/Give me one more chance". Who could refuse such honest sounding vocals? A small release in the UK, it reached a not unimpressive #16 considering its musical differences from Madonna's other smashes.


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