Madonna Worship The Podcast Bonus Episode: Nap Time

Stevie and Chauncey attempt their first bonus episode, reviewing each track off of the lush and dreamy “Bedtime Stories” album released 30 years ago in October 1994! The guys talk about where they were and who they were back then and feature two b-side favorites throughout the show as well as discussing all the things that could have and should have been during this wonderful era of jazzy, club kid Madonna. Follow @stevievox @djchaunceyd and @madonnaworship on Instagram and don’t forget Madonna Worship Night: Holiday Edition in December at RedEye as well as a rumored Pajama Party Anniversary party planned for March!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:36):
KdV H.

Speaker 2 (00:38):
Chauncey, how's it going pretty good?

Speaker 1 (00:41):
I'm excited. This is our first uh little bonus episode, right.

Speaker 2 (00:44):
Yeah, A little bit. I mean I I am a
little sleepy though.

Speaker 1 (00:49):
I know it's almost nap time.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
I think it's time for naptime. Susan Thomas's nap.

Speaker 1 (00:55):
Time, so we're to be So we're celebrating today. On
October twenty fifth, nineteen ninety four, was the release of
Madonna's amazing Bedtime Stories album. So thirty years old, thirty
years It's crazy. Where were you? Where were you?

Speaker 2 (01:16):
Where was I? I will tell you where I was.
I was in the car with my mom on the
way to Sam Goody to buy the cassette. But I
think I mentioned it in the last episode. This was
the first album that I bought on release day. Oh wow,
which was like kind of like like we had a

(01:37):
side conversation about this the other day when I came
to visit you at work. But like my mom kind
of instilled that in me, like, oh, we have to
get this on release day because so in my mind,
even as a kid, I was like, well, I need
it on release day.

Speaker 1 (01:54):
That's so fun.

Speaker 2 (01:55):
Like the first album I ever we ever, like I
think it was even a pre order. Was Michael Jackson's
Dangerous So right? Like that? That that set the bar
for me. I like, okay, I have to have it
unreleaseddy So yes we went. We went to with Sam
Goody to purchase the cassette Sam Goody, Yeah, which is

(02:15):
no longer in existence. It was in a mall, a
mall in a mall. We went to the mall. We
I don't I think we just went to Sam Goody.
I remember it being a very large Sam Goodie.

Speaker 1 (02:28):
Yeah, Sam Goody, We're just like this wonderland for music lovers,
the one who was on Sixth Avenue in in in
the West Village. A little aside, that's I actually went
to a listening party for Ray of Light at that
at that location.

Speaker 2 (02:44):
I love that.

Speaker 1 (02:45):
That place is very sacred to me. It's no longer there,
but yeah, October October nineteen ninety four, I was I
was living where was that living? I was still living
in I was still living home. Yeah, I was still
living with my parents. I had moved out a couple
of months later. But I don't know if we went

(03:07):
on release day, but me and my my friend Pedro
who was my first I always talk about him, shout
him out, my original Madonna maniac buddy. I think they
went to get it on the day came out. I'm
not really sure, but I know we got it from
either Tower Records or we got it from uh Record Runner,
which is off of West Fort Street in the West Village,

(03:30):
one of the Madonna music mecca stores. They always had
all the all the imports, CD singles, and the calendar
and Icon Magazine used they used to sell it there,
so that was where we went to. That's where we
went for all our Madonna needs. And they're one of
the remaining record stores still open in the in the city,

(03:50):
which is pretty impressive.

Speaker 2 (03:53):
Have you been there, of course, I've been going for years.

Speaker 1 (03:57):
Record Runner is the place to be. There was also
Rebel Rebel on Bleaker of Christopher, but they closed a
while back.

Speaker 2 (04:04):
Sad, very sad. I'll never forget that. Actually, I think
I found out that Rebel Rebel closed while I was
at the Rebel Heart tour. Oh man, wow, because there
were some people who I met at the show who
were sitting next to me, and one of them had mentioned, oh,
did you know Rebel Rebel closed, and I was like

(04:25):
it did. Like I think there was always rumor that
it was, you know, in danger of closing, you know,
like the cost of rent and you know everything. You know,
it's a lot of overhead in Manhattan.

Speaker 1 (04:38):
Yeah, and you know, since streaming came into popularity, it's
like even bookstores don't exist anymore in the city. There's
very few and far between now that all our media
is on is digital.

Speaker 2 (04:52):
Yep, it's all all on the streaming services.

Speaker 1 (04:55):
But there was nothing like buying a CD and reading
through the booklet on the way home on the path
train before we before we got to go home and
put it into our CD players. I got it on CD.
I didn't get it on cassette.

Speaker 2 (05:11):
See, I got it on cassette. I got it on
cassette cas cassettes were cheaper and I had I had
a walkman. So that's that. That was like my lifeline throughout,
you know, my younger years. You know, I always like
wherever we were going, wherever I was going, you know,
I always had my walkman with me and I would listen,

(05:32):
you know, we're here, we are walking to the store,
and I'm like, okay, I gotta I need my walkman.
I had a little fanny pack to put my cassettes in.
I think I still have it too. I still have
my original walkman.

Speaker 1 (05:45):
Yeah, It's just interesting the way that we consume music.
When we were younger, I mean, I didn't really collect
too many records, but my brother had a record player
and it was kind of on the top of his dresser,
so I couldn't really reach it. And sets where you know,
you had two sides, like we were discussing before we
started recording, like how one song was the last song

(06:07):
on side A, and then you had to flip it
over to start listening to side B. And I'm sure
that when albums were organized and created and the theme
was done, I'm sure they placed songs in certain places
with a cassette in mind, you know what i mean.

Speaker 2 (06:27):
I'm sure, Well, well, yeah, because they had to. You know,
I'm sure they had a factor in the you know,
the run time of the entire you know album, and
then decide from there, you know what what how much
tape to you know run on each side?

Speaker 1 (06:44):
Yeah, but then I'm also saying like and then they
wanted like something powerful to kick off the second side B,
you know what I mean, Like I think that was
It must have been part of the planning because then
when you got when we moved on to CDs, and
CDs were the main thing, the closing track was always
like the most powerful or like the most thematic or

(07:04):
the most like it actually like it was a full
there was no flipping a CD, you know, so it
was like like a record or a cassette. So like,
I think an album conceptually kind of changed a little
one CDs became popular.

Speaker 2 (07:23):
Well, I know on on on like a record, like
on vinyl, they tend to put slower songs at the
end of the record because of the grooves the grooves
are smaller.

Speaker 1 (07:39):
Interesting, Yeah, because I.

Speaker 2 (07:41):
Know there's there's like on Danny's sister's new album, they
rearranged the track list on on you know, on the record.
A lot of people were like, why did they do that.
I think it's because, like the grooves are smaller at
the end of of of of that side, so they

(08:02):
tend to put more ballads to close outside one of
the record or side too.

Speaker 1 (08:08):
Wow, that's very interesting.

Speaker 2 (08:10):
So I don't think that that that's the same for
a cassette tape because cassettes, you know, it's all the same,
you know, frequency from start to finish. But I mean, yeah,
but you're right. I guess it would make sense for
them to put it like a punchier something punchier to
open each side.

Speaker 1 (08:31):
Kind of what I guess kind of what I was thinking,
what I was talking about, I mean Bedtime Stories was
was kind of like a lot of people called it
like her Damage Control album.

Speaker 2 (08:44):
I can agree with that.

Speaker 1 (08:45):
Yeah, because it was like she was like cold and
cold and like sexual on erotica and it kind of
the book came out, the sex book came out, Body
of Evidence came out, and she kind of like Letterman,
David Letterman was was during Bedtime Stories?

Speaker 2 (09:07):
What wasn't it right before or was it during?

Speaker 1 (09:09):
I think it was during I'm not sure, though I'm
not positive or it was right I remember, I remember
I remember his after Stories.

Speaker 2 (09:17):
No, I'll remember was first. Really, I believe I will
remember was first because it was in between Bedtime Stories
in Erotica.

Speaker 1 (09:26):
Okay, I think that was like kind of because it.

Speaker 2 (09:28):
Didn't I'll remember did really well like that that topped
that that that that top the singles charts. I was
it still gets very it gets prominent airplay even today,
like I'll be in you know, the supermarket and I'll
come on so interesting.

Speaker 1 (09:46):
I was thought, I'll remember it was after bedtime stories
and in between that and something you can remember because
I know this used to be my playground. Was right
before Erotica, so we had like just My Love and
we had this really sappy ballad. It used to be
my playground, and then we had Ronica. So it was
an interesting uh like busying almost array of of her,

(10:10):
of her her chameleon side and music. But I really loved,
like I'll never forget, like the colors of this album.
There was the pinks and the blues and.

Speaker 2 (10:25):
On the white, you know, like the white. I'm looking
at the cassette so I can see it, but on
the cassette spine it's white. So those the blue, the
baby blue, and the and the magenta really pop out.

Speaker 1 (10:39):
But and the fond was really like lush and like plush.
It was very like comfortable and very like like Kashani
and I don't know, I don't know what other words
to use, a very.

Speaker 2 (10:52):
Solid you know, it's interesting that you say lush because
a lot of people, like I've I've read it online,
you know, even from talking with friends. A lot of
people use the word lush to describe this record, and
it really is. It's very lush, and it does have
like very certain tracks have a lot of like just

(11:13):
like climactic build up and like cinema cinema esque, you know, composure, composition. Yeah,
well whatever, whatever the word is, and very.

Speaker 1 (11:23):
Like and very romantic and very like like, uh, it's
like a bedtime story. I guess. I guess that's kind
of you know where it came from. Like her her
look was, her look was very club kid at the time,
like very like limelight club kid. The dark eyeliner, the

(11:46):
messy like the curls, you know, the wild hair, and
a lot of like funky jewelry and and and uh
but uh, Secret had that video and all that was,
you know, shot in New York. Was a very New
York video that was our reduction to the album. And
then then the album came out because I think I

(12:07):
think The Secret came out in September and then the album,
the album came out in October. But like, do you
remember the first second, like the first few seconds of
the album. I mean, should we go track by track?
I think we should, Yeah, I mean, I'll never forget
when I first popped in the CD.

Speaker 2 (12:30):
And you get and you get hit with Survival and.

Speaker 1 (12:33):
That ilic voice and that like positive optimistic.

Speaker 2 (12:41):
I'll never be an angel, I'll never be a saint.
It's true.

Speaker 1 (12:46):
She's too busy surviving.

Speaker 2 (12:48):
Whether it's heaven or hell. She's going to be living
to tell.

Speaker 1 (12:53):
This is another instance of her doing a little callback
to a doing.

Speaker 2 (12:58):
A little callback with with with Live to Tell, there.

Speaker 1 (13:01):
Were the last The first time she kind of did
it was with Deeper and Deeper when she recalled the
lines from Vogue Vogue mm.

Speaker 2 (13:10):
Hmm, I what do you what are your thoughts on
Survival as an opening track.

Speaker 1 (13:16):
I think it's the one of the most perfect opening
tracks in the history of pop.

Speaker 2 (13:21):
Music, because, I mean, Madonna does reference a little bit
on this record, which we'll get there, you know, when
we get to side too of the cassette, but she
she kind of does address you know, the past, you know,
the past few years at that time, with the with
the downfall of of you know, Madonna with with Erotica

(13:46):
and body of Evidence in the Sex Book, and you know,
how dare she her career is over? You know, she's
she's done. You know, she's she's only doing this for
attention exactly.

Speaker 1 (14:00):
And she she she enlisted Nelly Hooper, who worked with
Buorick a lot. Dallas Austin was a big R and
B guy baby Face, and like you knows, as the
years have gone on, we we we found out that
Babyface in her had actually done a lot more work
together that didn't make it with the album.

Speaker 2 (14:21):
I would love for some of that to get released.

Speaker 1 (14:24):
Well we do have never trust a stranger, right, That's
that's a Babyface production with her. And what's interesting about
this album to jump forward real real quick just for
a second, it is kind of like the older sister
to Hard Candy mm hmm. And it's interesting how Babyface
did a lot of background vocals on this album and

(14:46):
then justin Timberlake was like the Babyface of Hard Candy.

Speaker 2 (14:50):
Would you say he's would would would you would you
consider in that?

Speaker 1 (14:53):
I mean it was it was in that vein I
think where it's.

Speaker 2 (14:56):
Like I guess, I guess she I guess you could
you could make that comparison like.

Speaker 1 (14:59):
A soulial thing time that baby Face was super hot
at the time. You know, I was working with TLC
Toni Braxton, right, I believe did some songs with Mariah,
all kinds of stuff. So it was interesting how she
it was one of the first times that she kind
of picked like the the people who were on top

(15:21):
to work with, rather than elevating someone along with her music,
you know.

Speaker 2 (15:28):
Well, and this was also the first time that she well,
I guess, I don't want to say it's the first
time because like the first album was kind of funky, yeah,
you know, had a lot of R and B undertones,
but music had changed so much in ten years. Yeah,
you know, if you look at you know, nineteen you know,
eighty three and eighty four, compared to nineteen ninety three

(15:49):
and nineteen ninety four, music was entirely different. So I guess,
you know, in retros, like I guess to listen to
you know, the first you know few albums and then
go to this, it does sound like a big you
know change in and style.

Speaker 1 (16:09):
Yeah, and even even Survival features background vocals by Donna
and Nicky, which I don't know if there are many
other songs that did that other than express Yourself, right,
I mean, like I mean, she was obviously they're on
tour with her. They were obviously on tour with her all,
you know, over the past couple of tours, but I
don't know whether there were that many tracks where they

(16:32):
actually were featured on. I know that Nicki is the
voice in like a prayer, but it was like nice
to hear, like right after the Girly Show, it was
nice to hear them on a track about survival and
about you know, being Madonna.

Speaker 2 (16:52):
I was actually I just opened up the liner notes
to see if Donna and Nicki were credited anywhere, and
I'm not seeing. I mean, I mean, we could pick
it out, you know, we could we hear their yah
Survival Nicky Harris and Donna Dolores say it background vocals, Okay,

(17:13):
so yeah, background vocals forbid Love take a Bow, Babyface.
So Babyface was on those Survival had Nicki and Donna.

Speaker 1 (17:22):
Yeah, And that was just such a beautiful opener, you know,
coming off of like all the negative criticism and that
you know, media energy that she was getting from from
all the sex books and stuff like that, and we
get this beautiful, lush track Survival and it's like it's

(17:43):
a little it's a little sarcastic, but it's optimistic you know,
it is it is.

Speaker 2 (17:49):
It is very optimistic. Yeah, I always I always get
that vibe when I listened to Survival, because sometimes I'll
just put it on. I'll be like, I'm gonna move
to listen to that out of.

Speaker 1 (18:00):
All the opening uh, those opening strings and all that,
and the beat is just so uh. I just thought
she sounded like an angel. Her voice was so so
pretty and so like childlike almost childlike. You know, there's
like a there's an innocence that we didn't get on
the Erotic album hmmm.

Speaker 2 (18:22):
And I think that was that was that was that
was what she was going for.

Speaker 1 (18:26):
Yeah, totally, she does. She knows, she knows how to
change her whole you know, sound and and morph and
give you something completely fresh. I just felt that fresh
as another word for it. It was like Erotica had
this great and griminess to it, which was sexy, and
it was what was going on at the time, like
the sleeves House and the slower house music beats and

(18:47):
the the you know Andre Betts that that's like hip
hop and jazzy kind of like beat nikki poetry vibe,
beat poet vibe, and this was very like there's a
lot of samples on this album as well, too, Like
I think she samples a Leah she does and samples

(19:07):
Herbie Hancock later on in the album. A lot of
it is, you know, even human nature and I'd rather
be a lover. They're all like kind of taken from
older hip hop songs. So she she like kind of
took a song even like like kind of what she
did with Justin from My Love. She took like a harder,

(19:28):
grittier rap song and edit like romantic flare and vibe
and like sensuality to it. So she totally transformed the tracks.
And then our second the second track is Secret, which
we had already heard. So it's like you get this beautiful,
lush track and then you get this the first single,
so you're like, I think it was a nice way

(19:51):
to like get you glued to the to the to
the music player, you know what I mean, Like like, Okay,
I know this song, you know, so.

Speaker 2 (20:04):
I prefer I'm sure I'm gonna get a lot of
hate for this. I prefer the remix two Secret.

Speaker 1 (20:10):
Oh really, No, I mean that was the remixes fantastic.

Speaker 2 (20:15):
This album in particular kind of turned me onto remixes.

Speaker 1 (20:20):
But that makes sense. Yeah, that makes sense because.

Speaker 2 (20:23):
They had a lot of really good remixes on the singles.

Speaker 1 (20:25):
Yeah, I was hanging out. I was hanging out at
Limelight during this time. There was a room on Wednesday
nights on the you would go in the side entrance
and if you were gay, you got in for free.
And the room that we went in was called the
Cha Cha Lounge and had mirrors all around it. Not
that big of a room, but that's where they played
all what would be considered classic house now, but it

(20:48):
was new then. So you'd hear, you know, Mari Carry remixes,
you'd hear when you Houston remixes, and all the Madonna remixes.
You'd hear, you know, all the the divas singing and
stuff like that. But they're really like sexy, original house
music beats. So it was so cool to be a
Madonna fan because every time you went to Limelight you'd

(21:08):
hear you'd hear all the remixes from this album at
some point.

Speaker 2 (21:14):
We love that. And the video is very very art artsy.
I find it to be very artsy, like nineteen ninety
four New York City artsy. Yeah, and it was shot
in Harlem.

Speaker 1 (21:26):
By the Apollo Theater, and she looked she looked fierce,
but she looked so different.

Speaker 2 (21:31):
M it was an entirely different look for her, but
it had like.

Speaker 1 (21:36):
It had like a throwback to like the jazz era
of New York, like in her just in the sound
of the song and in her look like it was
very vintage, even though it was. And also what's interesting
is in the nineties seventies, like disco era clothing like

(21:57):
vintage clothing.

Speaker 2 (21:58):
So it's making a big comeback.

Speaker 1 (22:00):
Yeah, because I remember in the in the nineties, I
would I was wearing like all these like and like
bell bottoms almost and but but they mixed it in
with like piercings and New York's chics, so it was
kind of it was a cool reinvention of of seventies

(22:21):
like leather jackets and stuff like that. Like I had
the coolest leather jacket back then, and actually I found
it in my in my own basement, like it was
my uncle's or something like that, leather parrameult pleather with
the big collar. It was so much fun.

Speaker 2 (22:38):
Love that. Do you still have it?

Speaker 1 (22:41):
Yeah, I left it a long time ago. I think
it ripped however, But I definitely have through it. Those
are my skinny years, three Bear years. But yeah, and secret.
We still don't know what really the secret is in secret.

Speaker 2 (22:59):
I mean she will she she posted a secret the
other day. She had a secret.

Speaker 1 (23:03):
Yeah. We thought we'd find out before we record it,
but we did it.

Speaker 2 (23:07):
No, we didn't. I mean, it's it's pretty safe to
say it's going to be it's going to be a release.
It's going to be a vinyl.

Speaker 1 (23:14):
Most likely, right, maybe it'll be people.

Speaker 2 (23:16):
Because well, I mean, Susan Thomas is in the nap
Time was on the record store day list and then
it mysteriously disappeared, So I mean that there is some
sort of physical release coming. It's it's probably gonna be
like a colored vinyl. Yeah, you get like pink and
blue vinyl for Bedtime Stories.

Speaker 1 (23:37):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (23:37):
Well maybe maybe we'll get the uh, you know, original
track listing, you know, with with you know, a bonus track,
you know, for I'd Rather Be Your Lover.

Speaker 1 (23:49):
Yeah, which was the next track, which was number three.
And what's interesting is that erotica in this album we've
found out. We've gotten so many leaks of information and
stuff that wasn't released or like alternate versions like the
rough mixes just just got leaked, like not too long

(24:11):
ago to remember, yep, but I'd Rather Be Your Lover
features Michel and Degiocello, whom Madonna had signed to her
Maverick Records label M. But this track originally had Tupac
as the rapper.

Speaker 2 (24:29):
How amazing is that? I mean maybe maybe I wasn't
like I wasn't really aware of Tupac at the time.
I'll be honest, like during that time period, I was
not aware of Tupac. I mean, I'm aware of Tupac now, obviously,
I think everybody is, and you know, he's such a

(24:50):
you know, a cultural icon, yeah, you know, and and
well praised and loved by many. But we lived in
a time where they're could have been Tupac and Madonna
on a record, you know, officially released, just a you know,
a leaked demo. But how amazing is that you've I

(25:12):
mean obviously you've heard.

Speaker 1 (25:13):
It, Yeah, but Michelle came.

Speaker 2 (25:17):
I I prefer it, I honestly prefer it.

Speaker 1 (25:22):
I haven't good enough to make it fun.

Speaker 2 (25:26):
It's it's just very fun. And I urge anybody who's
listening who hasn't heard it you know, you could. You
could find it on the internet. Go listen to it,
because it's it's I like it. I like it more,
but I'd rather be your lover. I think this could
have been a single.

Speaker 1 (25:43):
I think it could have been too, actually, and I
thought of I always thought of this as her like
her like lesbian something way, yeah, being being I always
I was. I was classified it as her like her
little flirtation dance with with lesbianism, especially because Michelle I

(26:05):
didn't know cheuapoc originally back then, we didn't know chupuc
originally did the wrap for it. I think the record
label kind of stopped it too, though, didn't they.

Speaker 2 (26:15):
I'm sorry.

Speaker 1 (26:16):
I think the record label stopped it or like he
didn't want to be.

Speaker 2 (26:21):
I think the record label urged her to stop it,
and she agreed because I think at the time, Tupac
was getting into a lot of trouble, and that's when
it was like there was a lot of bad I
don't want to say bad press, but bad press around
Tupac and Bedtime Stories was supposed to be the you know, okay,

(26:42):
we're going to give you a we're doing a softer image,
we're recuperating everything you know, no more, you know, some
sexy coffee table book, no more, body of evidence, Like, look,
we're doing something dreamy and lush.

Speaker 1 (26:57):
Yeah, so.

Speaker 2 (27:01):
I think that that probably played a big part in it.

Speaker 1 (27:05):
Yeah, would have. It would have been really cool if
this was a single, even with the miss Michelle rap
on it. I think she plays I think she plays
bass on it, s or plays guitar on it. Michelle
and Dell. I'm a huge fan of Michelle and de Gucello,
and I thank Madonna for introducing me to her. I
saw her live once. She's really she has if if
anyone's interested. She has a song called Leviticus, uh faggot

(27:30):
that is is unbelievable and brilliant and like it. It's
a bit caustic, but it's about you know, someone growing
up day and being mistreated by their family and all
that kind of stuff. So but it has a killer groove.
It's one of those songs. It's like like an angry

(27:51):
sort of sad song set to like a really funky groove.
So it, like the juxtaposician really makes it stand out.

Speaker 2 (27:57):
Send that link link me will be check.

Speaker 1 (28:01):
Out Leviticus by Michelle and Degocello. Yeah, I would have.
I would have loved this to be single. I love
the way she sings on this song. I love her,
like her her soulful voice and he's trying to get groovy.

Speaker 2 (28:17):
I think it would have it would have it would
have done. I think it would have done really well too,
like really well in the charts.

Speaker 1 (28:23):
Secret hit number three, right, it was one of her
number three mm hmm. And then we go to the
the fun. You know, Madonna always has a song that's
about dancing and celebrating and and all that, and this
album has its Don't Stop, and it's like this kind

(28:43):
of I thought this was going to be a single too.

Speaker 2 (28:45):
Actually again should have been the single.

Speaker 1 (28:49):
It's not my favorite. I might get some heat for that,
but it's a little repetitious and like a little too
like like like high school lyrics. I don't know. The
lyrics kind.

Speaker 2 (29:06):
Of are too silly, not even I don't know.

Speaker 1 (29:09):
If it's silly or just like the easy lyrics, you.

Speaker 2 (29:12):
Know, I think in Latin America, I remember reading a
while ago, Don't Stop did have some airplay.

Speaker 1 (29:20):
I actually I heard it at a pastmark once back
in the day.

Speaker 2 (29:24):
Okay, there we go. I was shopping a Pathmark.

Speaker 1 (29:27):
I was like, why are they putting? I didn't think
they could play a song that wasn't a single.

Speaker 2 (29:31):
You know, well, I guess maybe they could, you know.

Speaker 1 (29:35):
I just didn't expect a place like Pathmark, like you know,
like a radio station. Yeah, but like like who programs
past marks music?

Speaker 2 (29:43):
It's all sat it's all satellite radio. It's all the
nineties though, Oh okay, never mind, I don't know about
back then.

Speaker 1 (29:52):
Yeah, this was like nineteen ninety four, ninety five. I
was shopping in the in the in the frozen looking
for some frozen spinach, and here, all of a sudden,
they hear get up on a dance, got to see
your move and.

Speaker 2 (30:06):
You started dancing on the frozen vegetable aisle.

Speaker 1 (30:10):
It was like, Pexsmark is wild?

Speaker 2 (30:13):
I mean, is Pathmark still even open?

Speaker 1 (30:16):
I don't even know?

Speaker 2 (30:17):
Are I am? I like it. I enjoy it. I
enjoy it a lot. It's fun. I love I love
the beat again. I think it could have been the single.
Maybe it should have been.

Speaker 1 (30:29):
I actually really enjoy the intro immensely to every song
on this album. Mm hmm, like the it's the the
beat that kicks don't stop. It is amazing. I'd rather
be a lover has that secret has the guitar survivals?

(30:50):
Like when when like they really thought about I mean,
arn't beat music back then was very like the songs
were complete, like intro, fade, out, chorus, chorus, bridge, instrumental,
you know, like I think R and B songs from
the nineties were the last time that songs were complete,

(31:10):
like a full, like many tiered cake of a song,
you know what I mean, hm hmm, Like there was
they thought about the intro, they thought about the outro,
they thought about the you know, the in between, like
it us a full the full.

Speaker 2 (31:28):
Monty interesting and every like. I love that you say
that because I agree, Well we'll get there, we'll get there.
There's there's one track that really well, well we'll get there.
Well there's that when we flip the cassette over.

Speaker 1 (31:46):
I know. And then you said the end of the
first side was inside of me, right.

Speaker 2 (31:51):
Inside of me. What do you what are your thoughts
of this song? I think you have a lot to
say about this song.

Speaker 1 (31:57):
Maybe I actually like this is definitely one of my
favorite on the album. And what I like about is
that it's pretty much written about her mom. Mm hmm.
But it could be for a lover, it could be
for an old friend or like an old teacher. Could
it's pretty universal. But you know, it's such a different

(32:20):
type of song. The last time we got a song
about her mom was was promised to try, and that was,
you know, slow and painful and beautiful.

Speaker 2 (32:36):
Whereas this is a little bit more. It's it's it's
less painful.

Speaker 1 (32:43):
Has its little moments, but I think it's also it's
a little like we said before, it's optimistic, it's not
so dreary.

Speaker 2 (32:51):
And it's just lyrically beautiful.

Speaker 1 (32:53):
Yeah, And she's basically saying like, I'll always have you.
You know, I'm cool, you know when I'm when I'm
feeling down, you know, people talk bad things about me,
I'll just think of you and everything will be okay.
And I think it's almost like she further came to

(33:15):
terms with you know, it's always you know, my mom died.
When my mom died actually a year after this album
came out, so this song didn't mean as much to
me until a year later after.

Speaker 2 (33:27):
Yeah, did she listen did she listen to this album?

Speaker 1 (33:31):
I don't know. I mean I played it a lot,
so she definitely had heard it.

Speaker 2 (33:33):
She probably did.

Speaker 1 (33:35):
Yeah, what's interesting is my mother lost her mother when
she was seventeen. I lost my mom when I was nineteen,
so we had that in common. Unfortunately, you know, not
that wasn't something we had in common while she was alive,
but it was like we both lost our my mom
and I both lost our mothers around the teen age.
So but yeah, so like that made more any even

(33:58):
promise to try. Anyone who listens to promise to try it.
If you don't feel something from that song, you're you're
dead inside. Oh, you know. Five years later, six years later,
when my mom passed that that song.

Speaker 2 (34:15):
Like, you know, I don't think I would be able
to listen to it at that point, not for a while.

Speaker 1 (34:22):
Yeah, it was. It was. It was difficult, definitely difficult,
but inside of me kind of was like it's happy
younger sister in a way, you know, mm hmm, which
was nice. And there have been a few other songs
obviously about her mom and her mom's death over the years,
but I think promise to Try is obviously the best one.

(34:44):
But inside of me definitely give it was a little
more hopeful. It was a little more like I'm I'm
I'm getting I'm getting there, you know. That's what it
was kind of about, Like I'm getting to be okay
with it. Like we talked about in the last episode
how Christopher just passed away, and recently the photo showed
of her visiting her mom and Christopher's grave. So that's

(35:04):
all like, that's all back to this album, is having
an anniversary. It's all a lot of circles, you know,
like she put life as a circle on our Instagram. Yeah,
like being a survivor, like and how many people in
her life that have passed away from the age virus
to you know, Michael Jackson and Prince. She's like the

(35:29):
last woman standing and it's got to be it's got
to be really haunting to be in that position.

Speaker 2 (35:36):
She's kind of the last of like the musical trifecta.

Speaker 1 (35:42):
Yeah, and they were all born the same year, which
is pretty wild.

Speaker 2 (35:44):
Yeah, Like, yes, you're you're you're correct on that they're there.
I'm not sure Prince and Michael. Isn't Michael locks.

Speaker 1 (36:00):
Over possibly, I'm not sure about Michael. I know about
I know Prince for sure.

Speaker 2 (36:05):
But I hate to say this because I know, a
lot of people are going to have a lot to
say about it, but Wendy Williams said it. She's like,
I don't know about you, but like Madonna is the
only one left out of the musical trifecta, which was Madonna,
Michael and Prince. And this is I think around around
the time that Prince died and when there was like

(36:27):
heat on her doing the Billboard Award tribute, like there
was it was like, oh my god, the worst thing
in the world, Madonna doing, you know, a tribute. But yeah,
and she was. She was right on that. She really was.
I for I guess you know your generation, my generation too,

(36:48):
like Prince, Michael and Madonna were you know that that
that was music, so you know, for pop music at least.

Speaker 1 (37:00):
And yeah, I hope we get another at least another
twenty years of the Queen, no more. Even more than.

Speaker 2 (37:08):
That, we need another like fifty.

Speaker 1 (37:11):
Yeah, it'd still be if if her father's any any
any reference, she'll be around for a long time.

Speaker 2 (37:17):
She'll be we'll be doing bedtime stories sixty.

Speaker 1 (37:23):
Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 2 (37:26):
Oh goodness. But I think we're at the end of
side one. Yeah, set over.

Speaker 1 (37:31):
And what's interesting is like The first five songs are
kind of like fun and hopeful and like a little
flirty but not not too sexual, and then we go
boom right into probably her most performed song ever aside
from Vogue in Holiday, We've Got Human Nature. M that

(37:52):
was a that was the blam of a song in
my opinion. It like whacked whacked you over the head.
You're like, oh, she's really pissed, but she's singing in
a very like soft kind of like central way about
how pissed she is.

Speaker 2 (38:11):
You know, was this I think this? I think this
is the first almost kind of would you say it's
a bitch.

Speaker 1 (38:19):
Track, more of a clapback track, maybe.

Speaker 2 (38:23):
A clapback track.

Speaker 1 (38:24):
Or like a backtrack to me, like in the nineties
was like a like like just somebody talking over a track,
like kind of being like, it's over for you, it's
over for me, darling, I love you, but can't she
see it's over for me. It's very like or repetition,
but it was. There were more housey tracks like a
but like a dirty house like kind of like lo

(38:47):
fi kind of like Temi voguee track, so like just
had that those elements, but it was set to such
a such a old school hip hop beat.

Speaker 2 (39:00):
Mmm. And it's very you know, I mean, it's it's
very old one. I'm trying to collect myself here.

Speaker 1 (39:13):
It's one of the few songs where she's referencing her
career actually, which is kind of interesting.

Speaker 2 (39:16):
Yeah, that's I was I was, I was going there.
I was trying to think of a good word to use.
But yeah, I mean she's kind of addressing the past,
you know at that point, you know, four years Yeah,
you know, I'm not your bitch. Don't hang your shit
on me. It's human nature.

Speaker 1 (39:34):
Yeah, Like I wonder like it kind of it's it's
the only track like that on this album. It's kind
of got that like that that intro is very like
almost like an alarm going off. It's kind of like
it's it's it's like where it fits on the album

(39:55):
is really interesting too, because it's kind of between two
like soft central love songs and she's oh, by the way,
I'm all romantic right now, but a bitch doesn't forget,
you know.

Speaker 2 (40:06):
Mm hmm. Well again, back to back to the you
know reference, you know reference they made about the final records,
you know, Inside of Me would have closed out side one. Yeah,
and you know, Human Nature opens side too.

Speaker 1 (40:23):
So I almost wonder whether how different the album would
have been received if like Human Nature was the first track.
You know, it's a kind of like a like with
American Life. It was like American Life was like the
the bit the American Life is the human nature of
American Life. And if she opened American Life with a
different single and with a different I mean, we'll get

(40:45):
to there when we when we celebrate American Life anniversary.
But like the placement of a song in its single
release and in the album really informs the success of it.

Speaker 2 (40:57):
I think, you know, it definitely would have set the tone. Yeah,
I think that, having I don't. I don't think that.
I mean, Human Nature is it is an amazing track.
I mean I love hearing it live, I love listening
to it, But I don't think that it it would
set the tone for.

Speaker 1 (41:16):
I wonder whether it would have been a better like
final track. Mm hmmm, we'll get that.

Speaker 2 (41:23):
I kind of like it where it is like right
dab in the middle.

Speaker 1 (41:27):
Yeah. No, I'm not complaining about its placement, but I'm.

Speaker 2 (41:29):
Like, well, no, I'm just like it's I think that
even even to close out the album. Yeah, I don't,
I don't know. Maybe I don't know. Maybe maybe I
should rearrange the tracks thing and listen to it.

Speaker 1 (41:42):
No, it's just just interesting because I think human Nature
is the sound of human nature and I'd Rather be
Your Lover are closer. It's just interesting how she has
a song about, you know, her mom, then she has
a song about the critics. Like it's interesting how it's like,
I just I'm just fascinated sometimes with how albums were

(42:03):
planned back then, Like I would love to have been
at the business meeting saying, like, you know, were they
wondering which songs? You know? That's what I'm always like
curious about when it comes to older, like full concept albums,
like were they gonna put Secret first? And then they
said no, let's put Survival first because it opens up,
Like I wonder what the chat was, you.

Speaker 2 (42:24):
Know, I think that, well, you're right, because you know,
they cut out Tupac from I'd Rather Be Your Lover,
but they left human Nature. Maybe they felt like, okay,
well human nature, she's just talking about stuff that already happened,
so that's okay, that's okay.

Speaker 1 (42:47):
That's really the only song that you know, she curses
on and you know, it's the only like NC seventeen
song on the album really, whereas Erotica had a lot
of curses and you know, mm.

Speaker 2 (43:04):
Hmm video for this what was that? What do you
think of the video for Human Nature?

Speaker 1 (43:12):
I think it's definitely in her top ten.

Speaker 2 (43:15):
It's it's very it's it's it's simple visually, you know,
because it's just you know, it's the very white background,
the you know, patent pleather, you know outfits.

Speaker 1 (43:29):
Yeah, the boxes, and the the choreography is really intricate
and crazy.

Speaker 2 (43:35):
Yes, very but that I think that that's the beauty
in the video because it's not all about you know,
being flashy or you know, extravagant sets. It's very simplistic.
But the dance in the choreography is where it's it
draws your eye, you know, especially on that stark white background.

Speaker 1 (43:58):
And I think the mirror of arts and all that
kind of stuff. And this was the final single, which
is interesting too. It was the final It was like
saying like, oh, by the way, you know, don't forget
I'm pissed, you know.

Speaker 2 (44:11):
And I love the single cover, Like the cover of
the single, I love that photo shoot.

Speaker 1 (44:17):
The photo shoot in the Hotel Beautiful. It was our
Corney love her Corney Love homage.

Speaker 2 (44:27):
She used Courtney loves Compact. It was it was that compact.

Speaker 1 (44:31):
She's like, I know what I'll do. I'll use that
compact and I'll mudge my eye liner. And yeah, she
looked really really hot and like trampy and like kind
of like Madonna horror kind of complex kind of thing,
which is really awesome. I feel like Erotica on or
like she is when she really dove into like fire

(44:55):
fashion and stuff like m she really up her image
to like a like a tour kind of higher fashion fierceness,
you know, because it was just the times too, like
supermodels were becoming supermodels in the nineties and she was

(45:18):
able to showcase a lot of designers and stuff like that,
and it just got better and better from them m M.
And then we go, uh, I mean Human Ature. She's
performed it on almost every tour since it came out,
in different in different versions.

Speaker 2 (45:39):
What's your favorite version of Human Nature that's been performed,
Because it's been it's one of the most performed Madonna songs,
not not the most, but one of them.

Speaker 1 (45:48):
I really like I really like the first version in
the ground World Tour. But I'm pretty sure why am
I drawing a blank? M d NA Yeah, m d
and A was really really fun because it led into
her like stripped teeth and then it's that really powerful

(46:10):
worsting scene. Mm hmm. So really it really was.

Speaker 2 (46:13):
It was a perfect I think, I think that's my favorite.

Speaker 1 (46:17):
Yeah, and she just looked fierce and she looked like
she looked badass. I like Matamax too.

Speaker 2 (46:24):
It was good where she had the with with the saxophone.

Speaker 1 (46:28):
Yeah, and she and the trumpet and she played the trumpet.

Speaker 2 (46:31):
Was there a saxophone or did I make that up?

Speaker 1 (46:33):
I think it was just a trumpet ampet or something.

Speaker 3 (46:37):
Okay, something one of those form you put that like
circle thing in I think, and like you block the
sound and then released it.

Speaker 2 (46:47):
A rusty trombone, a rusty combone. Not think it was
a rusty trumbone.

Speaker 1 (46:51):
No, thank you, don't look that up if you don't
want to be disgusted everyone. And then we go into side.
We're already on side too.

Speaker 2 (47:03):
We're already on side We're already on side B. We're
on side too. But I think, maybe do you want
to play your little uh you know the track you
pick to play.

Speaker 1 (47:13):
One of my favorite one of the songs that really
like blew Me Away as a B side and totally
could have been on an album was let on Your Guard.
I think I listened to that. It was on The Secret.
It was a B side the Secret. It was on
the CD single for Secret, and I played it so
so much like I I love let Down Your Guard.
It's such a weird, quirky, you know, hip hop R

(47:36):
and B song. We're gonna play that on your Guard
B side from Secret and we'll be right back inside.
You tell me please.

Speaker 4 (48:02):
The health assist based and they in the innate from incident.

Speaker 2 (49:01):
In it.

Speaker 1 (49:15):
It don't.

Speaker 2 (49:37):
In the.

Speaker 5 (49:53):
Instant indeed in.

Speaker 1 (50:20):
All right. And then after human nature we have what
I call her shade song.

Speaker 2 (50:26):
That's what I used to call it, Forbidden Love. This
is the first forbidden love, Yes, the first forbidden love,
the first one forbidden love ninety four, not what he
confused with forbidden love.

Speaker 1 (50:40):
Six. Rejection is the greatest effidisiac.

Speaker 2 (50:45):
That lyric always stands out.

Speaker 1 (50:47):
To me, oh so good, But she really sounds like
this is actually this was before I Want you right
when she covered the Marvin Gaye song. So this was like,
I think when she did this song, she's like, no
I can say I want you because listen to Forbidden Love.
It was just her at her like her nineties soulful best.

(51:11):
It was just so like the lyrics were like simple
but descriptive and like, oh, one of my favorites.

Speaker 2 (51:21):
And pleasing to the ear a way.

Speaker 1 (51:24):
Damn. It just kicks right in and you got like
human nature like fades out right back in the time
when songs would fade out. They don't fade out anymore.
I don't know at all.

Speaker 2 (51:37):
Just they just kind of end there two minutes long exactly.

Speaker 1 (51:41):
And then we get smacked with this sexy, driving beat
for Forbidden Love, another Babyfait Babyface song. Definitely one of
my favorite ballads.

Speaker 2 (51:54):
I find myself listening to Forbidden Love a lot, especially
like this past month, specifically because I kind of already
figured we were going to record this this this episode.
So I went back and I was like, Okay, I'm
gonna listen to Bedtime Stories a lot this month, and
we listened. We listened to it on our way to
see Terrifier, and I find myself going back to listen

(52:19):
to Forbidden Love a lot, yes, a lot.

Speaker 1 (52:23):
It's I don't know, And I think this is like
the beginning of the second act of this album where
everything starts to get a little, a little weird, a
little like weird. We're really in a dream now, you know.

Speaker 2 (52:37):
In a dream. I always I find I find it
this part specifically very movie esque, very cinematic. Yeah, because
with the opening of Love Tried to Welcome Me. I
love the opening to this.

Speaker 1 (52:53):
Oh it's so good. That's how we started the show.
As per your request, I was so unexpected. You didn't
know on first listen. You didn't know what was coming,
you know what I mean. You didn't know what kind
of beat was coming. You didn't know what how fast
the song was going to be. You didn't know how
slow the song was going to be. You just heard

(53:15):
this like almost a Vita esque mm hmm. Yeah, this
is her time to like part of her audition sort of.

Speaker 2 (53:24):
Look, guys, I can be ava pron Yeah, listen to
this track and the lyrics I'd.

Speaker 1 (53:29):
Love to try to welcome here are some of her finest.

Speaker 2 (53:31):
In my beautiful, beautiful lyrics. There's like a sadness to it,
like a like a maybe not so much like loneliness.

Speaker 1 (53:43):
Yeah, I was just talking about being a lonely hunter. Yeah.
And she kind of references the lyrics in this in
the crave video from Matamax Am I wrong.

Speaker 2 (53:54):
Maybe a little and some of.

Speaker 1 (53:57):
Later later on in twenty nineteen, when the Craved of
is out, she sends all these messages through a carrier
pigeon and one of them has to do with being
a lonely hunter or something.

Speaker 2 (54:08):
Yes, that's how I tend to send my messages to people.

Speaker 1 (54:13):
I think that's that's a book or some sort of
literary reference.

Speaker 2 (54:16):
Hm, hmm, I believe. I think you're right.

Speaker 1 (54:19):
Actually, there is another Dave Haul production. It was Dave
Hall and Nelly Hooper and a Babyface alternating on this album.
Very Romantic, very slow, great lyrics, really sad and just
how she's been alone and the hopeless romantic in her.

(54:43):
I've always loved this song and just the idea that
she personifies love as something that tried to like let
her in, but she, like her soul drew back like
it's it's interesting to personify something that isn't a an
actual thing in uh in poetry. And then we possibly

(55:06):
have one of my favorite Madonna songs, like top ten
of all time that wasn't a single.

Speaker 2 (55:16):
Sanctuary.

Speaker 1 (55:16):
Sanctuary. Yeah. I could listen to Sanctuary on repeat for weeks.

Speaker 2 (55:22):
So you know what's what's really interesting. I listened to
this song a lot, especially like in the car, not
like when the album came out.

Speaker 1 (55:33):
I mean.

Speaker 2 (55:35):
The cassette player, the tape deck that we had in
the car at the time, because my parents had a
Suzuki and it had a fancy tape deck that I'm
sure there's a technical term for this. I don't know
what it's called, but you think you could skip tracks
on the cassette like, it wouldn't, like you like if

(55:57):
you hit fast forward, like one button was like fast
straight fast forward, you just fast forward throughout the entire tape.
But there was another button that would you could fast
forward but to the next song. So I guess it
would sense, you know, maybe you know, oh, okay, there's
there's you know, silence, so let's stop and play Wow.

(56:18):
So if at the time, if I wanted to fast
forward and just listen to Bedtime Stories spoiler alert, that's
the next track, it wouldn't work because Sanctuary blends into
Bedtime Stories so I would. I would listen to this
a lot because I'd be like, Oh, I just really

(56:40):
want Like at the time, I didn't make mixtapes, that
that idea didn't come until maybe a couple of years later,
and so I would be stuck I don't want to
say stuck listening to it, like oh damn, I'm stuck
listening to Sanctuary. But I would listen to it, and
at the time, I would envision what the music video

(57:03):
would be like if she did a music video to this,
and I always envision it to be like very similar
to Bedtime Stories because it almost has that same, you know,
trippy vibe to it.

Speaker 1 (57:20):
This one has a sample of Herbie Hunk Herbie Hancock's
Watermelon Man, which I discovered because of this song. It's
a really beautiful Herbie was a genius, but the fact
that they sampled him for this particular song was really interesting.
M but the lyrics in this song are possibly my favorite.

Speaker 2 (57:39):
Of hers, extremely poetic.

Speaker 1 (57:42):
Oh this song just makes me so happy, so dark
and spooky and and otherworldly like h It really showed
that she could.

Speaker 2 (57:58):
She could do anything, and it's it's a beautiful introduction
to the next track because it doesn't there's no fade
out here, and it so.

Speaker 1 (58:11):
Runs the only two songs on the album that do that,
And I think.

Speaker 2 (58:15):
That's I think that at the time, I don't think
I had ever heard maybe no, maybe not. I don't know.
I can't recall anything right now where I've ever heard
of track run into another track, aside from maybe disco
like listening to like a disco album album.

Speaker 1 (58:37):
Is I think that like this is when this is
when you're like you're you're finally asleep. Maybe mm hmm.
This is a dream like Sanctuary is like the beginning
of you know, like mm hm. I never really thought
of the album that way, but wow, it's like survival

(58:58):
and Secret. I rather be her. Don't stop. You're kind
of like getting ready.

Speaker 2 (59:04):
You're getting ready for bed.

Speaker 1 (59:05):
Human nature is kind of like the little jump stuff
before you go to bed, and then that's.

Speaker 2 (59:09):
Where you're washing your face, doing your skincare.

Speaker 1 (59:14):
And forbidd in Love, I've tried to welcome me.

Speaker 2 (59:16):
That's so that's where you're you know, you're taking care
of business before.

Speaker 1 (59:21):
Dead exactly, and you go right into the sanctuary that
goes right into one of her like most like like
Harold did tracks until then. I think, like people, we're
just blown away.

Speaker 2 (59:37):
I would love to see this live. I'd love for her.
It will never happen, but I would love for her
to include Sanctuary someplace even intro, Yeah, an intro or
an interlude, you know, like with just like a really
really really good visual like that would have been great,

(59:58):
even even even ring celebration tour.

Speaker 1 (01:00:01):
I mean, well, what I what I would often wonder,
like when you have a career, this that's this long.
This album is now thirty years old, like thirty years
ago I was eighteen, Like I don't really remember a
lot that I did when I was eighteen, But like,
does she ever go, Oh I forgot that Sanctuary?

Speaker 2 (01:00:21):
Remember that song?

Speaker 1 (01:00:22):
Yeah?

Speaker 2 (01:00:24):
I wonder she like, you know, here she is like
you know, getting ready for bed herself, you know, or
maybe going in the bath, you know, popping and throwing
in a you know, m DNA bath bomb, and she's
like remember Sanctuary and she starts like singing it.

Speaker 1 (01:00:41):
Maybe yeah, because I mean, like you know, I know,
bands like The Cure they write everything themselves and that
not really about production there or like you know, like
do the does Dave Kahan from Depeche Mode. Does they
sit down and go, oh, I remember that song from
Violator like that that random like not filler track, but

(01:01:02):
like that album track, that deep cut, Like do they
remember things like that? Like I'm just wanting.

Speaker 2 (01:01:09):
I would hope, so, I mean I would think. I
mean remember during the during the pandemic, when Madonna was
posting on Instagram when she was getting ready to do
you know, the you know, all the research and you know,
organizing for for the movie. She did post a video

(01:01:30):
where she sang it was it was waiting, right, it was?
She sang waiting from Erotica.

Speaker 1 (01:01:41):
Wow, Yeah, I was waiting.

Speaker 2 (01:01:46):
Don't go break in my heart like you said you would.
She started saying, yes, it was waiting. Okay. I had
to think about it. I was like, wait, was it wrong?

Speaker 1 (01:01:53):
Was it was it? I don't remember that video. That's
that's really fun.

Speaker 2 (01:01:57):
She just you know, she sang like a little a
couple of couple of little lines, and then like the
video like you know, went off to other things. But
and everybody's like, oh my god, oh my god, Like
I wonder if you know she goes, you know, sitting there,
she's gonna, you know, make another tic tac video and
she's like, just starts singing sanctuary. I don't know where

(01:02:18):
that would be great?

Speaker 1 (01:02:19):
So cool? Who needs your son when the rain's so
full of life? And then she puts Walt Whitman in
the middle of it. What a bizarre thing to do. Like, surely,
whoever speaks to me in the right voice, himmer, he
shall follows the water, follows the moon silently with flood steps.
That's a Walt Whitman poem.

Speaker 2 (01:02:42):
It was a little dirty too, right. He did a
lot of erotic poems.

Speaker 1 (01:02:46):
I think, so, yeah, he was like the forest guy, right.

Speaker 2 (01:02:51):
I think there's a bridge in Philadelphia or something.

Speaker 1 (01:02:55):
Yeah, And then we go into Bedam Story, which you know,
really really surprised us all sound wise.

Speaker 2 (01:03:01):
And with the opening, the opening, the grunts.

Speaker 1 (01:03:08):
And then we find out that, you know, it was
written by B York.

Speaker 2 (01:03:11):
Which is I mean, it is very B York, you know, lyrically,
because Madonna was a big fan, was a big fan
of B. York's first album, which is a fantastic record,
and she wanted she wanted B Yorke to do a
song for her, So I think it was her and

(01:03:33):
her and Nelly asked B York and Buyork was hesitant.

Speaker 1 (01:03:39):
There's there's Bork's version out there somewhere too.

Speaker 2 (01:03:41):
It is it's It's on the Army of Me single,
b York's Army of Me single, know that I mean,
and the lyrics are slightly different. I think b York
Byork did say Madonna sang the lyric wrong during Bedtime Story.
I forget which lyric it was. I remember that it was.

(01:04:06):
I should have wrote that down.

Speaker 1 (01:04:08):
Maybe that was the way that Madonna got credit because
she wrote some of the ways, yes, because she's listed
as one of the writers. Question. But yeah, I always
thought it was that. That was the weirdest part about
that song is that it wasn't like a happy like gift.
It was like all right, I'll do it, you know.

Speaker 2 (01:04:29):
I mean, and it's a great song, it's but I
think it has.

Speaker 1 (01:04:33):
That weird paintedness about it in my mind because bu
York really didn't want to do it.

Speaker 2 (01:04:39):
I mean, but it's bu York. I mean, I don't know,
is she is she that happy to do a lot like?
I think that's just like her personality.

Speaker 1 (01:04:48):
Yeah, I hear you.

Speaker 2 (01:04:49):
I mean, I mean, look what happened to the to
the reporter in Bangkok.

Speaker 1 (01:04:53):
Oh yeah, it's great.

Speaker 2 (01:04:55):
She beat the ship out of them.

Speaker 1 (01:04:57):
That's funny. And Bedtime Story it was the third single
after the next song, but it was secret the next
song Bedtime Story, and then Human Nature, So it's kind
of like Bedtime Story was one of the first of
her singles to not really chart very well, right.

Speaker 2 (01:05:16):
I mean, I don't know why. The song itself is great.
I mean the album you know, the album or single
versions great. The remixes are phenomenal.

Speaker 1 (01:05:26):
The Orbital remix is one of my favorite remixes of
all time.

Speaker 2 (01:05:29):
Junior's remix one of my favorites of all time.

Speaker 1 (01:05:34):
Yeah, and these were remixes that I heard, like in
the club when they came out, so it'll always be
sacred to me.

Speaker 2 (01:05:40):
I have the Maxie single. I remember when the Maxie
single was released and I happened to pick it up
at the time and I wrote, again, like I said earlier,
this album in particular is where I really got into remixes.

Speaker 1 (01:05:54):
Yes, and.

Speaker 2 (01:05:57):
The Bedtime Stories remixes were amazing, amazing, and they still are.
I love listening to them. When you know, when I
have whatever you know Spotify or my you know music
player on shuffle, but it's the video is wonderful.

Speaker 1 (01:06:19):
Yeah. It was her second time working with Mark Rumaneck
after Rain, so we knew we were in for something
really dramatic and creative, and it defied expectations. There was
actually a Pajama Party video release party at Webster Hall
in New York that I was lucky enough to attend.
Mm hmmm, I saw I saw story about that night,

(01:06:42):
but I'll tell you another day.

Speaker 2 (01:06:44):
Well, well, we'll do that another time because it's I
I I enjoyed talking about the Pajama Party. I saw
it on TV empty. In fact, I remember when it premiered.
I know I've told this story before, but I'm going
to tell it again the power flicker and the VCR
stopped because I, you know, I would record everything, and

(01:07:07):
I only have about a half of the Pajama Party
Oh wow tape and I didn't see it.

Speaker 1 (01:07:13):
I war like, I wonder if they could ever, like
just put that online somewhere. I'm sure it is most
positively do that, Like MTV should just upload all their
like specials from back in the eighties and nineties.

Speaker 2 (01:07:25):
Yeah, I don't think that they're really in the market
to do that didn't. They just recently delete their entire
you know, MTV news website with everything that was you know,
on there for years and years and years, and it's
like all gone.

Speaker 1 (01:07:40):
But a little bit of a secret that the single
came out in the beginning early months of nineteen ninety five.
So next March will be the thirtieth anniversary of the
Pajama Party and me and Michelle Ruiz are working on
something to celebrate, So we'll just leave it up.

Speaker 2 (01:08:01):
That love, that love that, I love Michelle too, We
love Michelle.

Speaker 1 (01:08:07):
And then the Big, the Big, The Big to Do
was the second single, but the final track mm hm
the most her most successful song ever, right or not successful,
but her longest raining number.

Speaker 2 (01:08:25):
One I think so Yeah, it was.

Speaker 1 (01:08:29):
Take a Bow, Take a Bow with the perfect final
song for a beautiful album. I think it's when you're
waking up after the bedtime story.

Speaker 2 (01:08:37):
Yeah, or maybe maybe it's towards the end of your dream.

Speaker 1 (01:08:40):
Yeah, it could be, Yeah, where your your wet dream? Yeah,
you're you're you're in love with the Matador. What I
always gotten really funny about this is, you know a
lot of people say that the video was kind of
her her audition for Avida. But I always kind of
interesting that the song itself has a very Asian sound
to it, but then the video is set in Speen.

Speaker 2 (01:09:04):
It's I love the video.

Speaker 1 (01:09:07):
I love it. I mean, it's one of the best
videos of all time.

Speaker 2 (01:09:10):
I know, I know when when the video came out,
I was rolling around in bed like her too.

Speaker 1 (01:09:14):
Yeah, I'm putting your feet over like over the television.

Speaker 2 (01:09:17):
Yeah, yeah, I mean, I love the song. I I'm
very happy. I know you weren't thrilled to see it live.
I was very happy I had the chance to see
take a Bell.

Speaker 1 (01:09:30):
Oh I was. I was thrilled with the idea to
see it live. But it's not an easy song to
sing for anyone. It's a studio song, you know, it's
a softly song. And I just don't think she either
rehearsed enough because it was kind of thrown in here
and there, or she like they told us she sounded

(01:09:50):
great and she didn't. I don't know they could have.
I don't know. It's just it's always weird to me
when when uh, and when she has trouble singing a ballad,
you can she's just standing there. So but it's not
an easy song to sing, so I'm not all those notes.

Speaker 2 (01:10:05):
The notes are pretty high on this song like that,
that's it's a high note.

Speaker 1 (01:10:08):
It goes very low and then it goes really high.
So that's why it's hard to like find actually, like
the verses are kind of like they sound good recorded,
but unless you jazz it up a little bit with
like an upbeat rhythm or a slight change in the
in the vocal arrangement, it's not exciting to sing, you

(01:10:30):
know what I mean. M it is.

Speaker 2 (01:10:32):
I mean, it's it's it's just a it's just a ballad, yeah,
so I mean, and.

Speaker 1 (01:10:38):
It was also I think also it was weird to
see her. I know, you know, she's one of the
performers who you know, you see twelve different versions of Vogue,
you see five different versions of Holiday, you see like
she's constantly reinventing the image that goes along with each song.
But I think her look in the concert when she
put the song in just didn't work for me.

Speaker 2 (01:11:03):
Like I could agree with that that, I will agree with.

Speaker 1 (01:11:09):
Arrangement a little more like spacey or like ethereal maybe,
but yeah, the original, you know what I mean. But
so to watch you.

Speaker 2 (01:11:19):
Saw the clip that they included on the Rebel Heart
Tour Japanese edition right where they included take a Bow
as a bonus. Yes, Like it looked good there because
she kind of had that style, you know, costume on.

Speaker 1 (01:11:36):
I mean, I'm all for you know, reinventing a look
and you know, changing the representation of a song. That's
what she's been fantastic at her entire career. But I
think the arrangement of the song or the beat or like,
like maybe if they did the in the Soul remix,
that might have worked a little better for me.

Speaker 2 (01:11:58):
But this, this is a little change change in tempo.

Speaker 1 (01:12:01):
Yeah, but I think this whole concert celebration tour kind
of stuck to the original versions of most of the
songs like it wanted to, Like like it kept the
the original integrity, Like she didn't veer off too many
too much. You know. I think that was the intention,
you know, because she's always been known for manipulating songs

(01:12:23):
and changing them. So this was love. This is what
it sounded like when it first came out.

Speaker 2 (01:12:28):
You know, I'd love to hear like a full orchestra
with the song, like full live orchestra.

Speaker 1 (01:12:37):
That would be wild.

Speaker 2 (01:12:39):
It would be an I think it would be amazing,
Like how Danny's sister did the Abbey Road sessions where
she went to Abby Road and had like a full
orchestra to rerecord her greatest hits. That would be that
would be fun to hear, specifically for take Aboll maybe
you'll see too.

Speaker 1 (01:13:00):
Yeah, take About was like her longest running number one.
Surprised me, you know, but you know, she didn't. A
lot of her songs didn't stay number one for a
long time. She's had a lot of number one, but
very few of them like stayed up there for for
a long long period of time. I think when it
comes to Madonna, anyone who's gonna get a Madonna song,
they get it right away, and then then they may

(01:13:22):
like an addiction, and then and then no one else
needs to buy it, you know. Like I'd be curious
to find out whenever she hit number one, how that's
the difference between the amount of albums purchased for her
number one to the number two track or number two
single on the charts. Like I wonder if it was

(01:13:42):
like double you know what I mean, M.

Speaker 2 (01:13:46):
Problem Maybe maybe I wonder if there's there's statistics out there.

Speaker 1 (01:13:52):
Yeah. I feel like when when Madonna released something, everybody
ran out and got it. It's like Jenna Jackson, Paul Duel,
Mariyah didn't like, she didn't have any real slow burners,
you know, m M. Everybody was like, oh my god,
I need a new Madonna, you know exactly.

Speaker 2 (01:14:09):
I mean times have changed now because most people aren't
buying records, you know, the kids are all streaming. So
but I wonder if there's I'm sure there has to
be statistics out there. But and you know, there's another
track that was not included on the album, And I

(01:14:32):
don't know why.

Speaker 1 (01:14:33):
It wasn't included because I know what you're talking about.

Speaker 2 (01:14:38):
You're honesty.

Speaker 1 (01:14:40):
Yeah, that's it.

Speaker 2 (01:14:41):
It didn't It didn't get released until two thousand and
two thousand and four four Yeah, remixed and revisited, which
is another great but it's a Bedtime Stories outtake. But
it's a great polished song.

Speaker 1 (01:15:00):
Yeah. I guess it was timing wise, like they couldn't
fit all the songs maybe, but I'm surprised.

Speaker 2 (01:15:07):
I absolutely would fit perfectly in the track list, like
on on side one.

Speaker 1 (01:15:12):
Yeah, but like why was it a B side on
like bedtime story or you know, human nature. Like it's weird.
It's like it's just they were just sitting on it.

Speaker 2 (01:15:23):
I want to know, Liz Rosenberg, get back to us.

Speaker 1 (01:15:25):
Yeah, no, no, what's up with your honesty?

Speaker 2 (01:15:30):
I mean, thank you for releasing it. But I wonder
if that's going to be like a you know, maybe
that's the secret for the you know, potential re release
of this album.

Speaker 1 (01:15:43):
Oh yeah, maybe it'll have like left down your guard
and maybe we'll have all the Maybe they're redoing the
rough mixes and making them a little more polished.

Speaker 2 (01:15:50):
Maybe maybe on a colored vinyl, you know, pink and blue.
There you go, holographic sleeve.

Speaker 1 (01:15:59):
You know.

Speaker 2 (01:15:59):
Maybe it comes with a you know, an ambient so
you could, you know, take a nap.

Speaker 1 (01:16:06):
Nap time, it's nap time. But yeah, I'm looking forward
to see what they're going to do. If they're going
to give us something special.

Speaker 2 (01:16:15):
Maybe I would love I would see. I'm all about
the physical like releases. You know, it's great that they
release a you know, a digital spotify you know. Oh
you know True Blue, you know, thirtieth anniversary was thirtieth,
thirty fifth, what was it? Yeah, they think it was
thirty fifth. You know, I think that's great.

Speaker 1 (01:16:36):
I love that.

Speaker 2 (01:16:36):
I love the new cover. You know, it's fun. I
want a physical release. I like having a tangible item
to put on my shelf and look at and say, look,
I purchased that.

Speaker 1 (01:16:45):
Yeah. In my older years, I'm enjoying records. I'm not
really playing them. I just I love actually owning them.

Speaker 2 (01:16:52):
Yeah, you don't play them at all.

Speaker 1 (01:16:54):
I mean I have one of those mini players. I
didn't haven't used it as much as I should. But
I like just looking.

Speaker 2 (01:17:03):
I like just holding a record, and if especially if
it's a gatefold jacket, you could yeah, I just like
the jacket weight of it.

Speaker 1 (01:17:10):
I like the I like the physicality of it. I
like just the circularness of it. I don't know, there's
something the smell.

Speaker 2 (01:17:19):
A lot of people are heavily addicted to, like sense
like even in a book, the smell of a book.

Speaker 1 (01:17:27):
So I mean.

Speaker 2 (01:17:29):
It's I like having, especially with a record. You know,
you have the jacket that's big.

Speaker 1 (01:17:34):
You know it's erotic picture disc. I don't have that.
I have that. I have a rain picture disc too.
I think something I.

Speaker 2 (01:17:43):
I have a fever picture of picture desk excellent. Yeah,
I think I got it for like seven dollars to steal.

Speaker 1 (01:17:51):
What's interesting is Inside of Me samples back and Forth
by Elijah Eliah, I'd Rather Be a Lover has a
song It's It's Youer Thing by Lou Donaldson. That itch
a thing, Do what you want to do? Human Nature
is samples what you Need by the Main Source, Forbidden
Love as a sample by Grant Green, and a Sanctuary

(01:18:13):
samples Watermelon Man performed by her behindcock. This was like
her most album with the most samples on it. I
think there are a few on Erotica, Jungle Boogie for Erotica,
and obviously Just from My Love was sampled for Waiting,
but yeah, this one was the most I think. And
what's interesting is some of the songs were not that old,

(01:18:38):
that much older than the song to be sampled. Like
usually people sampled songs from like twenty years earlier. Some
of these songs were just released. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:18:47):
Well, especially like Leah she came out around that time, right,
she came out with ninety three and ninety four.

Speaker 1 (01:18:53):
Yeah. So, and even there's a story I read a
long time ago about take a Bow.

Speaker 2 (01:19:00):
Mm hmm.

Speaker 1 (01:19:00):
That is the ding ding ding Ding ding Ding. That's
actually an old, old, old song. It doesn't say it
on here, but it's I would love to find I'd
have to find out more information about it. But the
the actual instrumentation behind take About is so old that

(01:19:22):
it's not what is it called when something is out
of the.

Speaker 2 (01:19:27):
Public's in public domain?

Speaker 1 (01:19:28):
Yeah, it's such an old it's such an old sample
that it didn't doesn't need any kind of clear.

Speaker 2 (01:19:36):
Interesting. Yeah, I mean well, I mean yeah, at that point.

Speaker 1 (01:19:42):
Like if something is over one hundred years old or something.

Speaker 2 (01:19:44):
I believe I thought it was like seventy or seventy
years after the release something like that sat copyright laws
with that. That's you know, like I know, like uh,
Mick Disney's wanted to these short films just recently went
into public domain, sever based jumping on the fact to

(01:20:07):
you know, use it in something. But hmm, interesting, I'd
be interested to hear what it was original, like you
know where that little sample or where that that you know,
accompaniment was from.

Speaker 1 (01:20:24):
You know, yeah it was I find it here.

Speaker 2 (01:20:32):
Hm hmm. Ok, I'm trying to google.

Speaker 1 (01:20:36):
You know. Okay. Take About was reten and produced by Madonna,
Babyface and soul about with Japanese musical influences, like that
of Cayu Sakamoto's nineteen sixty one song Sukiyaki. It begins
with it sounds of oriental pentatonic strings given the impression
of Chinese or Japanese opera. Okay, yeah, so I don't

(01:20:58):
think it's a sample, but it's like an.

Speaker 2 (01:21:00):
Influence, influenced by, influenced by hmmm, interesting, I kind of
want to go down and listen.

Speaker 1 (01:21:09):
Yeah, I think I'm going to do that.

Speaker 3 (01:21:12):
I'd love to hear before you go to sleep, Yeah,
before nap time, before we take our nap.

Speaker 1 (01:21:19):
But we're gonna we're gonna sign off. Even though it's
probably the longest episode we've created, I think be a bonus.

Speaker 2 (01:21:29):
Remember that time, I was like, I know, remember that time,
I was like, oh, we should do it a little
bit shorter. The episodes are too long.

Speaker 1 (01:21:36):
It's impossible.

Speaker 2 (01:21:38):
An hour and a half later, we're gonna have.

Speaker 1 (01:21:41):
To, like, if we're going to do another bonus episode,
we'll just be like, all right, we're just talking about
three songs.

Speaker 2 (01:21:46):
Okay, we'll do that. But you know, after all this talking,
I'm a little I'm a little sleepy. Yeah, I know,
I think it's time to Should we go to bed,
take a nap? Okay, shake your head, shake your head.

Speaker 1 (01:22:01):
But we're gonna leave you with the criminally left off
your honesty from the bedtime story sessions. When you get
a chance, Google, never trust a stranger. You can't fit
all the songs on our episode. So when you close
out with your honesty, and you'll understand and agree with
us that it should have been on the album.

Speaker 2 (01:22:23):
Okay, chaunsee will good night, good night, sleep tight, don't
let the bed bugs bite. I'll try not to.

Speaker 1 (01:22:34):
Bye bye, everybody. Thank you for listening.

Speaker 2 (01:22:37):
Thank you.

Speaker 5 (01:22:56):
It's your.

Speaker 6 (01:23:00):
Church.

Speaker 1 (01:23:01):
You talk to me.

Speaker 6 (01:23:03):
I make love to Lego Boots the thing I see
looking at your auntsy billing me closer to.

Speaker 1 (01:23:17):
You.

Speaker 5 (01:23:17):
Know you drag me playing.

Speaker 1 (01:23:23):
You a well you can. I want you to be
match man.

Speaker 6 (01:23:30):
Bill me closer to you.

Speaker 5 (01:23:33):
You have a special compatic your bray as makes you
a special comaty.

Speaker 6 (01:23:48):
Bill me closer your conte with you and as of church,
you talk to me, make love to Lego Boots, the
thing lassy looking your ash's your auntie. Suldn't be closer to.

Speaker 5 (01:24:12):
You know it just shit.

Speaker 6 (01:24:16):
Well, if she's the wagon should be you know the
juice that you free free shouldn't be closer to you.

Speaker 5 (01:24:27):
You have a special commanding your breaks makes you a
special commity.

Speaker 1 (01:24:43):
Shouldn't be close.

Speaker 7 (01:24:46):
Your ansty.

Speaker 6 (01:24:48):
If you and has no charge and you're talking with me,
we love you. But the thing that see shouldn't look
meeting your ash ships your monye shouldn't be love.

Speaker 1 (01:25:02):
For you.

Speaker 7 (01:25:06):
Pass a swap swaps.

Speaker 5 (01:25:22):
You have a special conety up thing enough the means
you have a special conty should be both name ncie.

Speaker 6 (01:25:58):
It's your aunt. See if you have no judge and
you talk to me and you would be love to
me your but she's the thing lasteel you lot doing
keeping your ash your hand see wouldn't be no.

Speaker 7 (01:26:21):
Its your aunt see

Speaker 5 (01:26:30):
Your eyes see