Cassette
CD
CD (Gold CD Australian Tour Edition)
LP
VHS
DVD
Tracklisting:
1. Holiday
2. Lucky Star
3. Borderline
4. Like A Virgin
5. Material Girl
6. Crazy For You
7. Into The Groove
8. Live To Tell
9. Papa Don't Preach
10. Open Your Heart
11. La Isla Bonita
12. Like A Prayer
13. Express Yourself
14. Cherish
15. Vogue
16. Justify My Love
17. Rescue Me
Best Tracks:
Like A Prayer
Holiday
Into The Groove
Live To Tell
Vogue
Currently listening to: LP
I have more Madonna shit than I do any other artist, hands down. Records, CD's, tapes, videos, DVD's, books, t-shirts, hats, patches, coffee mugs, badges, even Madonna condoms - you get the idea. I realised that I'd better get cracking on the Mads if I'm to blog every album I own. There's a lot of fucking Madonna.
I've written extensively in the past about this album, and Madonna. Particularly in my travel blog, leading up to my trip to London in 2012 to see her live for the first time. I summed up all the sentimental stuff in an epic blog there (it's here, if you're interested. If you are brave enough to attempt it, pop the kettle on. It's long). Since all that has been blogged, I'll try to keep more of a critical eye on the Madonna posts in this blog. Because, I am a total Madonna geek. However. No apologies if I digress.
For those of you living under a rock since 1990, this was Madonna's first greatest hits album. It was released when she was at the height of her powers, and went on to sell 30 million copies. If you're over the age of 25 and don't own this, something's wrong with you. Or you don't like Madonna. Which is fine. We're all friends here.
But, everyone has at least 1 Madonna song they like. Everyone. Even if you hate to admit it. If you say you don't, you're telling lies. And, I'm constantly surprised by the range of songs people pick. It's illustrates our Mad's wide appeal and, believe it or not, her talent. This album is testament to that.
For me, this album is my gay prozac. Even as I started writing this, and the sheer joy of 'Holiday' started, my mood instantly lifted and I caught myself (badly) mouthing the words. There's so much GOLD here. The 80's were, undoubtedly, her hey-day (as much as I love plenty of her work since). And, despite the omission of a few hit singles, this really is the best of it.
But, as an album, is it that great?
Well, yeah. Actually, it is.
However, it's not without it's flaws. It's received much criticism for not featuring the original versions of the songs - all the songs were remixed and/or edited by Shep Pettibone, and feature his bass-heavy production. Plus, it was mastered in Q Sound, which makes the whole thing a bit too bright and punchy compared to the original versions. Taken as a whole, the album doesn't really suffer. It could be the last 24 years that I've spent listening to it. Or it could be that it gives the album more cohesion - 'Borderline' doesn't sound that out of place on the same album as 'Vogue'. I actually made an iTunes playlist of the original versions in the order of this album. It didn't work as well as the album does. That said, when the songs are taken out of the context of the album, they suffer.
It's not that the edits are bad. They're not. Most aren't that different, aside from the obvious remixing. The main differences are found in 'Holiday', 'Into The Groove', 'Like A Prayer' and 'Express Yourself'. 'Holiday' is basically an edit of the You Can Dance mix. The bass line's been distorted and is more prominent in the mix. I'd have preferred the original 7" edit, but this one works. 'Into The Groove' is also an edit of the You Can Dance remix. They've remixed the bass line here again, but this version suffers for it. The subtle changes have made a big difference. I'm used to it when listening to the album, but heard on it's own, it sucks compared to the original. 'Like A Prayer' and 'Express Yourself' are presented in great remixes. The video version of 'Express Yourself' is by far my favourite and, until it was finally released on Celebration in 2009, this was the closest version we had. I like this version of 'Like A Prayer' just as much as the original. It's a bit long (the middle part before the last chorus is questionable. I'm used to it), but it kicks some serious arse on the dancefloor. The version of 'Vogue' is also slightly extended and remixed. I much prefer the original.
It's also interesting to note the songs they left off The Immaculate Collection. 'True Blue' and 'Who's That Girl' were both #1 and didn't make it. 'Burning Up', 'Everybody', and 'Dress You Up' are three of my all-time favourites, all singles, that also didn't make it. I've tried to work out where on The Immaculate Collection that any of these would fit. The truth is, nowhere. They really nailed the track listing. Which is rare for someone who's had as many hits as Madonna (they did release an EP called, The Holiday Collection in the UK, that featured a few of the songs not included. More on that one later).
The fact remains - The Immaculate Collection is essential. I'm far too biased to objectively tell how well it holds up in 2014. I'm fairly sure it's still magic. For you kids yet to discover Madonna, or for anyone making a playlist for their iPod (or a Spotify playlist or whatever it is kids do today), I'd suggest seeking out the originals. But, The Immaculate Collection still does it's intended job. And, it still does it better than any other greatest hits album I can think of.
No comments:
Post a Comment