Maps of Music

Like a Prayer (1989)

Where the lyrics of Like a Prayer take you, and where it was really made.

Madonna and Prince recorded several songs at Paisley Park, but none of them was ever completed.

Key places

Ocean Way Recording, Hollywood (1989)

Recording site Ocean Way Recording — Ocean Way Recording is one of the studios where Like a Prayer was recorded between September 1988 and January 1989. The point marks the Hollywood area, not the exact building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Paisley Park with Prince (1989)

Recording site Paisley Park Studios — Madonna flew to Prince's Paisley Park studio to work with him. They created several songs there, but none of them was completed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Garment District studio for 'Oh Father' (1989)

Recording site Garment District — The singer and Leonard finished the track 'Oh Father' in a small studio in New York's Garment District. Vocals were recorded first, then the orchestra, and the track was finished with double-tracking. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Like a Prayer: fourth studio album by American singer and songwriter Madonna
• Released 20 March 1989 by Sire Records in Europe; official US release on 21 March
• Madonna's most introspective release at the time
• Pop record with elements of rock and dance-pop
• Lyrics address her Catholic upbringing, troubled marriage to Sean Penn, mother's death, and relationship with her father

Background

• 1988 was a quiet year for recording; the film Who's That Girl lacked success
• Broadway play Speed-the-Plow brought unfavorable reviews that caused her discomfort
• Marriage to Sean Penn ended; the couple filed for divorce in January 1989
• Madonna turned 30, the age at which her mother had died
• The mid-1980s 'greed is good' mentality faded after Black Monday; rap and alternative rock changed public mood
• Madonna moved away from teen appeal and the 'commercial gloss' of her earlier work
• Producers Patrick Leonard and Stephen Bray returned from True Blue and Who's That Girl
• Prince co-wrote and co-produced one track with Madonna

Recording

• Sessions ran from September 1988 to January 1989 in Los Angeles and at Prince's Paisley Park
• Most work took place at Johnny Yuma, the studio Madonna and Leonard built with True Blue income
• Recorded with live musicians rather than overdubbing vocals onto finished music
• Title track added a church organ and choir; Andraé Crouch and his gospel choir were hired
• Prince played guitar on three tracks without credit
• 'Oh Father' used an orchestra and was finished in a small studio in New York's Garment District

Cover

• First Madonna studio album without her face on the front cover
• Shot by Herb Ritts: close-up of the singer's crotch and hands, with jeans partly unbuttoned
• Lucy O'Brien: the cover was inspired by Madonna's mother, who hid her Sacred Heart statue with zip-up jeans when visitors came

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Madonna Louise Ciccone, born August 16, 1958, in Bay City, Michigan, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress.
• Raised in the Detroit suburbs of Pontiac and Avon Township; moved to New York City in 1978 to pursue dance.
• Performed as a drummer, guitarist, and vocalist in the rock bands Breakfast Club and Emmy before signing with Sire Records.
• Debut album Madonna (1983) brought her fame.

Career

• Like a Virgin (1984), True Blue (1986), and The Immaculate Collection (1990) are among the best-selling albums of all time.
• Rolling Stone ranked Like a Prayer (1989), Ray of Light (1998), and Music (2000) among the greatest albums of all time.
• Known for continual reinvention and for works addressing social, political, sexual, and religious themes.
• Acting credits include Desperately Seeking Susan (1985), Dick Tracy (1990), A League of Their Own (1992), and Evita (1996), for which she won a Golden Globe.
• Founded the entertainment company Maverick (1992–2009), including Maverick Records.
• Is the best-selling female music artist of all time and the first female performer to accumulate US$1 billion from concerts.
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008, in her first year of eligibility.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Universal acclaim from critics, who praised its introspective tone, cohesiveness, and Madonna's increased artistic maturity
• AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine called it Madonna's best and most consistent album
• Rolling Stone's J. D. Considine called it far and away the most self-consciously serious album she had made
• Billboard: less accessible than her previous efforts but ultimately her most satisfying, lyrically and musically
• Rikky Rooksby: her most engaging and listenable record
• Chicago Sun-Times's Don McCleesee: her best album
• The Cavalier Daily's Chaz Repak: her best work to date, but doubtful of the 'mature Madonna' idea
• The Pittsburgh Press's Peter B. King: negative, criticizing the vocals and the lack of catchy songs

Reappraisal

• Entertainment Weekly's Nicholas Fonseca: an 'official turning point' in her career
• BBC's Mark Savage: critics began to consider her an artist rather than a mere pop singer
• Rolling Stone ranked it 237th in 2003, 239th on the 2012 revisited list, and 331st in 2020
• Apple Music ranked it 77th on its 100 Best Albums list in 2024
• Included in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and Apple Music's 100 Best Albums
• Spin Alternative Record Guide gave it a perfect 10/10 through reviewer Rob Sheffield

Records

• Entered the Billboard 200 at number 11 on 8 April 1989 and topped the chart on 22 April
• Six weeks at number one, her longest-running number-one album; 77 weeks on the chart
• UK: number one, quadruple Platinum from BPI for 1.2 million shipments
• US: quadruple Platinum from RIAA; sold five million copies by March 2015
• Australia: peaked at number 4, quadruple Platinum; New Zealand: number 2, double Platinum
• Sold over 15 million copies worldwide
• Six singles; the title track became her seventh US Hot 100 number one, while 'Express Yourself' and 'Cherish' both peaked at number 2

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Initial pressings were scented with patchouli oil to give the album a 'church-type feel'
• Prince played guitar on three tracks but was not credited
• Spain's Cadena SER broadcast three tracks on 2 March 1989, before release, from a copied tape
• Chicago's Z-95 aired the whole album on 15 March, two days before radio distribution; Warner Bros. sent a cease and desist
• Leonard recalled that during one argument Madonna held up the True Blue cover and asked whose picture it was
• A 30th anniversary playlist released on 21 March 2019 included the previously unreleased 'Supernatural'

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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