Madonna | 
 enlarge | Artist: Madonna
Label: Warner Bros / Wea
Category: Music
List Price: $17.98
Buy Used: $0.45
You Save: $17.53 (97%)
New (4) Used (27) Collectible (4) from $0.45
Rating:  40 reviews
Sales Rank: 97841
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
UPC: 075992386722
EAN: 0075992386722
ASIN: B000002KZ3
Release Date: October 25, 1990
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Lucky Star | | • | Borderline - Madonna, Lucas, Reggie | | • | Burning Up | | • | I Know It | | • | Holiday - Madonna, Hudson, Curtis | | • | Think of Me | | • | Physical Attraction - Madonna, Lucas, Reggie | | • | Everybody | | • | Burning Up | | • | Lucky Star |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com essential recording
Madonna became a star upon the release of this, her self-titled debut. But because her stardom was thanks largely to her videos, which found her dressed provocatively and rolling around on the floor, most folks were all too willing to look past the overall quality of the album itself. Even with its somewhat dated keyboard textures and mechanized drum sounds, the album holds up incredibly well. There's "Borderline," which exudes a certain naivete, something rarely associated with Madonna; "Holiday," which is sweet and celebratory; and "Lucky Star" a dance-floor classic. Songs like "Everybody" and "Burning Up" split the difference between dance music and new wave, which was popular at the time. That latter tune, in fact, contains a line that could be seen as a ready indicator of all that was to follow in Madonna's storied career. "Unlike the others, I'll do anything," she sings. "I'm not the same / I have no shame." No kidding. --Daniel Durchholz
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| Customer Reviews:
 Despite some Campy Lyrics - this Collection is Solid June 30, 2005
L.A. Scene (Indian Trail, NC USA)
When the 1980s commenced and Disco's Demise had taken place, there were really two things that occurred. The first is that many of the styles and concepts of Disco had begun to incorporate into the Pop music landscape and had begun to influence some of the more mainstream genres. The other is that for all practical purposes, Disco had not vanished - but in actuality would go "underground". Disco would still exist, but in reality had morphed into what became the "80s Dance Movement". As with many "underground" music genres, the "80s Dance Movement" would soon rise to the surface. One artist who must get some major credit for bringing the "80s Dance Movement" to the back to the surface was Madonna. Madonna's debut album "Madonna" clearly would be the album that would play a role in bringing this "underground" movement back to the surface as well as catapult her own career. Along the way, this album would garner some commercial success - and by the way would be a pretty good album in its own right.
As for Madonna, I can't say I am a fan of hers. However, I do try to evaluate every album on its own merit. Normally I don't like a collection that is heavily influenced by Synthesizers and Drum Machines, but somehow Madonna finds a way to make this work. This is done through some creative use of other instrumentation - namely the incorporation of horns and guitars. On top of that, Madonna and Reggie Lucas (who wrote the songs the album) and the producers (Reggie Lucas, Jellybean Benitez, and Mark Kamins) find a creative way to get what I consider a very good Bass sound on several of the tracks. "Madonna" doesn't have the deepest lyrics. While I prefer an album with much deeper lyrics, once again Madonna finds a way to make this work for me. In a lot of ways, I would consider "Madonna" to be a concept album. Each of the eight original tracks deals with relationships - in varying degrees. In a lot of ways, the lyrics are campy ("Starlight Starbright" on "Lucky Star", "Burning Up for your Love" on "Burning Up", and "Holiday Celebrate" on "Holiday" are just some examples), but once again Madonna finds a way to make the lyrics work for me. Much of the reason why I feel Madonna gets things to work so well is because Reggie Lucas and Madonna herself seem to get the most out of her talents. The end result is that you feel Madonna's raw emotion on each of the tracks. Therefore, I must give Madonna a lot of credit.
Looking at each of the songs:
"Lucky Star": This song was a major hit. It's one of the songs with more of a Pop-Spin. The Synthesizers and Drum Machine make for the "Dance Club" feel of the song. This is a prime example of Madonna delivering the vocals with emotion - despite Campy lyrics. This is also a song in that utilizes some nice Bass chords on the song - giving it a solid feel.
"Borderline": Another song with a Pop-Spin that was a hit. More Synthesizers and Drum Machines. This song is highlighted by Madonna's vocal delivery. Madonna's emotion level seems completely genuine. I like how the background vocals on this song mesh with Madonna as well.
"Burning Up": This song also was a hit. While there are Synthesizers and Drum Machines, this is a song that has some nice guitar work. This is also another song where the Bass sound truly gives this song a very nice sound. My only knock is that this song is just a little too campy from a lyrical standpoint for my style.
"I Know It": This is probably the most underrated track on the collection. I really enjoyed this song. Like "Borderline", this song is dominated by Madonna's raw emotion on the vocals. In addition, this is another song in which there is a very nice Bass sound. Probably what sets this song apart from many of the other tracks are the use of horns. The horn sound seems to come along at the right points.
"Holiday": Another popular song. This song has a definite "Dance Club" feel, but also features Guitar and a natural Bass sound. Combining the Synthesizers with this Guitar and Bass seems to work. Like "Burning Up", the lyrics are just a little campy for me.
"Think of Me": This is another hidden gem on this collection. The opening to this song definitely sounds like the remnants of the Disco movement. The music of this song has an R&B sound. While Madonna doesn't have the R&B sound, the use of the background vocalists help blend Madonna nicely with the R&B melody. Once again - a very nice Bass track.
"Physical Attraction": Like "Think of Me", there are both remnants of the Disco movement and sounds of R&B. Again, the background vocalists help Madonna's vocals blend in with the R&B sound. The Bass sound once again solid. This is the longest track on the collection - and it clearly delivers.
"Everybody": This song brings the best of both worlds - the remnants of the Disco movement with the 80s Synth Pop sound. Madonna uses spoken vocals at the giving the song a nice twist. This song doesn't have as nice a Bass sound as the other tracks. This is probably the weakest song from a lyrical and musical standpoint, but it still isn't bad.
This collection includes remixes of "Burning Up" and "Everybody". The liner notes include the lyrics to the songs as well as musician and songwriting credits. After this album, Madonna's from an instrumentation standpoint would go much more mainstream - despite her "outrageous" antics that would follow. Overall, this album really surprised me. There aren't any bad tracks on this album - and it really seems to have held the test of time. I'd recommend this collection.
 Dance and sing, get up and do your thing. February 18, 2005
Johnny Heering (Bethel, CT United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Ah yes, Madonna's first album. When this album first came out in 1983, I doubt that anybody thought that she would go on to be the top female recording artist of all time. I remember at the time a lot of people thought that Cyndi Lauper would end up being the bigger star of the two. Funny how things turn out. Madonna first album was a dance album with a sound typical of the early '80s. Of the eight songs on the album, five were released as singles. "Lucky Star", "Borderline" and "Holiday" are of course classic hits. "Burning Up" and "Everybody" were flop singles, but they still are great songs. As for the other three songs: "Think of Me" and "Physical Attraction" are good songs; and "I Know It" is not a very good song. Madonna's singing ability was not fully developed at this point. She could carry a tune, but she didn't have much range. Somewhat suprisingly, Madonna wrote five of the eight songs on the album. She wrote them by herself, unlike in the future when she almost always wrote with a collaborator. This was a solid debut album that was underrated by most people at the time, but nowadays it can almost be considered a classic.
Where all started: Madonna's debut January 2, 2005
JimJrz
This album is a classic, with singles as Lucky Star, Borderline, Burning Up and Everybody the world stared noticing Madonna first as a dance artist and also as a writer and producer since she help and wrote most of the songs in this album.
My personal favorite song here is the Classic HOLIDAY a feel-good song that has trandsance time and you can hear in almost all of her tours (including the re-invention tour), I would never get tired of listing this song, is one of my all-time favorites. Recommended if you are a Madonna fan, if not buy the compilations instead.
The best Madonna album May 6, 2004
Jazysol79 (Germantown, MD USA)
I've been a Madonna fan for years, and this is far and away my favorite Madonna album. Before Kaballah, babies and Britney, this is the Madonna we all fell madly in love with. Twenty-one years later, this album still sounds fresh and daring, unlike most of the junk coming out during that time. While not the best singer, Madonna sounds exciting on "Lucky Star," "Burning Up" and "Think of Me," as well as her breakout hit, "Holiday." Produced by Mtume's Reggie Lucas, one could argue this is a soul record - solid band, established R&B backing vocalists (Norma Jean Wright, Gwen Guthrie, etc.) and shiny, soulful hooks all set to a post-disco dance club groove. This album started a string of singles and albums that would score well on both the pop and R&B charts, a testament to her ability to bend genres. Always sexy, always soulful and always unpredictable, Madonna laid the golden foundation for her stellar career with this classic album. Truly essential and trend-setting, "Madonna" remains in the groove.
Madonna: MADONNA (1983) August 23, 2003
Chad DeFeo (Philadelphia, PA USA)
Madonna has always been one of the many great performers of the 80s, 90s, and today. There really is not one female performer that cannot come close in seeing as much success as Madonna has seen in her career that has now spanded over 20 years. In 1983, Madonna had released her debut album entitled, MADONNA. This album is jam-packed with fresh material delivered by the hands of Madonna, and it is one of my all-time favorite Madonna albums.
LUCKY STAR
The fifth & final single from the album. This is one of the many great songs by Madonna. The music featured in the song is perfect for a Madonna album of this kind. In the song's video, Madonna reveals one of her most infamous outfits to date: an outfit completed with black half-tops, black knee-length tights, Madonna's BOY TOY belt (although, she is not wearing the belt in this song's video), clunk jewelery (which includes chains and crucifixes), clunk bracelets, and the infamous rubber bracelets. This was a style that Madonna, and Madonna only, could pull off. This style simply said...Madonna.
BORDERLINE
The fourth single from the album. This is definitely one of my favorite songs from Madonna. It may sound a little bumble-gummy, but there is something about this song that makes it classic. The video to this song was the first video of Madonna's to be directed by Mary Lambert, who would go on to direct a handful of Madonna's music videos (including "Like A Virgin", "Material Girl", "La Isla Bonita", & "Like A Prayer").
BURNING UP
The second single from the album. This became an instant favorite for me the minute I heard it for the first time. What a great song.
I KNOW IT
A great song that explains Madonna knowing that her current boyfriend will be taking off and abandoning her.
HOLIDAY
The third single from the album. This is definitely one of the best anthems Madonna has ever recorded. Just think that Madonna did not want this song to go on this album. She wanted a song entitled, "Ain't No Big Deal" to fill this spot, but her producer, John "Jellybean" Benitez said that "Holiday" would be a better choice, for he told her that this song was for Madonna to release as a single, and for her to watch this single become a massive hit. And it did, indeed, become a massive hit. Madonna has performed this song a numerous amount of times on her first six world tours (which would be THE VIRGIN TOUR 1985, THE WHO'S THAT GIRL TOUR 1987, THE BLONDE AMBITION TOUR 1990, THE GIRLIE SHOW TOUR 1993, THE DROWNED WORLD TOUR 2001, & THE RE-INVENTION TOUR 2004). Sadly, Madonna has decided not to perform this song on her seventh world tour entitled: THE CONFESSIONS TOUR 2006. Madonna has point, I hope you all know: "If we took a HOLIDAY, took some time to celebrate, just one day out of life, it would be so nice".
THINK OF ME
Great.
PHYSICAL ATTRACTION
Now, a lot of people, mostly other Madonna fans, have continued to insist that this song was a single, where it was released as the B-Side to the "Burning Up" single. Well, that's just completely wrong. Although, this song was featured as the B-Side to the "Burning Up" single, this song was never released as its own single. But, this song is one hell of a tune. This is a great song.
EVERYBODY
The first single from the album. The song that started it all. This song was released a single back in October or November of 1982, before Madonna began working on this album. My guess is that the producers probably thought that Madonna should wait on recording a full-length album, until they were all certain that this single would sell. Well, it did not do well on the Billboard Hot 100, but it did extremely well on the Billboard Club Songs, which led the producers in giving Madonna the greenlight to record her first full-length album, which is what you see here. This is a great song, with Madonna requesting that, "...Everybody, come on, dance and sing. Everybody, get up and do your thing..." and for us to, "...Let the music take control, find a groove and let yourself go. When the music begins to sway, you'll know what I'm trying to say...".
This album is the very first start of Madonna's extraordinarily successful career. So to all the diehard Madonna fans out there, who have not yet purchased this album, or any of Madonna's albums, start off your Madonna collection with MADONNA, the first of her many incredible albums.
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