I woke up this morning and chose 'Bedtime Stories.'

Suedehead

Suedehead

I Will Survive
Joined
Feb 18, 2023
Messages
2,159
Sultry
Wintery
Long nights drawing in
Grab me my silk nightie and a cocktail, ladies, and let's get all reflective and moody.

AUKBNDJIXNGVVFXRNHTT6DJLXU.jpg


 
So here's my QUESTION
Does your CRITICISM
Have you CAUGHT UP!
In what you CANNOT see?
Well if you give me RESPECT
Then you'd KNOW what to EXPECT


:disco:
 
God, she had so much misogyny thrown at her at this time that I remember so many critics begrudgingly giving this 3/5 reviews when we all know it should have been 4/5 to be honest. To go from the Erotica backlash and not only pick herself back up and make a record, but actually make a contemporary album that taps into the essence of who she is (working with up and coming producers, etc.) is not only an act of artistry, but of wondrous bravery that highlights the resilience of her spirit.
 
Keep movin'
Keep groovin'

It was MOOTED as a sANGLE at some point in the USA, fact fans!
 
Suedehead said:
God, she had so much misogyny thrown at her at this time that I remember so many critics begrudgingly giving this 3/5 reviews when we all know it should have been 4/5 to be honest. To go from the Erotica backlash and not only pick herself back up and make a record, but actually make a contemporary album that taps into the essence of who she is (working with up and coming producers, etc.) is not only an act of artistry, but of wondrous bravery that highlights the resilience of her spirit.
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I love your ENTIRE REFRAMING of things whilst trying to pretend you're not a loon. NEVER CHANGE SUEDE, MY LOVE :D

She was bandwagon jumping. Erotica "bombed" (I realise it didn't, but...), she softened her image accordingly and jumped on the popular music trends of the time to try and have a hit. Whilst there is nothing wrong with that and I absolutely love the album, that suddenly becoming:

wondrous bravery that highlights the resilience of her spirit.
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is perhaps a SLIGHT STRETCH :D
 
And Don't Stop is fucking awful. The one blight on an otherwise amazing album, which should have been stopped at 10 tracks.
 
My only other NEGATIVE BS COMMENT is that it really should end with "Bedtime Story". There is an obvious reason why "Take a Bow" is where it is in the tracklisting, of course, but imagine the statement of ending the album with "All that you've ever learned, try to forget, I'll never explain again". :disco: to INFINITY.
 
Sheena said:
I love your ENTIRE REFRAMING of things whilst trying to pretend you're not a loon. NEVER CHANGE SUEDE, MY LOVE :D

She was bandwagon jumping. Erotica "bombed" (I realise it didn't, but...), she softened her image accordingly and jumped on the popular music trends of the time to try and have a hit. Whilst there is nothing wrong with that and I absolutely love the album, that suddenly becoming:



is perhaps a SLIGHT STRETCH :D
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DARLING the whole post was meant as HYPERBOLE
 
Sheena said:
My only other NEGATIVE BS COMMENT is that it really should end with "Bedtime Story". There is an obvious reason why "Take a Bow" is where it is in the tracklisting, of course, but imagine the statement of ending the album with "All that you've ever learned, try to forget, I'll never explain again". :disco: to INFINITY.
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I agree but I do like the 'SAy goodbye....' dry vocal ending with TAB though.

Perhaps an alternate track listing where Bedtime Story was the end of Side A on the VINYL.. Hmmmm...
 
You can tell a song is shite when, as a teenager, your DAD likes it.
And guess which song he'd HUM along to in the car when I'd force the cassette down the family's throat?
You guessed it - Don't STOP.
He'd happily sing along to the 'keep moving keep grooving' bits.
UGH :D
 
Suedehead said:
I agree but I do like the 'SAy goodbye....' dry vocal ending with TAB though.

Perhaps an alternate track listing where Bedtime Story was the end of Side A on the VINYL.. Hmmmm...
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NO NO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOOO! It should not be in the middle of the album AT ALL! It's completely different to everything else.

I could see Take a Bow as closing a vinyl side one, but let's face it, albums mastered for vinyl at that point, so it's kind of irrelevant- I wouldn't want it after Inside of Me. For me, I'd have put Take a Bow as the opener...
 
It'll forever be a lazy Sunday morning sex album for me. Forbidden Love, Inside Of Me, Human Nature and Sanctuary all still hit home in that respect.
 
lolly said:
It'll forever be a lazy Sunday morning sex album for me. Forbidden Love, Inside Of Me, Human Nature and Sanctuary all still hit home in that respect.
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Imagine getting off to a song about Madonna's DEAD MOTHER :D
 
Definitely, at least in the pop world, one of the most revised albums by music critics. There was so much distraction when it came out that nobody was paying any attention to the music or the content, and I think the preoccupation with her being labelled as a provocateur meant that many critics thought the musical direction was only part of the act. I mean in a way it was, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t a beautifully produced album with some fantastically written songs.

She might have been jumping on the sultry R&B bandwagon but let’s remember this came out before the two biggest bedroom R&B albums of the 90s - CrazySexyCool and Secrets. She could have gone down the simplistic route and given us a whole album of “Don’t Stop” and “I’d Rather Be Your Lover” (I like both songs at is goes) but instead the album more notably gave us “Survival”, “Secret”, “Forbidden Love”, “Sanctuary” and “Human Nature”. It was an adult R&B album not because of its lyrical content but because it was often mature. subtle and interesting.

And most of all, she pulls it off. There aren’t many white mainstream pop acts who could, and she did it right in the middle of the height of the genre.
 
Didn't the album get a 9/10 review at the time from NME (or somewhere else where you definitely wouldn't have expected it), and it was very out of step with other reviews.
 
lolly said:
Didn't the album get a 9/10 review at the time from NME (or somewhere else where you definitely wouldn't have expected it), and it was very out of step with other reviews.
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It was in their Albums of the Year list as well if I remember rightly...
 
To be fair, though, it wasn't PANNED. It was just a bit lukewarm praise-wise. I feel like Erotica actually got reviewed better but the media did their usual thing of almost making up for what happened on the album before...
 
I’ve since seen it unexpectedly pop up on a number of those “best albums of the 90s” countdowns. Ray Of Light obviously gets most of the plaudits, but I often see BS featured in lists instead of Erotica, which suggests to me that people have actively explored and revisited it because Erotica is surely so much better known and recognised as a 90s Madonna album.
 
Suedehead said:
You can tell a song is shite when, as a teenager, your DAD likes it.
And guess which song he'd HUM along to in the car when I'd force the cassette down the family's throat?
You guessed it - Don't STOP.
He'd happily sing along to the 'keep moving keep grooving' bits.
UGH :D
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screw you!

Don't Stop has some of that early Over and Over energy. just fun silly joy. :disco:

if Bedtime Stories chooses you, I guess it never chose me. good job Madame S was employing HYPERBOLE, because there's really nothing unusual or risky about this Dallas Austin/Dave Hall/Babyface-produced R&B album, with the exception of the title track... I think it has some good songs and some forgettable, nothing top-tier and although she does a good job vocally, R&B was not the most natural fit for Madge. sandwiched between two of her finest records, each a masterpiece, it does feel quite SLIGHT, if a welcome palette cleanser.
 
Jark said:
screw you!

Don't Stop has some of that early Over and Over energy. just fun silly joy. :disco:

if Bedtime Stories chooses you, I guess it never chose me. good job Madame S was employing HYPERBOLE, because there's really nothing unusual or risky about this Dallas Austin/Dave Hall/Babyface-produced R&B album, with the exception of the title track... I think it has some good songs and some forgettable, nothing top-tier and although she does a good job vocally, R&B was not the most natural fit for Madge. sandwiched between two of her finest records, each a masterpiece, it does feel quite SLIGHT, if a welcome palette cleanser.
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I refer you to LA FUNK's post above :disco:
 
Remind me - which way up is the album cover supposed to be?
 
Jark said:
screw you!

Don't Stop has some of that early Over and Over energy. just fun silly joy. :disco:
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That's an interesting point, but I feel she'd gone past that by this point...it also just didn't fit.

if Bedtime Stories chooses you, I guess it never chose me. good job Madame S was employing HYPERBOLE, because there's really nothing unusual or risky about this Dallas Austin/Dave Hall/Babyface-produced R&B album, with the exception of the title track... I think it has some good songs and some forgettable, nothing top-tier and although she does a good job vocally, R&B was not the most natural fit for Madge. sandwiched between two of her best records it does feel quite SLIGHT.
Click to expand...

I think there's a few other things that were risky- Sanctuary mined trip hop, Human Nature was pretty aggressive and the R&B production was a risk for her.

I don't see it as "slight" at all, though. Just different. Without Bedtime Stories, it feels like there wouldn't have been Ray of Light either.
 
Although apparently she wanted this as the cover but the label (rightly) didn't let her..

roversi_500.jpg
 
Suedehead said:
NOT this old chestnut again :D
The debate amongst the loons still carries on from 1994.

(Upside down is the 'right' way up.)
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Disagree. It was different dependent on the territory (for some reason). If you count US as the primary one, then yes, you are right, but most territories (and therefore editions) had it the "right" way up.
 
Suedehead said:
Although apparently she wanted this as the cover but the label (rightly) didn't let her..

roversi_500.jpg
Click to expand...

I always thought the actual image/ cover was too "harsh"- particularly for the supposed softening of image. I wonder what that image would have looked like in a proper touched up/ artwork setting, but yes, on the whole I agree.
 
@Jark every one of us, at some point in our lives, has a moment listening to “Sanctuary”, and I feel like 2024 is the time to bring you into the fold.

We will be waiting. :disco:
 
Funky said:
@Jark every one of us, at some point in our lives, has a moment listening to “Sanctuary”, and I feel like 2024 is the time to bring you into the fold.

We will be waiting. :disco:
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Waiting for you.
Just waiting.
Can't you see I'm waiting for you.
Don't break my heart (Jark).
 
Sheena said:
My only other NEGATIVE BS COMMENT is that it really should end with "Bedtime Story". There is an obvious reason why "Take a Bow" is where it is in the tracklisting, of course, but imagine the statement of ending the album with "All that you've ever learned, try to forget, I'll never explain again". :disco: to INFINITY.
Click to expand...

This. It has always annoyed me that Bedtime Story isn’t the last song (also as it would have been as the perfect prequel to her next studio album (RoL).
 
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