Something to Remember - Madonna (CD 1995)

After the sex fiasco of the early nineties saw Madonna being (in her own words) publicly flogged , it was a tough task to try and rebuild her North American career (some would question if she ever truly did). Rediscovering clothing, she issued the placid R n B tinged Bedtime Stories album in 1994, and made another hesitant step towards respectability with the 1995 ballads compilation Something To Remember . Taking in the best of her slow songs, this collection is a cohesive set of tracks that show Madonna easily outstripping her major rivals. Mariah and Whitney may thoroughly trump her in terms of vocal prowess, but they only wish their material could be this strong.

For an artist most famed for her eighties dance grooves, it s surprising to see how many compelling slow jams Madonna has put her name to, and there s an impressive amount of No.1 hits present. The supremely elegant Take A Bow provided her longest stay at the top of the Billboard charts (seven weeks), with hotshot writer/producer Babyface contributing his distinctive backing vocals to a smooth, classy melody. The instrumentation borrows elements from pop and R n B with a hint of Asian influence, and its lyrical metaphors relating a failing love affair to a stage show are simplistic but pretty. The story of the track is reprised in You ll See , a David Foster-produced adult contemporary number that I really enjoy. Usually, the generic acoustic-guitar-and-booming-beat arrangement would drive me insane, but Madonna s vocal performance keeps things together with its gradually increasing intensity. The lyrics are decent too, describing a believable post break-up scenario with good home truths such as You think that you are strong, but you are weak/You ll see/It takes more strength to cry, admit defeat . The quality of subtlety is not Madonna, but her bluntness works nicely on this song.

Another chart-topper arrives in the form of the delightful country-inflected Crazy For You , a song just made for eighties proms, big hair and overworked fog machines. Its gawky teen desperation is strongly projected by Madonna s vocals, and is a cute reminder of her more innocuous beginnings. Live To Tell is another massive success, its stark guitar and synthesiser sounds wrapped about a powerful, memorable and yearning melody. It s easily one of the best songs of Madonna s career, and she manages to sell it strongly in a manner that showed that the Material Girl could display depth when she wanted to. This Used To Be My Playground is another impressive piece, playing around with structure (it has no real chorus, relying more on the lyrical imagery of childhood friendships long-lost) with a timeless, nostalgic sound.

Other notable singles are also present. Madonna s collaborations with Patrick Leonard led to some of her most introspective work on 1989 s Like A Prayer , and the song Oh Father accurately sums up the tone of the period. Its lush orchestration and a few hints of slide guitar frame a story of a woman looking back on childhood abuse, and lines like You can t hurt me now/I got away from you, I never thought I would convey a level of confession it s usually hard to obtain from the enigmatic star. The Madonna/Pat Leonard pairing also shines on the gently chugging I ll Remember , a No. 2 hit from the flop movie With Honors . It isn t really catchy, but is still a pleasantly engaging track, if being too closely related to another Madonna smash, Rain . That song also gets included here, its metallic and sonorous plethora of effects framing another pretty melody and a surprisingly inventive mid-section that sees two spoken vocal lines overlapping (and perfectly fusing) with each other.

The rest of the songs aren t as great as the hits, but are still fairly respectable. Forbidden Love (which was supposedly intended to be a single from the Bedtime Stories album) makes an unneeded reappearance and sounds dangerously like filler, while the plodding, mock-forties orchestral sounds of title track Something To Remember remind me while why its parent album I m Breathless bombed. Its atmosphere is passable enough, with Madonna delivering a reasonable ode to a man who taught her to respect herself above all else, but it s just too lethargic for me. Likewise, Love Don t Live Here Anymore was the biggest weak point on 1984 s Like A Virgin , and it certainly didn t need to be reprised here, with Madonna s vocal modulations sounding awfully forced.

As well as the aforementioned You ll See , there are several previously unreleased tracks on the album. Madonna covers Marvin Gaye s I Want You and produces a compelling trip-hop flavoured epic thanks to collaborators Massive Attack, while One More Chance has worrying hints of generic diva-ness rescued by a convincing vocal performance. The simple voice and acoustic guitar arrangement could probably do with fleshing out, but it s good for occasional listens. However, I would have gladly swapped this song for Bad Girl , a prime cut from 1992 s Erotica that is probably the most real song Madonna ever recorded, but has been criminally ignored, astonishing video and 1993 Saturday Night Live performance notwithstanding.

Gripes aside, I don t really have a problem with Something To Remember . This ballad collection has all of Madonna s big hits present and correct, and they re sequenced nicely. Furthermore, the continued quality of instrumentation and melodies on the tracks makes the disc an engaging listen that can serve as a soundtrack for relaxing, reading or romancing. Together with a copy of The Immaculate Collection , this is probably all the Madonna anyone would need to hear, and a nice addition to anyone s record collection.