Earlier today, my best friend pointed me to a list that someone compiled, a list of the thirteen most under-appreciated Madonna songs to date. I found myself disagreeing with most of the list, primarily because he/she apparently limited the list to singles. I, therefore, decided to compile my own, so here is, in no particular order, my list of the most underrated and under-appreciated Madge songs to date.
Honorable Mention - "Spotlight" [from You Can Dance]
This is an amazing song about self-empowerment that gets little to no attention. Even though it was released internationally as a single, it was given no music video and is not on any of the three greatest hits collections. It's a shame that it receives such little attention.
13. "Animal" [Hard Candy outtake]
Hard Candy is one of my favorite Madge albums; it is definitely in my top five. There are so many songs on that record that should have been singles; however, there are also songs on the album for which I don't care much (such as "Incredible" and "Spanish Lesson"). "Animal" is a song that was recorded during the Hard Candy sessions but did not make the final cut even though, in my opinion, it is one of Madonna's best songs to date. What could go wrong with a ridiculously catchy song about utter sexual dominance?
12. "Thief of Hearts" [from Erotica]
"Thief of Hearts" is actually one of the very first Madonna songs that I ever heard because my older sister Ellen had it on a mixtape that she made when she was younger. I have fond memories of hearing it when she played her mixtapes as she cleaned the house. I remember being fairly young and giggling at the word "ass" in the song. How immature. This song will always have a special place in my heart for the sentimental reasons, and it's also one of the best songs, if not the best song, from Erotica. Given that it was not released as a single, however, only the fans who go beyond the singles and hits catalog are familiar with it.
11. "Like It or Not" [from Confessions on a Dance Floor]
With lyrics like "Cleopatra had her way, Matahari, too; whether they were good or bad is strictly up to you" and "Can't have the femme without the fatale," "Like It or Not" is one of my favorite feminist anthems ever. The lyrics are so strong and memorable, and the melody is catchy. I love how the song has a dark tone to it, and it is probably my favorite song from Confessions.
10. "Intervention" [from American Life]
This album as a whole is underrated and under-appreciated. It is my favorite Madge album of them all, and beautiful songs like "Intervention" are the reason why. "Intervention" is a love song that was apparently written about one of her children, but the beauty of it is that it doesn't need to be kept inside those walls. When my relationship started in 2009, this song brought me so much joy because, for me, it was applicable to my significant other, and the beauty and simplicity of the song brought me to tears.
9. "X-Static Process" [from American Life]
Indeed, I love American Life so much that I have not one but two tracks from it on this list. "X-Static Process" has come to mean so much to me. I have and have always had the tendency to see beauty in others without an ability to see much in myself, and this applied most specifically to my relationship. I saw him as superhuman, godly even, while totally overlooking the ways that I was special and beautiful myself, and I think that many of us do that. "I always wished that I could find someone as beautiful as you, but in the process, I forgot that I was special, too."
8. "Gone" [from Music]
"Gone" is a beautiful acoustic song that closes the standard edition of Music, and I quite honestly don't have many words for it. Along with "Paradise (Not for Me)," it is one of my favorite tracks from Music.
7. "I Know It" [from Madonna]
"I Know It" is my favorite song from the first album, and I consider it pretty criminal that it wasn't released as a single. I am sorry, but it trumps "Lucky Star."
6. "Candy Shop" [from Hard Candy]
Some people may disagree with my decision to place this song on this list given that the Sticky & Sweet Tour was named after lyrics in this song. However, this is one of several songs from Hard Candy that I strongly believe should have been singles (along with "Heartbeat" and "She's Not Me"), and for a song that did, indeed, inspire the name of the tour, it doesn't seem to get much love. I am the diehard Madge fan who hunts down remixes (even fanmade ones, as they are sometimes really, really good), and I have very few remixes of this song because they're very hard to find. This album in general doesn't get much love. I see a lot of people criticize Madonna for "selling out" by working with Justin Timberlake, Pharrell, Timbaland, etc., and they don't like the R&B/hip hop sound.
5. "Heartbeat" [from Hard Candy]
I am not going to apologize for selecting more than one song from certain albums. It is what it is. I sometimes forget that "Heartbeat" is not a single; it is one of my favorite dance anthems ever, and it is one of those songs that I rarely hear fans discuss.
4. "Promise to Try" [from Like a Prayer]
I am not saying that this song should have been a single or anything; it's slow and very confessional, more confessional than Madonna tended to be back in the eighties. It is, however, a beautiful tearjerker about Madge's mother.
3. "Candy Perfume Girl" [from Ray of Light]
This is one of many songs that, in my teens, made me fall in love with Madonna. There is just something really magical about this song that I can't explain. There is something otherworldly and dreamy about it, and I think that, in some ways, it, as well as the Ray of Light album in general, was ahead of its time.
2. "Laugh to Keep from Crying" [from Pre-Madonna]
When I first heard this song, it was almost hard for me to believe that it was Madonna. It is an alternative rock song, and Madonna does not sound like her usual self vocally. She reminds me of some eighties female-fronted rock bands such as 'Til Tuesday or the Bangles. This is definitely a unique Madonna song that I really love, and it was not even officially released until the collection of early demos Pre-Madonna was released.
1. "Take Me (I Want You)" [from The Gotham Affairs]
This is another unreleased song that I think would have been a huge hit had it been released as a single. It is such a feel-good song about being young and in love, and it is so catchy with a semi-rock sound similar to the aforementioned "Laugh to Keep from Crying."
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