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Sunday 11 October 2009

Madonna: Celebration - Who's That Girl (1987) to This Used To Be My Playground (1992)

17. Who's That Girl (1987) The eponymous first single from the movie and soundtrack. So there are some movie clips in amongst scenes of Madonna in a trenchcoat and hat that just look bizarre. A nice little piece on animation on a tarot card. Madonna's stolen a key and unlocked a chest containing... another piece of animation of our heroine. I like the song, though I usually get it confused with Eurythmics song of the same name. #1 

18. Causing a Commotion* (1987) The video for the second single from Who's That Girl is a live performance from the WTG tour in Italy. This is a better song than the previous one, but the video is unexciting. Early Madonna's tours weren't as spectacular as her more recent stadium-fillers. There are acrobatics, but no pyrotechnics! #4

19. The Look of Love* (1987) A Who's That Girl movie clipfest - there seem to be loads of these for Madonna's '80's videos.  One of Madonna's less interesting ballads. #9

20. Like a Prayer (1989) Bring on the controversy! Burning crosses! Black Jesus! Brunette Madonna! Street crime! The interesting thing about watching this video now is that it doesn't seem that controversial - perhaps I'm too hardened to such things, but then again religion isn't my bag, baby, so I'm unlikely to be offended. Although the images in the video are powerful, the message is a bit mixed. The song speaks for itself, a rocky, undisputed classic. #1

21. Express Yourself (1989) The peroxide is back, and the second single from Like a Prayer is a more glossy affair, with topless, muscular hunks, all dripping wet and working out... Needless to say, I like this one! Madonna is looking sleek in a green dress and cradling a cat, like a slim, blonde Blofeld. Now she's dancing sexily in silhouette. Madonna is expressing herself in a suit while she dances in the factory where all the topless men are. Towards the end it's all descending into a collection of confusing scenes, I've lost the thread of the plot. You can tell David Fincher directed this one. #5

22. Cherish (1989) Black and white is the order of the day for this Herb Ritts directed, beach set video. A nice bouncy lyric from Madonna as she lets the sea wash over her, alongside another half-naked collection of men, with a mermaid and a whale thrown in for good measure. I like the simplicity of this one compared to Express Yourself's excesses. #3

23. Oh Father* (1995) Taken from the Like a Prayer album, but released in the UK from the Something to Remember album, this became the 5th release from the former album so I'm including here in the chronology. So to the video - more black and white, it opens to scenes of death and funerals. David Fincher's second Madonna video (of 4) is stylish and complements the dramatic vocals and content of the song perfectly. It 'treats's us to scenes from Madonna's not so happy upbringing with her father along with religious imagery that is more subtle than in Like a Prayer. This is a good video, though the shots of sewn up lips on the body at one point is quite shocking. #16

24. Dear Jessie* (1989) Opening on a brief piece of live action footage of a sleeping child, the final single from Like a Prayer becomes an animated fantasy that follows the lyrics of the song rather sweetly. Madonna appears as a Tinkerbell-style fairy. I always forget about this song, but I do enjoy it, and the video is a lovely compliment to it. The animation styles on show are imaginative and varied, though there is some repetition. #5

25. Vogue (1990) Another classic song, with another classic video, again by Fincher. Taken from the Dick Tracy soundtrack album, I'm Breathless, Vogue doesn't appear in the movie, so thankfully there are no movie clips to be found! A third video without colour, the monochrome suits Madonna's look of the time. Everyone here is suited and booted, whether a boy or a girl. The first Madonna video with a dance routine! The conical bra is on show! Love it. #1

26. Hanky Panky* (1990) The only single taken from the Dick Tracy movie in which Madonna starred, the video is actual taken from the Blonde Ambition tour. A long haired, ponytailed Madonna dances with a hankerchief until Dick Tracy (not Warren Beatty) pops on stage for a boogie. A fun song with an OK video. #2

27. Justify My Love (1990) The first single from The Immaculate Collection, this is a very erotic song, and has a video to match - a signal of her next album's direction perhaps? B&W once more, Madonna breathlessly urges us to kiss her as she does the deed with a lady (!) as a topless Tony Ward watches. The Celebration DVD censors a dominatrix's nipples! Apparently this video was banned by MTV, I can't think why... It's just soft porn, well, mostly. Pure filth. #2

28. Rescue Me* (1991) This took some finding online. It's a collection of clips... of the Who's That Girl live tour, combining 2 of the least interesting forms of video in one package! Madonna's not even performing the song in the video, it's almost like she just released this with no care... #3

29. This Used To Be My Playground* (1992) Released as the theme to the move, A League of Their Own, it turned on a Madonna album in 1995 on Something To Remember. The pages turn on a photo album made up of video footage of Madonna singing in various locations. I was expecting clips of Tom Hanks and Rosie O'Donnell, so this was a nice surprise. Oh wait, I spoke too soon, 3 minutes in and the photos are now clips from the movie, but they don't last long so I'll forgive her. The pages are turning back now, as we move towards the front of the book and away from the guy who was looking at the 'photos'. #3

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