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Being that "Burning Up" is one of my favorite Madonna songs of all time, I purchased this album because the 12" remix of the single was available on CD for the first time in over two decades. When I pushed the play button on my compact disc player, I was truly amazed on the quality of the sound. If I only could use to words to describe the sound quality on this album I would choose "crystal clear." Truly, this remastered edition was a great idea and I was so elated to hear all of Madonna's great early hits from "Lucky Star" to "Everybody" again.

In addition to the "Burning Up" 12" remix, this remastered album also features a remix of "Lucky Star" remixed by John "Jellybean" Benitez himself. Both remixes are amazing and the album brought back many memories growing up during the decade of decadence. If you are a true Madonna fan, you will want to add this album to your collection.


"I have no shame"   October 22, 2005
 18 out of 20 found this review helpful

Madonna debuted with this record in late 1983, initiating the most successful female pop career in history. At the time, disco was dead and dance music was verboten on pop radio. Along with Shannon, Madonna helped bring dance music back into the mainstream. Thus, although "Madonna" sounds like safe pop music now, it was actually pretty cutting edge at the time. "Everybody" was her first single; it became a solid dance hit but didn't cross over to pop radio or the Hot 100. With its unusual shuffling beat, it should have been a hit and still sounds great today.

"Madonna" eventually yielded three pop hits, each one charting higher then the previous - Holiday (#16), Borderline (#10), and Lucky Star (#4). "Borderline" was her first ballad, although relatively up-tempo. Her voice is thinner here than it would be on later ballads, but she still sounds lovely. The video was also a huge hit and introduced people to Madonna's breakthrough style. I became aware of Madonna for the first time through that video and have been a fan ever since. "Lucky Star" sounds a bit dated with too many synthesizers, although it's still a great pop song. Although "Holiday" was the smallest hit, it's perhaps the most enduring of the three: a real party anthem.

Along with these hits, the non-singles are also uniformly solid. "Burning Up" is the closest thing to a rock song that Madonna made during her early years, although the guitars are paired with a terrific dance beat. "Physical Attraction" is another highlight - a dance song that really shows off Madonna's sex appeal and slither. "Think of Me" and "I Know It" are the two least memorable songs on this CD - straight ahead dance tunes without much of Madonna's panache. With just 8 songs, "Madonna" breezes by quickly and sometimes seems a bit insubstantial. However, the CD is an undeniable dance classic that began the Queen of Pop's career. Most highly recommended.




I had high expectations for this CD - and it surpassed them!   December 23, 2003
 14 out of 15 found this review helpful

Madonna (1983.) Madonna's first album.

For two decades, Madonna has been one of the biggest names in popular music - and with good reason. She has the ability to create pop songs that stand the test of time. In recent months I have been hearing a number of her eighties hits on my local eighties music station, so naturally I wanted to purchase her eighties hits compilation, entitled The Immaculate Collection. However, after reading a number of reviews for the collection stating it was lacking a few hits and many of the tracks featured were edits, I decided buying her albums would be a better move. I'd start with her debut. If I liked it, I'd buy additional albums. If not, I'd just stop there. And recently, I purchased her 1983 self-titled debut album. How does it measure up? Read on and find out.

Before I get into reviewing the individual album tracks, I need to make a statement - Madonna's backing band on this album is excellent. Although I had never heard of any of the musicians, they all do a great job of playing their respective instruments. These guys deserve some major credit. Madonna kicks the album off with what would go on to become one of her biggest hits - Lucky Star. The keyboard usage in this track is amazing, as are Madonna's vocals. One of the major reasons I opted for this album in favor of The Immaculate Collection is that the version of this song contained on the compilation was an edit - and I'm glad I made the choice I did. This full-length LP version is superior to the edit by far. The melodic pop-oriented tune, Borderline, comes next. This was another fairly popular track, and with good reason. The track is nothing short of excellent - especially the chorus. The piano is a very nice touch. Another big hit, Holiday, is also present. Of all the songs on the album, this is the one that gets played on the radio most often. It's a classic eighties pop tune that you'd have to be a fool not to love. But, like with any artist, there's more to Madonna than just her big hits. Burning Up, the albums third track, uses backing instrumentation similar to what you'd expect from an eighties Michael Jackson, and as usual, Madonna serves up a winner. The track heavily emphasizes the usage of bass and keyboards, which contribute to its excellence. I Know It, the next track, pairs a saxophone with synthesizers. As a number of other band in the eighties demonstrated, using these instruments properly will result in pure excellence. The chorus to this track is priceless! Why wasn't it a bigger hit? As with a number of artists out there, a constant theme in Madonna's songs was love, and two of her finest love songs, Think Of Me and Physical Attraction, can be found here. The former follows stylings similar to those found earlier on the album, while the latter has a slightly "darker" sound to it than the other tracks. The keyboards and synthesizers in this track, paired with Madonna's vocals, make for an excellent track. The bell is also a nice touch. Many reviewers have praised this song, appropriately enough. The final original album track is Everybody. This is probably the most obscure thing on the album, but that doesn't mean it's not excellent. The synthesizers in this track are exactly what you'd expect from the new wave bands of the day. This makes for an excellent closing track.

This reissue of the album is part of the Warner Remasters series, a series of classic album reissues by a number of artists. And for Madonna's debut, they put two bonus tracks on the album - alternative mixes of Burning Up and Lucky Star. These alternative mixes aren't all that different from the "normal" versions, but they're still a nice touch. Now, why couldn't Warner have put bonus tracks like this on their Van Halen reissues?

Overall, I feel that this is an excellent album. An artist's debut album is usually either a masterpiece of an album that captures the respective artist in their prime, or a desperate cry for help that the artist needs to find the right sound. Forunately, Madonna's debut is the former. This is one of the greatest triumphs of eighties pop music, no questions asked. Whether you're a casual or die-hard Madonna fan, I recommend buying the albums over The Immaculate Collection, since it features a number of edited tracks. Twenty years later, this album still stands the test of time. If you're a fan of eighties pop music, this is essential.


In the beginning...   May 22, 2001
 11 out of 11 found this review helpful

These days, many people compare Madonna's early music to Britney Spears or the Spice Girls, but there really is no comparison. Today's bubble gum pop stars have a host of producers, songwriters, and stylists to create a cookie-cutter image for them that can be marketed to the mainstream. Madonna, however, was a very different story. At the time she recorded this album, Madonna was living in the ghettos of New York City, and hanging out at clubs that were largely populated by minorites. In other words, she was NOT part of the mainstream! In addition, most of the songs on this album began life as demos that Madonna wrote and recorded HERSELF in a tiny apartment without the help of a host of producers or marketing execs. She also had developed her own unique fashion sense. Madonna didn't have to consult a crew of stylists; even when she was penniless in New York, she had her own style down pat! Unlike today's manufactured pop princesses, Madonna was a true musical and visual artist at work, long BEFORE she signed a record contract.

That said, this album invented dance-pop as we know it. Highly synthesized and highly danceable, this was the style of music that took the 1980s by storm, and still exists today in many forms (including the electronica that Madonna currently dabbles in!). The album was revolutionary, because it brought the underground worlds of urban dance music and punk into the mainstream world of pop. The punk elements are heard in the scorching single "Burning Up", which prominently features an electric guitar and a rock-like bassline, but in a clubby, danceable song. Also, Madonna's personality comes through very strong on this album, so you never feel like you are listening to an anonymous "dance diva". Even on pedestrain fare like "I Know It" and "Physical Attraction", Madonna sings with so much conviction that you KNOW she means it!

When the album was first released, people assumed Madonna was African American, and her music was played primarily on R&B stations... she was not immediately accepted by the pop world, and was truly a cutting-edge "fringe" artist who redefined pop. In addition to being a great historical document, this album is worth buying because it's so much FUN! What party is complete without classics like "Holiday", "Everybody", or "Lucky Star"? These songs have stood the test of time, because, unlike Britney and Co., Madonna is an innovator, NOT an imitator, and she has been innovative since day one, as this album proves.


the before and after review   December 21, 2003
 8 out of 8 found this review helpful

Madonna's self-titled debut was released in July 1983

BEFORE:
Madonna Ciccone was a NY club sensation. Moving to NYC from Bay City MI with less than $50 to her name, Madonna slowly made her way up. Before the release of this album, she had already scored one huge dance single with Everybody, and was climbing the dance chart with Burning Up at the time of release.

AFTER:
While not an overnight success (when the album peaked, it had been out 15 months), Madonna's debut proved to be "the little album that could". Lambasted by critics at first, and at first resisted by a disco-backlashed radio environment. Madonna quietly crept into the nations conscience in 1984. Borderline, Holiday and Lucky Star have all become radio standards.

Madonna's debut is one of the greatest dance records ever. Released not too long after Flashdance began to make dance music accepted again, every single track off this album was played in clubs around the world in 83/84. There is no "substance" song on this that Madonna has added as she got older and wiser, but in the terms of this album, it was amazing. Like A Virgin was the blockbuster, but "Madonna" was a stronger album in my book, and it also lasted on the Billboard album chart for FOUR YEARS.

Every song is a classic on this. Still one of her best.