[8][19] The cover has been seen as a reference to Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones. In one part of the song, she specifically asks "Does she hear my voice in the night when I call?". [86] NME critic David Quantick hailed it as "a brilliant, thoughtful, startling and joyful example of popular music. [18] The cover art features a close-up of the singer's jean-clad midsection and bare midriff. [9] In Madonna's own words, the songs "intertwine her search for faith with her search for her mother". When I went there, it was like 20 degrees below zero, and it was really desolate. [97] It was eventually certified multi Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of three million units. 1 Written by Madonna and Patrick Leonard 13, February 10, 1990", "25 Reasons Madonna's Blond Ambition Tour Still Rules, 25 Years Later", "Madonna's newest album, 'Like a Prayer,' is her best", "Madonna exposes herself in 'Like a Prayer, "Here's list of nominees from all 77 categories", https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/list/6495047/madonna-albums-ranked-worst-to-best, "allmusic (((Like a Prayer> Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))", "American album certifications – Madonna – Like a Prayer", "Week Ending Aug. 8, 2008: Taylor Swift Returns", "Canadian album certifications – Madonna – Like a Prayer", "British album certifications – Madonna – Like a Prayer", "Madonna Like a Prayer;– search with artist name", "InfoDisc : Les Certifications (Albums) du SNEP (Bilan par Artiste) – Search for "Madonna, "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Madonna; 'Like a Prayer')", "Australiancharts.com – Madonna – Like a Prayer", "Chiesa: Da Madonna A Dan Brown, Vaticano Sotto I Colpi Dello Show-Business", "My favourite album: Like a Prayer by Madonna", "Critic's Notebook; On the Edge of the Permissible: Madonna's Evolving Persona", "The All-TIME 100 Albums: Like a Prayer by Madonna – TIME Magazine – ALL-TIME 100 Albums", "500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone's definitive list of the 500 greatest albums of all time", Women Who Rock: The 50 Greatest Albums of All Time, "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die", "Radiohead Beat Beatles And Stones In Best Album Poll", "Madonna Vs. Rihanna: The Battle Of The DGAF Divas", "10 Things Millennials Don't Understand About Madonna", "The 20 Best Pop Songs in History By Female Artists", "Madonna's 'Like A Prayer' At 25: 10 More Shocking And Outrageous Music Videos Featuring Miley Cyrus, Kylie Minogue, M.I.A. [5] She decided to take a more adult, sophisticated approach; thoughtfully, she sifted through her personal journals and diaries, and began considering her options. [112] In New Zealand, the album peaked at number two and was certified double platinum by the Recorded Music NZ. He believed that the album was her peak of cultural and musical influence, saying that "Madonna went from bubbly pop act to a serious artist who received her first bout of universal acclaim." Details given for Prince-related tracks only: The compact disc version is the original issue. [73] Two different shows were recorded and released on video, Blond Ambition: Japan Tour 90, taped in Yokohama, Japan, on April 27, 1990,[74] and Blond Ambition World Tour Live, taped in Nice, France, on August 5, 1990.

Commercially, the album was an international success, reaching the top of the charts in multiple territories, and was certified quadruple platinum in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America. [95][96] The album spent a total of 77 weeks on the chart. Now she's got the guts to show us what's inside". [124] Like a Prayer is also featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Club, praised the album for "being bold enough to delve into her parental issues", and called it "Madonna's first truly substantial record, the dividing line between her chirpy club-kid days and the mature sounds and themes that increasingly marked her '90s work". Later, an adult seems to admonish a child with the lines, "Little girl, don't you forget her face/Don't let memory play games with your mind/She's a faded smile frozen in time".
"[89] Negative criticism came from Spin magazine. [94] It quickly rose to the top of the chart after its third week, where it remained for six consecutive weeks, making it Madonna's longest-running number 1 album. [2] She commented for the May 1989 issue of Interview that her Catholic upbringing struck a feeling of guilt in her all the time: Because in Catholicism you are a born sinner and you're a sinner all your life.
That was it. Like a Prayer received universal acclaim, with Rolling Stone hailing it as "close to art as pop music gets." It summons up a psychedelic landscape, where pink elephants roam with dancing moons and mermaids. [9] The opening track is "Like a Prayer", which was also the first song developed for the album. [91][92] Billboard has cited Like a Prayer as Madonna's best album.

[103] In France, the album debuted at number one on the French Albums Chart on April 9, 1989, staying there for two weeks, then descending down the chart, having spent a total of thirty-six weeks on it. [43] The EP reached number 24 on the Oricon weekly albums chart and was present on the chart for five weeks. It references fairy-tale characters and creates an image of children playing with each other. "[80], Jonathan Takiff from The Philadelphia Inquirer praised the album for being "serious and reflective, at times heavily laden with psychic trauma. "[137], According to Douglas Kellner, the album and its singles were particularly influential on the music video field. She recalled, "What was it I wanted to say?

This page was last modified on 3 October 2020, at 17:36. My music was probably the only distraction I had. From the start, she's had an intuitive grasp of how to put on a good show. [7], Recording artist Prince played the guitar on three songs from the album, "Like a Prayer", "Keep It Together", and "Act of Contrition", though he remained uncredited. "[15] Robert Christgau from The Village Voice lamented the "kiddie psychedelia" of "Dear Jessie" and was unmoved by "Promise to Try" and "Act of Contrition", but felt all the other songs were memorable, especially the "cocksucker's prayer" of "Like a Prayer" and the "thrilling", independence-themed "Oh Father" and "Express Yourself".