Jump to content

Nile Rodgers interview - he wanted Material Girl released as the FIRST single


agclef

Recommended Posts

Not sure if this was posted somewhere else, but, definitely worth a listen. Here is a GREAT interview with the incredible Nile Rodgers talking about Madonna, David Bowie, Diana Ross and a host of others...just brilliant.

WOW moment = Nile wanted Madonna to release Material Girl FIRST from the LAV album, but that's NOT what she wanted - she wanted Like A Virgin to be the first single, and as they say, the rest is history!

Highlights:

8:22 - David Bowie - at the end Nile plays live to Let's Dance, stellar!

14:50 - Madonna - producing Like A Virgin, Nile sings and gushes about Dress You Up and Shoo-Bee-Doo.

LISTEN HERE:

https://m.soundcloud.com/triple_j/nile-rodgers-takes-5-with-zan

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oh, I wish Madonna would get more intimate about how she came about all the songs she's collabed and written on over the years. It's so great to hear Niles speak highly of Madonna and remember these tidbits regarding his experience with the Like A Virgin album. He's worked with so many great people and had a decent career before that and it's great that he recalls some specifics when workign with Madonna.

In the end, I think the right choice was made for the first single. Can't imagine how she would have got the ball rolling with Material Girl as the first single. We all are so familiar with the Iconic VMA'S performance and would that even have happened if Material Girl was the first single? And what about the video? It could have been much different than the one we got.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love that Madonna chose "Like A Virgin" to be the first single because of psychological reasons. She knew who her primary record-buying audience was at the time, and she knew how to relate to them. Brilliance.

Of course, cut to 2008 and she wants "Candy Shop" as a lead single. :electropop:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love that Madonna chose "Like A Virgin" to be the first single because of psychological reasons. She knew who her primary record-buying audience was at the time, and she knew how to relate to them. Brilliance.

Of course, cut to 2008 and she wants "Candy Shop" as a lead single. :electropop:

and now CS is more loved than 4 Minutes, so she right again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

and now CS is more loved than 4 Minutes, so she right again.

I think some hardcore fans like CS, but I don't think it would've sold 3 million digital copies upon release. "4 Minutes" was the correct choice from a mass audience perspective.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nile has spoken about this before. I can't recall the exact interview, but he went into much more detail -- saying that he and Madonna were building the whole album around "Material Girl" until she heard the demo for "Like a Virgin." Until then, they'd talked about using "Material Girl" as the album title, have it be the lead track on the album, and the lead single. (I wish there'd been a "Material Girl" album photo shoot before they'd switched gears. :wow: )

Can anyone recall the other interview where he went into this? It was a great read.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, i like Shoo Bee a lot! I was surprised when internet came and discovered that some people didn't like it! It's so emotional, i especially love the line "but i'd rather share all the love that's there".

Ugh, those people who talk about "fillers" in LAV, when every song was a single or could have been a single.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I totally understand him. I know Like a Virgin is one of her most important hits but it's really weak compared to Material Girl. Never liked it, Material Girl sound so strong in comparison.

And Shoo-Bee-Doo is great but i think as a single it would have flopped.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shoo Bee Doo is basically the track that i always think of when people accuse madonna of not being able to write songs. not because its one of her best, but it shows she can write a catchy infectious pop song with a GREAT melody and structure. You can't argue against that song as a demonstration of her ability to write a great melody.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...