Izdavač: Ostalo
Žanr: Pop, R&B, Rep i Hip-Hop
Poreklo: Strani izvođač

Original, made in Germany

Knjizica od 12 str.

Odlicno ocuvano

knjizica 5 Cd 5

Studio album by Madonna
Released October 25, 1994
Recorded February–August 1994
Studio
Axis Studios, The Hit Factory, Soundworks (New York City)
Chapell Studios (Los Angeles)
The Music Grinder (Hollywood)
DARP Studios, Tea Room (Atlanta)
The Enterprise (Burbank)
Wild Bunch Studios (London)
Genre
Pophip hopR&B
Length 51:50
Label
MaverickSireWarner Bros.
Producer
MadonnaDallas AustinBabyfaceDave HallNellee Hooper
Madonna chronology
Erotica
(1992) Bedtime Stories
(1994) Something to Remember
(1995)

Bedtime Stories is the sixth studio album by American singer Madonna, released on October 25, 1994, by Maverick and Sire Records. In 1992, Madonna released her fifth studio album Erotica, the coffee table book Sex, and starred in the erotic thriller Body of Evidence. Due to their sexually explicit nature, all three projects were negatively received by critics and fans alike, who felt the singer had `gone too far` and that her career was over. Madonna decided that she needed to soften her image if she wanted to regain her audience. The first attempt was the ballad `I`ll Remember` from the soundtrack to the 1994 film With Honors, which gained positive critics and reached the second spot of the Billboard Hot 100. For her sixth studio album, Madonna decided to incorporate R&B elements, and collaborated with Babyface, Dallas Austin, and Dave Hall. She also chose to explore the British club musical scene, where genres such as dub had been growing in popularity, and hired producer Nellee Hooper.

A pop album with elements of hip hop and R&B, Bedtime Stories explores lyrical themes of love and romance, but with a toned-down, less sexual approach. In the song `Human Nature`, Madonna explicitly addresses the backlash and controversy surrounding her previous projects, whereas title track `Bedtime Story` saw her working with Icelandic singer Björk. To promote Bedtime Stories, Madonna performed at the 1995 American Music and Brit Awards. A concert tour was planned, but did not take place due to Madonna acquiring the title role in the 1996 musical film Evita. The album yielded two Hot 100 top-three singles, `Secret` and `Take a Bow`; the latter stayed at number one for seven weeks on the chart. Follow-ups `Bedtime Story` and `Human Nature` were both top-ten hits on the UK Singles Chart.

Critics reacted positively towards the album, applauding its romantic nature. Additionally, it was nominated for Best Pop Album at the 38th Grammy Awards. The album debuted and peaked at number three on the US Billboard 200 and was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It reached the first spot in Australia, and charted within the top-five in many other countries, including Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Worldwide, Bedtime Stories has sold an estimated eight million copies. In retrospective reviews, it has been referred to as one of Madonna`s most important yet underrated albums. Bedtime Stories has also been credited as album that started the `second phase` of Madonna`s career, which began in the mid-to-late 1990s. Influence of the album has been noted on the work of contemporary artists.

Background
In 1992, Madonna released her fifth studio album Erotica, the coffee table book Sex, and starred in the erotic thriller Body of Evidence. Due to their sexually explicit nature, all three projects were negatively received by critics and fans alike, who called Madonna a sexual renegade, felt she had `gone too far`, and that her career was over.[3] In March 1994, Madonna appeared on CBS`s Late Show with David Letterman. The appearance was noted for an extremely controversial series of statements and antics by the singer, which included many expletives. In particular, she said the word fuck fourteen times throughout the interview. This made the episode the most censored in American network television talk-show history while at the same time garnering host David Letterman some of the highest ratings he ever received;[4] nonetheless, critics commented Madonna had reached her `lowest low`.[5] Regarding this controversial period of her career, the singer recalled: `I feel I`ve been misunderstood. I tried to make a statement about feeling good about yourself and exploring your sexuality, but people took it to mean that everyone should go out and have sex with everyone [...] I decided to leave it alone because that`s what everyone ended up concentrating on`.[6] Madonna came to the conclusion that she needed to `soften` her image in order to reconnect with her audience.[7]

The `first step to redeem herself` was the ballad `I`ll Remember`, recorded for the film With Honors (1994). The song reached the second position on the Billboard Hot 100, and received positive critical feedback.[8] For her sixth studio album, Madonna decided to venture in the R&B and hip hop mania that was dominating the charts in the early-to-mid 1990s.[7] She envisioned the album as being stylistically different to Erotica; `I wanted to make something else [...] an R&B-influenced record, which is in a way going back to my roots, because my very first record was more R&B`, she explained.[9]

Development
`Once [Madonna] got her ideas out, she was open to your ideas. You didn`t want to go in with her and right off the bat say, `Well, I hear this,` because she was so specific and articulate. She already had the sound in her head. But after she`d spoken, we`d put our two cents in. We always had ideas, like, `Can we answer this line with an extra `survival` [in the background]?".

—Backup singer Donna De Lory on about working with Madonna on Bedtime Stories.[10]

Bedtime Stories was recorded at nine different studios: Axis, The Hit Factory, and Soundworks Studios in New York City; Los Angeles` Chappel Studios; the DARP Studios and Tea Room in Atlanta; The Enterprise in Burbank; Hollywood`s Music Grinder, and the Wild Bunch Studios in London.[11][12] The project saw Madonna collaborating with some of R&B`s `heavyweights`, including Babyface, Dallas Austin, and Dave Hall.[9] It became one of the very few occasions where she worked with high-profile producers, the first since Nile Rodgers on Like a Virgin (1984).[13] Initial sessions were with Shep Pettibone, who worked with the singer on Erotica. However, she felt that what they were doing was too similar to that album and dismissed the producer.[14]

Being a fan of Babyface`s song `When Can I See You` (1994), Madonna decided to work with him because she wanted `lush ballads` for the album.[10] They worked on three songs at his home studio in Beverly Hills, including `Forbidden Love` and `Take a Bow`, both of which ended up on the album.[10] Recalling the latter`s development, Babyface explained: `I wasn`t so much thinking about the charts. I think I was more in awe of the fact that I was working with Madonna. It was initially surreal, but then you get to know the person a little bit, and you calm down and then it`s just work. And work is fun`. In the case of `Forbidden Love`, `[Madonna] heard the basic track and it all started coming out, melodies and everything... It was a much easier process than I thought it would be`.[10] It was through Babyface that she met Dallas Austin, producer of Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip (1992) and The Pendulum Vibe (1994), the debut albums of TLC and Joi.[15] They created `Secret`, `Don`t Stop`, and `Sanctuary`; the first was produced in its demo form by Pettibone, under the name `Something`s Coming Over Me`. Austin then reworked the demo and made it a different song musically.[16] `Human Nature` was written alongside Hall as an answer song to the backlash Madonna had endured the past two years for `daring to deal with subjects that are taboo [...] I`m saying [in the song] that I`m giving my back [to the media]. I`m not sorry`.[14] The song `I`d Rather Be Your Lover` was recorded as a duet with rapper Tupac Shakur, whom Madonna was romantically involved with at the time.[17] The final version, however, replaced Shakur`s parts with a verse by Meshell Ndegeocello. Allegedly, Madonna decided to do this to dissociate from any possible controversy after Shakur became involved in a sexual assault case.[17]

Author Lucy O`Brien noted that, although Madonna was `anxious` to make an impact in the R&B market, `her voice just wasn`t powerful enough to hold and bend those deep, soulful notes`.[18] Needing another `flavor` to expand on the album, Madonna turned to the British club scene, where genres such as dub had been growing in popularity thanks to acts like Icelandic singer Björk, and British bands Massive Attack and Soul II Soul.[18] She decided to work with several European producers and composers from the electronic scene, including British producer Nellee Hooper, who pleased Madonna due to his `very European sensibility`.[18] Madonna had Hooper and his assistant Marius de Vries flown to Los Angeles, where they created the songs `Survival` and `Inside of Me`.[18] At the time, Madonna was a fan of Björk`s album Debut, and, through Hooper and de Vries, got in touch with her and asked her to write a track for the album.[11][19] Björk did not consider herself a fan of Madonna`s, but was intrigued by the offer and accepted.[19] Titled `Let`s Get Unconscious`, the song was born out of Björk`s own criticism of Madonna`s aesthetic and included lines such as Today is the last day that I`m using words; the singer recalled that, `I couldn`t really picture me doing a song that would suit Madonna [...] I decided to do this to write the things I have always wanted to hear her say that she`s never said`.[19] She also added that she never even met Madonna, and wrote the song as a personal favor to de Vries.[20] Once the demo was finished, De Vries and Hooper rearranged the track and the final version was renamed `Bedtime Story`. The original demo was later re-worked and released as `Sweet Intuition`, which appeared as a B-side on Björk`s `Army of Me` single, and remixed on the `It`s Oh So Quiet` single.[21

1. `Survival`
MadonnaDallas Austin
Nellee HooperMadonna
3:31
2. `Secret`
MadonnaAustin
MadonnaAustin
5:05
3. `I`d Rather Be Your Lover` (with Meshell Ndegeocello)
MadonnaDave HallIsley BrothersChristopher Jasper
MadonnaHall
4:39
4. `Don`t Stop`
MadonnaAustinColin Wolfe
MadonnaAustinDaniel Abraham[a][b]
4:38
5. `Inside of Me`
MadonnaHallHooper
HooperMadonna
4:11
6. `Human Nature`
MadonnaHallShawn McKenzieKevin McKenzieMichael Deering
MadonnaHall
4:54
7. `Forbidden Love`
BabyfaceMadonna
HooperMadonna
4:08
8. `Love Tried to Welcome Me`
MadonnaHall
MadonnaHall
5:21
9. `Sanctuary`
MadonnaAustinAnne PrevenScott CutlerHerbie Hancock
MadonnaAustinHooper[a]
5:02
10. `Bedtime Story`
HooperBjörk GuðmundsdóttirMarius De Vries
HooperMadonna
4:53
11. `Take a Bow`
BabyfaceMadonna
BabyfaceMadonna
5:21
Total length: 51:50
Notes

^a signifies a remixer
^b signifies an additional producer
Sample credits[12]

`I`d Rather Be Your Lover` contains samples of `It`s Your Thing` performed by Lou Donaldson (originally by The Isley Brothers).
`Inside of Me` samples `Back & Forth` performed by Aaliyah, `Outstanding` performed by The Gap Band and `The Trials of Life` performed by Gutter Snypes.
`Human Nature` features samples of `What You Need` performed by Main Source.
`Forbidden Love` contains samples of `Down Here on the Ground` performed by Grant Green.
`Sanctuary` samples `Watermelon Man` performed by Herbie Hancock.
Credits
Credits adapted from the album`s liner notes.[12]

Recorded at Axis Studios, The Hit Factory and Soundworks (New York); Chappel Studios (Los Angeles); DARP Studios, Tea Room (Atlanta); The Enterprise (Burbank); The Music Grinder (Hollywood); Wild Bunch Studios (London).
Mastering at Sterling Sound Studios
Design and art direction by Baron & Baron Inc.
Maverick Recording Company. © 1994 Sire Records Company.
Musicians
Madonna – vocals
Babyface – background vocals, synthesizer
Donna De Lory – background vocals
Niki Haris – background vocals
Me`Shell NdegéOcello – guest vocals, bass
Dallas Austin – drums, keyboard
Tomi Martin – guitar
Colin Wolfe – bass
Jessie Leavey – strings arrangement
Craig Armstrong – strings arrangement
Composition and production
Madonna – composition, production
Dallas Austin – composition, production
Babyface – composition, production
Björk – composition
Marius de Vries – production
Dave `Jam` Hall – production
Nellee Hooper – production
Darin Prindle – engineering
Alvin Speights – engineering
Michael Fossenkemper – engineering
Brad Gilderman – engineering
Mark `Spike` Stent – engineering
Jon Gass – audio mixing
Daniel Abraham – audio mixing
Design
Siung Fat Tjia – art direction, design
Patrick Demarchelier – photography