Today In Madonna History: March 22, 1993

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On March 22 1993, Madonna’s version of Fever (a remake of 1958 Peggy Lee song) was released as a UK single.

The UK single included the following remixes:

  1. Album Edit (4.27)
  2. Hot Sweat 12″ (7.57)
  3. Extended 12″ (6.05)
  4. Shep’s Remedy Dub (4.29)
  5. Murk Boys Miami Mix (7.07)
  6. Murk Boys Deep South Mix (6.28)

Sun lights up the daytime
Moon lights up the night
My eyes light up when you call my name
‘Cause I know you’re gonna treat me right
Bless my soul I love you, take this heart away
Take these arms I’ll never use
And just believe in what my lips have to say

Today in Madonna History: March 20, 1990

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On March 20 1990, the lead single from Madonna’s I’m Breathless album, Vogue, was released.

Vogue was written and produced by Madonna and Shep Pettibone in December 1989.  The song was recorded with the intention of being the b-side to the upcoming (and last single for the Like A Prayer album), Keep It Together (released on January 30 1990).

The finished product was too good to be a single b-side, so it was decided that Vogue would be a stand-alone single on Madonna’s forthcoming album, I’m Breathless (even though the song had nothing to do with Dick Tracy).

Today in Madonna History: March 19, 1989

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On March 19 1989, Madonna’s Like A Prayer stormed on to Australia’s ARIA Singles Chart, entering at #3. It would hit ARIA’s top spot the following week, nudging out The Fine Young Cannibal’s She Drives Me Crazy.

The two songs entered into an extended dance for the pole position, with Crazy reclaiming its spot for two weeks before handing it back again to Prayer. Then back to Crazy. Then Prayer.

Dizzy yet?

Our Aussie mates may be a tad indecisive with their hits–but they sure know how to pick ’em!

Today In Madonna History: March 18, 1995

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On March 18 1995,  Madonna hosted a pajama party for 1,500 fans at Webster Hall, in New York, to celebrate the premiere of the Bedtime Story music video broadcast live on MTV. During the party, Madonna also read a bedtime story of Miss Spider’s Tea Party by David Kirk.

Today In Madonna History: March 17, 1999

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On March 17 1999, Madonna won Best Dance Artist – Solo and Best Dance Video (Ray Of Light) at the 14th annual International Dance Music Awards at the Winter Music Conference in Miami, Florida.

Today in Madonna History: March 16, 1995

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On March 16 1995, Madonna’s The Immaculate Collection was certified 6x platinum (6 million units) in the USA.

Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine (allmusic.com):

On the surface, the single-disc hits compilation The Immaculate Collection appears to be a definitive retrospective of Madonna’s heyday in the ’80s. After all, it features 17 of Madonna’s greatest hits, from Holiday and Like a Virgin to Like a Prayer and Vogue. However, looks can be deceiving. It’s true that The Immaculate Collection contains the bulk of Madonna’s hits, but there are several big hits that aren’t present, including Angel, Dress You Up, True Blue, Who’s That Girl and Causing a Commotion. The songs that are included are frequently altered. Everything on the collection is remastered in Q-sound, which gives an exaggerated sense of stereo separation that often distorts the original intent of the recordings. Furthermore, several songs are faster than their original versions and some are faded out earlier than either their single or album versions, while others are segued together. In other words, while all the hits are present, they’re simply not in their correct versions. Nevertheless, The Immaculate Collection remains a necessary purchase, because it captures everything Madonna is about and it proves that she was one of the finest singles artists of the ’80s. Until the original single versions are compiled on another album, The Immaculate Collection is the closest thing to a definitive retrospective.

Today in Madonna History: March 15, 2014

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On March 15 2014, Madonna attended a Purim party dressed as Daenerys Targaryen, the Mother of Dragons, a fictional character from the Game of Thrones television series.

Madonna shared some photos of her costume on Instagram.

The cast from Game of Thrones reacted this way:

Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen):

“Oh my goodness. It’s insane. I thought I was asleep, I thought I was dreaming. It’s a huge moment. And, damn! She looks good.”

Gwendoline Christie (Brienne of Tarth):

“I got really, really excited. Madonna’s always been a favorite of mine. I love her strength and her transformative nature and the idea that she might be dressing up as a brilliant character in the TV show I’m in is pretty exciting.”

Kristian Nairn (Hodor):

“I kind of freaked out, slightly. That’s kind of a sign how big ‘Game of Thrones’ has got. The Queen of Pop is wearing a Daenerys costume. I completely freaked out.”

John Bradley (Samwell Tarly):

“She looks delighted, doesn’t she? Look at that. Things like this are just amazing. It’s when you know that you’re really kind of pressing the right kind of cultural buttons.”