Today in Madonna History: June 29, 1998

June 29, 2022 By sonicboy19 in 1998, June Tags: Canada, Canadian Singles Chart, Charts, Ray Of Light (Album), Ray Of Light (Single), Remix Videos 1 Comment

On June 29 1998, Madonna’s Ray of Light single peaked at #3 on RPM’s Top 100 Canadian Singles chart.

As with all the Canadian singles from the Ray of Light album, the title track was issued by Warner Music Canada as a 2-track CD single and as a CD maxi-single. In the U.S., the album’s CD singles were issued in cardboard sleeves with “draw pack” trays and the CD maxi-singles in “FLP digipak” cases, while in Canada the two configurations for each of the album’s four domestic singles were packaged in standard CD jewel cases with printed inserts.

Today in Madonna History: May 24, 1998

May 24, 2022 By Jay in 1998, May Tags: Australia, Charts, Ray Of Light (Single), Remix Videos 1 Comment

On May 24 1998, the Ray of Light single made its debut on Australia’s ARIA Singles Chart at its peak position of #6. It was present for a total of seventeen weeks on the chart, and was certified Gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipment of 35,000 copies of the single.

In ARIA’s year-end singles chart, Ray of Light ranked 57th for best-selling Australian single of 1998.

Today in Madonna History: May 16, 1998

May 16, 2022 By sonicboy19 in 1998, May Tags: Billboard, Ray Of Light (Single), Remix Videos, Review 1 Comment

On May 16 1998, Larry Flick’s glowing review of Madonna’s Ray Of Light single was published in Billboard magazine.

The single would debut at its peak position of #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S.

Today in Madonna History: May 12, 1998

May 12, 2022 By Jay in 1998, May Tags: Jonas Åkerlund, Ray Of Light (Album), Ray Of Light (Single) 1 Comment

On May 12 1998, Madonna’s Ray of Light music video premiered on MTV Live.

The video was directed by Jonas Åkerlund. Madonna’s scenes were shot in early April 1998 at MTV’s Times Square studios in New York and Los Angeles. The background images were shot in various cities, such as Los Angeles, New York, London, Las Vegas, and Stockholm.

Today in Madonna History: April 27, 1998

April 27, 2022 By Jay in 1998, April Tags: East Harlem Violin Project, Elton John, Frozen, Rainforest Foundation Benefit Concert, Versace 1 Comment

On April 27 1998, Madonna made an unannounced appearance at the 9th annual Rainforest Foundation Benefit Concert at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, where she performed Frozen with the East Harlem Violin Project, while wearing a Versace dress.

Jon Pareles from The New York Times felt that during this performance Madonna had “turned herself into America’s answer to Björk”.

Later that night, she wore a cowboy hat and joined various artists in a rendition of The Beatles’ With A Little Help From My Friends and Twist & Shout.

Today in Madonna History: March 23, 1998

March 23, 2022 By sonicboy19 in 1998, March Tags: Academy Awards, Cher, Courtney Love, Fiona Apple, Joni Mitchell, k.d. lang, Ray Of Light (Album), Tina Turner 1 Comment

On March 23 1998, Madonna attended 70th Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles where she presented the Oscar for Best Original Song.

Buoyed by the success of her new album, Ray Of Light, it was all about the music for Madonna on the red carpet as well, as she chatted and posed for photographs with an impressive assortment of musical divas: Fiona Apple, Cher, k.d. lang & Joni Mitchell.

Prior to her shared Rolling Stone cover with Courtney Love & Tina Turner the previous year, Madonna had – at least publicly – tended to shy away from aligning herself too closely with other musicians – particularly other women in the industry. Be it a result of a renewed sense of spirituality, motherhood, maturity, or simply shrewd self-marketing (perhaps all the above?), one thing is clear: Madonna’s newfound camaraderie and supportive attitude towards her peers felt refreshing and inspiring!