Ray of Light (song)
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| “Ray of Light” | |||||||||||||||
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| Single by Madonna from the album Ray of Light |
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| B-side | "Has to Be" | ||||||||||||||
| Released | May 11, 1998 (United States) May 18, 1998 (Europe) |
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| Format | CD single, CD maxi-single, Video single, Cassette single, 7" Single, 12" maxi-single | ||||||||||||||
| Recorded | 1998 | ||||||||||||||
| Genre | Pop, electronica, dance | ||||||||||||||
| Length | 5:20 | ||||||||||||||
| Label | Maverick, Warner Bros. | ||||||||||||||
| Writer(s) | Madonna William Orbit Clive Muldoon Dave Curtiss Christine Leach |
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| Producer | Madonna William Orbit |
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| Madonna singles chronology | |||||||||||||||
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"Ray of Light" is the second single by American singer Madonna from her 1998 album of the same name, and is based on the Curtiss Maldoon's 'Sepheryn', although other than the first verse the comparison is loose. The song was written by Madonna, William Orbit, Clive Muldoon, Dave Curtiss and Christine Leach, and was produced by Madonna and Orbit.
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[edit] Song information
The song is based on the track "Sepheryn", which was originally written by Clive Muldoon and Dave Curtiss. William Orbit re-recorded the song with Christine Leach before he started working with Madonna. However, it ended up being recorded by Madonna with its lyrics only changed in a few areas, but with a different melody and instrumentation. All five (Madonna, Orbit, Muldoon, Curtiss and Leach) are credited for Madonna's version of the song. The song was remixed by Victor Calderone, Sasha and Orbit.
Madonna performed "Ray of Light" with Lenny Kravitz at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards (where it won "Best Female Video" and "Video of the Year" awards), and at the 2006 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California. "Ray of Light" was also performed during the Drowned World Tour, the Confessions Tour (as an encore)[1], Live 8 and Live Earth.
The song was used by Microsoft in its 2001 advertising campaign for Windows XP, in combination with an image named Bliss, as well as a campaign for Sunsilk shampoo in 2008. Premiering on Super Bowl Sunday, the Sunsilk ad included shots of Marilyn Monroe and Shakira with songs well known by them, and ends with several video shots of Madonna to the sounds of "Ray of Light".
The song was voted #100 on VH1's 100 Best Songs of the Past 25 Years. In 2005, the song placed at #401 on Blender Magazine's "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born". [1]
[edit] Mash-up
In 2003, UK DJ Mark Vidler was creating a mash up of "Ray of Light" with The Jam's "To Be Someone" when he noticed a poster challenging DJs to create a punk mash up. He decided to abandon The Jam version and teamed "Ray of Light" with The Sex Pistols' "Pretty Vacant" and "Anarchy in the UK". Their resultant song "Ray of Gob" became one of the most successful mash ups to date, and after receiving copyright permission from both Madonna and The Sex Pistols the track became a huge radio hit. Vidler soon received an unsolicited email from production company Red, offering to produce a video for the track. Vidler has stated it was this track alone which allowed him to give up his day job and become a full time remixer/producer. [2]
[edit] Cover Versions
As part of BBC Radio 1's Established 1967, Natasha Bedingfield recorded a cover version of Ray of Light. It was played during the Chris Moyles Show on Wednesday 19th September 2007 and can be found on the Radio 1. Established 1967 compilation CD released shortly afterwards.
[edit] Chart performance
The track, due to its combination of high-energy techno sounds and guitar riffs, was considered by many to be groundbreaking.[citation needed] It debuted at #2 in the UK. The U.S. seemed to take to it as well; however, the commercial maxi and single CDs were released with a one-month delay, when momentum of the track was already fading.
The single managed to break two Madonna records; it sold about 73,000 copies in its first week, and entered and peaked, on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot 100 Singles Sales, at #5. The song also did well on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, becoming another number-one hit for Madonna; it went on to become the top Dance Music/Club Play single of 1998.
In 2003, Madonna fans were asked to vote for their Top 20 Madonna singles of all-time by Q-Magazine. "Ray of Light" was allocated the #4 spot.
[edit] Music video
"Ray of Light" is also noted for its Koyaanisqatsi inspired music video, featuring time-lapse images of daily life, from people riding a subway, ordering food, bowling, and children in a classroom to speeded-up city-scapes and freeways at night. It should be noted that in almost every scene with people in it, such as in the club or classroom, one person is staring directly at the camera, while everyone else goes on with their daily life. The girl staring at the camera while at the club towards the end of the video is Peih-Gee Law, a former contestant of 'Survivor: China'.
The video was directed by Jonas Åkerlund, with Madonna's scenes being shot on March 25-26, 1998 at Raleigh Studios and at a nightclub in downtown Los Angeles. The images of various cities include Los Angeles, New York, London, Las Vegas and Stockholm, Sweden. It also featured a couple of clips from the Swedish television game show Bingolotto, which is broadcasted from Gothenburg, Sweden. It was ranked #40 on VH1's 100 Greatest Videos, listed #1 on Back In... 98's Top 5 Best Videos, ranked #7 on Listed's Top 40 Memorable Videos Pt. 1 & 2, on MuchMoreMusic, and ranked #26 on MuchMusic's 100 Best Videos.
- Director: Jonas Akerlund
- Producer: Nicola Doring
- Executive Producer: Billy Poveda
- Director of Photography: Henrik Halvarsson
- Editor: Jonas Akerlund
- Production Company: Oil Factory Inc.
[edit] Live version
In February 2007, a live performance of "Ray of Light" was released as a music video to promote The Confessions Tour CD+DVD. It was filmed on August 15-16, 2006 at Wembley Arena in London, England.
- Director: Jonas Akerlund
- Producer: Sara Martin
- Director of Photography: Eric Broms
- Editor: Jonas Akerlund
- Production Company: Black Dog Films
[edit] Tracklistings and formats
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[edit] Official versions
- Album Version (5:23)
- Radio Edit (4:37) (Promo Only)
- William Orbit Liquid Mix (8:08)
- William Orbit Liquid Mix Radio Edit (5:13) (Promo Only)
- William Orbit Ultra Violet Mix (7:00)
- Victor Calderone Club Mix (9:29)
- Victor Calderone Club Mix Radio Edit (4:55) (Promo Only)
- Victor Calderone Drum Mix (5:29)
- Sasha's Ultra Violet Mix (10:48)
- Sasha's Ultra Violet Mix Radio Edit (5:10) (Promo Only)
- Sasha's Stripped Down Mix (5:04)
- Sasha's Twilo Mix (10:59)
[edit] Charts
| Chart (1998)[20] | Peak Position |
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| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 5 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Airplay | 26 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 13 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 | 39 |
| U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 | 32 |
| Australia | 6 |
| Austria | 31 |
| Brazil | 5 |
| Canada | 7 |
| Czech Singles Chart | 7 |
| Eurochart Hot 100 | 9 |
| Italy | 10 |
| Finland | 2 |
| France | 18 |
| Germany | 28 |
| Netherlands | 22 |
| New Zealand | 9 |
| South Africa, Republic of | 1 |
| Spain | 1 |
| Sweden | 14 |
| Switzerland | 32 |
| United Kingdom | 2 |
| United World Chart | 2 |
[edit] Credits
- Written by Madonna, William Orbit, Clive Muldoon, Dave Curtis, and Christine Leach.
- Produced by Madonna and William Orbit.
- Engineered by Pat McCarthy.
- Art Direction/design by Kevin Reagan.
- Photography by Mario Testino.
[edit] References
- ^ MadonnaOnline Brasil - MOL - Feels like home!
- ^ Mark Vidler // Go Home Productions
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light (Remixes)
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light (CD1)
- ^ Madonna - Ray Of Light (CD2)
- ^ Chart peak positions:
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