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Like a Virgin › Released



1984


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Like a Virgin (album)
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Like a Virgin is the second album by American singer and songwriter Madonna, released on November 12, 1984, by Sire Records. Following the success of her self-titled debut album, Madonna chose Nile Rodgers to produce the album due to his work with David Bowie. Madonna wrote six songs on the record, five of which feature Steve Bray as a co-writer. The album was recorded at Power Station Studio in New York at a quick pace. Rodgers enlisted the help of his former Chic bandmates Bernard Edwards, who was the bassist, and Tony Thompson, who played drums. Jason Corsaro, the record's audio engineer, persuaded Rodgers to use new digital recording methods.

Like a Virgin
A sepia-toned image of Madonna in a wedding dress, with a belt with "Boy Toy" inscribed on its buckle.
Studio album by Madonna
Released
November 12, 1984
Recorded
April–September 1984
Studio
Power Station (New York)
Genre
Pop[1]dance-pop[2]dance-rock[3]
Length
38:34
Label
SireWarner Bros.
Producer
Nile RodgersSteve BrayMadonna
Madonna chronology
Madonna
(1983) Like a Virgin
(1984) Like a Virgin & Other Big Hits!
(1985)

Singles from Like a Virgin
"Like a Virgin"
Released: October 31, 1984
"Material Girl"
Released: November 30, 1984
"Angel"
Released: April 10, 1985
"Dress You Up"
Released: July 31, 1985
The album's photographs were shot by Steven Meisel. Some critics felt the art made a link between her own religious name Madonna, as the Catholic title for Jesus' mother Mary, and the Christian concept of the virgin birth. While not a substantial musical departure from Madonna's first album, she felt that the material from Like a Virgin was stronger. After its release, Like a Virgin received mixed reviews from music critics; however, retrospective reviews of the album have been much more positive. Like a Virgin was a commercial success and became Madonna's first number one album on the Billboard 200 and set the record as the first female album in history to sell over five million copies in the United States. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) later certified it diamond for shipment of ten million units. It also reached number one in Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom, and remains one of the best-selling albums of all time with sales of over 21 million copies worldwide.[4]

Five singles were released from the album, including Madonna's first US number-one "Like a Virgin" and her first UK number-one "Into the Groove", the latter of which was introduced on the 1985 international reissue of the album. To promote the album, she embarked on The Virgin Tour, touring North America only. Like a Virgin has attained significance as a cultural artifact of the 1980s. Madonna proved that she was not a one-hit wonder and was able to provide herself with a permanent footing in the music world. Her songs became a lightning rod for both criticism by conservatives and imitation by the younger female population, especially "Material Girl" and "Like a Virgin". According to author J. Randy Taraborrelli, "Every important artist has at least one album in his or her career whose critical and commercial success becomes the artist's magic moment; for Madonna, Like a Virgin was just such a defining moment."

In 2023, the album was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Background
edit

Nile Rodgers was chosen as the primary producer of the album, due to his work with David Bowie.
A former dancer and fixture on the New York club scene, Madonna Ciccone became known to the world simply as Madonna, with the release of her 1983 self-titled debut album Madonna. Fueled by hit songs like "Holiday", "Borderline" and "Lucky Star", the album was one of the best selling of the year and helped Madonna become one of the most exciting new artists of the 1980s.[5] At the time, she commented:
Warner Bros. Records is a hierarchy of old men and it's a chauvinist environment to be working in because I'm treated like this sexy little girl. I had to prove them wrong, which meant not only proving myself to my fans but to my record company as well. That is something that happens when you're a girl. It wouldn't happen to Prince or Michael Jackson. I had to do everything on my own and it was hard trying to convince people that I was worth a record deal. After that, I had the same problem trying to convince the record company that I had more to offer than a one-shot singer.[6]

For Like a Virgin, Madonna chose Nile Rodgers as the primary record producer of the album. Madonna chose Rodgers mostly because of his work as a member of the 1970s band Chic, and his most recent production work with David Bowie on his 1983 album Let's Dance.[7]