True Blue
Studio album by Madonna
Released	June 30, 1986 May 21, 2001 (Remastered)
Recorded	1985 - 1986
Genre	Pop
Length	39:47
Label	Sire, Warner Bros.
Producer	Madonna, Stephen Bray, Patrick Leonard
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Robert Christgau (B) link Rolling Stone link
Madonna chronology
Like a Virgin (1984) True Blue (1986) Who's That Girl (1987)

True Blue is the third studio album by pop singer Madonna, released on June 30, 1986 by Sire Records. The album has become Madonna's biggest selling studio album internationally with a total of 20 million sales worldwide. On its release, it hit number one in twenty-eight countries, an achievement that The Guinness Book of World Records called "totally unprecedented". In 2001 Warner Bros. released a remastered version with two bonus remix tracks. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (953x953, 97 KB) Summary www. ... A studio album is a collection of previously unreleased, studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... Madonna Louise Ciccone Ritchie (born August 16, 1958), better known as simply Madonna, is a six-time Grammy[1] and one-time Golden Globe award winning American pop singer, songwriter, record and film producer, dancer, actress, author and fashion icon. ... is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... May 21 is the 141st day of the year (142nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For popular forms of music in general, see Popular music. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Sire Records Company is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. ... Warner Bros. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Madonna Louise Ciccone Ritchie (born August 16, 1958), better known as simply Madonna, is a six-time Grammy[1] and one-time Golden Globe award winning American pop singer, songwriter, record and film producer, dancer, actress, author and fashion icon. ... Stephen Bray is a successful songwriter, drummer and record producer from Detroit. ... Patrick Raymond Leonard (born 1955 or 1956) is an American songwriter, keyboardist and music producer, known for his longtime collaboration with Madonna on many different recordings. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links 4. ... Robert Christgau (2007) Robert Christgau (sometimes abbreviated in print to Xgau), born April 18, 1942, is an American essayist, music journalist, and the self-declared Dean of American Rock Critics[1] His first reviews were published by Esquire in 1967. ... This article is about the magazine. ... Image File history File links 4. ... Madonna Louise Ciccone Ritchie (born August 16, 1958), better known as simply Madonna, is a six-time Grammy[1] and one-time Golden Globe award winning American pop singer, songwriter, record and film producer, dancer, actress, author and fashion icon. ... Like a Virgin is the second studio album by singer Madonna. ... Whos That Girl is the first soundtrack album, and fourth release, by singer Madonna. ... Madonna Louise Ciccone Ritchie (born August 16, 1958), better known as simply Madonna, is a six-time Grammy[1] and one-time Golden Globe award winning American pop singer, songwriter, record and film producer, dancer, actress, author and fashion icon. ... is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Sire Records Company is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. ... The Guinness Book of Records (or in recent editions Guinness World Records, and in previous US editions Guinness Book of World Records) is a book published annually, containing an internationally recognized collection of superlatives: both in terms of human achievement and the extrema of the natural world. ... Warner Bros. ...

Album history

For this album, Madonna continued to collaborate with Stephen Bray and begin to work with Patrick Leonard. Unlike Madonna and Like a Virgin, Madonna wrote or co-wrote every song on the album; she also is credited with co-producing every track as well. The album was recorded in late 1985-early 1986, during the first year of Madonna's marriage to American actor Sean Penn. She dedicated the album to him, "the coolest guy in the universe". Stephen Bray is a successful songwriter, drummer and record producer from Detroit. ... Patrick Raymond Leonard (born 1955 or 1956) is an American songwriter, keyboardist and music producer, known for his longtime collaboration with Madonna on many different recordings. ... There are at least two albums that bear the title Madonna: Madonna is the first album released from pop star Madonna. ... Like a Virgin is the second studio album by singer Madonna. ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...

The album's second single, "Papa Don't Preach", was surrounded by controversy due to its message about a young woman who tells her father that she is pregnant out of wedlock, but is going to keep her baby. Madonna's love for the Golden Age of Hollywood can be seen in the Jimmy Cagney tribute, "White Heat", which features a sample from the ending of the film White Heat (Raoul Walsh, 1949). Track number four on the album, "Live to Tell", was originally recorded as the theme to the film At Close Range, and was released as a single before the album was released. Originally intended as the first single, "Love Makes the World Go Round" closes the album and made its debut at Live Aid a year earlier in July 1985. ... Jimmy Cagney was part of the Legends of Hollywood USPS stamp series. ... White Heat is a 1949 crime film starring James Cagney, Edmond OBrien and Virginia Mayo. ... Raoul Walsh as John Wilkes Booth in Birth of a Nation Raoul Walsh (March 11, 1887 – December 31, 1980) was an American film director, actor, founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) and the brother of silent screen actor George Walsh. ... At Close Range is based on the real life rural Pennsylvania crime family led by Bruce Johnston, Sr. ... Ethiopia, as its borders were in 1985. ...

The album cover, shot by photographer Herb Ritts, is one of Madonna's most recognizable pictures. It features a picture of Madonna from the neck up; the main colors in the picture are gray, white, and various shades of blue to reinforce the album's title. Olivia Newton-Johns album Physical, photograph by Ritts Herb Ritts (August 13, 1952 – December 26, 2002) was an American fashion photographer who concentrated on black-and-white photography and portraits in the style of classical Greek sculpture. ...

In 1986, the album won a Juno Award in Canada for Best International Album. The Juno Awards are awards of achievement presented to Canadian musical artists and bands. ...

in 1987 it won 2 American Music Awards The American Music Awards show is one of four annual major American music awards shows (the others being the Billboard Music Awards, the Grammy Awards, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony). ...

In 2001, True Blue was remastered and re-released with two bonus tracks, remixes of the hit singles "True Blue" and "La Isla Bonita".

Critical response

True Blue received mixed reviews from critics. Music critics were less than impressed with the album's ending, but did praise the fact that Madonna's voice sounded stronger than it did on her previous efforts. Stephen Holden, in a review for The New York Times, said that "her singing, which has been harshly criticized as a thin imitation of the sixties girl-group sound, has strengthened",^[1] and in a Rolling Stone review, Davitt Sigerson stated that Madonna was "singing better than ever". The New York Times is a daily newspaper published in New York City by Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. ... This article is about the magazine. ...

The album's songs were called "catchy", but Sigerson in his review commented on the lack of outstanding songs. Forgetting about this comment, he later states that True Blue is a "sturdy, dependable, lovable new album" which "remains faithful to her past while shamelessly rising above it".^[2]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine, in a review for the All Music Guide, named the album as the record that made Madonna a superstar. He also calls it "one of the great dance-pop albums, a record that demonstrates Madonna's true skills as a songwriter, record-maker, provocateur, and entertainer through its wide reach, accomplishment, and sheer sense of fun".^[3] The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music owned by All Media Guide. ...

Whilst Madonna's first two albums have occasionally been seen as throwaway to some, True Blue was the first to be recognized as a classic album. In his guide to Madonna, Ricky Gardiner argues that it should be considered in any album-of-the-1980's list, whilst worldwide sales make it her second biggest seller after The Immaculate Collection. It also remains her only album to date to spawn multiple number one singles in both the USA ("Papa Don't Preach," "Open Your Heart," "Live To Tell") and the UK ("Papa Don't Preach," "True Blue," "La Isla Bonita"). "Where's the Party," despite not being released as a single, became a dance hit and a fan and concert favourite and was later remixed for You Can Dance. You Can Dance is the first compilation album by pop singer Madonna, released on November 13, 1987 by Sire Records. ...

Track listing

Papa Dont Preach is a song by Madonna and the second single from her third studio album True Blue (1986). ... True Blue track listing Papa Dont Preach (1) Open Your Heart (2) White Heat (3) The Immaculate Collection track listing Papa Dont Preach (9) Open Your Heart (10) La Isla Bonita (11) Open Your Heart is a song by Madonna. ... Live to Tell is a 1986 single by Madonna. ... Wheres the Party is a song by American pop singer Madonna. ... True Blue is the third single from Madonnas album of the same name in the fall of 1986. ... True Blue track listing True Blue (6) La Isla Bonita (7) Jimmy, Jimmy (8) The Immaculate Collection track listing Open Your Heart (10) La Isla Bonita (11) Like a Prayer (12) La Isla Bonita (The beautiful island) is a 1987 single by Madonna. ...

Singles

Live to Tell is a 1986 single by Madonna. ... Papa Dont Preach is a song by Madonna and the second single from her third studio album True Blue (1986). ... True Blue is the third single from Madonnas album of the same name in the fall of 1986. ... True Blue track listing Papa Dont Preach (1) Open Your Heart (2) White Heat (3) The Immaculate Collection track listing Papa Dont Preach (9) Open Your Heart (10) La Isla Bonita (11) Open Your Heart is a song by Madonna. ... True Blue track listing True Blue (6) La Isla Bonita (7) Jimmy, Jimmy (8) The Immaculate Collection track listing Open Your Heart (10) La Isla Bonita (11) Like a Prayer (12) La Isla Bonita (The beautiful island) is a 1987 single by Madonna. ...

Certifications, Peaks & Sales

Album credits

Personnel

• Madonna - vocals, background vocals
• Dave Boroff - saxophone
• Stephen Bray - drums, keyboard
• Keithen Carter - background vocals
• Paulinho Da Costa - percussion
• Bruce Gaitsch - guitar, electric guitar, rhythm guitar
• Siedah Garrett - background vocals
• Dann Huff - guitar
• Jackie Jackson - background vocals
• Paul Jackson Jr. - guitar
• Edie Lehmann - background vocals
• Patrick Leonard - drums, keyboard
• Richard Marx - background vocals
• Bill Meyers - strings
• Jonathan Moffett - percussion, drums, background vocals
• John Putnam - acoustic guitar, guitar, electric guitar
• David Williams - guitar, rhythm guitar, background vocals
• Fred Zarr - keyboard

In music a singer or vocalist is a type of musician who sings, i. ... The saxophone (colloquially referred to as sax) is a conical-bored instrument of the woodwind family. ... For other kinds of drums, see drum (disambiguation). ... Piano, a well-known instance of keyboard instruments A keyboard instrument is any musical instrument played using a musical keyboard. ... A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration. ... For other uses, see Guitar (disambiguation). ... Left: Rosa Hurricane, a heavy metal-style solid body guitar. ... Rhythm guitar is a guitar that is primarily used to provide rhythmic and harmonic accompaniment for a singer or for other instruments in an ensemble. ... Dann Huff (born 1960) is a well-known singer, guitarist, songwriter and producer. ... Patrick Raymond Leonard (born 1955 or 1956) is an American songwriter, keyboardist and music producer, known for his longtime collaboration with Madonna on many different recordings. ... Richard Noel Marx (born September 16, 1963 in Winnetka, Illinois) is an adult contemporary singer, songwriter and record producer. ... A steel string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound. ...

Production

• Producers: Stephen Bray, Patrick Leonard, Madonna
• Engineers: Michael Hutchinson, Michael Verdick
• Mixing: Dan Nebenzal, Michael Verdick
• Mixing assistant: Dan Nebenzal
• Drum programming: Stephen Bray, Patrick Leonard
• String arrangements: Billy Meyers

Design

• Art direction: Jeffrey Kent Ayeroff, Jeri McManus
• Design: Jeri McManus
• Photography: Herb Ritts

This article should appear in one or more categories. ... Olivia Newton-Johns album Physical, photograph by Ritts Herb Ritts (August 13, 1952 – December 26, 2002) was an American fashion photographer who concentrated on black-and-white photography and portraits in the style of classical Greek sculpture. ...

References

External links

• True Blue at MusicBrainz
• True Blue (Remastered) at MusicBrainz