Category Archives: Music

The advent of Lent (only true Catholics will rejoice at what I did there) makes this a bit of a Madonna moment, so entwined has some of her music been with the Catholic religion. Her most spiritual albums have been released in the month of March – see ‘Like A Prayer‘ and ‘Ray of Light‘ – and she recently re-issued some ‘Like A Prayer’ remixes that are positively divine. I’m treating you to the ‘Churchapella’ version here for a lovely almost-acoustic take on her epic song – a song that has stood the tests of time and controversy to stand alone as a piece of perfect art. Just like a muse to me…

{Note: The Madonna Timeline is an ongoing feature, where I put the iPod on shuffle and write a little anecdote on whatever was going on in my life when that Madonna song was released and/or came to prominence in my mind.}

I’M TIRED OF BEING FAR AWAY FROM HOME
FAR FROM WHAT CAN HELP
FAR FROM WHERE IT’S SAFE
HOPE IT’S NOT TOO LATE
RUSH, RUSH, RUSH ON YOU
LOVE, LOVE, LOVED ON YOU
LOVED YOU LIKE A FOOL
PUT MY TRUST IN YOU

Vines of chartreuse splendor wind down from the shade-giving canopy, while spires of new banana leaves rise from a bulky terra-cotta-hued pot. Together they form a veil of green, behind which the sparkling surface of the pool beckons, sometimes playfully, sometimes teasingly, and sometimes annoyingly when it’s dancing with rain. A hummingbird will come to visit, darting its tongue into the deep throats of the fuchsia and salvia, while robins will make a more bothersome and bold presence. To this, friends and family will add their joyous noise and bustle, enlivening the home and the yard and the summer itself.

It was the summer of 2019 – the last summer before the world stopped, before we were all stranded at home, suspended in place, our lives on pause.

‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
THE FEELINGS NEVER FADE
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
SAID COME, COME GIVE ME STRENGTH
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT FOR THIS
‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS

OOH (OOH), MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
OOH, I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
OOH (OOH), MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
OOH, I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT

Recent cravings for Madonna had her timeline returning to the blog, and the next cut is already up: ‘Crave’ from 2019’s ‘Madame X’ opus. That summer was the last one when the world felt semi-sane and whatever normal was before the pandemic. We couldn’t know that then, and so this breezy memory is sweeter and hazier than usual. Would we have made more indelible memories if we’d known what was to come? I don’t know, it may have been better that we didn’t have a clue. Ignorance is often bliss. Like the mythical sole passenger who survives a car crash because they were asleep and their body just stayed limp instead of tensing up and causing more damage – maybe it was best that no one knew what was in store for us. And so the summer of 2019 passed in all its innocent bliss, with this song rocking gently inside and outside the house, as we opened things up for the season of the sun.

‘CAUSE I’M JUST ME (YEAH), THAT’S ALL I CAN BE (OOH)
SOMETHING REAL (YEAH), SOMETHING I CAN FEEL
YOU KNOW I JUST CAN’T CHANGE, THIS IS HOW I’M MADE
I’M NOT AFRAID, TAKE ME TO THAT PLACE

YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE (CRAVE)
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
THE FEELINGS NEVER FADE
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
SAID COME, COME GIVE ME STRENGTH
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT FOR THIS
‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS

It was back in the days when being alone and staying home was a choice, a deliberate and intentional decision to spend the weekend by ourselves, an indulgent bit of privacy that today is commonplace and necessity, taking away much of the joy and treat of the thing. And of course, now we miss that company, especially in the summer.

YOU’RE ON ME, I DON’T THINK YOU SHOULD WAIT (WAIT)
YOU’RE ONLY ONE PULL UP AWAY (AWAY)
YOU’RE DOWN TO RIDE, YOU RIDE ME LIKE A WAVE (RIDE, YEAH)
I GAVE YOU A SENSATION (OOH)
A LONER, DAYS WE USED TO CHASE
IT’S DO OR DIE, YEAH, MY LOVE LIFE CAN GET CRAZY (CRAZY)
IT’S ON THE LINE, GIRL, YOU’RE RISKING EVERYTHING (THING)
IT’S OVER-X-RATED

Swae Lee was part of the 2019 summer soundtrack thanks to this one and the glorious ‘Sunflower’ – both subtle and insinuating tracks that lulled the summer days into nights, the way summer eases into just about everything. Nothing was rushed or hurried, nothing was worrying – the world eased into the sunny season and everyone put the work away. By the pool, we read and ate, idly dipping in when the height of heat overwhelmed. Friends stopped by when they could, family joined us for patio dinners, and no one had an idea of what was to come…

RAN SO FAR TO TRY TO FIND THE THING I LACKED AND THERE IT WAS
INSIDE (SIDE) OF (OF) ME (ME)
RAN AND RAN AND RAN SO FAST, A THING TO LAST, AND THERE IT WAS
I HEAR (HEAR) YOU (YOU) BREATHE (BREATHE)

‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE (CRAVE)
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS
THE FEELINGS NEVER FADE
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD PLAY WITH THIS
SAID COME, COME GIVE ME STRENGTH
I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT FOR THIS
‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONE I CRAVE
AND MY CRAVINGS GET DANGEROUS

IT’S ON THE LINE, GIRL, YOU’RE RISKING EVERYTHING 

SONG #162 – ‘Crave’– Summer 2019

Released in the US on this day in 1998, Madonna’s ‘Ray of Light’ album is considered by most fans and music historians her best album to date. I’m in complete agreement of that, and have the added bonus of being at just the right moment to soak in its mysteries and majesty at the ripe old age of 22. When you are that age music somehow means more than it does at 45, and I’m not sad nor unhappy about that. It was perfect for its time, and it came out at the precise moment I was ready to hear it. 

‘Ray of Light‘ has mostly been about searching and seeking – universal themes that don’t diminish or deteriorate with time. If anything, such matters become more prescient and resonant the older I get, which is part of the artistic merit of the album. It’s always worth a listen – and all the way through – especially when the seasonal year is about to be reborn…