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Song of the Day #4,785: ‘Like a Virgin’ – Madonna

Madonna’s sophomore album sat on the shelf for a few months because her debut was still selling so well. A month after its predecessor reached the top ten, selling more than two million copies in the process, Like a Virgin was released in November of 1984.

And just like that, she went from emerging star to superstar. Within a few months, Like a Virgin reached #1, where it spent a few weeks. By July of 1985, it had sold more than five million copies, making her the first woman to achieve that feat. It would eventually become her top-selling album in the U.S., achieving Diamond status with domestic sales of more than 10 million units.

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Song of the Day #4,784: ‘Lucky Star’ – Madonna

Earlier this year, I started doing full-career retrospectives on artists I didn’t know as well as their reputations warranted. I kicked things off with Joni Mitchell and followed with Jackson Browne.

After deep dives into those artists, who made their biggest mark from the late 60s through the late 70s, I’ve decided to turn my attention to one of the most celebrated icons of the 80s: Madonna.

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Song of the Day #4,783: ‘She Shook Me Cold’ – David Bowie

Here’s a track from David Bowie’s 1970 album The Man Who Sold the World. When I wrote about this album during my 2016 Bowie deep dive, I said it sounded like a White Stripes song recorded five years before Jack White was born.

What I didn’t say at the time was that hard-edged guitar sound was courtesy of Mick Ronson, who is also believed to be the writer of this song, despite Bowie getting sole credit in the liner notes.

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Song of the Day #4,782: ‘Some Days Are Better Than Others’ – U2

If you want to feel old, consider that U2 is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year. During that span, they’ve released 14 albums and sold nearly 200 million copies worldwide. They are among the most revered and successful bands in popular music history.

And yet, they feel almost completely irrelevant these days. It’s been four years since their last release, the unmemorable Songs of Experience, and 15 years since their last bona fide hit, 2004’s How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb.

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Song of the Day #4,781: ‘Don’t Go Yet’ – Camila Cabello

Normani might be my favorite former member of Fifth Harmony to watch, but Camila Cabello is the one I most like to hear.

Her 2018 debut album, Camila, was a real gem, featuring the hit ‘Havana’ and a bunch of mellow pop songs that never got the radio play they deserved. Her follow-up, 2019’s Romance, didn’t live up to its predecessor but nevertheless suggested she wouldn’t be a one-hit wonder.

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