Till Death Do Us Part (song)
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| "Till Death Do Us Part" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Song by Madonna | ||
| from the album Like a Prayer | ||
| Released | March 21, 1989 | |
| Recorded | 1988 | |
| Genre | Pop | |
| Length | 5:18 | |
| Label | Sire Records | |
| Writer(s) | Madonna, Patrick Leonard | |
| Producer(s) | Madonna, Patrick Leonard | |
| Like a Prayer track listing | ||
| "Love Song" (3) |
"Till Death Do Us Part" (4) |
"Promise to Try" (5) |
"Til Death Do Us Part" is a song by American pop superstar Madonna. Released on the singer's 1989 album Like a Prayer, the song's lyrics deal with her tumultuous relationship with and divorce from actor Sean Penn, her husband of four years.
"Till Death Do Us Part" marks the first, and only, time that Madonna has sung about the abusive aspects of her failed marriage to Sean Penn. In particular, the song has Madonna confirm rumors that had circulated at the time, regarding Sean Penn being both physically and emotionally abusive towards his then wife, with the lines "The bruises/They will fade away /You hit so hard with the things you say".
[edit] Musical tone
The song lyrics and music rapidly alter back and forth between first person and third person as well as from an upbeat and inspirational tone to that of a fast-paced meloncholy and darkness.
The first person verses feature the upbeat music and feature Madonna defiantly proclaiming that she is leaving the man who has abused her. The darker, faster-paced third person verses though, detail the pattern of abuse between herself and Penn and bitterly acknowledging how abusive the relationship had gotten and how it had destroyed any love that once may have existed between herself and Penn. In using the third person narrative, Madonna seems to be distancing herself emotionally from abuse, much as she did during her marriage, when she denied rumors of being abused by her husband.
The song itself ends abruptly, as the music stops and Madonna (in third person form) tells the listeners that the woman will ultimately leave her abusive husband, but that the husband will beg his wife for a second chance and vow to change, causing her to return to the relationship, where the abuse will start back up. It is only then that the title of the song is said aloud by Madonna, as she cynically proclaims that the pattern of abuse is unbreakable and that the two will be stuck together, repeating the same pattern of abuse, rejection, reconciliation, and regression "...till death do us part".
[edit] Release
"Till Death Do Us Part" was never released as a single by Madonna, though it was included as the B-side to "Dear Jessie" in Europe in December 1989.
Studio albums: Madonna (1983) · Like a Virgin (1984) · True Blue (1986) · Like a Prayer (1989)
Erotica (1992) · Bedtime Stories (1994) · Ray of Light (1998) · Music (2000)
American Life (2003) · Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005)
Discography · Tours · Videography · Filmography · Achievements and Awards · Bibliography · Unreleased songs · Controversies
