Justify My Love
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| “Justify My Love” | |||||
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| Single by Madonna from the album The Immaculate Collection |
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| B-side | "Express Yourself (1990)" (remix) "The Beast Within" |
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| Released | November 6, 1990 (Worldwide) December 2, 1990 (U.K.) December 10, 1990 (Japan) |
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| Format | CD, CD maxi, Video, Cassette, 7" | ||||
| Recorded | 1990 | ||||
| Genre | Pop | ||||
| Length | 4:59 | ||||
| Label | Sire, Warner Bros. | ||||
| Writer(s) | Lenny Kravitz, Ingrid Chavez, additional lyrics by Madonna | ||||
| Producer | Lenny Kravitz, Andre Betts | ||||
| Certification | Platinum (RIAA) Silver (BPI) |
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| The Immaculate Collection track listing | |||||
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"Justify My Love" was the first single by American singer-songwriter Madonna from her 1990 greatest hits compilation The Immaculate Collection and was released on November 6, 1990 by Sire Records. It caused international controversy due to the accompanying music video which was sexually explicit and even banned by MTV. This outraged Madonna and she appeared on ABC's Nightline to defend it. The single was also released as a Video-single and became the highest selling video single of all-time. When released, the single rose to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and many other worldwide charts.
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[edit] Song
"Justify My Love" was written by Lenny Kravitz, Ingrid Chavez and Madonna. Kravitz wrote the song for Madonna, based on a poem written by friend and Prince protégé Ingrid Chavez. Kravitz added the title hook and chorus. Madonna contributed a few lines. Chavez was not credited for the song and later sued Kravitz in 1992. She received an out-of-court settlement, and gained a co-writing credit.[1]
Producer Kravitz sampled the intro found on Public Enemy's instrumental, "Security of the First World",[1] and used it as the basis of the song. The song was unique in that Madonna's vocals are primarily spoken and whispered. This style served as a prelude to her next album Erotica, in which she spoke the lyrics on some of the songs rather than singing them. Kravitz provided background vocals. Rumors of a love affair between Kravitz and Madonna sprang up in the press upon the release of the song. Kravitz has denied these rumors.
In 2003, Madonna fans were asked to vote for their Top 20 Madonna singles of all-time by Q-Magazine. "Justify my Love" was allocated the #12 spot.
Rapper Mase sampled the song on his 1999 album, Double Up, on his song "Stay Out of My Way". The song was covered by rapper Vita and pop–R&B singer Ashanti for The Fast and the Furious soundtrack in 2001. Rapper Jay-Z's song, "Justify My Thug", from his 2003 album, The Black Album produced by DJ Quik, is a remake of "Justify My Love." Enigma sampled "Justify My Love" for their "Orthodox Remix" of the 1990 single, "Mea Culpa".
[edit] Music video
Although it was a number one pop hit, "Justify My Love" is perhaps most notable for its controversial music video, directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino. The video depicts images of goings-on at a bizarre party in a Parisian hotel, Le ROyal Monceau (near the Arc de Triomphe). The video featured scenes of partial nudity, homosexuality, mild sadomasochism and group sex. The video also featured her then-boyfriend, model and actor Tony Ward. Some of the dancers featured in the video are also dancers from her Blond Ambition Tour. Influenced by My Fair Lady, Madonna performed "Justify My Love" on her 1993 tour The Girlie Show.
- Director: Jean-Baptiste Mondino
- Producer: Philippe Dupuis-Mendel
- Director of Photography: Pascal Lebegue
- Production Company: Bandits Productions (a co-production with Propaganda Films)
[edit] Controversy
The video became one of the first-ever music videos to be banned on MTV. MTV's pass on the video created a furor that made headlines. ABC's Nightline played the video in its entirety and Madonna herself appeared on the program to defend her position and express her views on censorship. In any case, the video itself became a bestselling "video single" when it was released on the VHS-format that year. When Forrest Sawyer pointed out to Madonna that she stood to profit even more from the banning of "Justify My Love", Madonna, in typical fashion, smiled and said, "Yeah, so lucky me!"
The video for "Justify My Love" was banned also from regular rotation on MuchMusic in Canada, although the controversy (as well as the subsequent banning of a video by Mitsou) led MuchMusic to launch a new series, Too Much 4 Much, which played controversial music videos accompanied by panel discussions on their artistic and cultural context.
In mid-2002, this video was aired in its entirety on MTV2 as part of a special countdown showing the most controversial videos ever to air on MTV. This countdown was shown only late at night because of the graphic imagery of "Justify My Love" and several other videos on the countdown.
As of early May 2007, the video has been receiving strong airplay on the late night edition of MuchMusic's request show "Punch Much". This is particularly interesting, as the video is still banned in many areas of Canada, where the show is broadcast from. The video has had light to moderate airplay on MuchMoreMusic during it's late night music video block.
[edit] Rankings
- This video was ranked #43 on Rolling Stone magazine's "The 100 Top Music Videos".
- This video was ranked #7 on VH1's 100 Greatest Videos and #1 on VH1's 50 Sexiest Video Moments.
- This video was ranked #4 on Back In... 91's Top 5 Best Videos.
[edit] The Beast Within
"The Beast Within" is a remix of the song, "Justify My Love", released as a B-side to that single. The remix uses only the chorus and certain lines of the original song, with the verses being replaced by passages from the Book of Revelation from the Bible. The song first garnered media attention early in 1991 when the Simon Wiesenthal Center accused the song of containing anti-semitic lyrics. Madonna denied the accusations, explaining that the song was about love, not hatred.
'"The Beast Within" was showcased as a dancers' interlude during Madonna's 1993 tour, The Girlie Show Tour. It was used again as the video introduction to the 2004 The Re-Invention Tour, and played amongst apocalyptic imagery of Madonna on video screens, prior to her appearing on stage. It was subsequently included on the 2006 live album, I'm Going to Tell You a Secret. During the 2006 version, many of the original remix's Bible quotations are cut.
[edit] Track listings
[edit] US Cassette and 7
- Justify My Love 5'00
- Express Yourself (1990) (Shep's 'Spressin' Himself Re-Remix) 9'30
[edit] US CD Maxi-Single
- Justify My Love (Q-Sound Mix) 4'54
- Justify My Love (Orbit 12" Mix) 7'16
- Justify My Love (Hip Hop Mix) 6'30
- Express Yourself (1990) (Shep's 'Spressin' Himself Re-Remix) 9'30
- Justify My Love (The Beast Within Mix) 6'10
[edit] Germany CD Single
- Justify My Love (Orbit 12" Mix) 7'16
- Justify My Love 5'00
- Express Yourself (1990) (Shep's 'Spressin' Himself Re-Remix) 9'30
[edit] Charts
| Chart (1990/1991) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Airplay | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | 42 |
| U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Tracks | 1 |
| Australia | 4 |
| Austria | 9 |
| Brazil | 1 |
| Canada | 2 |
| Eurochart Hot 100 | 3 |
| France | 17 |
| Germany | 10 |
| Ireland | 3 |
| Italy | 3 |
| Netherlands | 4 |
| Norway | 3 |
| South Africa, Republic of | 2 |
| Spain | 3 |
| Sweden | 8 |
| Switzerland | 3 |
| United Kingdom | 2 |
[edit] Notes and references
[edit] See also
- Sex, a 1992 nude photography volume by Madonna
| Preceded by "Because I Love You (The Postman Song)" by Stevie B |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single January 5, 1991- January 12, 1991 |
Succeeded by "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" by Janet Jackson |
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