True Blue (Madonna song)

"True Blue"
Single by Madonna
from the album True Blue
B-side "Ain't No Big Deal"
Released September 17, 1986
Format
Recorded 1985
Genre Dance-pop
Length 4:19
Label
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
  • Madonna
  • Stephen Bray
Madonna singles chronology
"Papa Don't Preach"
(1986)		 "True Blue"
(1986)		 "Open Your Heart"
(1986)
Music video
"True Blue" on YouTube

"True Blue" is a song by American singer Madonna. It is the title track from her third studio album True Blue (1986), and was released as the album's third single on September 17, 1986 by Sire Records. Written and produced by Madonna and Steve Bray, the song deals with the feelings of Madonna for her then-husband Sean Penn. A dance-pop song, it features instrumentation from a rhythm guitar, a synthesizer, keyboards, and drums. The main chorus is backed by an alternate one, incorporating a chord progression generally found in doo-wop music.

Received by the critics as a light-hearted and cute retro song, "True Blue" topped the charts in UK, Ireland and Canada and became another consecutive top ten song in US for Madonna by reaching number three on the Billboard Hot 100. The original music video portrayed her again with a new look, leaner and sporting platinum blond bushy hair. An alternate video was made through the "Make My Video" contest on MTV. The final selected videos had a similar theme of a 1950s-inspired setting and the storyline following the lyrics of the song. "True Blue" has been performed on the Who's That Girl World Tour (1987) and the Rebel Heart Tour (2015–16).

Writing and composition
"True Blue"
A 26 second sample from "True Blue", featuring Madonna singing the first verse, which has the archaic word "dear", and a backing track that employs a chord progression commonly used in doo-wop.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Madonna wrote and produced the song with Steve Bray.[1] According to her, "True Blue" takes its title from a favourite expression of her then husband Sean Penn and to his very pure vision of love[2] and was a direct tribute to him as well as the album, which was as a whole inspired by her "unabashed valentine" for Penn.[3] In an interview, Bray said, "She [Madonna] was very much in love. It was obvious if she's in love she'll write love songs. If she's not in love she definitely won't be writing love songs."[4] In 2015, Madonna said that "True Blue" is "a song about true love. I didn't know what I was talking about when I wrote it."[5]

"True Blue" is a dance-pop song inspired by the Motown's girl groups from the 1960s which are considered the direct antecedents of Madonna's musical sound.[2] The song is composed in the key of B major. It is set in compound quadruple meter, commonly used in doo-wop, and has a moderate tempo of 118 beats per minute.[6] "True Blue" features instrumentation from a rhythm guitar, a synthesizer, keyboards, and drums for the bassline,[7] with a basic sequence of I–vi–IV–V (B–G♯m–E–F♯) as its main chord progression.[8]

Madonna's vocal range spans a bit less than one and a half octaves, from F♯3 to B4.[6] The chorus is backed by sounds of bells ringing, an alternate verse—"This time I know it's true"— which is sung by three back-up singers during the interlude,[9] and a bass counter melody which introduces her vocals during the second chorus.[8] The lyrics are constructed in a verse-chorus form, with the theme being Madonna's feelings for Sean Penn; it even uses the archaic love word "dear" in the line "Just think back and remember, dear".[10]

Reception

Critical response

Davitt Sigerson from Rolling Stone said that the song "squanders a classic beat and an immensely promising title",[11] LAUNCHcast's Bill Holdship said that "True Blue" is "Madonna's wonderful tribute to the late '50s/early '60s "girl groups".[12] In his book Madonna: An Intimate Biography, journalist J. Randy Taraborrelli described the song as "the light-hearted, fun track of the whole True Blue album project having a retro 1950's feel to it".[13] In the book Rock 'n' Roll Gold Rush, author Maury Dean said that the song as a "masterwork of simplicity interwoven with secret complexity" adding that "on one hand, it's just a basic steetcorner ditty, with four basic chords. In another context, it's a counterpoint harmonic blanket, twirling with star-spangled timbre and dynamic drive."[10] Rikky Rooksby, in his book The Complete Guide to the Music of Madonna, said that "True Blue" is "a song that is merely cute and not really up to being the title track of an album".[8]

The Wichita Eagle did not like the song, believing that it was "sassless and neutered" as compared to the other songs on the record.[14] However, Daniel Brogan of The Chicago Tribune believed the song was good, calling it "impressive" like the rest of the album,[15] and Jan DeKnock of the same paper believed it was "charming".[16] Steve Morse of The Boston Globe, when describing the song, said that it was a "bid to be an '80s Helen of Troy".[17]

Chart performance

"True Blue" was released in the United States in October 1986. It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 40,[18] six weeks later it reached its peak of number three, remaining at the position for three consecutive weeks, and spent a total of 16 weeks on the chart.[19] The song performed equally well on the other Billboard charts, peaking at number five on Adult Contemporary,[20] and number six on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart.[21] In October 1998, the single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipment of 500,000 copies.[22] In Canada, the song debuted at number 84 the RPM singles chart on September 27, 1986,[23] reached the top for one week in November 1986,[24] and stayed on the chart for 23 weeks.[25] It ended at the 37th position of the year-end chart.[26]

In the United Kingdom, "True Blue" was released on September 29, 1986. It debuted at number three on the UK Singles Chart, before climbing to number one the next week, becoming Madonna's third number-one single there.[27] It was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in October 1986.[28] According to the Official Charts Company, the song has sold 556,900 copies there as of August 2016.[29] The song peaked at number one for two weeks in October 1986 in Ireland, making it her fourth number-one single on the Irish Singles Chart.[30] Both in Australia and New Zealand, the song reached the top five, and was certified platinum in the former region by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for sales of 70,000 copies of the single.[31] In Europe "True Blue" also topped the Eurochart Hot 100 for one week in October 1986. It peaked in the top five in Belgium, Italy, and the Netherlands,[32][33][34] and in the top ten in Austria, France, Germany, and Switzerland.[35][36][37]

Music videos

Official version

Refer to caption
Madonna sporting a blond bushy haircut, drives a 1957 Ford Thunderbird convertible with her girlfriends in the back, in the 50s inspired blue themed video for "True Blue"

"True Blue" had two music videos to accompany it. Shot in early September 1986 in New York, Madonna's own video for the song was directed by James Foley, who worked with Madonna in her videos for "Live to Tell" and "Papa Don't Preach", produced by Robert Colesberry and David Massar with photography by Michael Ballhaus. The Foley version features Madonna with three dancers and a 1950s car in an all-blue diner. Madonna changes her hairstyle from short-cropped in "Papa Don't Preach" to a bushy platinum blonde hairdo and sings the song in choreographed moves backed by her dancers. It displays a flashing back to fifties rock'n'roll youth culture.[38]

The blue background changes to a sunny one as she sings "The sun is bursting right out of the sky" to go-along with the lyrical meaning of the song. Two of Madonna's close friends, Erika Belle and Debi Mazar appear in the video. The video was released at a time when she was going through a failed marriage with then husband actor Sean Penn. During this period, Madonna focused on more traditional fashion and attitudes and tried to appear more respectful of traditional gender roles. After shedding her trampy sex-kitten and boy-toy image with the "Live to Tell" music video, Madonna again adopted a new look for this video.[39] Madonna attended aerobics classes at Hollywood health centre The Sports Connection, which was responsible for her toned down look in the video.[38]

"Make My Video" contest

Sire Records decided to opt for a promotional device in the United States that would involve MTV viewers to make their own videos for "True Blue". In the fall of 1986, MTV asked its viewers to submit their own videos. The contest was known as "Madonna's 'Make My Video' Contest". The winner was awarded a trip to MTV's New York studio where Madonna presented a $25,000 check live on MTV.[40] Thousands of viewers submitted their recorded tapes which were mainly made using home-made video equipment and featured themselves or relatives as the actors.[41] MTV publicist Peter Danielson said that many of the submissions featured teenagers imitating Madonna. All the entries were shown in a continuous run on MTV as promised. The same song was played over and over for the whole day, but each time with a different video made by the finalists.[42] Author Lisa A. Lewis said that this event emphasized the effect Madonna had on different kind of audiences due to the popularity and response to the contest. MTV selected ten finalists based mainly on a standard of popularity rather than slickness of production or concept creativity.[41]

The concepts used in the videos were wide ranging and included a number of different ideas to interpret the lyrical meaning of the song. The final three entries selected, portrayed a fifties-style production referring to the thematic content of the song. The song's narration about "True Love" formed the basis of the rest of the semi-finalist videos but was used in very different ways. The videos were choreographed featuring heterosexual romance, though no particular male or female protagonist was singled out. Some even adopted a kind of literal montage technique rather than structuring the video around a narrative line.[41]

The winning entry was by Angel Gracia and Cliff Guest and it showed the female protagonist (played by the director's sister Anabel Garcia) being supported and guided by her girlfriends who introduce her with the male protagonist. The girl even goes to the boy's door to gift him flowers, thereby reversing the usual gender-directed pattern of gift-giving. The male protagonist is portrayed as a "perfect boy" (played by William Fitzgibbon) having the sensibilities like attentiveness, cuteness, playfulness like a friend (after the lyrics "You're my best friend") and not sexual overtones. The video in-turn contrasts him with a self-centered boy who puts on sunglasses, throws his leather jacket over his shoulder and walks away from the girl. Other videos portrayed a girl pining for her sailor, US-Soviet relations and an arguing couple with the girl in a scene inspired by the music video of Tina Turner's 1984 single "What's Love Got to Do with It".[41]

Live performances

Madonna, flanked by all of her dancers, performs an acoustic version of "True Blue" as part of the Rebel Heart Tour.

Madonna first performed the song on her 1987 "Who's That Girl World Tour". She came up on the stage wearing a blue dress to sing the song after finishing a performance of "Lucky Star". In a similar setting to the original music video of the song, Madonna is backed up by her singers who play her girlfriends. At the end of the song Madonna is asked to dance again by the dancer playing her man in the performance.[43] Her dance in the performance (and also some other performances in the tour) was choreographed by Jeffrey Hornaday from Flashdance.[44] Two different performances of the song on the tour were included on two live video releases: Who's That Girl: Live in Japan, filmed in Tokyo, Japan, on June 22, 1987,[45] and Ciao Italia: Live from Italy, filmed in Turin, Italy, on September 4, 1987.[46]

Madonna did not perform the song again until 2015, as part of her Rebel Heart Tour. She performed an acoustic, ukulele-driven version of the song sitting on top of a tire stack while asking the crowd to sing along with her. Writing for the Daily News, Jim Farber felt that during the performance "[Madonna] emphasized a rare sincerity" while Jordan Zivitz from the Montreal Gazette opined that "it was both endearingly quaint and, supersized by an unprompted singalong from more than 16,000 voices, a goosebumps moment that felt more grandiose in its way than the showpieces surrounding it".[47][48] Newsday's Glenn Gamboa gave a similar feedback, saying that the "lovely acoustic version of "True Blue" was a rare bow to romance, the sweetest of Madonna sentiments".[49]

Formats and track listing

  • 7" Single (Europe)[50]
  1. "True Blue" (Remix/Edit) – 4:22
  2. "Holiday" (Edit) – 3:50
  1. "True Blue" – 4:16
  2. "Ain't No Big Deal" – 4:12
  • 7" Single (Re-Issue)[53]
  1. "True Blue" – 4:16
  2. "Live to Tell" – 4:37
  1. "True Blue" (Extended Dance Version) – 6:37
  2. "Holiday" (Full Length Version) – 6:08
  • 12" Maxi-Single (US)[55]
  1. "True Blue" (The Color Mix) – 6:37
  2. "True Blue" (Instrumental) – 6:56
  3. "True Blue (Remix/edit) – 4:22
  4. "Ain't No Big Deal" – 4:12
  • Germany / UK CD Maxi Single (1995)
  1. "True Blue" (The color mix) – 6:37
  2. "Holiday" – 6:10
  • CD Super Club Mix (Australia/Japan)[56][57]
  1. "True Blue" (The Color Mix) – 6:37
  2. "Everybody" (Dub Version) – 9:23
  3. "Papa Don't Preach" (Extended Remix) – 5:45
  4. "Everybody" (Extended Version) – 5:56
  5. "Live to Tell" (Instrumental Version) – 5:49

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[58]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1986) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[59] 5
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[35] 9
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[32] 2
Belgium (VRT Top 30)[60] 3
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[24] 1
Eurochart Hot 100 (Billboard)[61] 1
France (SNEP)[62] 6
Germany (Official German Charts)[36] 6
Ireland (IRMA)[30] 1
Italy (FIMI)[33] 4
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[34] 4
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[63] 4
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[64] 3
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[37] 12
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[65] 18
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[66] 6
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[27] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[19] 3
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[20] 5
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[21] 6

Year-end chart

Chart (1986) Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[59] 45
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[26] 31
Italian Singles (FIMI)[67] 20
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[68] 19
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[27] 10
US Billboard Hot 100[69] 76

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[31] Platinum 70,000^
France (SNEP)[70] Silver 250,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[28] Gold 556,900[29]
United States (RIAA)[22] Gold 500,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Taraborrelli 2002, p. 119
  2. 1 2 Metz & Benson 1999, p. 48
  3. ↑ Morton 2002, p. 789
  4. ↑ Michael 2004, p. 43
  5. ↑ Rob Sheffield (17 September 2015). "Bitch, She's Madonna: NYC Stop Showcases Genius of Rebel Heart Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  6. 1 2 "Digital Sheet Music: True Blue". Musicnotes.com. Alfred Publishing Co. Inc. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
  7. ↑ Marsh 1999, p. 184
  8. 1 2 3 Rooksby 2004, p. 24
  9. ↑ McKeen 2000, p. 234
  10. 1 2 Dean 2003, p. 523
  11. ↑ Sigerson, Davitt (July 17, 1986). "Madonna: True Blue: Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. RealNetworks, Inc.
  12. ↑ Holdship, Bill (January 1, 1986). "Album Review: True Blue". Yahoo! Music. Yahoo! Inc. Retrieved March 26, 2009.
  13. ↑ Taraborrelli 2002, p. 53
  14. ↑ "Madonna's 'True Blue' Leaves Bad Aftertaste". The Wichita Eagle. The McClatchy Company. November 23, 1986. Retrieved April 1, 2009.
  15. ↑ Brogan, Daniel (July 11, 1986). "Madonna Keeps Faith with 'Virgin' Cause in 'True Blue'". Chicago Tribune. Tribune Company. Retrieved April 1, 2009.
  16. ↑ DeKnock, Jan (August 29, 1986). "'Higher Love' Takes Briton Steve Wiwood to a New Plateau on Charts". Chicago Tribune. Tribune Company. Retrieved April 1, 2009.
  17. ↑ Morse, Steve (July 1, 1986). "Madonna's Latest: Is She Serious?". The Boston Globe. The New York Times Company. Retrieved April 1, 2009.
  18. ↑ "Hot 100: Week of October 04, 1986". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. October 4, 1986. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  19. 1 2 "Madonna – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Madonna. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  20. 1 2 "Madonna – Chart history" Billboard Adult Contemporary for Madonna. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  21. 1 2 "Madonna – Chart history" Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs for Madonna. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  22. 1 2 "American single certifications – Madonna – True Blue". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 14, 2014. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
  23. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0731". RPM. RPM Music Publications Ltd. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  24. 1 2 "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0859." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Top Singles: Issue 0787". RPM. RPM Music Publications Ltd. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  26. 1 2 "The Top Singles of '86". RPM. RPM Music Publications Ltd. December 27, 1986. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  27. 1 2 3 "Madonna: Artist Chart History" Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  28. 1 2 "British single certifications – Madonna – True Blue". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 14, 2014. Enter True Blue in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
  29. 1 2 Myers, Justin (August 16, 2016). "Open your chart to me... Madonna's Official Top 40 Biggest Selling Singles". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
  30. 1 2 "The Irish Charts – Search Results – True Blue". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  31. 1 2 "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2001 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  32. 1 2 "Ultratop.be – Madonna – True Blue" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  33. 1 2 "Madonna: Discografia Italiana" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. 1984–1999. Retrieved January 8, 2010.
  34. 1 2 "Nederlandse Top 40 – Madonna search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  35. 1 2 "Austriancharts.at – Madonna – True Blue" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  36. 1 2 "Offiziellecharts.de – Madonna – True Blue". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  37. 1 2 Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002| (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  38. 1 2 Clerk 2002, p. 49
  39. ↑ Peach 1998, p. 176
  40. ↑ Garcia, Guy D. (November 3, 1986). "People of Time". Time. Time Inc. Retrieved March 31, 2009.
  41. 1 2 3 4 Lewis 1991, p. 206
  42. ↑ Parker, Lyndsey (August 7, 2008). "Most Memorable Madonna Moments: 46-50". Yahoo! Music. Yahoo! Inc. Retrieved March 31, 2009.
  43. ↑ Voller 1999, p. 29
  44. ↑ Parish & Pitts 2003, p. 526
  45. ↑ Madonna (1987). Who's That Girl: Live in Japan (VHS). Warner-Pioneer Japan.
  46. ↑ Phares, Heather. "Ciao Italia: Live in Italy (Video) > Overview". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved March 3, 2009.
  47. ↑ Farber, Jim (September 10, 2015). "Madonna seemed to be happy at last during upbeat 'Rebel Heart' tour opener: review". Daily News. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
  48. ↑ Zivitz, Jordan (September 10, 2015). "Concert review: Madonna's Rebel Heart Tour starts beating at the Bell Centre". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
  49. ↑ Gamboa, Glenn (September 17, 2015). "Amy Schumer brings laughs to Madonna's 'Rebel Heart' tour". Newsday. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  50. ↑ True Blue (UK 7-inch Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. W 8550.
  51. ↑ True Blue (Japanese 7-inch Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. P-2159.
  52. ↑ True Blue (US 7-inch Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. 7-28591.
  53. ↑ True Blue (US 7-inch Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. 7-21985.
  54. ↑ True Blue (UK 12-inch Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. W 8550 T.
  55. ↑ True Blue (US 12-inch Maxi Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. 0-20533.
  56. ↑ True Blue (Australian CD Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. 7599-25533-2.
  57. ↑ True Blue (Japanese CD Single liner notes). Madonna. Sire Records. 1986. WPCP-3439.
  58. ↑ True Blue (Liner notes). Madonna. Warner Bros. Records. 1986. 925442-2.
  59. 1 2 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (doc). Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  60. ↑ "Radio 2 – Top 30 van zaterdag 18 oktober 1986" (in Dutch). VRT Top 30. October 18, 1986. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  61. ↑ "Europarade". Hitkrant (in Dutch). Amsterdam: Nationale Hitkrant Productions. 10 (42). October 18, 1986. ISSN 0165-4942.
  62. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Madonna – True Blue" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  63. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Madonna – True Blue" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  64. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Madonna – True Blue". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  65. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Madonna – True Blue". Singles Top 100. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  66. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Madonna – True Blue". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  67. ↑ "Top Annuali Singles: 1986" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. Retrieved January 8, 2010.
  68. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 1986" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
  69. ↑ "Top Pop Singles 1986". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 31, 1986. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
  70. ↑ "French single certifications – Madonna – True Blue" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved December 14, 2014. Select MADONNA and click OK

References

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