Madonna Ray Of Light CD

Personnel: Madonna (vocals); William Orbit (guitar, electronics); Mark Moreau (guitar); Pablo Cook (flute); Marius De Vries (keyboards, programming); Fergus Gerrand (drums, percussion); Steve Sidelnyk (programming); Donna DeLory, Niki Harris (background vocals).
Producers: Madonna, William Orbit, Patrick Leonard, Marius De Vries.
Recorded at Larrabee Studios North, Universal City, California.
RAY OF LIGHT won the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Pop Album and for Best Recording Package, and was nominated for Album Of The Year. "Ray Of Light" won the 1999 Grammy for Best Dance Recording and Best Short Form Music Video, and was nominated for Record Of The Year.
Returning to pop after a four-year hiatus, Madonna enlisted respected techno producer William Orbit as her collaborator for Ray of Light, a self-conscious effort to stay abreast of contemporary trends. Unlike other veteran artists who attempted to come to terms with electronica, Madonna was always a dance artist, so it's no real shock to hear her sing over breakbeats, pulsating electronics, and blunted trip-hop beats. Still, it's mildly surprising that it works as well as it does, largely due to Madonna and Orbit's subtle attack. They've reigned in the beats, tamed electronica's eccentricities, and retained her flair for pop melodies, creating the first mainstream pop album that successfully embraces techno. Sonically, it's the most adventurous record she has made, but it's far from inaccessible, since the textures are alluring and the songs have a strong melodic foundation, whether it's the swirling title track, the meditative opener, "Substitute for Love," or the ballad "Frozen." For all of its attributes, there's a certain distance to Ray of Light, born of the carefully constructed productions and Madonna's newly mannered, technically precise singing. It all results in her most mature and restrained album, which is an easy achievement to admire, yet not necessarily an easy one to love. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
"Ray of Light" returned Madonna's music to where it sounds best -- on the dancefloors. Madonna, with William Orbits's assistance, fashioned electronica into pop music with the album and single Ray of Light. Like "Vogue" and "Like a Prayer," "Ray of Light," which became a Top Five hit in the U.S., is often considered to be one of her crowning artistic achievements. Two singles were released for the song, one being a two-track and the other, the maxi-single, with four. The two track single had a B-side, "Has to Be," which was only found on the Japanese pressing of Ray of Light (the album). That B-side was not included on the maxi-single (in order to make the fans buy both), but the maxi-single did include four great remixes from the day's top DJs. The first remix, the "Sasha Ultra Violet Mix," is an almost 11-minute pop-electronica tour de force, almost resembling drum'n'bass in some instances. The William Orbit "Liquid Mix" gives the song a 1960s rock/go-go spin, almost foreshadowing the feeling which "Beautiful Stranger" perfected one year later. The final remix, the Victor Calderone "Club Mix," makes the song into more of a techno/house/club anthem. As always, Madonna employs the top DJs, remixers, and producers in order to give her songs the best remixes possible, and, on this single, she succeeds again. However, to have included single edits, and perhaps "Has to Be," would have made it a more complete and satisfying package. ~ Jose Promis
Relentlessly contemporary, RAY OF LIGHT pairs Madonna with producer William Orbit, an electronics wizard who has worked with major R&B acts and even such modern rockers as Blur and Depeche Mode. Reportedly, Madonna tried to snare Liam Howlett of high-strung techno-rockers the Prodigy into the project--Howlett claims to have turned her down. But the more dextrous, less in-your-face Orbit was probably a better choice anyway. He provides a dizzying array of soundscapes, incorporating everything from psychedelic-rockRolling Stone (5/13/99, p.82) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Essential Recordings of the 90's."
Rolling Stone (4/2/98, pp.70-71) - 4 Stars (out of 5) - "...RAY OF LIGHT is her maternity album as well as her avant-dance album....Our Lady hasn't assembled this many songs worth her time since 1989's LIKE A PRAYER....all her desperately chic decor can't hide her rock & roll heart..."
Entertainment Weekly (3/6/98, pp.77-78) - "...RAY OF LIGHT is some of the most alluring and captivating music she's ever crafted....Madonna looks for--and finds--a middle ground between her now-old-school approach and the new club music. She dresses her music up with her electronic love..."
- Rating: A-
Q (10/01, p.45) - Ranked #46 in Q's "Best 50 Albums of Q's Lifetime" - "...Madonna was influential and interested again..."
Q (12/99, p.100) - Included in Q Magazine's "90 Best Albums Of The 1990s."
Vibe (4/98, p.139) - "...with RAY OF LIGHT's futuristic music and ancient ideals, she's crafted something danceable but decidedly less commercial. Something more cerebral than usual, both sonically and lyrically..."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.64) - Ranked #29 in Mojo's "100 Modern Classics" -- "RAY OF LIGHT's radio-friendly grandeur was unmistakably Ciccone."
NME (Magazine) (2/28/98, p.43) - 8 (out of 10) - "...RAY OF LIGHT is her most accomplished set for years. It offers a lightness of touch and a depth of feeling unmatched since the glory days of LIKE A PRAYER....here we're drawn into the depths by subtler means..."