I’m not going to lie to you, being unable to go to any record stores for over a month has actually dealt a pretty serious toll to my psyche. I know it sounds rather pathetic, and yes, I completely understand that there are millions of people all over the world in far worse situations than mine (as that’s true literally everyday). But for me, record stores have always been therapy. Even when I don’t buy anything (which, admittedly, is quite rare) just the act of surrounding myself with music and music lovers can often cheer me up and and put me in a better headspace. And, of course, the dopamine rush of discovering a rare, strange, or out-of-print record does wonders for my mental state as well.
Shopping online just isn’t the same. There’s no thrill of the hunt, and it’s harder to discover new things. Discogs is great, and I use it all the time, but it’s only good for buying music that I already knew I wanted. One of the biggest joys of shopping in a record store is browsing the racks and stumbling across something that you didn’t even know existed, whether it be a rare release from one of your favorite artists, or an interesting looking record by an artist that you’ve either never heard of or know little about.
An overwhelming majority of the bands and artists that I love I discovered because I bought their albums on a whim at a record store. Erasure, Depeche Mode, New Order, Gong, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Tangerine Dream, Osamu Shoji, even Madonna, all of them are acts that I either discovered outright because of a random purchase at a record store, or I gained a new appreciation of them because of albums or singles I bought used. This is largely impossible when shopping online.
I’ve been trying though, and not only because I’m jonesing new records. I also want to support my local stores during these shitty times. I bought a ton of oddball releases from Coconuts Records’ website (which I might feature here in the future) and I also went to Disk Union’s website to pick up a few things from them as well. Online shopping in a foreign language sure as hell isn’t easy, but I was able to snag a few choice items. Sure, it wasn’t the same. But I shouldn’t focus on that right now. That’s not a healthy headspace. Instead I’ll just be happy that I did something that made me happy and now I have happy music that I can share with you, and that makes me happy too.
Madonna
La Isla Bonita (Extended Remix)
Open Your Heart (Extended Version)
Gambler
La Isla Bonita (Instrumental)
“La Isla Bonita” was first issued as a single in 1987, with a few different variations being widely available. There was the 12″ single, which included both an extended remix and an instrumental version of the track, and a 7″ single with shorter edits of both. A CD version wasn’t released until the mid-90s, and it was just a copy of the 12″ single with the two tracks and nothing more added on.
However, Japanese fans were given an entirely different single that wasn’t a single at all, one full of so many remixes and bonus cuts that most people call it an EP instead. Released under the title La Isla Bonita – Super Mix, it includes five tracks in total. The two remixes from the standard 12″ single are there, but it also tacks on the amazing 10 minute remix of “Open Your Heart,” as well as “Crazy For You” and “Gambler,” both from the soundtrack to the motion picture Vision Quest.
Also, unlike the other versions of the “La Isla Bonita” single, the Super Mix edition got an immediate release on CD. This means it was the earliest CD release to feature all of these remixes, and the only Madonna CD to date that features “Gambler.” It’s never been included on any other CD singles and it never saw the light of day on a proper Madonna album. It was included on the soundtrack to Vision Quest, and that’s it.
Over 30 years later, and CD or digital versions for many of these tracks are still hard to come by. While La Isla Bonita – Super Mix was given an international release last year for Record Store Day, that didn’t include a CD release nor a download code. The last time that Super Mix was released on CD was in 1997, again in Japan only (it also got a release in Australia at one point, as most Australian Madonna singles used the same tracklistings as their Japanese counterparts). The only track on this single that is easily available on other releases is “Crazy For You.”
Of course, “La Isla Bonita” is a great track, but that’s not why I bought this CD. I bought it for “Gambler.”
Just kidding, I bought it for the ten-minute remix of “Open Your Heart.”
Someone, maybe Roger Ebert, said once that a good movie is never too long and a terrible movie can’t end soon enough. Whoever said it, they were right. Last night the boyfriend and I watched the Ralph Bashki film Fire and Ice and while that sucker is barely over 80 minutes long, it feels like an eternity. Conversely, I could watch a 10-hour version of Cabaret or Dreamgirls and not get bore. This goes ditto for “Open Your Heart.” Ten minutes might seem excessive, but “Open Your Heart” is just a goddamn perfect song. Perfect vocals delivered perfectly atop a perfect melody and perfect 80s synthesizers and perfect drum machines. All perfect. The only reason why I hesitate calling it Madonna’s best single is simply because making a declaration like that is nigh-impossible.
I can definitely say that it was my first favorite Madonna song though. I have a vivid memory of hating “Like A Virgin” when it first came out (still not a huge fan) and hating the video for “Material Girl” when I was a kid too. But something about “Open Your Heart” clicked with little seven-year-old me. I think I even danced along with the video when it was on the Top 20 Countdown.
And people were surprised when I came out of the closet.
Firstly, thanks for posting these songs. Because that never goes without saying. So – yes – thank you.
Secondly, my heart skipped a beat when you said you bought this CD for Gambler. So I was little bit sad when I read on and realised you were joking. Because, for a moment there, I was super excited when I thought that it wasn’t just me. Because Gambler IS my favourite Madonna song. And I can say that confidently because I’m usually terrible at picking favourites and this just feels easy. For me, Gambler is… THE ONE.
The hand claps. The cowbell. The aerobic panting. The way she sings “…on you… ON YEW!†The spoken part “Do you understand what I’m talking about…?!†(And I just wanna then say, “…come on raise your hands!â€) The bit that nearly always makes me smile: “You can’t stop me NOW…†OW! OW! OW! And then, oh my grod, whistling. WHISTLING! I just wanna give Jellybean a hug at this point.
Another way I love Gambler is that it is not completely rinsed out. Pretty much the only times I ever hear it is when I want to (not that I ever wouldn’t. But you know what I mean. It hasn’t been slightly soiled by years of being among people dancing to it ironically at office parties and weddings.) It’s not on The Immaculate Collection so it doesn’t quietly play in the background during dinner. Madonna only ever played it on one tour. It’s never been remade by Les Rhythmes Digitales. It’s like the special child.
And then there’s the lyrics and the way she sings them. The words are strident – but she sounds desperate. Powerful – but hungry. I love Madonna’s voice on Gambler. This is around the end of the time that it sounds to me that Madonna is REALLY trying. Of course, throughout her career, she’s worked really, really hard. But, later on, it doesn’t show. Here you can hear it in her voice – she’s tough but vulnerable. Like a scrappy teenager. Like I was. Like I often feel like I still am – and why I still love this record.
And then there’s the article itself – for ages the only Madonna record I owned. On the cover you can see she’s really trying. Look at her: banging out that vocal. While dancing. She’s WORKING. Just like I was saying about the lyrics and her delivery: she is craving your attention while also saying she can take it or leave it if you don’t approve.
The Madonna on the cover of this record is the Madonna that looked like she’d be such a blast to hang out with – even if she did disappear before the end of the night to go home with the DJ. Fuck it – this is the Madonna I wished I was. And, crucially, that we all could – in our wildest dreams – be. Quite soon after this she would be untouchable.
And then, on the sticker in the middle (between the all-important brackets), a single word and the single, most important word on any Madonna record: MADONNA. Gambler is – to my ears and in my life – mainlining 100%, uncut, pure Madonna. Because, irrespective of all of the above, the number one reason why Gambler is, for me, the greatest Madonna record is that it contains (and in her own words) the single most Madonna-ish lyric of any song ever:
“YOU’RE JUST JEALOUS CUZ YOU CAN’T BE ME.â€
That’s right, baby. I understand what you’re talking about!
(Thanks, again, for taking me on this trip. And I can now relax and enjoy ten minutes of heart opening.)
There’s a long mix of Vogue I used to listen to…I think it was about eight minutes long…and it never felt too long. I think that might be my “Open Your Heart.”