February 25, 20232 yr I qcruqññu think it's a really good album! The lead song made people uncomfortable, and got music snobs' tits in a twist over a female singer daring to switch to rap back then. I also think the album woule have been a huge success with a difderent singles run. 1. Nobody Knows Me 2. Love Profusion 3. American Life released same week as album 4. Hollywood Hollywood and Love Profusion are two of me fave songs by her
February 25, 20232 yr I'd have probably released 'Nothing Fails' instead of 'Love Profusion' in all honesty. I can't help but think she was trying too hard on this album and it's almost like a failed experiment, but at least she was bold with it and tried to push the boat out I suppose.
February 25, 20232 yr The 'American Life' era completely passed me by as a kid, even though I had heard the likes of 'Ray of Light' and 'Music, so it wasn't until years later that I heard the album and I was able to judge it purely on its own merits rather than be swayed by any context from the time it was released. With that in mind, I found the album so much better than I anticipated. Half the album is much softer and less confrontational than the lead single would suggest; it does feel like critics were too caught up in their dislike for the lead and judged the entire album for it. I think the rap was disliked for two reasons: one, it was mistakenly presumed that Madonna was boasting about her lifestyle (and I think they thought she was being serious with the goofy lyrics) and two, I don't think there was much acceptance for pop and rap to combine like that - as blacksquare says, it would just not be an issue nowadays.
February 26, 20232 yr Imagine if this album opened with the gorgeous Nothing Fails and if the record company didnt get involved and asked her to make it more dancey. I do prefer the mixes on the remixed and revisited EP. Die Another Day - Already a decent success Singles. 1. Nothing Fails 2. Hollywood 3. American Life (Full video release) 4. Nobody Knows Me (Reinvention Tour Single Version) I also really prefer the reinvention version of Mother and Father. Easy Ride is also a massive favourite of mine , lyrically i really connect to this song.
April 20, 20232 yr ‘American Life’ remix EP out tonight (with a couple of ‘Die Another Day’ remixes too). 01. American Life 02. American Life (Missy Elliott American Dream Remix) 03. American Life (Oakenfold Downtempo Remix) 04. American Life (Felix Da Housecat's Devin Dazzle Club Mix) 05. American Life (Peter Rauhofer's American Anthem, Pt. 1) 06. American Life (Peter Rauhofer's American Anthem, Pt. 2) 07. Die Another Day (Richard Vission Electrofried Mix) 08. Die Another Day (Calderone & Quayle After Life Mix)
April 21, 20232 yr I love the Felix Da Housecat remix I remember loving that one back in the day - in all honesty this era of remixes was the best.
April 21, 20232 yr Doesn’t seem to be doing as well on UK iTunes as previous releases: Album: American Life iTunes: #2 Chile #3 Spain #15 Italy #22 Bulgaria #28 United Kingdom #30 Germany #36 Australia #43 Brazil #48 United States #96 Canada
April 21, 20232 yr Album: American Life iTunes: #2 Brazil #2 Peru #3 Chile #5 Czech Republic #5 France #6 Spain #10 Ireland #13 Mexico #14 Italy #18 United Kingdom #22 Bulgaria #25 Canada #32 Australia #41 Germany #41 United States
April 22, 20232 yr I'm going to give the album a listen through this morning :wub: Do listen to the remixes too - Felix Da Housecat is such a thrill.
April 22, 20232 yr I know everyone seems to love American Life, and the album has even gone up a bit in my estimations... but... I still see it as being the beginning of the end for her singles career. I know there are always other factors, but the fact that the lead scraped the US Top 40 and then Hollywood missed the Top 100 and nothing else from it charted was quite the surprise at the time after she had turned things around with Ray of Light and Music. Yes, she managed to reclaim a bit of her success with Confessions... but even from that only Hung Up was a US hit... and then only 4 minutes from Hard Candy. I have fixated on the US Billboard Hot 100 here, and I am aware that in other territories she kept going strong for a bit, but American Life - for all its braveness - really is the turning point.
April 23, 20232 yr I know everyone seems to love American Life, and the album has even gone up a bit in my estimations... but... I still see it as being the beginning of the end for her singles career. I know there are always other factors, but the fact that the lead scraped the US Top 40 and then Hollywood missed the Top 100 and nothing else from it charted was quite the surprise at the time after she had turned things around with Ray of Light and Music. Yes, she managed to reclaim a bit of her success with Confessions... but even from that only Hung Up was a US hit... and then only 4 minutes from Hard Candy. I have fixated on the US Billboard Hot 100 here, and I am aware that in other territories she kept going strong for a bit, but American Life - for all its braveness - really is the turning point. I don't think anyone is denying the lack of hit singles here — it's more that the album itself is much better than the perception it has, as well as the critical reception it received at the time.
April 25, 20232 yr 'American Life' (flag) video is now in HD. Upload the original video please! LYduJw5LyFM I echo the love for the Felix Da Housecat remix! The Peter Rauhofer remix (part 1) is really good too.
May 1, 20232 yr The original planned run of singles of 'American Life' was gonna be very different to the one we got. The plans changed due to the title track & 'Hollywood' underperforming & struggling album sales. 'Nobody Knows Me' & 'Mother and Father' were gonna be the album's 3rd & 4th singles, but the label or Madonna decided to go with more toned down and radio friendly options such as 'Love Profusion' & 'Nothing Fails', that tactic didn't work either as they also flopped. There was also a planned 'American Life' remix album with remixes for 'Mother and Father' & 'Easy Ride' intended for the tracklist, but they were also scrapped & instead we got the 'Remixed & Revisited' remix album. The Singles could have looked like thsi: American Life Hollywood Nobody Knows Me Mother and Father Below I've included the singles covers, the first 2 are official and the others are fan-made ones= http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Td_8AmgEqaw/UIlc53SRfXI/AAAAAAAATak/KxfLEHZYeG8/s400/Mother%20and%20father%20by%20Gabriele12.png
