Customer Reviews

Ray of Light

5 star:		(516)
4 star:		(89)
3 star:		(25)
2 star:		(22)
1 star:		(59)

 

 

In writing this review, I am able to understand how some fans feel frustrated and say that no matter what, Madonna can't win. On the one hand, "Ray of Light" is perhaps her greatest artistic achievement and the point in which she was finally able to solidify herself as a genuine "real player" in the music biz--but while I admire this album for its' artistic merits and innovative use of electronica, I can't say it's one of my favorites by her because it's simpy not FUN like alot of the rest of her catalog. I think it's best to say you need to be in a certain frame of mind to truly appreciate "Ray of Light". This is Madonna as Earth Mother--no dominatrix gear, Marilyn-bleached locks or feather boas. This is the point where she officially entered the second phase of her career (fans and critics definitely split her legacy into pre-ROL and post-ROL categories); the lyrics have her reflecting on past mistakes and regrets and future hopes--all this introspective insight no doubt brought on in the wake of Lourdes' birth.

I'm still not a fan of the recent MDNA album save for two tracks, and it's ironic upon revisiting "Ray" that it sounds more age-appropriate for her NOW even though it's fourteen years old already. The fact that most of this material would not seem out on place on contemporary radio is either a testament to the fact that Madonna was way ahead of the curve with this one, or that pop culture has really not evolved much in the last fifteen years.

On paper, it sounds like a hodgepodge but the album is surprisingly cohesive from the dreamlike, otherwordly "Drowned World (Substitute for Love") and "Frozen" to futuristic dance numbers "Ray of Light" and "Nothing Really Matters" to World-Beat flavoured "Skin" and "Shanti/Ashtangi". There's the trippy "Candy Perfume Girl", sorrowful "The Power of Goodbye" and haunting "Mer Girl". The latter half of the album is almost operatic and really shows off the vocal training Madonna endured to prepare for "Evita" a few years earlier.

Like I said, not my favorite album of hers, but THE landmark album of her career and one that helped shape the direction of pop music for the Millenium. I still prefer the genius folk-electronica hybrid of 2000's "Music" over this because it's not as dark and moody, but "Ray of Light" still gets a Four-and-a-Half Stars here.

Madonna is pure talent. She can sing, dance, act, direct, choreograph, write, photograph and influence fashion. An astute business person, there is really nothing she can't do.

This excellent collection features high caliber songs that are not only fun to dance to, but thought provoking. The title song, "Ray of Light" is truly a masterpiece. I love it! This is without a doubt the best collection Madonna has ever done. I also like the spiritual themes in many of her more recent songs. I have a lot of respect for Madonna, her talent and this collection in particular.

This is such a treat.

Maybe it's where we all are at at a given moment in time, but I went back to Ray of Light after the September 11th tragedy, and I found consolation and grieving both within this album. I feel that each song is a small gem constituting a great piece of work by America's pre-eminent pop star. Next to Britney Spears, Brandy and other wanna-be's, Madonna has the "legs" to remain on the top of her game. But lest we think it's all a cynical marketing ploy, if you follow her own life story, each of her albums is a reflection of her own life journey. I am not sure how Music fits into that picture, but all the previous albums parallel events of Madonna's personal life pretty clearly.

Most of us would agree that Madonna's motherhood had a major impact on her music making at the time of "Ray of Light" and its recording. I feel that her music's generation comes from that experience. That's why the level of feeling is so palpable in a song like Frozen, and the sense of wonder and simultaneous bewilderment come through in the title cut. No matter what you feel about her as a person, the album Ray of Light is an authentic masterwork from the one woman who survived Pop Music's vissitudes and multiple low points in the 80's and 90's, and has lived to tell new and more provoking stories.

I can't help but think that Madonna will be rocking into her 60's, just like the fabled Tina Turner strutted her considerable gifts and wondrous person well into her 60's as well.

Dance on Madonna!

When I first heard this album I found it a bit weird in that it was very, very edgy. Almost like catwalk fashion thats soo fashionable its beyond regular people. Now I absolutely love it. Every song tells a story and tracks like Nothing really matters, Sky Fits Heaven, Frozen, To have and not to hold, Power of goodbye, Little Star, Swim and Skin all create a catchy masterpiece of an album. The first track I still don't like but give the rest of the album a chance because it is absolutely amazing. Nothing like it before, nothing like it since! The album that subtly toke Madonna to that next level... Superstar.

After the Erotica/Body of Evidence/Sex fiasco of 1992, even Madonna's diehard fans (myself among them) were a bit weary. We knew she was not "over" because we remembered that many had labeled her so since her debut in 1983. She had continually defied their predictions. We had faith that she could reinvent herself once again, but we knew it would be a difficult task, and we feared she might never recapture her former glory. Nineteen Ninety Two was the lowest her career had ever sunk, the first time since 1984 that a Madonna studio album had failed to top the charts.

Bedtime Stories set the path to Madonna's public redemption, yielding the #1 hit Take A Bow - her first in three years. But it is 1998's Ray of Light that put Madonna's career back on track, returned her to multi-million selling status, and finally - finally! - earned her a Grammy Award, several actually. It's a stunning reinvention, perhaps the most dramatic of any popular artist. Was this Yoga posturing, Sanskrit-chanting woman the same singer who only six years previous proclaimed she'd like to teach us how to ****? Was the world's most famous woman really saying that fame wasn't important? Yes, amazingly. What is most astonishing, however, is that she pulled it off. Ray of Light became perhaps the most critically acclaimed album of year, and it virtually erased the misadventures of '92. The Material Girl became The Spiritual Woman.

Water is the alchemical symbol of birth. So it is fitting that Ray of Light, marking the rebirth of Madonna's career and released shortly after the birth of her daughter, opens with two singles evoking water's imagery: Drowned World and Swim. "I'm gonna swim to the Ocean floor," Madonna sings. What a calm, peaceful, rejuvenating image. It permeates the entire album. Even where negative situations are confronted, such as in Frozen and The Power of Goodbye, there is an awareness of life's possibilities and a hint of awakening. You're in a negative situation - now leave it, and go find something else! Or rather, look within yourself for happiness instead the outside world.

Over the last few weeks I've become horribly nostalgic for the Ray of Light era. Ray of Light harkens me back to my introduction to Living Enrichment Center, which is a New Thought Church and retreat center I became involved with in 1996 when I was 21. The music of Ray of Light and the grounds of Living Enrichment Center were perfect mates. Statues from just about every major faith, including a statue of Krishna, Buddha, and a Peace Pole, were on display throughout the lush 90-acres. It was an otherworldly, infectious, beautiful atmosphere. And after a childhood and teen years in show business, always dreaming of stardom's redemption, I was starting to glimpse that perhaps fame wasn't the end-all, that maybe I should let go of my "substitute for love" and seek out the real thing. Who better than the world's most famous woman to assure me that fame isn't important? Maybe I wasn't a failure after all.

Lately, I am playing Ray of Light on a daily basis, sometimes twice daily - singing "traveling down this road watching the signs as I go" on my long bike rides on the local back roads. The motif of spirituality, forgiveness, and just a touch of Hinduism (her pronunciation ain't the best, but I still love Shanti/Ashtangi) is exactly what I need right now. Living Enrichment Center will soon move from its beautiful grounds, the church engulfed in a financial scandal that may mean prison time for the head minister. I long for innocence and rejuvenation once again. When is her next album due?

Andrew Michael Parodi

With the titles 'Ray of Light' and 'Frozen' I don't think anyone would hesitate to own this CD. From calm and relaxing music to joyful songs; perfect to entertain guests.

--KRG

one of the most wonderful albums Madge has ever recorded. full of spiritual grace. With each listen it just grew over me more and more. and of course, her "Frozen" is the song, that always makes me cry. An awesome masterpiece which deserves to be in every collection.

am not a big fan, i somehow have found her previously to be offensive, arrogant, self-absorbed, crude, generally annoying & an attention-seeker who thrived on adoration, (much like robbie williams) & feel that all this overrides her talent.
aside from early feelgood anthems, "holiday", "into the groove", "deeper & deeper", & one or two others, i find her music weak and shallow,
when this album was created, i imagine it was greatly influenced by producers such as william orbit, & i felt it was a desperate effort to gain further credibility & to appear to have more depth & spiritually, & i felt this to be fake.
however, i do actually like some of the tracks, i actually have a remix album, which makes it sound better, tracks i enjoy are "swim", "frozen", "sky fits heaven" & "nothing really matters". it is perhaps the best work she's done, but i wouldn't give too much credit, as i feel it has more to do with production, than her artistry.

The electronic sounds the east indian sounds mixed in with her mature voice and meaningful lyrics. I think this is one of her best albums to date.

Despite the album being overhyped, well extremely overhyped...there are tracks on this album that I still listen to 7 years after its release. Those tracks are Frozen, Swim, and Ray of Light as well as Candy Perfume Girl. The other ones are either poor or mediocre. (...)

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