Madonna gives us a musical 180 while Kenny and Mark continue to conceive the Breathless Mahoney downtown cabaret act and discuss Madonna’s need for creative release, working outside of her comfort zone, the brilliance of Andy Paley, and the legacy (and influence) of Carmen Miranda.
All I Want To Do Is Talk About Madonna
S2, E16 - Hanky Panky
Mark and Kenny treat Her like a bad girl (and not for the last time) while breaking down the brassy second single from I’m Breathless. Topics include: Madonna’s relish of pastiche writing, Kenny’s summer job commute, Breathless Mahoney’s lost cabaret setlist, the Bare Bottom 12” Remix, the Collected Lyrics of Cole Porter, and the song’s doorway to the singer-song ladies of the past.
S2,E15- Sooner or Later
Kenny and Mark discuss the Oscar-winning torch song from Dick Tracy (and its many guises) by the musical theatre master Stephen Sondheim. Topics include the challenges of properly learning Sondheim, being chummy with Jeremy Irons, Michael Jackson, the lost movie musical Singing Out Loud, the humane foibles of live performances, and how Madonna gave Broadway a hip moment.
S2,E14 - He's A Man
Kenny and Mark BREATHLESSly dive into the beloved 1990 film soundtrack to the blockbuster Dick Tracy – as well as the musical psyche of certain gangster moll. Topics include the friends of Warren Beatty, Danny Elfman, the impact of Batman on the summer blockbuster, The Damned Don’t Die, musical “noir”, Lilith Fair, the strangest of Al Pacino’s Oscar nominated performances, and the crucial vocal contributions of N’Dea Davenport. Oh, and more guns.
S2, E13 - Like A Prayer Fadeout/Supernatural
The Eighties are officially over as Mark and Kenny come full circle while wrapping up Like a Prayer – and pay a visit to a (semi) intoxicating oddity.
S2, E12 - Act of Contrition
Kenny and Mark close out their conversations about Like a Prayer (and the 80s) with the final track – a ground-breaking (and one of the strangest) moment of Madonna’s canon. Topics include Catholic imagery, the upcoming onslaught of tell-all biographies, Prince’s guitar solos, and Madonna’s first “I Don’t Give A ****” moment.
S2, E11 - Spanish Eyes
Mark makes a passionate case for the closing ballad (and official song) on Like a Prayer while Kenny comes around to see the light from that candle. Is this song about AIDS? About gang violence? About war? Is it about Marco Loya’s backing vocals? All (or nothing) is revealed!
S2, E10 - Keep it Together
Kenny and Mark sway along with the oft-forgotten fifth single from Like a Prayer. Topics include: turning Detroit beats into stadium anthems, magnets and the legendary Madonna cheese, Joe Henry, fedoras, the troublesome British accent, safe havens and sleeping on the floor, the fabulous maxi-single remixes for this song, and the complicated sibling rivalries that impact all of us – while Mark outs himself as a potential Madonna back-up singer! “Keep people together!”
S2, E9 - Oh Father
Kenny and Mark continue exploring Madonna’s (semi) autobiographical songwriting on this “shoulda been” classic Madonna power ballad. Topics include: male authority figures, Simon & Garfunkel’s Concert in Central Park, Kenny’s love of acoustic gravitas, the return of David Fincher, threatening shadows, singing statues, Charlton Wilborn, and an ode to one of the greatest moments in Madonna Hair History. Plus … another Special Guest (and longtime listener) joins Mark to discuss his experience performing the song … Dominic Yacobozzi!
S2, E8 - Dear Jessie
Mark rescues this off-beat gem from Like a Prayer while not even candy kisses and a sunny day can keep Kenny from hijacking the episode with a dreadful reminder of what a difference a decade makes. It’s not ALWAYS a holiday (or a love parade) around here, kids.
S2, E7 - Cherish
Kenny and Mark dive into Side Two of Like a Prayer with one of the most romantic songs in the whole canon. Topics include Herb Ritts, shooting mermen in black & white, Tony Ward, the importance of reading plays to write sincere lyrics, and Mark’s dream Shakespeare casting for Madonna. Plus … a Very Special Guest joins Mark to discuss her long and quite personal relationship with the song … his sister Kate!
S2,E6 - Promise to Try
Kenny and Mark close Side One of Like a Prayer with this gorgeous and aching Pat Leonard ballad. Topics include Madonna’s recording style, the power of long creative relationships, shifting narrative perspectives in songs, and the impact therapy can have on the creative process as well as Madonna’s spide-y sense about the changing landscapes in pop music.
S2, E5- Til Death Do Us Part
Kenny and Mark deep dive into the true lost gem from side one of Like a Prayer. Topics include Sean Penn, Sean Penn, Sean Penn, and … oh yeah … Sean Penn Version.2016 as well as autobiographical songwriting, Madonna’s brand of artistic revenge, the frustrations and merits of working hard, and lots of armchair psychology over the nature of relationships, time, and the need for vulnerability. Stuff is getting REAL, kids …
S2, E4 - Love Song
The music universe explodes (implodes?) as Madonna and Prince team up in the studio at last … to create this experimental, slightly bizarre pop oddity. Topics include Minneapolis and Paisley Park, Batdance and Sign O’ The Times, Daisy Miller, Kenny’s favorite Prince duet, gender, and the long-lost Royal Tour. The first true “duet” in the Madonna canon begs the question … are there any lost Madonna/Prince tracks?
Madonna – Nothing Compares 2 U Tribute to Prince at the Billboard Music Awards (2016)
Prince – Batdance video (1989)
Prince – Take Me With U live on the Purple Rain Tour 85
Prince et al – While My Guitar Gently Weeps Tribute at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (2004)
S2, E3 - Express Yourself
And the hits keep coming! Kenny and Mark dive deep into the anthemic, brash, and second track (and single) from Like a Prayer. Topics include DAVID FINCHER (welcome to MadonnaUniverse, David!), Metropolis, the return of Stephen Bray, the intriguing beauty of Cameron Alborzian, and the polarizing Shep Pettibone remixes of (yet another) classic Madonna song.
S2, E2 - Like A Prayer
Mark kicks off the conversation about Madonna’s masterpiece fourth album with a testimony to Kenny about the personal power and passion of Like a Prayer. Topics include Prince, Mary Lambert, Sean Penn, Pepsi-Cola, Niki Harris, the Andre Crouch Choir, and the narrative hiccups in the ground-breaking video of this classic Madonna song.
Madonna – Like a Prayer video (1989)
Madonna – Like a Prayer live on the Blonde Ambition Tour 90 (Japanese Laser Disk Version)
S2, E1 - Prologue - 1988
Waiting is the hardest part … Finally … At LONG Last … Season Two (1988-1993) kicks off! Kenny and Mark drops back into New York, circa 1988 - a year when Madonna starred on Broadway, sashayed with Sandra, laid into Letterman, and got photographed … a LOT! She also wrote and recorded what would become considered her first masterpiece album Like a Prayer and faced the truth about her future as Mrs. Sean Penn. There are many special surprises and treats in store for you this season so stay safe and keep listening! We missed you so much.
Surprise Bonus Episode - It's Madonna's Bday and we needed to check in
It’s August 16th and we all know what that means - time to stop what you’re doing, get on the appropriately socially distant dance-floor and celebrate the birth of M. Mark and Kenny check in about everything from M’s guest spot on Dua Lipa’s “Levitating”, her instagram hits and misses, a new record deal and how each are coping in month five of the pandemic. There’s a lot in M’s orbit as she begins her 63rd trip around the Sun.
BONUS - unedited Madame X Tour response
A little bonus for the hardcore. On September 30, 2019 Mark and Kenny sat down to debrief about the Madame X Tour which was in residence at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Here’s the entire unedited conversation. At over an hour this is our longest episode - for better and for worse. Enjoy!!
Have a great rest of the summer! We’ll back in September to kick off Season Two - 1988-1993.
Until then.
S1, E37 - You Can Dance
Mark and Kenny dive into all the Dub Versions, homemade singing bootlegs, and the glorious second side of Madonna’s first compilation album, 1987’s magnificent You Can Dance. Shep Pettibone arrives on the scene to re-mix Madonna’s greatest dance songs – and helps her remind her who SHE really is.
