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List Price: $7.98 | | Label: Warner Bros / Wea
Salesrank: 3273
Released: March 3, 1998 |
| Our Price: $3.46 |
| Used Price: $0.01 |
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| Media: Audio CD |
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Ray of Light Track Listing:
1. Drowned World/Substitute for Love
2. Swim
3. Ray of Light
4. Candy Perfume Girl
5. Skin
6. Nothing Really Matters
7. Sky Fits Heaven
8. Shanti/Ashtangi
9. Frozen
10. Power of Goodbye
11. To Have and Not to Hold
12. Little Star
13. Mer Girl
Editorial Review:
Japanese Limited Edition reissue of The Queen Of Pop's smash 1998 album. Includes one bonus track, Has To Be, which was only available in the U.S. as a b-side. Released after becoming a new mom, this album was widely critically praised, and eventually scored 3 Grammys! Features the singles Frozen, Drowned World/Substitute For Love, The Power Of Goodbye, Nothing Really Matters, club favorite Sky Fits Heaven and the title track, which also won 5 MTV VMA awards, including Best Female and Video Of The Year. Warner Bros
Description of Ray of Light:
Never underestimate Madonna's power of persuasion: By nearly all critical accounts, Ray of Light, Madonna's first album of new material since 1994's Bedtime Stories, and her first since motherhood, is her richest, most accomplished record yet. While Ray of Light is being tagged as Madonna's big leap into electronica, it's important to note two things: First, her music has always had close ties to dance culture, and, second, her collaborator William Orbit is no Chemical Brother. Though it has all the latest blips, bleeps, and crackles electronica has to offer, Ray of Light is still largely an adult album, completely within Madonna's realm. Still, Orbit's tasteful sonic constructions provide Madonna with her most adventurous, hippest musical backdrop ever. What's more, the arrangements and production are understated enough to highlight an even bigger development: Fresh from singing lessons on the Evita set, Madonna's vocal range, depth, and clarity have never been stronger. But larger pipes don't necessarily make for deeper, truer music. Never a master lyricist, Madonna's words have worked best when they've practically been slogans ("Vogue," "Express Yourself"). This time she goes for more emotional depth, and even tries her hand at ethno-techno-mysticism ("Shanti/Ashtangi"). She largely stumbles, however. The tone conveyed on songs like "Nothing Really Matters" is a self-centered pat on the back that belies her claim to a newfound altruism. It's enough to make you wonder, now that Madonna's given up being our material girl, if maybe she's set her sights on becoming the center of our spiritual world too. --Roni Sarig
Ray of Light Reviews:
Madonna ... RAY OF LIGHT (1998) 
2009-10-05 - In 1998, Madonna released her eleventh album entitled, RAY OF LIGHT. This amazing albumshows us a new Madonna, a Madonna that we've never seen before: A late '90s spirtual Madonna, with the sound of spiritual dance & techno. Madonna has worked with many great producers in the past, but for this album, she wanted the spiritual sound of the '90s, she recruited William Orbit to produce this album.
DROWNED WORLD / SUBSTITUTE FOR LOVE
The album's third single, though, not released in the U.S. This amazing song describes how Madonna has felt about her fame, since the birth of her daughter, Lourdes. What an amazing song.
SWIM
Great song.
RAY OF LIGHT
The album's second single. One of the best and energetic songs in Madonna's career. I can listen to this song all day, if I had to.
CANDY PERFUME GIRL
This song is just absolutely brilliant. I love the fusion of techno and rock on any song.
SKIN
Love it.
NOTHING REALLY MATTERS
The album's fifth & final single. Love this song. The sound and Madonna's vocals are just pure amazement.
SKY FITS HEAVEN
Great song.
SHANTI / ASHTANGI
An amazing song, actually. This song is sun entirely in Sanskrit.
FROZEN
The album's first single. This is one of the best songs on the album, not to mention one of my all-time favorites. The music video is definitely one of Madonna's greatest. Seeing Madonna taking up a Gothic look for the music video put a huge smile on my face.
THE POWER OF GOOD-BYE
The album's fourth single. Another awesome song.
TO HAVE AND NOT TO HOLD
Great song.
LITTLE STAR
This beautiful song is about Madonna's daughter, Lourdes.
MER GIRL
What an amazing song, although, it is rather creepy.
This album is a masterpiece and only Madonna could have done an album, like this. All Madonna fans should already have this album in their collection. I know I have it in my collection.
One Hour : From the Thunder to the Rain 
2009-07-30 - "Ray of Light" may not be the greatest album ever recorded, but it is by far the most accomplished album released by Madonna Ciccone. If anything remains her musical legacy, all of it is found on this album - her controversial takes on all modern issues aside, its also rather spiritual - and not really in a hokey way. "Ray of Light" was a landmark moment for music in the 1990s, and for many people this remains a touchstone of all things pristine in that era - listening to it now, it sounds fresh and vibrant, almost transcendent, and you could tell that they were on to something.
Highlights are many - primarily the lead track entitled "Drowned World/Substitute for Love", which begins as a subdued anthem to lost love and instead winds up a lament on fame and the perils and foolishness of fortune. Absolutely stunning. William Orbits' legendary production on this record is perhaps what made it win those Grammys (Orbit employed similar techniques on the underrated "Saints and Sinners" album by All Saints), but this remains his most fully realized work by a long shot. Lead single "Ray of Light" is iconic, but the true gems are those that have received little or no public acclaim.
"Shanti/Ashtangi", for instance, is a quaint Sanskrit track, which works as a prequel of sorts to Madonnas' 2000 track "Cyberraga" (a rare B-side to her "Music" single). While diction isn't the key here, its interesting to see Madonna venture into Bjork territory, using some dark production, at times reminiscent of Trent Reznor and some of the Nine Inch Nails catalog. That said, this is a deep, rich record, overflowing with texture and moods, almost trance-like in its' flow. "Sky Fits Heaven", an epic anthem on traveling down ones own path with an eye on the road in front of you, is an unlikely candidate for best track of the album, but it competes closely with "Frozen", the almost gnostic hymn that was this albums' first single.
Understandably, Madonna both won and alienated many people with this fantastic album - only because all these tracks function on a different plane altogether. It would be demeaning to call this 'pop music', though it is indeed from a popular artist. The mixture of genres and the insistence on not going an easy route is evident, and even on songs such as "Swim", and the seemingly silly "Candy Perfume Girl", the production and songwriting is stellar. Of course, the album art perfectly reflects the music - this is shimmering, tranquil territory where everything seems precious and luscious, and "Ray of Light" is a fine slice of true electronica done right. Even with the gratuitous ode to her daughter on "Little Star", the end of the album (especially the hypnotic final track) ensure that this remains a bonafide cult classic.
Five Stars.
Madonna's Ray of Light!
2009-07-22 - Madonna has been around for almost three decades which is hard to believe. I remember when she first came on the music scene with Borderline and the rest is musical history. With the recent and sudden passing of Michael Jackson, Madonna even paid homage during one of her concerts to his memory which I thought it was touching.
Madonna's Ray of Light is above average but not excellent but she keeps trying and recording. Her songs here are fine but not groundbreaking anymore. She has broken a lot ground during her career and there is not much left. As a mother and wife, Madonna has matured and so has her musical inclinations. She is a solid performer and can dance as well as sing a tune. The collection of songs here are mixed and no two are really alike.
Keeping it all together.
2009-06-04 - One of her greatest works! I'm only 17 and back in '98 was when I was fully exposed to Madonna. I remember watching MTV (when they actually cared about videos) being so intrigued by this woman dancing inasanely, but so happily! A few weeks ago I purchased the album @ a Borders sale and boy was I happy. Every song including the title track had me shakin in my boots LOL.
My 3 fav songs:
Swim-Excellent song, IMO a true 90's classic.
Nothing Really Matters-So beautiful! The lyrics really speak to the heart.
Sky Fits Heaven-Superb! Any open minded person connected to their fsmily & surroundings will love this song!
Love this CD, BUT... BUYER BEWARE: 
2009-04-09 - If you rip CD this to your computer, parts of two of the songs are missing, especially in "The Power of Good-bye" at 2:25-2:38 and "Nothing Really Matters" at 1:18-1:28 (These play in their enirety when the CD is played). The CD is just now going to SIT in my computer's CD tray.
This Encryption technology is defeating the music industry's effort to expand buyers trust especially when Apple's ITunes has done away with DRM and the RIAA is able to TRACK file-swappers. IF I BUY CDS, I SHOULD BE ABLE TO RIP THEM AT 320 KBPS, which is why I BUY CDs instead of downloading albums, AND NOT HAVE TO LISTEN TO THE CD WHEN I WANT TO HEAR IT AT THE 320 KBPS QUALITY.
I would give this music by Madonna 5 Stars, but the Encryption technology only allows me to give it 1 Star = Ray of Light gets 3 Stars.
