Released on 12 November 1984 "Like A Virgin" was the second studio album by Madonna, the artist was so eager to start working on its follow-up, so she selected Nile Rodgers to produce the album due to his work on Let's Dance (1983) by David Bowie, which she was a fan of. To ensure it be exactly as she envisaged it, Madonna chose all the songs for the album. Arguably, it’s her most important album but received mixed reviews from music critics: Rodgers's production received praise, but Madonna's vocals were criticized.
It became Madonna's first number one album on the Billboard 200, as well as the first female album to sell over five million copies in the United States. Five singles were released from the album all reached the top five of the, her first No. 1 "Like A Virgin", "Material Girl", "Angel," "Into The Groove" & "Dress You Up".
After the release of her self-titled debut album, Madonna became one of the most exciting new artists of the 1980s, so she wanted to produced by herslef but label said no, so the label decided to allow Madonna to work with any producer of her choice. She picked Nile Rodgers. Madonna wanted Like a Virgin to be "stronger" than her debut, hence she chose all the songs herself. She had been penning songs and creating demos with former boyfriend and collaborator Stephen Bray since early 1984.
When Madonna first met with Rodgers, she allegedly told him, "if you don't love these songs we can't work together", to which the producer responded: "I don't love them now, but I will when I've finished working on them!". Around the time they began working on the album, Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly were pitching songs to artists. Steinberg had begun a new relationship and came up with the lyrics to "Like a Virgin". He brought the track to Kelly, who created the music and, together, recorded a demo tape. Kelly then met with Warner Bros. A&R executive Michael Ostin and had him listen to the demo; Ostin, who was set to meet Madonna the next day, thought the song was "perfect" for her. Madonna "loved" the song right away, but Rodgers wasn't convinced. He felt it was "really queer", but did it anyways.
The final song to be created for Like a Virgin was "Dress You Up". Rodgers had previously asked songwriters Andrea LaRusso and Peggy Stanziale to write a song for Madonna in the style of Chic but, due to other projects, the composition took time, when the lyrics of the song were submitted, Rodgers turned them down as he felt there was no time to compose a melody and record it for the album; however, Madonna liked them and persuaded the producer to include the track, other great tracks were "Into the Groove" was written and produced by Madonna and former Bray, inspired by the dance floor and a Puerto Rican boy the singer was attracted to, it was used on the Susan Seidelman-directed film Desperately Seeking Susan, which Madonna starred.
The seventh track, "Shoo-Bee-Doo", begins as a stripped-down piano ballad, before turning into a "deceptively bouncy ditty". The eighth track "Pretender" is a synth-pop song about seduction and the insecurity felt by Madonna as she let's things happen too fast" with a man who "isn't what he seems". And the closer "Stay" a song that features a fast triple rhythm with synths.
Described as smart, funny, sexy and irresistible, with great pop hooks, the critics highlighted Nile Rodgers production, but criticized Madonna little-girl voice onver the heavy rhythm and synth tracks comparing her like a kid on a carnival ride, even though the album reflected her as a more versatile and artistic performer, despite being home to some of the "catchiest, not to mention most iconic tracks in pop music", Like a Virgin is made up of "mostly fillers", according to certain magazines.
Like A Virgin catapulted Madonna into global superstardom, despiyte it though it took three months to hit #1 in the U.S., the album managed to sold over 21 million copies worldwide and remains Madonna’s best-selling studio album in the U.S. It launched into mainstream culture Madonna’s brand of overt sexual liberation, manipulation of imagery and iconography, and big-tent pop song crafting that sold hundreds of millions of albums around the globe during the last four decades.
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