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''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' is the tenth studio album by American singer and songwriter
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
. It was released on November 9, 2005, by Warner Bros. Records. A complete departure from her previous studio album '' American Life'' (2003), the album includes influences of 1970s
disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...
and 1980s
electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...
, as well as modern-day club music. Initially, she began working with Mirwais Ahmadzaï for the album but later felt that their collaboration was not going in the direction she desired. Madonna took her collaboration with Stuart Price who was overseeing her documentary '' I'm Going to Tell You a Secret''. The album was mainly recorded at Price's home-studio where Madonna spent most of her time during the recordings. Musically, the record is structured like a DJ's set. The songs are sequenced and blended so that they are played continuously without any gaps. The title arrived from the fact that the album tracklisting consists of light-hearted and happy songs in the beginning, and progresses to much darker melodies and lyrics describing personal feelings and commitments. Songs on the album sample and reference the music of other dance-oriented artists like ABBA,
Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the " Queen of Disco", while her mus ...
,
Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...
, the
Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in ...
and
Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...
, as well as Madonna's 1980s output. Madonna promoted the album through several live performances and a promotional tour. She embarked on the Confessions Tour in 2006, which became the highest-grossing tour ever for a female artist at that time. Four singles were released from the album. " Hung Up", the lead single, topped the charts in a total of 41 countries. According to ''Billboard'', it was the most successful dance song of the decade. It was followed by "
Sorry Sorry is a word commonly used in apologizing. Sorry may also refer to: Film and television * ''Sorry'' (2002 film), a 2002 Japanese film * ''Sorry'' (2021 film), a 2021 comedy film * '' Sorry: A Love Story'', an upcoming Pakistani film * ''So ...
" which became Madonna's twelfth number-one single in the United Kingdom. " Get Together" and " Jump" were also released as singles, both becoming top-ten hits in several countries. The album received widespread acclaim, with critics calling it a return to form for Madonna and ranking it alongside her best albums. Madonna was honored with a Grammy Award for Best Electronic/Dance Album in 2007, as well as International Female Solo Artist at the
2006 BRIT Awards Brit Awards 2006 was the 26th show of the Brit Awards, an annual pop music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 14 February 2006 in Earls Court in London. It attracted 4. ...
. Commercially, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' peaked at number one in 40 countries, earning a place in the 2007 '' Guinness World Records'' for topping the record charts in the most countries. The album sold between 3.6 to 4 million copies in its first-week worldwide, and remains one of the best-selling albums of the 21st century, with over 10 million copies. Ranked third on "The 99 Greatest Dance Albums of All Time" by '' Vice'' magazine, the album is noted as a testament to Madonna's longevity with the ability to continuously reinvent herself in the third decade of her career.


Background and development

''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' merged elements from 1970s
disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...
, 1980s
electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...
and 2000s club music. Madonna decided to incorporate disco-influenced elements in her songs while trying not to remake her music from past, instead choosing to pay tribute towards artists like the
Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in ...
and
Giorgio Moroder Giovanni Giorgio Moroder (, ; born 26 April 1940) is an Italian composer, songwriter, and record producer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Disco", Moroder is credited with pioneering euro disco and electronic dance mu ...
. The songs reflected Madonna's thoughts on love, fame and religion, hence the title ''Confessions on a Dance Floor''. It was the complete opposite direction from her previous studio effort '' American Life'' (2003). The songs on that album were a form of diatribe directed at the American society. However, Madonna decided to take a different direction with this album. Regarding the development, Madonna commented:
"When I wrote ''American Life'', I was very agitated by what was going on in the world around me, ..I was angry. I had a lot to get off my chest. I made a lot of political statements. But now, I feel that I just want to have fun; I want to dance; I want to feel buoyant. And I want to give other people the same feeling. There's a lot of madness in the world around us, and I want people to be happy."
She started to work with Mirwais Ahmadzaï with whom she had previously developed her eighth album '' Music'' (2000). However, that collaboration did not suit Madonna's musical direction. According to Madonna, " roducerMirwais is also very political, seriously cerebral and intellectual. All we did was sit around, talking politics all the time. So, that couldn't help but find its way into the music. I think there's an angry aspect to the music that directly reflects my feelings at the time." Hence after recording tracks with Mirwais, Madonna decided to stop the project and start fresh. It was then that she turned to Stuart Price who had served as musical director on her two previous concert tours and co-wrote one song on ''American Life''. In 2004, after the release of ''American Life'', Madonna began working on two different musicals: one tentatively called ''Hello Suckers'' and another one with Luc Besson, who previously directed the music video for her single " Love Profusion", which would portray her as a woman on her deathbed looking back on her life. Madonna collaborated with Patrick Leonard, Ahmadzaï and Price to write new songs, the latter being assigned to pen
disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...
-influenced songs sounding like " ABBA on drugs". However, Madonna found herself dissatisfied with the script written by Besson and scrapped it. Hence Madonna and Price decided to use the compositions for the album instead. According to Madonna, it was easy for her to shift from her previous album's sentiments, since she included those political views in her documentary '' I'm Going to Tell You a Secret''. She elaborated:
I was running back and forth, literally, from the editing room with
he documentary's director He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
Jonas Akerlund to working with Stuart, who was also mixing the music in the film. We were together, non-stop, all of us. Cutting 350 hours of film down to two hours. There are a lot of serious aspects to the movie. I needed a release. When I would go to Stuart's, and we'd go up to his loft, it was like, 'Honey, I want to dance.' I wanted to be happy, silly and buoyant. I wanted to lift myself and others up with this record. So, yes, the new album was a reaction to all the other stuff I was doing, which was very serious in nature. I hope that doesn't imply that I wanted to make a superficial record, because it's not. I want people to smile when they hear this record. I wanted it to put a smile on my face, too.


Recording

The first three songs that were written for the album were " Hung Up", "
Sorry Sorry is a word commonly used in apologizing. Sorry may also refer to: Film and television * ''Sorry'' (2002 film), a 2002 Japanese film * ''Sorry'' (2021 film), a 2021 comedy film * '' Sorry: A Love Story'', an upcoming Pakistani film * ''So ...
" and "Future Lovers" In an interview with ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'', Madonna commented that the recording process was a give-and-take situation. According to her, Price used to stay up all night working on the songs. This was helped by the fact that he is a DJ and is used to staying awake all night. This gave Madonna the chance to work on other aspects of the compositions. She noted the fact that she and Price had opposite characteristics, which helped in their collaboration. The songs were mainly recorded at Price's home. Madonna said:
We did a lot of recording at his house. I'd come by in the morning and Stuart would answer the door in his stocking feet - as he'd been up all night. I'd bring him a cup of coffee and say, 'Stuart, your house is a mess, there's no food in the cupboard.' Then I'd call someone from my house to bring food over for him. And then we'd work all day. We're very much the odd couple.
She further elaborated that their camaraderie was also because they had toured together for Madonna's Re-Invention World Tour. Hence Madonna reflected that her relationship with Price was more of a brother-sister kind than the formal collaborations she was accustomed to during the recording process.


Music and lyrics

''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' is primarily a
dance-pop Dance-pop is a popular music subgenre that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a ...
, nu-disco,
EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstra ...
, album, which is structured like a nightly set composed by a DJ. The music starts light and happy, and as it progresses, it becomes intense, with the lyrics dealing more about personal feelings, hence "Confessions". According to Madonna, " is is the direction of my record. That's what we intended, to make a record that you can play at a party or in your car, where you don't have to skip past a ballad. It's nonstop." Madonna used samples and references of music by other disco artists. In the album's first song, " Hung Up", she sampled ABBA's 1979 hit " Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)", for which she wrote a personal letter to songwriters Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, who permitted Madonna to use the track. References of other disco-influenced acts, including
Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...
,
Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...
, and
Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. Widely regarded as one of the most influential acts in dance music history, they achieved popularity in the late 1990s as p ...
, were also used on the album, as were the disco hits of Parisian DJ Cerrone. The album has a song called "Forbidden Love", which is different from the same-titled song from Madonna's sixth studio album ''
Bedtime Stories A bedtime story is a traditional form of storytelling, where a story is told to a child at bedtime to prepare the child for sleep. The bedtime story has long been considered "a definite institution in many families".Dickson, Marguerite Stockma ...
''. Regarding sampling herself and her own song names, Madonna commented:
"I did all of that on purpose, ..I mean, if I'm going to plagiarize somebody, it might as well be me, right? I feel like I've earned the right to rip myself off. 'Talent borrows, genius steals,' .."Let's see how many other clichés I can throw in there. That's exactly it. I was only hinting early on, but then I tell it like it is. It's like, now that I have your attention, I have a few things to tell you."
A pulsating rhythm is present in the song "Isaac", which is regarded as the only song close to a ballad on the album. However, the song was heavily criticized by a group of Israeli
rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as '' semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form o ...
s who commented that Madonna was committing a blasphemy with their religion. They said that the song was about sixteenth-century Kabbalah scholar
Yitzhak Luria Isaac ben Solomon Luria Ashkenazi (1534#FINE_2003, Fine 2003, p24/ref> – July 25, 1572) ( he, יִצְחָק בן שלמה לוּרְיָא אשכנזי ''Yitzhak Ben Sh'lomo Lurya Ashkenazi''), commonly known in Jewish religious circles as "H ...
. In reality, the song was named after the featured vocalist Yitzhak Sinwani, who sang portions of the Yemenite Hebrew poem '' Im Nin'alu'' in the track, as well as references to the Biblical story of Abraham and Isaac. Initially, Madonna toyed with the idea of calling the song "Fear of Flying", since the idea behind the composition was to let go. In the end she decided to just call it "Isaac", after the English version of Sinwani's name. Regarding the song's development and the condemnation of the rabbis, Madonna said:
"You do appreciate the absurdity of a group of rabbis in Israel claiming that I'm being blasphemous about someone when they haven't heard the record, right? And then, everyone in the media runs with it as if it's the truth. And that's a little weird. But what's even weirder is that the song is not about Isaac Lurier, as the rabbis claim. It's named after Yitzhak Sinwani, who's singing in Yemenite on the track. I couldn't think of a title for the song. So I called it "Isaac" he English transliteration of "Yitzhak" It's interesting how their minds work, those naughty rabbis. ..He's saying, "If all of the doors of all of the generous peoples' homes are closed to you, the gates of heaven will always be open." The words are about 1,000 years old. .. itzhakis an old friend of mine. He's never made a record. He comes from generations of beautiful singers. Stuart and I asked him to come into the studio one day. We said, "We're just going to record you. We don't know what we're going to do with it." He's flawless. One take, no bad notes. He doesn't even need a microphone. We took one of the songs he did and I said to Stuart, "Let's sample these bits. We'll create a chorus and then I'll write lyrics around it." That's how we constructed it."
The lyrics of the songs on the album incorporate bits of Madonna's musical history and are written in the form of confessions. "Hung Up" contains lyrics from Madonna's 1989
duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...
with Prince called "Love Song", from the '' Like a Prayer'' album. "How High" continues the themes of two songs from Madonna's eighth studio album '' Music'', namely "Nobody's Perfect" and "I Deserve It". The lyrics of "Push" thank the person who challenged her to expand her limits and also incorporate elements of the Police's song " Every Breath You Take". Other tracks like "Sorry" include the title word in ten different languages (several of which are non-idiomatic). In "I Love New York" (written at the time of ''American Life''), she praises the city where her career began and replies to negative comments made by George W. Bush. Elsewhere, Madonna sings about success and fame ("Let It Will Be") and the crossroads of past, present and future ("Like It or Not").


Promotion

On November 4, 2005, Madonna opened the
2005 MTV Europe Music Awards The 12th annual MTV Europe Music Awards were held at Pavilhão Atlântico, Lisbon, Portugal. The show was opened by Madonna, performing "Hung Up". Other performers included Pussycat Dolls, The Black Eyed Peas, Robbie Williams and Foo Fighters. P ...
with her first performance of "Hung Up". She emerged from a glitter ball to perform the song, while wearing a purple leotard and matching leather boots. During the next days, Madonna performed "Hung Up" on TV shows such as '' Wetten, dass..?'' in Germany, and '' Star Academy'' in France, as well as on the Children in Need 2005 telethon in London. In order to promote the album's release, Madonna appeared on '' Parkinson''. She played a number of songs from the album at London's
Koko Club KOKO (previously called The Music Machine and Camden Palace) is a concert venue and former theatre in Camden Town, London, England. The building was known as Camden Palace from 1982 until its 2004 purchase and extensive restoration, led by Olive ...
and G-A-Y as part of a promo tour to support the album. In December, Madonna travelled to Japan, where "Hung Up" was performed on TV show '' SMAP×SMAP'' and her concert at
Studio Coast ageHa (also as 'AGH') was a weekend club event in Tokyo, Japan. It was held on Friday and Saturday at the Usen Studio Coast event space in the Shin-Kiba district, which also hosted live concerts and other events. The word ''Ageha'' is Japanese for ...
. On February 8, 2006, Madonna opened the
48th Grammy Awards The 48th Annual Grammy Awards took place on February 8, 2006, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning from October 1, 2004 through September 30, 2005. Irish rock band U2 were ...
, by pairing up with the fictional animated band
Gorillaz Gorillaz are an English virtual band formed in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, from London. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: 2-D (vocals, keyboards), Murdoc Niccals (bass guitar), Noodle (guitar, ...
. The band appeared on the stage via a three dimensional technique which projected their holograms on the stage. They performed their song "
Feel Good Inc. "Feel Good Inc." is a song by British virtual band Gorillaz featuring American hip-hop group De La Soul. Released on 9 May 2005 as the lead single from the band's second studio album, ''Demon Days'', the single peaked at 2 in the United King ...
" while rappers
De La Soul De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative ...
made a guest appearance. Madonna then appeared on the stage and started performing the song while interchanging places with the hologram figures of the band. She was later joined by her own group of dancers and the performance was finished on the main stage rather than the virtual screen. Another performance of "Hung Up" came on April 30, 2006 during the
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. ...
in Indio, California. A remix only album titled ''Confessions Remixed'' was also released in limited vinyl editions. In Japan, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor – Japan Tour Special Edition'' (CD+DVD) was released on August 23, 2006. It reached number 27 on the Oricon weekly albums chart and stayed on the chart for 12 weeks. The album received further promotion from the Confessions Tour which began in May 2006. The tour grossed over US $194.7 million, becoming highest-grossing tour ever for a female artist, at that time. Additionally, the tour received the "Most Creative Stage Production" at the Pollstar Concert Industry Awards, as well as "Top Boxscore" from the Billboard Touring Awards.


Singles

" Hung Up" was released as the album's lead single on October 17, 2005. The song received critical appreciation amongst reviewers, who suggested that the track would restore the singer's popularity, which had diminished following the release of her 2003 album '' American Life''. Critics claimed that it was her best dance track to date and have compared it to other Madonna tracks in the same genre. They also complimented the effective synchronization of the ABBA sample with Madonna's song. "Hung Up" became a worldwide commercial success, peaking atop the charts of 41 countries and earning a place in the ''Guinness Book of World Records'' along with the album. In the United States it became her 36th top ten hit, tying her with Elvis Presley. The corresponding music video was a tribute to
John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom ''Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (19 ...
, his movies and dancing in general. Directed by Johan Renck, the video featured Madonna dancing in a ballet studio in a pink leotard, which she left to go to a gaming parlour to dance with her backup dancers. It also featured the physical discipline
parkour Parkour () is an athletic training discipline or sport in which practitioners (called ''traceurs'') attempt to get from point A to point B in the fastest and most efficient way possible, without assisting equipment and often while performing a ...
. "
Sorry Sorry is a word commonly used in apologizing. Sorry may also refer to: Film and television * ''Sorry'' (2002 film), a 2002 Japanese film * ''Sorry'' (2021 film), a 2021 comedy film * '' Sorry: A Love Story'', an upcoming Pakistani film * ''So ...
" was released as the second single from the album on February 6, 2006. The song received positive reviews from contemporary critics who declared the track as the strongest song on ''Confessions on a Dance Floor''. It achieved commercial success, topping the singles charts in Italy, Spain, Romania and the United Kingdom, where it became Madonna's 12th number one single. Elsewhere, the song was a top ten hit in more than a dozen countries around the world. However, in the United States, the song was less commercially successful due to underplay on radio, but managed to reach the top of ''Billboard''s dance charts. " Get Together" was released as the third single from the album by Warner Bros. Records on May 30, 2006. The decision was spurred by the fact that "Get Together" was the third most downloaded song from the album. It was also released to coincide with the start of Madonna's Confessions Tour. Critics complimented Madonna's ability to turn
cliché A cliché ( or ) is an element of an artistic work, saying, or idea that has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even to the point of being weird or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was consi ...
comments into pop slogans with the song. The song became a success on the United States dance charts, but failed to enter the Hot 100. It reached the top ten in countries such as Australia, Canada, United Kingdom and Italy, and peaked at number one in Spain. " Jump" was released as fourth and the final single from the album on September 11, 2006. Critics complimented the song and its empowerment theme. The song peaked inside the top ten of the charts in some European countries, while reaching the peak position in Italy and Hungary. In the United States, "Jump" charted in several ''Billboard'' dance charts but failed to chart on the Hot 100.


Critical reception

''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' received acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 80, based on 28 reviews. Keith Caulfield from ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' commented that ''Confessions'' is a "welcome return to form for the Queen of Pop."
Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...
from AllMusic commented that ''Confessions'' is the first album where Madonna sounds like a veteran musician since she created the record for "the dance clubs or, in other words, Madonna's core audience." Alan Braidwood from the BBC commented that " is is the most commercial album Madonna has made in 15 years and it's magic." David Browne from '' Entertainment Weekly'' noted that for "all its pretenses of being giddy and spontaneous, though, ''Confessions'' is rarely either."
Alexis Petridis Alexis Petridis ( el, Αλέξης Πετρίδης; born 13 September 1971) is a British journalist, head rock and pop critic for the UK newspaper ''The Guardian'', as well as a regular contributor to the magazine '' GQ''. In addition to his mus ...
from '' The Guardian'' said that the album "may be a return to core values, but there's still a bravery about ''Confessions on a Dancefloor''. It revels in the delights of wilfully plastic dance pop in an era when lesser dance-pop artists – from Rachel Stevens to Price's protege Juliet – are having a desperately thin time of it." Peter Robinson from Observer Music Monthly declared that the album ranks alongside Madonna's other albums like '' True Blue'' (1986) and '' Like a Prayer'' (1989). He credited producer Stuart Price for the album, noting that "''Confessions'' clearly wouldn't exist without Madonna, but it's Price who steals the show." Stephen M. Deusner from ''Pitchfork'' noted that with the album "Madonna again reinvents herself, and it appears she's nearly lapped herself." According to Deusner, the music also makes her appear young. However he felt that the first half of the album till "I Love New York" was strong, while the second half "loses its delicate balance between pop frivolity and spiritual gravity." Thomas Inskeep from ''
Stylus Magazine ''Stylus Magazine'' was an American online music and film magazine, launched in 2002 and co-founded by Todd L. Burns. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog. Addi ...
'' stated that the album is "Madonna's most purely beat-driven album since her self-titled 1983 debut" and "easily her finest effort since '' Ray of Light''." Kelefa Sanneh from '' The New York Times'' called the album "exuberant". Christian John Wikane from '' PopMatters'' commented that the album "proved that Madonna, approaching 50 years-old, is a vital force in the ever-expansive landscape of popular music." Joan Morgan from '' The Village Voice'' noted that " th ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'', Madonna at long last finds her musical footing. Easily dance record of the year, Confessions is an almost seamless tribute to the strobe-lit sensuality of the '80s New York club scene that gave Madge her roots, which she explores with compelling aplomb." Josh Tyrangiel from '' Time'' magazine commented that "In dance music, words exist to be repeated, twisted, obscured and resurrected. How they sound in the moment is far more important than what they mean, and Madonna knows that better than anyone. ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' is 56 minutes of energetic moments. It will leave you feeling silly for all the right reasons." Sal Cinquemani from ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...
'' was impressed with the album and said that "Madonna, with the help of Price, ..has succeeded at creating a dance-pop odyssey with an emotional, if not necessarily narrative, arc — and one big continuously-mixed F you to the art-dismantling iPod Shuffle in the process." He compared the album to
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
n recording artist
Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...
's studio album '' Light Years'' (2000), saying "Comparisons to ''Light Years'', Kylie Minogue's own discofied comeback album from 2000, are inevitable". Alan Light from '' Rolling Stone'' declared that the album illustrated that "Madonna has never lost her faith in the power of the beat." However, he opined that "''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' won't stand the test of time like her glorious early club hits, but it proves its point. Like Rakim back in the day, Madonna can still move the crowd."


Commercial performance

The album sold about 3.6 to 4 million copies worldwide during the first-week of release. Despite being released late in the year, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' was ranked by the
International Federation of the Phonographic Industry The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 19 ...
(IFPI) as the sixth biggest-selling album of 2005 worldwide, with sales of 6.3 million. Worldwide sales of the album stand at 10 million copies, and is considered to be one of the best-selling albums of the 21st century as well one of the best-selling by women. In the United States, the album debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 350,000 copies in its first week. It became her sixth number one album on the chart and the third consecutive album to debut at the top, following '' Music'' (2000) and '' American Life'' (2003). On December 14, 2005, the album was certified platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) for shipments of one million copies. As of December 2016, the album has sold over 1.734 million copies in America, according to
Nielsen SoundScan Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...
. The album also debuted at the top of the charts in Canada, with first-week sales of 74,000. It was present on the chart for a total of 46 weeks and received a quintuple platinum certification from
Music Canada Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It a ...
(MC) for total shipment of 500,000 copies in the country. ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' enjoyed commercial success in Latin American countries. The album earned a gold certification in Chile and Brazil for the sales of 10,000 and 50,000 copies respectively. As of 2006, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' moved 80,000 units in Brazil. In Mexico, it received a platinum certification from AMPROFON for sales of 100,000 copies. In Argentina, the album became in one of the highest-certified albums of all time with five-time platinum from Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas (CAPIF) for total shipment of 200,000 units. The album was also successful in Asia-Pacific countries. In Australia, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' debuted at the top of the ARIA Albums Chart for the issue dated November 21, 2005, and was present for a total of 33 weeks within the top 50 of the chart. It was certified two times platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) denoting shipments of 140,000 copies. It debuted at number five on the New Zealand albums chart, and was certified platinum by
Recorded Music NZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...
(RMNZ) for shipment of 15,000 copies. The same peak position was attained on the Oricon charts in Japan, where the album was certified double platinum for shipment of 500,000 copies by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ). In Hong Kong, the album was awarded a Gold Disc Award by the IFPI for becoming one of ten biggest-selling international album for 2005. The album found its biggest reception in Europe, where topped the European Top 100 Albums chart for four weeks and was certified quadruple platinum by IFPI for shipping a total of four million copies across the continent. In the United Kingdom, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' debuted at the top of the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 217,610 units, her highest ever in the country. It became Madonna's ninth number-one album, and has sold 1,360,000 copies as of November 2020, according to the Official Charts Company, while being certified quadruple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).Claimed sales for ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' in the United Kingdom, according to Official Charts Company: * * That same week, the first single from the album, " Hung Up", topped the singles chart. The album became the fifth consecutive Madonna album to top the chart. In Ireland, the album debuted and peaked at number three. In France, the album debuted at position 113 on the albums chart, jumping to the top of the chart the next week. According to '' Paris Match'', ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' sold 650,000 copies in the first two months in France, and was later certified diamond by the
Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique The National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing (french: Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique; SNEP) is the inter-professional organisation that protects the interests of the French record industry. Originally known under the acronym ...
(SNEP). Actual sales in France stand at between 800,000 to 900,000 units. In Italy, ''
Musica e dischi ''Musica e dischi'' was the oldest and long-running music industry publication in Italy. '' Billboard'' defined the publication as the "Italian record bible". History It was founded in October 1945 in Milan, Italy, on the initiative of the journ ...
'' reported sales of 400,000 copies during the 2005–2006 period, more than any other album by an international act and behind only
Eros Ramazzotti Eros Walter Luciano Ramazzotti (; born 28 October 1963) is an Italian pop singer, musician and songwriter. He is popular in Italy and most European countries, and throughout the Spanish-speaking world, as he has released most of his albums in bo ...
's '' Calma apparente'', Luciano Ligabue's ''Nome e Cognome'' and '' Io canto'' by
Laura Pausini Laura Pausini (; born 16 May 1974) is an Italian singer. She rose to fame in 1993, winning the newcomer artists' section of the 43rd Sanremo Music Festival with her debut single "La solitudine", which became an Italian standard and an internat ...
. Across Europe, the album peaked at number one in Austria, Belgium (Flanders and Wallonia), Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.


Accolades

Madonna won the Best International Female Solo Artist at the
2006 BRIT Awards Brit Awards 2006 was the 26th show of the Brit Awards, an annual pop music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 14 February 2006 in Earls Court in London. It attracted 4. ...
. She also won World's Best Selling Pop Artist and Best Selling U.S. Artist at the
2006 World Music Awards The 2006 (18th annual) World Music Awards were held in London, England and hosted by Lindsay Lohan on 15 November 2006. Performances included a "Thriller" recreation by Chris Brown and a children's chorus rendition of "We Are the World" with Mich ...
for the album. She was nominated for five awards at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards for the music video of the album's first single, " Hung Up". Madonna also got nominated for Best Album of the Year, Best Pop Video, and Best Female Artist at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2006. She also won a Grammy Award in the category of "Best Dance/Electronic Album" at the 2007 ceremony. The album peaked at number one in 40 countries, earning a place in the '' Guinness World Records'' for topping the record charts in the most countries. '' Rolling Stone'' ranked ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' as the twenty-second top album of 2005. ''NME'' also placed it at number 29 on the magazine's list of the 50 best albums of 2005. Sal Cinquemani of ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...
'' ranked the album at the third position on his list of the top ten albums of 2005. The same magazine considered the album the 38th best one from the 2000s. Three critics writing for
Stylus Magazine ''Stylus Magazine'' was an American online music and film magazine, launched in 2002 and co-founded by Todd L. Burns. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog. Addi ...
also included ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' in their year-end lists of the best albums of 2005. Q Magazine named the record the 26th best one of 2005. On their ranking of the best albums from 2005, '' The Observer'' listed the album at number 26. By the end of the 2000s, ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...
'' placed the album at number 38 on their list of "The 100 Best Albums of the Aughts". In 2015, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' was ranked third on "The 99 Greatest Dance Albums of All Time" by '' Vice'' magazine.


Impact and legacy

Mike Nied from
Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books *''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...
praised ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' as one of the most influential pop albums of the decade and dubbed Madonna as a "timeless trendsetter" and "creative genius". According to Michael Arceneaux from NBC News, it is "arguably her last great, impactful album; it's the last time she still felt truly forward-thinking, even if it looked back sonically." Christopher Rosa from
VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Commun ...
called it her "best album to date" and explained that is a "near-perfect pop record" and "her most natural reinvention". It was ranked as the third best dance album of all-time by ''Vice'' magazine—the highest peak by a female performer. The magazine staff commented: "This is the album all her subsequent albums is compared to; for its enduring relevance and how it redefined Madonna as an artist, it should be". Author Sancho Xavi from ''
El País ''El País'' (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. ''El País'' is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . ''El Pa ...
'' noted that the album started the disco revival during the 21st century and popularized the revivals concept of others musical genres during the first decade. Justin Myers from the UK Official Charts Company commented: "An 'imperial phase' is when a pop star is at the pinnacle of their career, shifting stacks of records, having big hits, selling out arenas, owning the radio and being generally unavoidable and untouchable. Many pop acts barely manage one. Thanks to this album, Madonna claimed her third. How many popstars can honestly say that?" Calling her the "Mother of Reinvention", Jim Schembri from '' The Age'' wrote a detailed article of Madonna's impact with ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'':
he albumwent straight to No. 1 everywhere except Mars. So too did the first single, "Hung Up", the video for which is on every time you turn on the TV. adonnahas reclaimed her place in the pop firmament with unrivaled ferocity. And she is a sterling example of pop survival. In a firmament that eats up artists like popcorn and where chart success is as fleeting as
Jessica Simpson Jessica Ann Simpson (born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, entrepreneur and philanthropist. After performing in church choirs as a child, Simpson signed with Columbia Records in 1997, aged seventeen. Her debut studio album, '' Swe ...
's attention span, Madonna remains an inspiring, intimidating beacon of permanence. Her longevity has thrived on her ability to continually reinvent herself by reading the winds of pop culture and taking her cue from there.
With the ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' era, Madonna broke several world records and the album resuscitated her music sales and popularity, after the critical and commercial disappointment of ''American Life''. At that time, Madonna became the best-selling female artist in the European market and the fifth best-selling artist overall with a quadruple platinum award by the IFPI, equivalent of 4 million copies sold across the continent. In the United Kingdom, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' became one of the fastest selling albums ever, with first week sales of 217,610 copies according to the Official Charts Company. Also, Madonna earned a place in the ''
Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
'' as the "oldest artist to simultaneously top the UK singles and album charts". English singer
Dua Lipa Dua Lipa ( , ; born ) is an English and Albanian singer and songwriter. Possessing a mezzo-soprano vocal range, she is known for her signature disco- pop sound. Lipa has received numerous accolades, including six Brit Awards, three Gramm ...
's 2020 album, '' Future Nostalgia'', also produced by Price, was influenced by ''Confessions on a Dance Floor''.


Track listing

Sample credit * "Hung Up" samples " Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" recorded by ABBA and written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus.


Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. *
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
– lead vocals, backing vocals, producer * Stuart Price – producer, keyboard, synthesizer, vocoder, programming, sequencing, sampling *Roberta Carraro – keyboard, bass, drums, harmonica *Yitzhak Sinwani – additional vocals on "Isaac" * Monte Pittman – guitar *Magnus "Mango" Wallbert – programming *Steven Klein – photography *Giovanni Bianco – art direction, graphic design *Grubman Indursky – legal documents * Guy Oseary – management *Angela Becker – management *Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing *Stuart Price – mixing ; recording ("How High" and "Like It or Not") ; "Future Lovers" *Alex Dromgoole – assistant engineer *David Emery – second assistant engineer *Antony Kilhoffer – second assistant engineer *Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – mastering


Charts


Weekly charts


Monthly charts


Decade-end charts


All-time charts


Year-end charts


Certifications and sales


Release history


See also

* List of best-selling albums by women * List of best-selling albums of the 21st century *
List of best-selling albums in Argentina This is a list of the best-selling albums in Argentina based on CAPIF certification. Albums are listed in order of certification (highest to lowest), and order of release date (earliest to most recent). This list contains any type of album, includ ...
*
List of best-selling albums in France This is a list of the best-selling albums in France that have been certified by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique The National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing (french: Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique; SNEP) ...
* List of best-selling albums of the 2000s in the United Kingdom * List of European number-one hits of 2005 * List of European number-one hits of 2006 * List of number-one albums in Norway * List of number-one albums of 2005 (Australia) *
List of number-one albums of 2005 (Canada) These are the Canadian number-one albums of 2005. The chart is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan and published by '' Jam!'' Canoe, issued every Sunday. The chart also appears in ''Billboard'' magazine as Top Canadian Albums. See also *List of num ...
* List of number-one albums of 2005 (Portugal) *
List of number-one albums of 2005 (Poland) These are the Polish number one albums of 2005, per the OLiS Chart. Chart history References {{Polish Music Charts Number-one albums Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is d ...
* List of number-one albums of 2005 (U.S.) *
List of number-one electronic albums of 2005 (U.S.) These are the albums that reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Dance/Electronic Albums chart in 2005. Chart history References {{US Electronic Albums United States Electronic Albums 2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top l ...
* List of number-one electronic albums of 2006 (U.S.) * List of number-one hits of 2005 (France) *
List of number-one hits of 2005 (Germany) This is a list of songs which reached number one on the German ''Media Control'' Top100 Singles chart in 2005. Number-one hits by week See also * List of number-one hits (Germany) * List of German airplay number-one songs References E ...
*
List of number-one hits of 2005 (Italy) This is a list of the number-one hits of 2005 on FIMI's Italian Singles and Albums Charts. See also *2005 in music * List of number-one hits in Italy External linksFIMI archives
* List of works by Stuart Price *
Top selling singles and albums in Ireland 2005 This is a list of the top selling singles and top sellings albums in Ireland in 2005. Top selling singles #"(Is This the Way to) Amarillo" - Tony Christie featuring Peter Kay #"You Raise Me Up" - Westlife #" Lonely" - Akon #"Axel F" - Crazy F ...


Notes


References


External links

* * {{Authority control 2005 albums Albums produced by Bloodshy & Avant Albums produced by Stuart Price Albums produced by Madonna Concept albums Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronica Album Madonna albums Warner Records albums