Dear Jessie
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"Dear Jessie" is a song by American singer
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
from her fourth studio album '' Like a Prayer'' (1989). It was released as the fifth single from the album on December 4, 1989, by
Sire Records Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records. History Beginnings The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gotteh ...
. Written and produced by Madonna and
Patrick Leonard Patrick Ray Leonard (born March 14, 1956) is an American songwriter, keyboardist, film composer, and music producer, best known for his longtime collaboration with Madonna. His work with Madonna includes her albums '' True Blue'' (1986), '' Who ...
, the song was inspired by Leonard's daughter Jessie. The release of "Dear Jessie" was limited to the United Kingdom, certain other European countries, Australia and Japan. The track is composed more like a children's
lullaby A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...
rather than a pop song, and features strings,
synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...
and strummed acoustics. A change in
tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...
occurs during the breakdown, where instrumentation from
trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...
s is included. Lyrically, the song evokes a psychedelic fantasy landscape, in which pink elephants roam with dancing moons and mermaids. Upon its release, "Dear Jessie" received mixed reviews from critics, who felt that the fantasy imagery of the song was overdone, but complimented its composition. Other reviewers likened the song to the music of
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
. The track was a moderate success commercially, reaching the top 5 in the United Kingdom and Ireland and the top 20 in Germany, Spain and Switzerland. The
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
of "Dear Jessie" combines live action and animation, portraying a young girl waking up in bed and interacting with fantasy characters. Madonna appears in the video only as an animated,
Tinker Bell Tinker Bell is a fictional character from J. M. Barrie's 1904 play '' Peter Pan'' and its 1911 novelisation '' Peter and Wendy''. She has appeared in a variety of film and television adaptations of the Peter Pan stories, in particular the 1953 ...
-type
fairy A fairy (also called fay, fae, fae folk, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Cel ...
.


Background

When Madonna started work on her fourth studio album, '' Like a Prayer'' in 1988, she was in an emotional state of mind following her split from
Sean Penn Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He is known for his intense leading man roles in film. List of awards and nominations received by Sean Penn, His accolades include two Academy Awards, a Golden Gl ...
, her 30th birthday and unfavorable reviews for her acting endeavors. She had certain personal matters on her mind that she thought could be the musical direction of the album. As Madonna considered her alternatives, producers
Patrick Leonard Patrick Ray Leonard (born March 14, 1956) is an American songwriter, keyboardist, film composer, and music producer, best known for his longtime collaboration with Madonna. His work with Madonna includes her albums '' True Blue'' (1986), '' Who ...
and
Stephen Bray Stephen Pate Bray (born December 23, 1956) is an American songwriter, drummer, and record producer. He is best known for his collaborations with Madonna, being a member of the band Breakfast Club, and for winning the 2017 Grammy Award for the ...
experimented with instrumental tracks and musical ideas for her consideration. One day, while
recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, re ...
of the
title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-t ...
was going on at Johnny Yuma Studios, Leonard went to pick up his daughter Jessie from school. Since his wife was out of town, he brought Jessie to the studio. Madonna, who was initially angry with Leonard for his late arrival, struck up a rapport with Jessie. She commented: "It was like as if I was my mother and hewas me. We were playing in our backyard again." Witnessing their connection, Leonard approached Madonna with a song he had written for his daughter, titled "Dear Jessie". Madonna changed some of the lyrics and agreed to record the track for ''Like a Prayer''; it was finished within the next three days. "Dear Jessie" was released as the fourth single from ''Like a Prayer'' in Europe, while it served as the fifth single from the album in Australia and Japan; it was never released in the United States. The single cover used a photo from 1987, taken by
Herb Ritts Herbert Ritts Jr. (August 13, 1952 – December 26, 2002) was an American fashion photographer and director known for his photographs of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His work concentrated on b ...
. It showed Madonna in bed, clutching a bed sheet to her bosom and sporting a pair of
Minnie Mouse Minerva "Minnie" Mouse is an American cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. The longtime sweetheart of Mickey Mouse, she is an anthropomorphic mouse with white gloves, a red or pink bow, blue (or pink or red) polka-dotted dress, w ...
ears. The photo was a reference to the early criticism of Madonna's work, when reviewers had described her voice as "Minnie Mouse on helium".


Composition

According to Rikky Rooksby, author of ''The Complete Guide to the Music of Madonna'', "Dear Jessie" sounds more like a children's
lullaby A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...
than a
pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...
song. A
baroque pop Baroque pop (sometimes called baroque rock) is a fusion genre that combines rock music with particular elements of classical music. It emerged in the mid-1960s as artists pursued a majestic, orchestral sound and is identifiable for its appropria ...
and
psychedelic pop Psychedelic pop (or acid pop) is a genre of pop music that contains musical characteristics associated with psychedelic music. Developing in the mid-to-late 1960s, elements included " trippy" features such as fuzz guitars, tape manipulation, ...
song, it begins with the sound of strings, ushering a joyous
melody A melody (), also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combination of Pitch (music), pitch and rhythm, while more figurativel ...
, with Madonna singing in a full voice. The verses are sung without any background vocals to accompany Madonna's voice. However, in the
chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...
, when she sings the lines, "Pink elephants and lemonades, Dear Jessie hear the laughter raining on your love-parade", a different set of vocals are interwoven with hers, continuously chanting the words "La-la".
Synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...
and strummed acoustics are added during the second verse, followed by the repetition of the chorus, when a change in
tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...
and
time signature A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...
occurs, followed by the sound of a child's laughter. As Madonna finishes singing the intermediate lines, "Close your eyes, sleepy-head, It is time for your bed, Never forget what I said, Hang on...", a
trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...
starts playing alongside the main rhythm. The breakdown has the feel of Spanish music, with the
glissando In music, a glissando (; plural: ''glissandi'', abbreviated ''gliss.'') is a wikt:glide, glide from one pitch (music), pitch to another (). It is an Italianized Musical terminology, musical term derived from the French ''glisser'', "to glide". In ...
evoking the string arrangements. This is followed by the
bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
and the chorus being repeated twice. "Dear Jessie" ends with all instrumentation and vocals
fading In wireless communications, fading is the variation of signal attenuation over variables like time, geographical position, and radio frequency. Fading is often modeled as a random process. In wireless systems, fading may either be due to mul ...
out, except the orchestra, which is equalized to make it sound very thin and trebly, as if coming out from a distorted radio. The lyrics encourage the young girl Jessie to use her imagination. It summons up a psychedelic landscape, where pink elephants roam with dancing moons and mermaids. It references fairy-tale characters and creates an image of children playing with each other. According to the sheet music published by Warner/Chappell Music, "Dear Jessie" is written in the
time signature A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...
of common time, with a tempo of 120
beats per minute Beat, beats, or beating may refer to: Common uses * Assault, inflicting physical harm or unwanted physical contact * Battery (crime), a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact * Battery (tort), a civil wrong in common law of in ...
. Normally written in 4⁄4, the song has a change in time signature after the second chorus, changing it to 3⁄4. It is composed in the key of
D major D major is a major scale based on D (musical note), D, consisting of the pitches D, E (musical note), E, F♯ (musical note), F, G (musical note), G, A (musical note), A, B (musical note), B, and C♯ (musical note), C. Its key signature has two S ...
, with Madonna's voice ranging from C3 to D5. The song's
chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural, or simply changes) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from ...
follows a sequence of Bm–A–Bm–D–A in the verses and changes to D–Bm–G–A–D in the chorus.


Critical reception

Author Santiago Fouz-Hernández commented in his book ''Madonna's Drowned Worlds'' that to him the song felt like a trepiditation of Madonna's thoughts about what might be termed "girlhood" and on a broadscale, on "feminity". Christopher P. Andersen, author of ''Madonna: Unauthorized'', described "Dear Jessie" as "a wistfully psychedelic confection of carousels and pink elephants", adding that "the song harkens back to the lullabies your mother must have sang to you". Robin Anne Reid, author of ''Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy: Overviews'', complimented the fact that "although the sort of fantasies that adonnaconjures might trend towards the kinky and sexual, she can also delve into a world of mermaids, fountains of youth, leprechauns and magic lanterns as is evident by 'Dear Jessie'."
Lucy O'Brien Lucy O'Brien (born 13 September 1961)Author Biography, O'Brien, Lucy – She Bop: The definitive history of women in rock, pop, and soul, London: Penguin, 1995 is a British author and journalist whose work focuses on women in music. Early musi ...
, author of ''Madonna: Like an Icon'', characterized the song as "harkening back to a childlike innocence", but felt that Madonna overdid the elaborate fantasy imagery. O'Brien preferred Madonna's later attempts to sing lullaby-like songs on her albums '' Bedtime Stories'' (1994) and ''
American Life ''American Life'' is the ninth studio album by American singer Madonna. It was released on April 21, 2003, by Maverick and Warner Bros. Records. The album, produced by the singer and Mirwais Ahmadzaï, features references to many parts of Am ...
'' (2003). Edna Gunderson from ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...
'' called the song a "sugary lullaby", while opining that it would not go down as one of Madonna's well-remembered songs. The ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
''s Ian Blair described the track as "bouncy" and praised the soothing quality of the music's composition. Richard Harrington from ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' deduced that with the song, Madonna was harkening back to her own maternal emotions, the feelings she could not receive from her own mother, due to her untimely death. Reviewing the ''Like a Prayer'' album, Mike Mentos from ''
Los Angeles Daily News The ''Los Angeles Daily News'' is the second-largest-circulating paid daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California, after the unrelated ''Los Angeles Times'', and the flagship newspaper of the Southern California News Group, a branch of Colorado ...
'' was not impressed with "Dear Jessie" and commented that "Madonna's voice possesses neither the control, power nor emotion to carry neo-baroque experiments like 'Dear Jessie' and ' Oh Father'." 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 Yor ...
'' called it a "bittersweet reminder of the ephemerality of our innocence and imagination ..this non-U.S. single is a testament to the magic of Madonna’s collaboration with composer/producer Patrick Leonard". A number of reviewers have compared "Dear Jessie" to the work of
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
. Allen Metz, one of the authors of ''The Madonna Companion: Two Decades of Commentary'', described the composition of the song as "pastel-pretty, ndrichly orchestrated". He felt that the song would have fit better on the Beatles' 1969 soundtrack album, '' Yellow Submarine''. The Beatles' influence was also noted by
Stephen Holden Stephen Holden (born July 18, 1941) is an American writer, poet, and music and film critic. Biography Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963. He worked as a photo editor, staff writer, and eventually be ...
from ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', who labeled "Dear Jessie" a "stylish swatch of late Beatles-style psychedelia". Joey Levy from ''
Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...
'' characterized "Dear Jessie" as "amazing", describing his reaction to the song as "Wow! This is neat!" He added that the song sounded like
Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
singing for the Beatles' 1967 album ''
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (often referred to simply as ''Sgt. Pepper'') is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept ...
''. Kevin Phinney from the ''
Austin American-Statesman The ''Austin American-Statesman'' is the major daily newspaper for Austin, the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is owned by Hearst Communications. The distribution of the following ''The New York Times'', ''The Washington Post'', '' ...
'' compared the song to the solo work that Beatles' member
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
did later in his career. Phinney wondered how Madonna was able to come up with the song, since most of the tracks from ''Like a Prayer'' are full of innuendo and double meanings.


Chart performance

In the United Kingdom, "Dear Jessie" debuted at number nine on the UK Singles Chart, for the issue dated December 16, 1989. After two weeks, it reached a peak position of number five on the chart, staying there for another two weeks. It was present on the UK Singles Chart for a total of nine weeks, and was certified
silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...
by the
British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...
(BPI) for shipment of 200,000 copies of the single. According to
Official Charts Company The Official UK Charts Company Limited (formerly Music Industry Chart Services Limited), trading as the Official Charts Company (OCC) or the Official Charts (formerly the Chart Information Network), is a British inter-professional organisation ...
, the song has sold 255,000 copies in the UK as of August 2008. In Australia, the song reached number 51 on the
ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
, remaining there for two consecutive weeks. On the international chart for Japan, "Dear Jessie" reached the top 40, but could not move up above number 25. In Germany, the song reached a peak of number 19 on the chart, but it remained within the German Top 100 for a total of 19 weeks. In Ireland, the song reached a peak of number three, remaining on the chart for a total of six weeks. The song failed to reach the top 20 in Austria, and was present on the chart for two weeks. It also failed to reach the top ten in Spain and Switzerland, reaching a peak of number 17 and number 16, respectively. "Dear Jessie" entered the
Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 () is a weekly music chart compiled by ''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40''. It started as a radio program titled "Veronica Top 40", on the offshore radio, offshore station Radio Veronica in 1965. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" ...
at number 37, ultimately reaching a peak of number 25. On the Pan-
Eurochart Hot 100 Singles The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by ''Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately f ...
, compiled by ''Music & Media'', "Dear Jessie" peaked at number nine.


Music video

The
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
was produced by Animation City, an animation company in London, England, and was directed by Derek Hayes. The video is mainly animated and does not feature Madonna, except as the cartoon
fairy A fairy (also called fay, fae, fae folk, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Cel ...
Tinker Bell Tinker Bell is a fictional character from J. M. Barrie's 1904 play '' Peter Pan'' and its 1911 novelisation '' Peter and Wendy''. She has appeared in a variety of film and television adaptations of the Peter Pan stories, in particular the 1953 ...
. Along with Hayes, there were six animators who worked on creating the fantasy imagery. It was included on the 1990 promotional-only video compilation ''She's Breathless''. The video opens with a shot of a young girl sleeping in her bed. As the music starts, rays of light emanate from the bedside radio with cartoon violins playing the music. The sun rises inside a picture on the wall and the girl wakes and starts playing with her doll. A fairy goes around tapping all her toys on the floor and a large, golden teapot comes alive and shoots a rainbow from its spout. A cartoon version of the girl then slides along the rainbow and, interpreting the lyrics of the song, catches a falling star and rides over the moon. By the second verse, pink elephants float over the girl's bed and an animated fairy version of Madonna emerges from the picture and winks. She takes the girl through another picture, displaying mythological and fairytale beings such as dragons, princes and unicorns as well as a castle where Madonna dances with the moon. An underwater scene with mermaids and fish follows, then a parade of all the girl's toys around her room. As the song wraps, the fairy taps on the girl and causes her to yawn. She falls asleep again and her toys go back to being as they were. The violins and the instruments gradually fade inside the radio and the song ends.


Track listing and formats

*UK 7-inch single and 7-inch picture disc # "Dear Jessie" (LP version) – 4:20 # "Till Death Do Us Part" (LP version) – 5:09 *UK 12-inch and CD single # "Dear Jessie" (LP version) – 4:20 # "Till Death Do Us Part" (LP version) – 5:09 # "Holiday" (12-inch version) – 6:20


Credits and personnel

*
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
 – lead vocals, songwriter, producer *
Patrick Leonard Patrick Ray Leonard (born March 14, 1956) is an American songwriter, keyboardist, film composer, and music producer, best known for his longtime collaboration with Madonna. His work with Madonna includes her albums '' True Blue'' (1986), '' Who ...
 – songwriter, producer, arranger, mixing *Bill Meyers – arranger, mixing *Chuck Findley – arranger, trumpet *Nadirah Ali – background vocals *Rose Banks – background vocals *
Guy Pratt Guy Adam Pratt (born 3 January 1962) is a British bassist. He has worked with artists including Pink Floyd, Roxy Music, Gary Moore, Madonna, Peter Cetera, Michael Jackson, the Smiths, Robert Palmer (singer), Robert Palmer, Echo & the Bunnymen, T ...
 – drum programming, synthesizer * Camille – strings, background vocals *
Paulinho da Costa Paulinho da Costa (, born Paulo Roberto da Costa on May 31, 1948) is a Brazilian percussionist. Beginning his career as a samba musician in Brazil, he moved to the United States in the early 1970s and worked with Brazilian bandleader Sérgio Me ...
 – percussion *
Herb Ritts Herbert Ritts Jr. (August 13, 1952 – December 26, 2002) was an American fashion photographer and director known for his photographs of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His work concentrated on b ...
 – cover art photographer Credits and personnel adapted from ''Like a Prayer'' album liner notes.


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications and sales


See also

*
List of European number-one airplay songs of the 1990s ''Music & Media'' published a chart of the most popular songs on European radio every week. During the 1990s, the main airplay chart had been changed thrice: European Airplay Top 50 (up to 12 October 1991), European Hit Radio (22 December 1990 t ...


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * {{Authority control 1989 songs 1989 singles Animated music videos Baroque pop songs Fairies in popular culture Madonna songs Psychedelic pop songs Sire Records singles Song recordings produced by Madonna Song recordings produced by Patrick Leonard Songs written by Madonna Songs written by Patrick Leonard