Bedtime Story (Madonna song)

"Bedtime Story"
"Bedtime Story"
Single by Madonna
from the album Bedtime Stories
B-side	"Survival"
Released	February 13, 1995
Recorded	1994
Studio	Chappell (Encino, California)
Genre	Electronic; trance;
Length	4:53
Label	Maverick; Sire; Warner Bros.;
Songwriter(s)	Björk; Nellee Hooper; Marius De Vries;
Producer(s)	Madonna; Nellee Hooper;
Madonna singles chronology
Music video
	"Bedtime Story" on YouTube

"Bedtime Story" is a song by American singer Madonna from her sixth studio album, Bedtime Stories (1994). It was released as the third single from the album on February 13, 1995, by Maverick Records. The song was written by Björk, Nellee Hooper and Marius De Vries. She re-wrote a demo of the song to the current version, which was then produced by Madonna and Hooper. A mid-tempo electronic and house song with acid, ambient and techno influences, "Bedtime Story" has an underlying skeletal synth melody influenced by minimal trance music. The track's unconventional, electronic sound was a departure from the pop-R&B-based tracks throughout the rest of the album. Lyrically, the song talks about the joys of the unconscious world.

"Bedtime Story" received favorable reviews from music critics, who praised the song's hypnotic and electronic style, and deemed it an underrated song which could have had great potential. Commercially, the single reached the top-ten in the record charts of the United Kingdom, Italy and Australia, but missed the top 40 in the United States, while peaking at number one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart. The accompanying music video for "Bedtime Story" was directed by Mark Romanek and is listed as one of the most expensive music videos of all time with a cost of $5 million ($10 million in 2023 dollars^[1]). It features surrealistic and new age imagery, with influences from artists such as Remedios Varo, Frida Kahlo and Leonora Carrington. The video received acclaim from critics and is permanently displayed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

"Bedtime Story" was performed at the 1995 Brit Awards in London with Madonna wearing a silver Versace dress and long blonde extensions, becoming one of the 30 best moments of the awards show history according to Marie Claire. A remixed version of the song was also used as a video interlude on her Re-Invention World Tour in 2004, and was later performed by Madonna on her 2023–24 Celebration Tour. Critics and scholars noted that the song foreshadowed Madonna's move towards electronic music in her future work.

^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.

[inflation-US-1] 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.

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