Frozen (song)

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"Frozen"
Single by Madonna
from the album Ray of Light
B-side "Shanti/Ashtangi"
Released February 23, 1998 (1998-02-23)
Format CD, cassette, 7" vinyl, 12" vinyl
Recorded 1997
Genre Trip hop, electronic, ambient
Length 6:12
Label Maverick, Warner Bros.
Writer(s) Madonna, Patrick Leonard
Producer Madonna, William Orbit, Patrick Leonard
Madonna singles chronology
"Another Suitcase in Another Hall"
(1997)		 "Frozen"
(1998)		 "Ray of Light"
(1998)

"Frozen" is a song by American singer-songwriter Madonna from her eighth studio album Ray of Light. It was released as the lead single from the album on 23 February 1998 by Maverick Records. It was written by Madonna and Patrick Leonard who had previously worked together on the albums True Blue (1986), Who's That Girl (1987), Like a Prayer (1989) and I'm Breathless (1990) and the single "I'll Remember" (1994). The song was produced by Madonna, William Orbit and Leonard and remixed by Victor Calderone, Stereo MC's and Orbit for the single release.

Musically, "Frozen" is an electronic ballad[1] which talks about heartbreak. The song was described as one of Madonna's darkest and most personal songs. "Frozen" received extremely positive reviews from most music critics, who deemed it an album highlight. The song was a worldwide success, peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, and number one on the dance charts on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts. It peaked at number one in the UK Singles Chart as well.

Contents

[edit] Background and composition
"Frozen"
A slow-tempo dance track featuring Madonna's voice over layers of string arrangements and synthesizers. In the UK it was seen as a "big comeback", becoming her first song ever to debut at number-one, and her first chart-topper since 1990.
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"Frozen" was a radical change for Madonna. The darker electronic undertones, eastern strings arranged by Craig Armstrong, a touch of Middle Eastern percussion in the opening and her new vocal range were all previously unexplored territory for Madonna.[citation needed] However, the song was a huge success and is praised as being one of her best songs. Its success worldwide also marks it as one of Madonna's biggest hits ever. Madonna has said that the lyric is about "an emotionally frozen man."[citation needed] The song was mainly composed in F minor.

"Frozen" also marked the beginning of a series of remixes which were done during the Ray of Light era. Madonna had been working with Victor Calderone since "Secret", who went on to remix most of her follow-up singles. The remix done by the Stereo MCs was used by Madonna on her 2001 Drowned World Tour. Madonna also performed "Frozen" on her 2004 Re-Invention Tour, using a slightly edited version that is very similar to the original song, and on the 2009 leg of her Sticky & Sweet Tour, where it sampled musical elements from Calvin Harris's song "I'm Not Alone" and lyrics from her own song "Open Your Heart".

[edit] Plagiarism controversy

On November 18, 2005, a Belgian judge seated in Mons ruled that the opening four-bar theme to "Frozen" was plagiarized from the song "Ma vie fout le camp", composed by Salvatore Acquaviva of Mouscron. The judge subsequently ordered the withdrawal from sales of all remaining discs, and forbade any further playing of the song on Belgian TV and radio. The judge also ordered Warner, EMI and Sony to publish and spread the decision within fifteen days to various media outlets on pain of a penalty of €125,000 for non-compliance with the court order. No damages were granted.[2][3]

The Belgian radio station Donna held a Top 5000 music chart program from 17 November to 12 December 2008. The song "Frozen" reached place 143, but because of the legal status of the song it could not be played. The radio hosts asked their listeners to watch the music video on YouTube, while there was approximately 5 minutes of radio silence. The song is omitted from the tracklisting on the Belgian pressings of Celebration.[4][5]

On 11 July 2009 Madonna performed a dance remix of "Frozen" on the Sticky & Sweet Tour date in Werchter, Belgium.[6]

[edit] Critical reception

"Frozen" was generally acclaimed by music critics. Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine gave the song a positive review, claiming it was "one of the great pop masterpieces of the '90s. Its lyrics are uncomplicated but its statement is grand."[7] David Browne from Entertainment Weekly had said the song was a "wuthering-beats melodrama that's often breathtaking."[8] Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic had highlighted the song as an album standout, but rated the song two stars out of five.[1] They described the song "chilly". The A.V. Club enjoyed the songs melodic beat and the sound, but they did dismiss the lyrics.[9] In 2003, Madonna fans were asked to vote for their Top 20 Madonna singles of all time by Q magazine. "Frozen" was allocated the #10 spot.

[edit] Chart performance

"Frozen" was a huge success worldwide. It topped the charts in a few countries, including the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain and Finland, but it peaked at #2 in mostly the rest of the world, being held off from the top position in the majority of them by Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On". It peaked at #2 in the United States. It became her sixth number-two single in the United States, making Madonna the artist with most number-two hits in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Frozen" debuted in the Mainstream Top 40 (Pop Songs) chart at no. 16, the third biggest debut to date,[10] and reached the top 10 the next week.[11]

In the United Kingdom, despite sporadically high sales of singles such as "You'll See" (a #5 hit in 1995) and "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" (a #3 success), "Frozen" was seen as the "big comeback" for Madonna, and became her first ever single to debut at number-one, selling 508,296 copies. It was Madonna's first British chart-topper since "Vogue" in April 1990.

Across Europe "Frozen" was also a large success, reached the top-two position in almost all countries. The song spent eleven weeks at #2 on the European Singles Chart. The song debuted on the Spanish Singles Chart at number three on the issue dated February 18, 1998. The next week, it reached number-one spot and stayed there for three weeks.[12] According to The Official Charts Company, the song has sold 525,000 copies there.[13]

[edit] Music video

Madonna playing a witchy persona in the music video for "Frozen".

Madonna traveled to the Indian Wells Valley of the Mojave Desert in California to shoot the music video for "Frozen" from January 7 to 10, 1998. It was directed by Chris Cunningham, and was inspired by the movies The English Patient and The Sheltering Sky. The video won an MTV Video Music Award for "Best Special Effects" in 1998. The cinematography was done by Darius Khondji, who also shot Madonna's 1993 music video "Fever", and the 1996 film Evita. With a monochromatic bluish appearance throughout, the video shows Madonna playing an ethereal Gothic witchy, melancholy persona, with long black hair, black gowns designed by Olivier Theyskens (at that time a young and emerging talent), and mehndi on her hand showing the Hindu word Om on her palm. She shapeshifts into a flock of crows and a black dog.

The video premiered on February 12, 1998 in Europe and on MTV four days later. There were also two remix videos of "Frozen" released that same year by Dan-O-Rama titled "Stereo MC's Mix" and "Calderone Club Mix".

The video was parodied by Australian comedienne Gina Riley in an episode of the short-lived sketch show Something Stupid.

  • Director: Chris Cunningham
  • Producer: Nick Wrathall
  • Director of Photography: Darius Khondji
  • Editor: Gary Knight
  • Production company: Black Dog Films

[edit] Cover versions

  • A rock music style cover was recorded by Jeff Scott Soto with the band Talisman for their 1999 album Truth.[14]
  • Polish industrial metal band Thy Disease used parts of the original strings and vocals in a cover on their 2001 album, Devilsh Act of Creation[15]
  • In May 2009, the Italian rock band Absinth Effect[16] recorded a cover version of Frozen for their debut album.

[edit] Track listings and formats

US 7" vinyl / CD Single / UK cassette single
  1. "Frozen" (Album Version) — 6:10
  2. "Shanti/Ashtangi" — 4:29
US 12" promo vinyl
  1. "Frozen" (William Orbit Widescreen Mix) — 6:34
  2. "Frozen" (William Orbit Drumapella) — 5:15
  3. "Frozen" (Victor Calderone Drumapella) — 5:09
US 12" vinyl
  1. "Frozen" (Album Version) — 6:10
  2. "Frozen" (Stereo MC's Remix) — 5:45
  3. "Frozen" (Extended Club Mix) — 11:17
  4. "Frozen" (Meltdown Mix) — 8:09
US promo CD single
  1. "Frozen" (Radio Edit) — 5:08
  2. "Frozen" (Album Version) — 6:10
  3. "Frozen" (Call Out Research Hook)
US promo CD single
  1. "Frozen" (Stereo MC's Remix Edit) — 4:52
  2. "Frozen" (Extended Club Mix Edit) — 4:55
  3. "Frozen" (Radio Edit) — 5:08
US CD Maxi-single
  1. "Frozen" (Album Version) — 6:10
  2. "Frozen" (Stereo MC's Remix) — 5:45
  3. "Frozen" (Extended Club Mix) — 11:17
  4. "Frozen" (Meltdown Mix) — 8:09
European 12" vinyl
  1. "Frozen" (Extended Club Mix) — 11:17
  2. "Frozen" (Stereo MC's Remix) — 5:45
  3. "Frozen" (Meltdown Mix) — 8:09
European promo CD single
  1. "Frozen" (Radio Edit) — 5:08
  2. "Frozen" (Album Version) — 6:10
UK CD single / Japanese CD Maxi-single
  1. "Frozen" (Album Version) — 6:10
  2. "Frozen" (Stereo MC's Remix) — 5:45
  3. "Frozen" (Meltdown Mix) — 8:09
  4. "Frozen" (Extended Club Mix) — 11:17
  5. "Frozen" (Widescreen Mix) — 6:33

[edit] Official versions

Madonna about to begin the performance of "Frozen" at the Sticky & Sweet Tour.
  • Album Version (6:10)
  • Radio Edit (5:08) (originally PROMO ONLY - later included on GHV2 in 2001 and the single-disc edition of Celebration in 2009)
  • Unedited Version (6:18) (unreleased prior to its appearance on the two-disc edition of Celebration in 2009)
  • Call Out Research Hook (Promo Only)
  • Stereo MC's Mix (5:45)
  • Stereo MC's Mix Edit (4:56) (Promo Only)
  • Victor Calderone Extended Club Mix (11:17)
  • Victor Calderone Extended Club Mix Radio Edit (4:17) (Promo Only)
  • Victor Calderone Extended Club Mix Edit (4:41) (Promo Only)
  • Victor Calderone Drum-A-Pella (5:07) (Promo Only)
  • William Orbit Meltdown Mix (8:09)
  • William Orbit Meltdown Short Mix (4:53) (Promo Only)
  • William Orbit Drum-A-Pella (5:14) (Promo Only)
  • William Orbit Widescreen Mix (6:33)
  • Video Edit (5:20)
  • Sticky & Sweet Tour Official Studio Version - 4:12
  • William Orbit Club Mix - 11Ș22
  • William Orbit Odyssey Remix - 6Ș27

[edit] Charts and certifications

[edit] Peak positions

Chart (1998)[17] Peak
position
Australia ARIA Singles Chart 5
Austrian Singles Chart 2
Belgian Flemish Ultratop 50 2
Belgian Wallonie Ultratop 40 3
Canadian Singles Chart 2
Dutch Top 40 2
Eurochart Hot 100 Singles 2
Finnish Singles Chart 1
French SNEP Singles Chart 2
German Singles Chart[18] 2
Irish Singles Chart[19] 4
Italian FIMI Singles Chart[20] 1
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart 5
Norwegian VG-lista Singles Chart 2
Spanish Singles Chart[12] 1
Swedish Singles Chart 2
Swiss Singles Chart 2
UK Singles Chart[21] 1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[22] 2
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Airplay[23] 7
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales[23] 10
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play[22] 1
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary[22] 8

[edit] End of year charts

End of year chart (1998) Position
Australia ARIA Singles Chart[24] 44
Austrian Singles Chart[25] 15
Belgian Singles Chart (Flanders)[26] 18
Belgian Singles Chart (Wallonia)[27] 15
Dutch Top 40[28] 14
French Singles Chart (SNEP)[29] 15
Italian Singles Chart [30] 7
German Singles Chart [31] 17
Swedish Singles Chart[32] 26
Swiss Singles Chart [33] 6
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[34] 32

[edit] Certifications

Country Certification
(sales thresholds)
Australia Gold[35]
Austria Platinum[36]
France Gold[37]
Germany Platinum[38]
Netherlands Gold[39]
New Zealand Platinum[40]
Norway Platinum[41]
Sweden Gold[42]
Switzerland Gold[43]
United Kingdom Gold[44]
United States Gold[45]

[edit] Chart procession and succession

Preceded by
"Pop-musiikkia" by Neljä Baritonia		 Finnish Singles Chart number-one single
February 15, 1998		 Succeeded by
"My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion
Preceded by
"Torn" by Natalie Imbruglia		 Spanish Singles Chart number-one single
February 25, 1998 – March 4, 1998		 Succeeded by
"El Club de Los Humildes" by Mecano
Preceded by
"Brimful of Asha" by Cornershop		 UK Singles Chart number-one single
March 1, 1998 – March 7, 1998		 Succeeded by
"My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion
Preceded by
"Give Me Love" by DJ Dado featuring Michelle Weeks
"Gimme Love" by Alexia		 Italian Singles Chart number-one single
March 7, 1998 – April 4, 1998 (first run)
April 18, 1998 (second run)		 Succeeded by
"Gimme Love" by Alexia
"My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion
Preceded by
"Fun" by Da Mob featuring Jocelyn Brown		 U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play number-one single
April 25, 1998 – May 2, 1998		 Succeeded by
"Found a Cure" by Ultra Naté

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (March 6, 1998). "allmusic ((( Ray of Light > Overview )))". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r333319. Retrieved 2009-07-23. 
  2. ^ http://misc.skynet.be/index.html?l1=actuality&l2=today&l3=all&l4=home&a=viewmessage&p1=44676 Misc.skynet.be[dead link]
  3. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/4449580.stm News.bbc.co.uk
  4. ^ (Dutch) "Madonna toontje lager in België". De Standaard. 7 September 2009. http://www.standaard.be/artikel/detail.aspx?artikelid=E42EPF87. Retrieved 4 February 2010. 
  5. ^ "Celebration". http://www.proxis.be/BENL/Product/CELEBRATION/6518873__detail.aspx.  Tracklisting of the Belgian edition of Celebration, EAN 0936249719178, not including "Frozen".
  6. ^ Auteur: Jan Ruysbergh. "De Standaard Online - Madonna provoceert met 'verboden nummer' 'Frozen'". Standaard.be. http://www.standaard.be/artikel/detail.aspx?artikelid=1s2c68t6. Retrieved 2011-03-02. 
  7. ^ Slant Magazine Review | Ray of Light
  8. ^ Entertainment Weekly review | Ray of Light
  9. ^ http://www.avclub.com/articles/madonna-ray-of-light,21034/
  10. ^ Billboard Lady Gaga's 'Born' Blasts Off With Huge Sales & Radio Start
  11. ^ Billboard Britney Spears Speeds Into Pop Songs Top 10
  12. ^ a b Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 978-978-84-8048-639-2. 
  13. ^ "Madonna: The Official Top 40". MTV. MTV Networks. http://www.mtv.co.uk/music/charts/official-uk-countdowns/madonna-official-top-40. Retrieved 2010-12-20. 
  14. ^ "Artists :: TALISMAN". MusicMight. 2009-07-21. http://www.musicmight.com/linkto/artist/{2ED68C80-5B34-45A4-A88A-4E78E19. Retrieved 2011-03-02. 
  15. ^ "Devilsh Act of Creation". Album info. http://www.metal-archives.com/albums/Thy_Disease/Devilish_Act_of_Creation/10040. 
  16. ^ IT (2010-06-20). "Absinth Effect [2 new acoustic tracks] on MySpace Music - Free Streaming MP3s, Pictures & Music Downloads". Myspace.com. http://myspace.com/absintheffect. Retrieved 2011-03-02. 
  17. ^ Hit Parade (1998). "European charts". hitparade.ch. http://hitparade.ch/showitem.asp?key=3616&cat=s. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  18. ^ Charts-Surfer (1998). "German Singles Chart (Search)". charts-surfer.de. http://www.charts-surfer.de/. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  19. ^ Irish Charts (February 26, 1998). "Irish Singles Chart (Search)". irishcharts.ie. http://www.irishcharts.ie/search/placement. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  20. ^ "Madonna - Frozen" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. http://www.hitparadeitalia.it/schede/f/frozen.htm. Retrieved 2010-01-08. 
  21. ^ Every Hit (March, 1998). "UK Singles Chart (Search)". everyhit.com. http://www.everyhit.com/. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  22. ^ a b c Allmusic (1998). "Billboard Charts". allmusic.com. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p64565/charts-awards/billboard-singles. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  23. ^ a b "themadonnabillboardarchieves.com". Themadonnabbarchives.com. http://themadonnabbarchives.com/Frozen.html. Retrieved 2011-03-02. 
  24. ^ "ARIA Charts - End of Year Charts - Top 100 Singles 1998". Aria.com.au. http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-top-100-singles-1998.htm. Retrieved 2011-03-02. 
  25. ^ http://austriancharts.at/year.asp?id=1998&cat=s
  26. ^ http://www.ultratop.be/nl/annual.asp?year=1998
  27. ^ http://www.ultratop.be/fr/annual.asp?year=1998
  28. ^ http://dutchcharts.nl/jaaroverzichten.asp?year=1998&cat=s
  29. ^ http://www.disqueenfrance.com/fr/page-259376.xml?year=1998
  30. ^ http://www.hitparadeitalia.it/hp_yends/hpe1998.htm
  31. ^ http://ki.informatik.uni-wuerzburg.de/~topsi/deu1998/deu_1998t.html
  32. ^ "Årslista Singlar - År 1998" (in Swedish). http://www.hitlistan.se/netdata/ghl002.mbr/lista?liid=43&dfom=19980001&newi=0&height=420&platform=Win32&browser=MSIE&navi=no&subframe=Mainframe. Retrieved 2011-12-28. 
  33. ^ http://swisscharts.com/year.asp?key=1998
  34. ^ "Billboard Top 100 - 1998". http://longboredsurfer.com/charts.php?year=1998. Retrieved 2010-08-28. 
  35. ^ Austrian Recording Industry Association (1998). "Australian certification". aria.com.au. http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-accreditations-singles-1998.htm. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  36. ^ International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (March 10, 1998). "Austrian certification (search)". ifpi.at. http://www.ifpi.at/?section=goldplatin. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  37. ^ "Disque en France". Disque en France. http://www.disqueenfrance.com/fr/page-259165.xml?year=1998&type=7. Retrieved 2011-03-02. 
  38. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank ('Frozen')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. http://www.musikindustrie.de/gold_platin_datenbank/?action=suche&strTitel=Frozen&strInterpret=&strTtArt=single&strAwards=checked. Retrieved 2008-08-10. 
  39. ^ Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers (1999). "Dutch certification (search)". nvpi.nl. http://www.nvpi.nl/nvpi/pagina.asp?pagkey=60461. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  40. ^ "RIANZ (select 'Chart #1165 - Sunday 27 June 1999' and 'Top 50 Albums Chart' from drop-down lists)". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. http://www.rianz.org.nz/rianz/chart.asp. Retrieved 2008-08-10. 
  41. ^ International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (1998). "Norwegian certification (search)". ifpi.no. http://www.ifpi.no/sok/index_trofe.htm. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  42. ^ International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (Week 25, 1998). "Swedish certification". ifpi.se. http://www.hitlistan.se/. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  43. ^ Hit Parade (1998). "Swiss certification". hitparade.ch. http://hitparade.ch/awards.asp?year=1998. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 
  44. ^ "BPI - Certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry. http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/search.aspx. Retrieved 2010-07-02. 
  45. ^ Recording Industry Association of America (April 30, 1998). "U.S. certification (search)". riaa.com. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH. Retrieved 2008-08-06. 

[edit] External links

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