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La Isla Bonita

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"La Isla Bonita"
Song

"La Isla Bonita" (English: The Beautiful Island) is a song by American singer-songwriter Madonna. It was released as the fifth and final single from her third studio album, True Blue, on February 25, 1987 by Sire Records. "La Isla Bonita" is noted for being the first Madonna song to have a Spanish influence in it with arrangements of Cuban drums and Spanish guitar, maracas, harmonicas and a mix of synthesized and real drumming. The lyrics of the song tell about a Beautiful Island and was a tribute to the beauty of the Latin people according to Madonna.

"La Isla Bonita" achieved worldwide popularity, topping charts in the UK, Germany, France, Belgium and reaching number four on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. The music video had Madonna portraying two opposite characters. The Latin style and the flamenco red dress she wore became a trend. The song is among one of the most performed live songs by Madonna, appearing in five of her world tours including 2008's Sticky & Sweet Tour. Madonna has regularly performed the song in its Spanish form, sometimes with tribal or folk songs and remixes to accompany it. The song has been covered by a number of artists including French pop singer Alizée for her album Psychédélices (2007).

Writing and inspiration

"La Isla Bonita" was written by Patrick Leonard and Bruce Gaitsch. The song was previously written as a lament for the mythical Spanish island called San Pedro and was offered to Michael Jackson for his Bad album, who, according to Gaitsch, turned it down.[1] While working with Leonard on the True Blue album, Madonna accepted it in Jackson's place and re-wrote the song's lyrics, thus earning herself a co-writing credit.[2] The song was the first Madonna song to employ Spanish motifs, going so far as to include Spanish lyrics. The Spanish theme would reoccur throughout her career, manifesting itself in lyrics for "Who's That Girl", "Spanish Eyes", "I'm Going Bananas", the Spanish version of "You'll See" called "Verás", "Be Careful" which was a duet with Ricky Martin, "Sorry", "Lo Que Siente La Mujer" - the version in Spanish for her song "What It Feels Like for a Girl," and "Spanish Lesson" on the Hard Candy album.[3] Madonna described the song as her tribute to the "beauty and mystery of Latin American people".[4] According to her "Latin rhythms often dominate our uptempo compositions..[..]..It's like we're possessed. We both think that we were Latin in another life.[5]

Composition

"La Isla Bonita" is a Spanish-styled pop song. It is one of the characteristic works of the collaboration between Madonna and Patrick Leonard. The single mixes the sound of different instruments like Cuban drums and Spanish guitar, maracas and harmonicas and a mix of synthesized and real drumming. The song is written in the key of C minor and is set in common time like most pop songs, moving at a moderate tempo of 95 beats per minute.[6] Madonna's vocal range spans two octaves, from G3 to C5. The song starts with a musical introduction, performed on a Cuban drum, before descending into synthesized beats and Spanish guitar fusion. Madonna sings the chorus in the same G3 to C5 range.[6] After the second chorus there is a Spanish guitar interlude whence Madonna's voice expands to G major as she sings "I want to be where the sun warms the sky" and then comes down to a C minor when she sings "loves a girl". There is another musical interlude with a harmonica and the song, after another chorus, ends with fading out and Madonna's voice uttering the words "El dijo que te ama (He said he loves you)".[6]

The phrase "La Isla Bonita" translates as "The Beautiful Island" in English.[7] The song has four lines sung in Spanish, a theme which Madonna later incorporated in her 1987 single "Who's That Girl". The lyrics begin by describing Madonna as a tourist who prays "that the days would last, they went so fast" simultaneously isolating the other Latin people as them ("you can watch them go by").[8] In her book Women and popular music, author Sheila Whitley said that the chorus of the song places its emphasis on the incantatory present participle ("Tropically island breeze, all the nature wild and free, this is where I long to be"). The song draws connotations from the supplicant before its explicit focus on the chorus.[9]

The title and first line of the song refer to an island called San Pedro, held by some to be Ambergris Caye in the nation of Belize, as the song may also mention the principal village there called San Pedro Town.[10] However, Gaitsch has mentioned that at that time, Madonna was spending time in an U.S. town of the same name, and both Madonna and her then husband Sean Penn were good friends with a poet called San Pedro and novelist Charles Bukowski.[11] Madonna herself has not clarified this in any interview. Instead, she referred the song as being a tribute to Latin America and its people, along with an island and to herself.[12]

Reception

Critical reception

In a review for the album The Immaculate Collection, David Browne of Entertainment Weekly compared the song with the moves of Carmen Miranda on MTV.[13] Slant Magazine music critic Sal Cinquemani, in a review for the True Blue album, called the song one of Madonna's greatest, most influential and timeless songs.[14] Author Maury Dean in his book Rock 'n' Roll Gold Rush praised the song saying, "Madonna coos a Spanish lullaby. Sizzly romance blooms among the cozy sheltering palms. Tough tunes for most males to shrug off."[7] Rikky Rooksby, in his book The Complete Guide to the Music of Madonna called the song "a little escapism".[15] Dawn Keetley in his book Public Women, Public Words called the song as one of Madonna's most perfect songs capturing her inner emotional life.[16] William McKeen called the song "tranquil" and "Up on the Roof type imaginary escapes from the city snarl, the kind of Latin-flavored sweets that Blondie could never resist."[17]

Jon Pareles of The New York Times said that "La Isla Bonita" was one of Madonna's "friendlier" love songs.[18] Don McLeese of the Chicago Sun-Times believed that the song was the best song on the album, as well as the most memorable.[19] Meanwhile, Steve Morse of The Boston Globe believed that it was one of her "prettier" songs.[20] The Houston Chronicle while reviewing Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour, called the song a true retro one.[21] Marty Racine, from the same newspaper, believed that the song was one that stood out on the album.[22] The Daily News of Los Angeles, when discussing Madonna's style of music, believed that "La Isla Bonita" was a song that was "pointing in [a] welcome direction."[23]

Chart performance

"La Isla Bonita" debuted at number fifty-six and reached a peak of number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in March 1987.[24] The song was Madonna's second number one single on the adult contemporary chart, following 1986 "Live to Tell".[25] It became the eleventh consecutive top 5 hit for Madonna, a feat surpassed only by the Beatles and Elvis, which later Madonna surpassed with her 2008 single "4 Minutes".[26] The single also found success on the Hot Dance Singles Sales chart, where it peaked at number one.[27]

"La Isla Bonita" was a worldwide hit, reaching number one in various countries, including the UK, Canada, France and Germany.[28] In Canada, the song debuted at number seventy-four for the issue dated April 4, 1987[29] and reached the top of the chart in its tenth week on the issue dated June 6, 1987,[30] remaining on the chart for twenty-five weeks.[31] The song topped the UK Singles Chart for two weeks.[32] The single was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales of 250,000.[33] "La Isla Bonita" was Madonna's first number one song in France, where it spent three weeks at the top spot in July 1987.[34] In Europe, it became her fourth number one hit from True Blue, topping the Eurochart Hot 100 for three weeks in 1987. The song also peaked the charts in Switzerland, Belgium and Austria along with reaching the top-five in Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.[35][36][37][38][39][40][41]

Music video

File:Laislabonitamusicvideo.jpg
Madonna, dressed in a red Spanish flamenco style dress, portraying the passionate second character dancing in her room, in the music video for "La Isla Bonita".

The music video was set in Los Angeles and was directed by Mary Lambert, who directed a number of Madonna's 1980s videos, including those for "Borderline" and "Like a Prayer".[42] Benicio del Toro appeared in the video as a background character. The video world-premiered on MTV on March 6, 1987. The video starts with showing a number of Latin people dancing in a Spanish barrio as Madonna watches them from her window. She plays two different characters in the video: a boyishly-dressed Catholic woman and a colorful Flamenco dancer.[43] The characters are quite opposite in their portrayal, which is emphasized by two opposing settings for the characters. Firstly, the video shows a sparsely decorated room with an altar and pictures of Hispanic people on the wall. Madonna plays a pale-looking pious girl wearing a white petticoat and her short hair brushed back. She cries in her room and reluctantly ignores the invitation of the Latinos in the street to join them. The austerity and the passivity of the first character is however contrasted vividly with the passion and activity of the second character. Madonna in this portrayal wears a red voluminous extravagant Spanish style dress with a decolletagé and middle parting in the skirt while wearing red carnations in her hair. Complementing this passionate look, the second setting features a bright red room with red candles and candelabra. While the spiritual and submissive Madonna watches the Latinos and prays in her room, the passionate Madonna dances and leaves the room to join the dancers in the streets.[44]

While both settings seem to suggest that Madonna's characters live in the barrio and may be Latina themselves, the portrayal of Madonna in the dancing scenes (lush, flashy, colorful) contrasts with the Latinos in the street (sparsely worn out dresses). She dances around and even flirts but does not get really involved with them as the last scene shows Madonna dancing off the screen.[45] The video symbolizes the link between Latino culture and Catholicism. The two characters symbolize the restrained and passionate side of Catholicism, which author Rettenmund has described as Madonna's take on the religion.[46] The Latinos in the video are portrayed as stereotypes as people with no care in the world, unemployed adults, school deprived children and a crumbling barrio.[47] However, the music video was critically appreciated for its utilization of Hispanic fashion as an icon of beauty and romanticism. Collen McDanell, in his book Material Christianity, noted Madonna's use of Catholic objects in the video like the candlestands and home shrines, thereby giving them a new meaning according to her own.[48] Author Douglas Kellner noted, "such 'multiculturalism' and her culturally transgressive moves turned out to be highly successful moves that endeared her to large and varied youth audiences".[49] Madonna's Spanish look in the video became popular and appeared in the fashion trends at that time in the form of boleros and layered skirts accessorizing with rosary beads and crucifix like the video.[50]

Live performance

Madonna performing "La Isla Bonita" wearing a black hat atop a gypsy cart, as Gogol Bordello performs in front, in 2008 "Sticky & Sweet Tour" - November 20, 2008 at Marconi Plaza, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Madonna has performed "La Isla Bonita" on most of her world tours including the 1987 Who's That Girl Tour, the 1993 Girlie Show Tour, the 2001 Drowned World Tour, the 2006 Confessions Tour, and in the Sticky and Sweet Tour in 2008–09. She also sang it at the 2007 Live Earth benefit concert in London.

In the Who's That Girl tour, "La Isla Bonita" was performed as a part of the encore. Madonna came out on the stage in a bright red dress like the video and performed the song assisted by her backup singers Nikki Richards, Donna De Lory and Debi Mazar. A Latino dancing with Angel Ferreira was also included. In the 1993 Girlie Show tour Madonna again performed the song after "I'm Going Bananas". After finishing that song with some Spanish words she started "La Isla Bonita". Madonna was dressed in a blue and white striped shirt while Nikki and Donna wore a similar outfit, but in black and red. One of the musicians walked around bare chest playing the acoustic guitar.[51] During her 2001 Drowned World Tour, Madonna performed "La Isla Bonita" in the Latin segment of the show, wearing a revealing black senorita's dress and trousers, hair tied back and playing a Spanish guitar. She asked the crowd to join her while singing "olé ola" with the song.[52]

Madonna performed "La Isla Bonita" during the Live Earth benefit concert where she was joined by members of gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello for a crazed hoedown version of the song.[53] Gogol Bordello subsequently joined her on the 2006 Confessions Tour where the song was played as a dance/tribal remix with interventions from Eugene Hutz and Sergey Ryabtsev from Gogol Bordello. Madonna appeared on the stage in a purple white leotard with open hair and started singing the song. In the middle of the song, she was joined by her backup dancers who, along with Madonna, walked the length of the stage singing the chorus. The performance ends with Madonna lying down on the stage. The video backdrops showed a tropical paradise like the island San Pedro mentioned in the song.[54]

The song was once again added to the set list of her 2008–2009 Sticky & Sweet Tour, as part of the Gypsy segment of the show, featuring the Arkady Gips band and the Romani-Gypsy folk song "Lela Pala Tute." The performance had Madonna wearing a short black skintight dress and knee-high boots with pink fluorescent beads and necklaces. Along with "Lela Pala Tute", there was a Mediterranean Street party with Greek dancing, another gypsy song called "Doli, Doli" and a flamenco solo performance.[51][55]

Cover versions

French pop singer Alizée performed the song during her first promotional tours in Europe in 2003. In 2008, a new studio version was recorded and included on the special edition of her album, Psychédélices, in Mexico. The song so far has gone on to become Alizée's first top ten single on the Mexico national top ten airplay chart along with reaching number two in her native France.[56] Indie psychedelic folk singer-songwriter Jonathan Wilson recorded a cover for the 2007 Madonna tribute compilation Through the Wilderness.[57] American heavy metal band System of a Down has performed part of this song in their live shows on guitar.[58] In 1999, female singer Deetah used elements of the song in her single "El Paraíso Rico".[59] The song was sampled by rapper Black Rob, in his 2000 song "Spanish Fly" (included in his Life Story album) featuring Jennifer Lopez. In the chorus of the song, Lopez sings the part which samples "La Isla Bonita".[60] In 2004, rapper Mase sampled and interpolated it for his song "My Harlem Lullaby".[61]

On the Family Guy episode "The Father, the Son, and the Holy Fonz" when discussing Madonna at the end, one of the characters, Peter Griffin, calls her a liar for singing about a nonexistent place (La Isla Bonita) stating that he could not find it in a map.[62] Madonna and the song also appeared in Japanese TV commercials for the "Mitsubishi F-23 Hi-Fi Video" VCR, as part of her ongoing commercial commitment to Mitsubishi in Japan at the time.[63]

Formats and track listing

  • 7" Single
  1. La Isla Bonita (Remix) – 3:58
  2. La Isla Bonita (Instrumental Edit) – 4:20
  • 12" Maxi-Single
  1. La Isla Bonita (Extended Remix) – 5:20
  2. La Isla Bonita (Instrumental) – 5:14

Credits and personnel

Charts

Chart (1987) Peak
Position
Australia Kent Music Chart[64] 6
Austrian Singles Chart[37] 1
Belgian VRT Top 30[36] 3
Canadian RPM Singles Chart[30] 1
Dutch Top 40[40] 2
French SNEP Singles Chart[34] 1
German Singles Chart[28] 1
Irish Singles Chart[38] 2
Italian Singles Chart[65] 17
Norwegian Singles Chart[39] 5
Swedish Singles Chart[41] 3
Swiss Singles Chart[35] 1
UK Singles Chart[32] 1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[24] 4
Template:Succession box two to one
Preceded by
"Let It Be" by Ferry Aid
 UK Singles Chart number-one single
April 25, 1987 - May 1, 1987 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Eurochart Hot 100 number-one single (first run)
May 16, 1987 - May 23, 1987 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
"Let It Be" by Ferry Aid
 Swiss Singles Chart number-one single
May 31, 1987 		Succeeded by
"Let It Be" by Ferry Aid
Preceded by
"Some Girls are Ladies" by Bilgeri
 Austrian Singles Chart number-one single
June 1, 1987 - June 15, 1987 		Succeeded by
"Hexen" by Ecco
Preceded by Canadian RPM Singles Chart number-one single
June 6, 1987 		Succeeded by
Preceded by French SNEP Singles Chart number-one single
July 12, 1987 - July 26, 1987 		Succeeded by

Notes

  1. ^ Rikky Rooksby, p. 24
  2. ^ Fred Bronson, p. 659
  3. ^ Santiago Fouz-Hernández, Freya Jarman-Ivens, p. 68
  4. ^ Matthew Rettenmund, 1995, p.98
  5. ^ Paul Zollo, 1989
  6. ^ a b c "Digital Sheet Music: La Isla Bonita". Musicnotes. Alfred Publishing Co. Inc. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
  7. ^ a b Maury Dean, p. 523
  8. ^ Santiago Fouz-Hernández, Freya Jarman-Ivens, p. 144
  9. ^ Sheila Whitley, p. 144
  10. ^ "Rodrigo Vidal arrives in La Isla Bonita". The San Pedro Sun. August 17, 2000. Retrieved 2009-03-18.
  11. ^ Ciotti, Paul. (March 22, 1987) Los Angeles Times
  12. ^ Lynda Hart, Peggy Phelan, p. 341
  13. ^ David Browne (December 14, 1990). "The Immaculate Collection (1990)". Entertainment Weekly. www.ew.com. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  14. ^ Sal Cinquemani (July 2003). "Music review: Madonna - True Blue". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 2009-03-24.
  15. ^ Rikky Rooksby, p. 25
  16. ^ Keetley, Pettigrew, p. 380
  17. ^ William McKeen, p. 233
  18. ^ Jon Pareles (July 26, 2001). "POP REVIEW; Madonna and the Wiles of Willfulness". New York Times. www.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2009-03-25.
  19. ^ Don McLeese (July 10, 1986). "Mature Madonna Isn't As Much Fun". Chicago Sun-Times. www.suntimes.com. Retrieved 2009-03-25.
  20. ^ Steve Morse (July 10, 1987). "Madonna Hidden in Hollywood". The Boston Globe. www.boston.com. Retrieved 2009-03-25.
  21. ^ Joey Guerra (November 14, 2008). "Is Madonna still relevant? YES!". The Houston Chronicle. www.chron.com. Retrieved 2009-03-24.
  22. ^ Marty Racine (July 20, 1986). "Records". The Houston Chronicle. www.chron.com. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
  23. ^ "Music - State of Sound". The Daily News of Los Angeles. newsbank. July 18, 1986. Retrieved 2009-03-25.
  24. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita on Billboard Hot 100: March 1987". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media Inc. June 20, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  25. ^ "La Isla Bonita on Hot Adult Contemporary chart:April 1987". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media Inc. April 11, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  26. ^ Dave McAleer, p. 277
  27. ^ "La Isla Bonita On Hot Dance Music/Maxi Singles Sales chart". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media Inc. June 20, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  28. ^ a b "Chartverfolgung:Madonna - La Isla Bonita". Media Control Charts. www.musicline.de. May 11, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  29. ^ "Canadian Singles Chart - RPM - La Isla Bonita debut". RPM. www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. April 4, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
  30. ^ a b "Canadian Singles Chart - RPM - La Isla Bonita tops the chart". RPM. www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. June 6, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
  31. ^ "Canadian Singles Chart - RPM - La Isla Bonita last week". RPM. www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. September 19, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
  32. ^ a b Warwick, Neil (2004). The Complete Book of the British Charts: Singles & Albums. Omnibus Press. ISBN 1-84449-058-0. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  33. ^ "Certified Awards - La Isla Bonita". British Phonographic Industry. 1987-04-01. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
  34. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita on French SNEP Singles chart". lescharts.com. July 1986. Retrieved 2009-03-20. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |owrk= ignored (help)
  35. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita on Swiss charts". Swiss Music Charts. hitparade.ch. July 1986. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  36. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita - VRT Radio top 30". VRT Top 30. Top30-2.Radio.2. April 4, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  37. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita on Austrian charts". Ö3 Austria Top 40. austriancharts.com. August 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  38. ^ a b "The Irish Charts - Search La Isla Bonita". Irish Recorded Music Association. www.irishcharts.com. March 29, 1987. Retrieved 209-03-23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  39. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita on Norway". VG-lista. norwegiancharts.com. August 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  40. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita on Dutch charts". MegaCharts. dutchcharts.nl. September 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  41. ^ a b "La Isla Bonita on Swedishcharts". Sverigetopplistan. swedishcharts.com. July 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  42. ^ Madonna. The Immaculate Collection (VHS). Warner Music Vision. {{cite AV media}}: Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help)
  43. ^ Matthew Rettenmund, 1995, p. 98
  44. ^ Santiago Fouz-Hernández, Freya Jarman-Ivens, p. 145
  45. ^ David Tetzlaff, 1993, p. 259
  46. ^ Matthew Rettenmund, 1995, p. 34
  47. ^ Clara Rodriguez, 1997, p. 2
  48. ^ Collen McDanell, p. 63
  49. ^ Douglas Kellner, p. 271
  50. ^ Carol Clerk, p. 44
  51. ^ a b "Tour section:La Isla Bonita". Mad-Eyes.net. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  52. ^ Christopher Barrett (July 11, 2001). "Madonna / July 6, 2001 / London (Earls Court)". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media Inc. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  53. ^ Mark Sutherland (July 7, 2007). "Live Earth London Wraps With Madonna Spectacular". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media Inc. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  54. ^ Ed Gonzalez (June 6, 2006). "Confessions Tour review". Slant Magazine. www.slantmagazine.com. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  55. ^ Monique Jessen (August 23, 2008). "Madonna Kicks Off World Tour in Knee-High Boots". People. www.people.com.
  56. ^ "Alizee La Isla Bonita". ArtistsDirect.com. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  57. ^ "Madonna tribute set list revealed". NME.com. May 3, 2007. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  58. ^ "La Isla Bonita Intro Guitar Pro Tab by System Of A Down". UltimateGuitar.com. May 26, 2006. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  59. ^ "Deadly Cha Cha". MTV Asia. May 23, 2007. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  60. ^ "Black Rob - Life Story - Album Reviews - NME.COM". NME.com. August 2008. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  61. ^ "Mase:Welcome Back". Slant Magazine. www.slantmagazine.com. November 2004. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  62. ^ "Family Guy: The Father, The Son, and The Holy Fonz Episode Reviews". TV.com. www.tv.com/family-guy. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  63. ^ "Madonna 1987 Mitsubishi Advert La Isla Bonita". CarVideosOnline.com. July 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  64. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970-1992. Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  65. ^ "Indice per Interprete:Madonna". Federation of the Italian Music Industry. HitParadeItalia. May 17, 1987. Retrieved 2009-03-23.

References

External links

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