If the claim is that dubbing The Immaculate Collection Madonna's best album is a cheat, the answer is that, for a greatest hits package it holds together like a unified concept album about Faith and Fidelity as refracted in a young woman's being. And as a constantly rejuvenation pop music Its clearest antecedent is the Who's' Meaty, Beaty, Big And Bouncy -both of which were filled with singles which made great sense collected in one place.
I haven't written this yet, but when I review her new album I will mention how much better "Girl Gone Wild" sounds at the lead off spot than it does on the radio. On The Immaculate Collection, what sounded incredible on the radio sounds like the height of pop majesty on this greatest hits collection.
Madonna has two later compilations, not including Bedtime Stories, and none of them come close to TIC, the 1990 death by disco steam rolling hit single album. It skims all the albums as of 1990 for hits, adds two movie tracks that also scored big and ends with two new songs, one standing in place and the last one pointing to the future. The first three songs are sure fires off the debut album, followed by two career changes off the sophomore effort and then three this is no fluke movie soundtrack smashes. The middle one from her first (and best) movie performance.
The rest of the songs are from the next three albums and two new ones.
The relentless, remorseless excellence here is ridiculous. From controversy to controversy, from anti-virginity to pro-life to miscegenation and out the other side. She is not the chameleon of a Bowie, though people thought she was, she is always Madonna: Catholic bad girl doing it her way. And as the album progresses, the concepts remain hollowly deep. A skimming, scheming, smart aleck Media mind fuck which, however lousy her work outside music might have been, inside the Billboard 200, she careened from height to height.
Musically, this was white girl disco by a girl who could dance. A Donna Summer pulling her own strings. The big ballads always maintained a cool (try "Live To Tell"), the pure pop songs, "Lucky Star", "Like A Virgin", "Cherish" implied more than they actually said. And "Material" twisted on its own ambiguity.
Most brilliantly of all, "Vogue" -off a terrible, terrible movie, is a fashion plate, a fashion statement, a dance and a political commentary.
If you check out the Immaculate Video Collection, it is a sundrenched, color saturated, color festival.
But stay with the album.
Madonna is a good album artist, Madonna is a great singles artist.
Grade: A+