"Justify My Love" was released on
November 6, 1990 as the lead single from Madonna's first
greatest hits compilation album The Immaculate Collection
(1990). Musically it's a trip hop song with mid-tempo
settings and instrumentation. Producer Kravitz used striking
drums, found on Public Enemy's instrumental "Security Of The
First World" (1988). The lyrics of the song are
primarily about sex and romance. Madonna's vocals are primarily spoken
and whispered, but almost never sung, a style that she later employed on
her following studio album Erotica (1992). The famous music video for
"Justify My Love" was directed in Paris on November 9, 1990, by
Jean-Baptiste Mondino, features Madonna's then-boyfriend, model and
actor Tony Ward. It caused controversy worldwide, due to its explicit
sexual images of sadomasochism, voyerism, and bisexuality, and was
subsequently banned from MTV and other TV networks. "Justify My Love"
went to the top position in the United States, Canada, Finland and to
the runner-up slot in United Kingdom and Italy. |