Kinda horrifying to think it's actually been 30 years since Madonna's debut LP was released. I was just reminiscing about how my friend Greg and I both wanted it and Cyndi Lauper's "She's So Unusual" but could each only afford one, so divided and conquered. I can remember being in P.E. class at Dobson High talking to Joel Avery about "Holiday," and everybody thinking it was by some new "black chick" on the scene. As I recall, the big reveal for me was when when MTV started to play a quick clip of "Burning Up" on some sort of teaser ad. (They rarely played the whole video, which irritated me to no end.) The blond tresses and dark roots were pure Debbie Harry, but the sound was something entirely different. Although I frequently cite ""Ray of Light" as her best album, it's probably more true to say that "Madonna" is my favorite album. With "Holiday," "Borderline," "Everybody" and "Physical Attraction" all on one record -- not to mention "Burning Up" and "Lucky Star" -- it's her "Parallel Lines" to "Ray of Light"'s "Autoamerican." Thank you for the music, girl!
