| "Like a Prayer" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Single cover | ||
| Single by Madonna | ||
| From the album Like a Prayer | ||
| Released | February 28th, 1989 (NA)/(EU) March 16th, 1989 (JA) | |
| Format | CD maxi single 12" Maxi Single Cassette Single 7" Vinyl Single | |
| Length | 5:39 | |
| Genre | Pop/Dance | |
| Label | Warner Bros. | |
| Writers | Madonna Patrick Leonard | |
| Producers | Madonna Patrick Leonard | |
| Director | Mary Lambert | |
| Chart positions | ||
| Madonna Singles Chronology | ||
| "Spotlight" (1987) |
"Like Prayer" (1989) |
"Express Yourself" (1989) |
This article is about the song. For other uses see Like a Prayer (disambiguation).
Like a Prayer was the first single released from the Madonna album of the same name. A power pop/rock song written by Madonna and Patrick Leonard, it notably featured a gospel choir, arranged by Andrae Crouch.
Song information
The song reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1989, and spent three weeks at #1 in the UK. It also won the MTV Video Music Award - Viewer's Choice and in her acceptance speech, Madonna thanked Pepsi. The song was ranked #300 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
Madonna has performed this song in two of her worldwide tours : The Blond Ambition Tour 90 and The Re-Invention Tour 2004. Most recently she performed this song in front of a wideworld audience at the Live 8 concert, backed by the London Community Gospel Choir.
The single version of Like A Prayer (song) (7" remix) is slightly different from the album version in some extra background production including adding electric guitar at the song's climax.
Like a Prayer was also remixed as a dance song by Shep Pettibone for Madonna's Immaculate Collection compilation album. The remix became almost as popular as the original album version, but is often not as highly regarded by critics and fans.
It has been covered and remixed by various artists worldwide such as Blue, H2O, Mad'House and John Wesley Harding. Like a Prayer was also covered by pop-punk band Rufio for the compilation Punk Goes Pop.
Music video
The highly controversial music video for the song was directed by Mary Lambert, who also directed "Borderline", "Like A Virgin", "Material Girl" and "La Isla Bonita". It attracted criticism for its use of Catholic iconography and for the supposed use of a Black Jesus (actually a black saint) and cross burning imagery, but also garnered praise for its interpretation on discrimination, rape, and faith.
Pepsi had paid Madonna $5 million to appear in a separate music video for this song that would air as a TV commercial. When the executives saw the "Like a Prayer" video, they quickly yanked the ad after only three airings in attempt to dissociate themselves with the controversy Madonna attracted. Though her contract with Pepsi called for three future commercials, Madonna got to keep her five-million-dollar endorsement fee without fulfilling her contractual obligations.
Charts (alphabetical order)
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia ARIA Top 50 Singles | 1 (5 wks) |
| Canada | 1 (3 wks) |
| Eurochart Hot 100 | 1 (12 wks) |
| France | 2 (3 wks) |
| Germany (Media Control) | 2 (5 wks) |
| Japan (ChartJapan) | 1 (2 wks) |
| UK Singles Chart | 1 (3 wks) |
| USA Billboard Hot 100 | 1 (3 wks) |
| USA Billboard Adult Contemporary | 3 |
| USA Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play Chart | 1 |
| USA Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | 1 |
| USA Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | 20 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification |
|---|---|
| Australia | 2x Platinum |
| France | Silver |
| Germany | Gold |
| UK | Gold |
| USA | Platinum |