"Vogue"

Madonna singing
"Vogue" (1990)

By Peter Y. Chou
WisdomPortal.com

"Vogue" Album
by Madonna (1990)

Madonna singing
"Vogue" (1990)

Madonna & Dancers
in Vogue (1990)

Preface: For Song #44, I've selected Madonna singing "Vogue" (1990). I enjoyed dancing to this tune the Hustle at Cubberley Pavilion's ballroom dancing. The song is by American singer Madonna from her second soundtrack album, I'm Breathless (1990). It was released as first single from the album on March 27, 1990, by Sire Records. Madonna was inspired by vogue dancers and choreographers Jose Gutierez Xtravaganza & Luis Xtravaganza from the Harlem "House Ball" community, origin of the dance form, and they introduced "vogueing" to her at the Sound Factory club in New York City. "Vogue" is a house song which set trends in dance music in the 1990s with strong influences of 1970s disco within its composition. "Vogue" also contains a spoken section, in which Madonna name-checks various "Golden Age" Hollywood stars. Lyrically, the song is about enjoying oneself on the dance floor no matter who one is and it contains a theme of escapism. It became the best-selling single of 1990, selling over two million copies. "Vogue" reached number one in over 30 countries worldwide, The video has been ranked as one of the greatest of all time in different critic lists and polls, and won three awards at the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards out of a total of nine nominations. "Vogue" became the first multiplatinum single by a female artist. Lyrics

[Intro]
Strike a pose
Strike a pose
Vogue (Vogue, vogue)
Vogue (Vogue, vogue)

[Verse 1]
Look around, everywhere you turn is heartache
It's everywhere that you go (Look around)
You try everything you can to escape
The pain of life that you know (Life that you know)
When all else fails and you long to be
Something better than you are today
I know a place where you can get away
It's called a dance floor
And here's what it's for, so

[Chorus]
Come on, vogue (Vogue)
Let your body move to the music (Move to the music)
Hey, hey, hey
Come on, vogue (Vogue)
Let your body go with the flow (Go with the flow)
You know you can do it

[Verse 2]
All you need is your own imagination
So use it that's what it's for (That's what it's for)
Go inside, for your finest inspiration
Your dreams will open the door (Open up the door)
It makes no difference if you're black or white
If you're a boy or a girl
If the music's pumping it will give you new life
You're a superstar
Yes, that's what you are, you know it

[Chorus]
Come on vogue (Vogue, vogue)
Let your body groove to the music (Groove to the music)
Hey, hey, hey
Come on, vogue (Vogue, vogue)
Let your body go with the flow (Go with the flow)
You know you can do it

[Bridge]
Beauty's where you find it
Not just where you bump and grind it
Soul is in the musical
That's where I feel so beautiful
Magical, life's a ball, so
Get up on the dance floor

[Chorus]
Vogue (Vogue)
Let your body move to the music (Move to the music)
Hey, hey, hey
Come on, vogue (Vogue, vogue)
Let your body go with the flow (Go with the flow)
You know you can do it

[Refrain]
Vogue (Vogue)
Beauty's where you find it (Move to the music)
Vogue (Vogue)
Beauty's where you find it (Go with the flow)

[Verse 3]
Greta Garbo, and Monroe
Dietrich and DiMaggio
Marlon Brando, Jimmy Dean
On the cover of a magazine
Grace Kelly, Harlow, Jean
Picture of a beauty queen
Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire
Ginger Rogers dance on air
They had style, they had grace
Rita Hayworth gave good face
Lauren, Katharine, Lana too
Bette Davis, we love you
Ladies with an attitude
Fellas that were in the mood
Don't just stand there, let's get to it
Strike a pose, there's nothing to it
Vogue
Vogue

[Outro]
Oooh, you've got to
Let your body move to the music
Oooh, you've got to just
Let your body go with the flow
Oooh, you've got to
Vogue (Vogue, vogue, vogue)

© Peter Y. Chou
WisdomPortal.com
August 12, 2023