Burning The Ground Exclusive 1985
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Originally posted December 13, 2016
“Dress You Up” is a song by American singer Madonna from her second studio album Like a Virgin (1984). It was released on July 31, 1985, as the album’s final single, by Sire Records. The song was the last track to be added to the album as it was submitted late by songwriters Andrea LaRusso and Peggy Stanziale. Madonna pushed for the song’s inclusion in Like a Virgin as she particularly liked its lyrics. Musically, the song is a drum-beat-driven dance track featuring instrumentation from guitars and vocals from a choir, and a guitar solo played by Nile Rodgers, who also produced the song. The lyrics are an extended metaphor for fashion and sex, comparing dressing up with passion. A live performance from Madonna’s first tour was used as the music video.
Critics reacted positively to the dance-pop nature of the track. “Dress You Up” became Madonna’s sixth consecutive top-five single in the United States. It also reached the top ten in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. “Dress You Up” was added to the “Filthy Fifteen” list of the Parents Music Resource Center, due to the sexual nature of its lyrics.
SIDE A:
Dress You Up (The 12″ Formal Mix) 6:16
Engineer [Assistant] – Melanie West
Engineer [Remix] – Michael Hutchinson
Producer [Additional Production], Remix – John “Jellybean” Benitez
Written-By – Andrea LaRusso, Peggy Stanziale
SIDE B:
Dress You Up (The Casual Instrumental Mix) 4:37
Engineer [Assistant] – Melanie West
Engineer [Remix] – Michael Hutchinson
Producer [Additional Production], Remix – John “Jellybean” Benitez
Written-By – Andrea LaRusso, Peggy Stanziale
Shoo-Bee-Doo (LP Version) 5:16
Written-By – Madonna
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Dress You Up | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #5 |
| 1985 | Dress You Up | U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary | #32 |
| 1985 | Dress You Up | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play | #3 |
| 1985 | Dress You Up | U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop | #64 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Sire – 0-20369
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: US
Released: 1985
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop
CREDITS:
- Art Direction – Jeri McManus
- Mastered By – RL*
- Photography By – Neal Preston
- Producer – Nile Rodgers
NOTES:
Produced for Nile Rodgers Productions, Inc.
From the LP “LIKE A VIRGIN”
Produced for Nile Rodgers Productions, Inc
Made in U.S.A.
Printed in U.S.A.
Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black PnP MkII
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!
Password: burningtheground
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Ficou muito bom! Agradeço pelo RIP e todas as informações!
GRATO Paul!
Thanks for this Paul!
The “Filthy Fifteen”? Is that some kind of joke??
It’s unintentional comedy: the best kind, imo. And I absolutely love it when the Upright Citizens Brigade comes unglued at the thoughts of boys and girls’ ‘naughty parts’ getting all tingly on the dance floor 🙂
Man. We’ve all survived some crazy times, haven’t we? I just wish the current culture wars would die down so we can have some peace…
Thanks for passing a good chuckle and some fun music today, PaulT!
Thanks for the post. Not to be nitpickey, but a bit of a glitch at about 4:17 of the Instrumental.
Thanks so much for these Madonna transfers! I absolutely adore these remixes of “Dress You Up.” Like a Virgin was one of my very favorite albums of the 1980s, and it was one of the very first albums I bought on CD back when it originally came out. Of course I had it on vinyl — and on a picture disc! — and I bought all the 7″ and 12″ singles, too. This is the music of my youth, the music I listened to in high school, the music that defined the first half of the 1980s for me!
GREAT SHARE!!! Thank you!!! I love that this song was added to the FILTHY FIFTEEN… You would think a “concerned parent” would appreciate metaphors and sexual innuendos rather than plain explicit lyrics, but dumbness has no bounds. Wait till they find out what Pour Some Sugar On Me by Def Lepard or “Come together” by The Beatles are all about… Still, it makes for a fantastic “Filthy 15” compilation!!!
Very well said, Martika!! I, myself, prefer metaphors and inuendo over the plain old profanity. However, Nine Inch Nails’ “Closer” wouldn’t be the same without the synonym for fornication on the chorus!!
Jeff
Thank You for this wonderful 12″
It´s wooooow.
You’re very welcome, Patrick 🙂
You’ve got style.. that’s what other Djs say 😉 Thank you, Dj PaulT for this wonderful Madonna classic. I love the remix of this song so much.
You’re welcome, Chad 🙂
DJ Paul, I agree with Jeff to continue the Sire Records posts in light of founder Seymour Stein’s recent passing. In addition to coining the term “new wave” to replace “punk”, he signed The Undertones, The Dead Boys, Talking Heads, The Ramones, Climax Blues Band, Echo & The Bunnymen, k.d. lang, Tom Tom Club, early Underworld, Ice-T, Aztec Camera, Barenaked Ladies, Seal, The Ready Set (“Love Like Woe”), Kid Creole & The Coconuts, Tin Tin, B-Movie, and Book Of Love. He also signed or distributed releases in the US/North America by early Fleetwood Mac, Erasure, Blancmange, The Cult, Depeche Mode, Focus, some… Read more »
DJ Paul, here’s a tie-in to this track: Sire Records founder and Madonna’s mentor Seymour Stein (who just passed) has a quick cameo in the dance floor scene at 1:45 in the music video. Madonna has praised Mr. Stein in recent social posts. He signed Depeche Mode, Talking Heads, The Ramones, Climax Blues Band, and many many other iconic Sire artists in his storied career.
Mr. Stein was an innovator and gave us so much music that has been featured here on BTG. Sire is one of my favorite labels.
Thanks for the post, Paul! This 12″ cover/art is forever burned in my memory and I don’t know why. From the instant I saw it I loved it and always loved the song! The remix, as all of Jellybean’s, is fantastic.
The cover art is iconic , and Jellybean’s work here is top-notch stuff 🙂
This was hands down my fave Madonna track from this album at the time! The PMRC list was a joke to every teenager at the time as just about anyone could name songs way worse than the list had! Dress You Up was playful and veiled and could be interpreted many different ways. Did these same people not listen to the songs of their youth and catch all the double meanings? This song was harmless. Love it to this day!
I agree with you ING this was the best single from the LP 🙂
Super weird that the songwriters don’t have but one other song to their credit on Discogs? This song must’ve helped them retire! 😆🤯
Hi Paul. Thank you for continuing with the Sire Records releases. This Madonna 12-inch is a longtime favorite of mine!
Jeff
You’re welcome, Jeff 🙂