Material Girl
Lyrics
Some boys kiss me
Some boys hug me
I think they're ok
If they don't give me proper credit
I just walk away
They can beg and they can plead
But they can't see the light (that's right)
'Cause the boy with the cold hard cash
Is always Mister Right
'Cause we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
Some boys romance
Some boys slow dance
That's all right with me
If they can't raise my interest then I
Have to let them be
Some boys try and some boys lie but
I don't let them play (no way)
Only boys who save their pennies
Make my rainy day
'Cause we're living in a material world
And I am a material girl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
Living in a material world
And I am a material girl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
Living in a material world (material)
Living in a material world
Living in a material world (material)
Living in a material world
Boys may come and boys may go
And that's all right you see
Experience has made me rich
And now they're after me
'Cause everybody's living in a material world
And I am a material girl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
Living in a material world
And I am a material girl
You know that we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl
A material, a material, a material, a material world
Living in a material world (material)
Living in a material world
Living in a material world (material)
Living in a material world
Living in a material world (material)
Living in a material world
Living in a material world (material)
Living in a material world
Credits
Written by Peter Brown and Robert Rans
Produced by Nile Rodgers
Bass by Bernard Edwards
Guitar, synclavier II, Juno 60 by Nile Rodgers
Drums by Tony Thompson
Background vocals by Madonna, Curtis King, Frank Simms and George Simms
Album
Single
The second single from the Like A Virgin album was released on January 23, 1985 in the US, while a release in Europe and other territories followed a month later. Material Girl became a #1 hit in Japan, while it reached #3 in the UK and Belgium, #4 in Australia and #5 in Canada. In the US it peaked at #2, being kept from the top spot first by 'Can't Fight This Feeling' by REO Speedwagon and then by 'One More Night' by Phil Collins.
It would soon become a Madonna classic. This song was one of the first examples of Madonna's multi-layered messages. While the lyrics give one message (pure materialism), the video gives the song a different meaning, one of immaterialism and pure love. Unfortunately, like the men in the video, the critics didn't seem to get the real message and accused Madonna of promoting materialism and selfishness. Madonna still gets referred to as the 'Material Girl', and since she's become a mother, often as the 'Material Mum'. After the release of the spiritual Ray Of Light, one often said "the once material girl has gone immaterial and spiritual..."
Video
The video was shot in Los Angeles and directed by Mary Lambert. Madonna is dressed in a long pink dress, inspired by the one worn by Marilyn Monroe in the 1952 movie Gentlemen Prefer Blondes during her performance of 'Diamonds Are A Girls's Best Friend', which scene in particular was recreated for Madonna's video. Madonna got compared to her idol a lot, but in contrast to Monroe, Madonna isn't a victim. She's in control of her life and her men. In the video she plays with all the boys that are trying to win her love. None of them seem to get her message: while the lyrics talk about pure materialism, that's not what she really wants. It's actor Keith Carradine who knows how to play the game right. In real life however it was actor Sean Penn - whom she met on the set - who won her heart.
Tour
On the Virgin Tour, Madonna performed Material Girl as the closing song. She walked around the stage in total control of her men while wearing heavy jewelry. But at the end of the performance, Madonna got rid of all the useless accessory while insisting she isn't a material girl at all, and she only needs love.
The medley on the Who's That Girl Tour also includes Material Girl. Still wearing her crazy and colourful Dress You Up dress, Madonna goofs around with her two dancers, possibly imitating her then-rival Cyndi Lauper tongue-in-cheek while throwing around 'Madonna dollars'.
On the Blond Ambition Tour Madonna goofed around with Niki and Donna, all dressed in a fluffy dressing gown and with curling pins in their hair. Singing the song with a strong mid-western accent, they later get up and reveal a frivolish pink dress underneath their gown, in which they dance around.
The performances of Material Girl on the first 3 tours always had something ironic and funny. For the Re-Invention Tour, Madonna's image was changed completely. No glamourous diva in pink Monroe dress; instead we saw a rock chick in army gear who had strapped on her electric guitar. This version totally rocked! Madonna pretended not remembering the words and asked the audience to sing along and help her out with the lyrics. The video and TV screens showed all mathematical equations and pictures of Albert Einstein (which was probably created for I'm So Stupid that got replaced by Material Girl).
More than a decade later we would get more irony on the Rebel Heart Tour. Still wearing her breathtaking flapper girl costume, Madonna performs Material Girl on top of the raised floor-screen alongside male dancers in suits and top hats. Recalling the original video, she pushes them around while the familiar arrangement of the song gets a modern twist. At the end, Madonna walks down to the end of the stage wearing a wedding veil, claiming it's the happiest day of her life in a Marilyn Monroe-inspired accent. The performance is followed by a mock wedding with one of her fans who catches the bouquet combined with Madonna's comments and advice on marriage. Carrying on with the Monroe-tribute, she sits down on the middle of the catwalk to play the ukulele.