Erotica (album)

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Good article Template:For2 {{safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst-infobox||$params=italic_title,name,type,longtype,artist,cover,border,alt,caption,released,recorded,venue,studio,genre,length,language,label,director,producer,compiler,chronology,prev_title,prev_year,year,next_title,next_year,misc|$extra=italic_title,longtype,border,caption,language,director,compiler,chronology,year,misc|$aliases=italic title>italic_title,Italic title>italic_title,Name>name,Type>type,image>cover,Cover>cover,Border>border,Alt>alt,Caption>caption,Longtype>longtype,Artist>artist,Released>released,Recorded>recorded,Venue>venue,Studio>studio,Genre>genre,Length>length,Language>language,Label>label,Director>director,Producer>producer,Compiler>compiler,Chronology>chronology,Misc>misc|$flags=override|$B={{#ifeq:{{#invoke:Is infobox in lead|main|[Ii]nfobox [Aa]lbum}}|true|{{#if:Template:Has short description | |{{#if: October 19, 1992 | Template:Short description}}}}}}{{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template otherTemplate:Category handlerTemplate:Main other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox album with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y|italic_title |type |name |image |cover |border |alt |caption |longtype |artist |released |recorded |venue |studio |genre |length |language |label |director |producer |compiler |prev_title|prev_year|next_title|next_year|chronology|year|misc}}{{#if:{{#invoke:String|match|error_category=Music infoboxes with Module:String errors|A|1=The Immaculate Collection1990Bedtime Stories1994studioEroticaErotica Madonna.pngyesA woman's face with eyes closed and her mouth open. On her left cheek, the words "Erotica" and "Madonna" are written in black color.MadonnaOctober 19, 19921991–1992Clinton Recording, Mastermix, Soundworks (New York)* Pop

• dance-pop
• deep house
• R&B75:24* Maverick
• Sire
• Warner Bros.* Madonna
• Shep Pettibone
• André Bettsx|2=</?t[drh][ >]|nomatch=}}|Template:Main other}}Template:Main other}}

Erotica is the fifth studio album by American singer Madonna, released on October 19, 1992, by Maverick and Sire Records. The album was released simultaneously with Madonna's first book publication Sex, a coffee table book containing explicit photographs of the singer, and marked her first release under Maverick, her own multimedia entertainment company. For the album, the singer enlisted Shep Pettibone and André Betts, with whom she had collaborated on 1990's "Vogue" and The Immaculate Collection.

In mid-1991, Pettibone sent Madonna a three-track demo; she listened to the songs and liked all of them. Afterwards, the two met in New York City to start working on more music. The singer would write the melodies and lyrics on top of the music Pettibone produced in the style of his previous remixes. Erotica has been noted as a concept album about sex and romance in times of HIV/AIDS, with songs that touch upon "heavy" themes such as S&M and homophobia. Additionally, it marked a departure of the dance-oriented nature of Madonna's previous works, incorporating elements of hip-hop, house, techno, and New Jack Swing.

Upon release, it received praise from critics, who regarded it as one of Madonna's most adventurous albums. Some, however, felt the music was overshadowed by its sexual themes. Commercially, it was less successful than Madonna's previous endeavors; it peaked at number 2 on the US Billboard 200, becoming her first studio album not to top the chart since her debut. Internationally, it reached the first spot in Australia, Finland, and France, and peaked within the top five of several other countries such as Canada, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Erotica was later certified double-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and has sold more than six million copies worldwide.

Six singles were released from the album, including the title track and "Deeper and Deeper", both of which reached the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. The album was supported by the Girlie Show, Madonna's fourth concert tour, which visited cities in Europe, the Americas, Australia, and Asia in 1993. Somewhat overlooked at the time of its release in part due to the backlash surrounding the Sex book, Erotica has been retrospectively considered one of Madonna's most important albums, as well as one of the most revolutionary of all time by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Many critics have since noted influence of Erotica in works by contemporary female artists from Janet Jackson to Beyoncé.

Background

On April 21, 1992, it was reported that Madonna had teamed up with Time Warner Inc. to form Maverick, a multi-media entertainment company.<ref name="Maverick">Template:Cite news</ref> Maverick consisted of a record company, a film production company, and associated music publishing, television broadcasting, book publishing and merchandising divisions.<ref name="Maverick"/> The deal paid the singer an advance of $60 million, and gave her 20% royalties from the music proceedings, one of the highest rates in the industry, equaled at that time only by Michael Jackson's royalty rate established a year earlier with Sony.<ref name="Maverick"/> Madonna described Maverick as "the perfect marriage of art and commerce", further adding that she envisioned it as an "artistic think tank", and likened it to a cross between the German arts institute Bauhaus, and Andy Warhol's The Factory; "it started as a desire to have more control. There's a group of writers, photographers, directors and editors that I've met along the way in my career who I want to take with me everywhere I go. I want to incorporate them into my little factory of ideas", she explained.<ref name="Maverick"/><ref name="NYTMaverick">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Subscription required</ref> The first two projects from the venture were Madonna's fifth studio album, and a coffee table book depicting her "erotic fantasies", titled Sex.<ref name="Maverick"/><ref name="EroticaName">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Madonna described the album as "soulful, with a jazzy undertone and lot of beatnik-style poetry in it".<ref name="NYTMaverick"/> Titled Erotica, the record saw the singer reunited with producer Shep Pettibone, with whom she had previously collaborated on "Vogue", and "Rescue Me" from The Immaculate Collection (1990).<ref name="EroticaName"/><ref name="ClassicPopErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Alongside Pettibone, Madonna enlisted help from producer André Betts, who previously co-produced "Justify My Love" from The Immaculate Collection.<ref name="SlantErotica" /> She was interested to work with Pettibone and Betts due to their ability to remain plugged into the dance underground; "they come from opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of their music style and approach to music, but they're both connected to the street and they're still young and hungry".<ref name="MenBehindErotica">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Development

Following the release of The Immaculate Collection, by mid-1991, Pettibone began working on new music: "I knew I could do something great after 'Vogue' and 'Rescue Me' so I just started putting tracks together with my assistant, Tony Shimkin", Pettibone recalled.<ref name="EroticaDiaries">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He and Shimkin created a three-track demo and sent it to Madonna, who was in Chicago filming A League of Their Own; she listened to the songs and liked all of them. In October, after filming was complete, Madonna met Pettibone in New York City to start working on more demos.<ref name="EroticaDiaries"/> Anthony Shimkins recalled that the singer brought with her a "book full of lyrics and melody ideas".<ref name="BB25" /> Petibone created the music, and Madonna the lyrics.<ref name="EroticaDiaries"/> Shimkin would program a Macintosh computer to play percussion and synthesizer parts and transfer them to an eight-track recorder; then, Madonna would record her vocals.<ref name="EWMakingof">Template:Cite magazine</ref> According to author Mark Bego, the first batch of songs they worked on were the title track, "Deeper and Deeper", "Bad Girl", "Thief of Hearts", and "Rain".<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Recording took place at New York's Soundworks Studios, Master Mix Studios, and Clinton Recording Studios.<ref name="liner" /> The producer described their work schedule as "sporadic", because Madonna split her time between other ventures: She was working with Steven Meisel on Sex and would sometimes leave for two weeks; occasionally, she would also meet with producer André Betts.<ref name="EroticaDiaries"/> At first, Madonna did not like the first group of songs she had recorded. According to Mark Landeros from Classic Pop, Pettibone's "glossy sheen and pristine production were the antithesis of what [she] envisioned" for Erotica.<ref name="ClassicPopErotica" /> She wanted it to have a "raw edge", as if it were recorded in an alley in Harlem.<ref name="EroticaDiaries"/>

Problems also arose during sequencing; computer processes would take too long and delay recordings. Pettibone had to keep things moving as fast as possible as he did not want Madonna to lose interest in the music.<ref name="EroticaDiaries"/> Also at this point, the music was getting "a little melancholy" and Madonna's lyrics and ideas "a lot more serious and intense".<ref name="EroticaDiaries"/> It was Pettibone's idea to write a song for Madonna's friend Martin Burgoyne who died of HIV/AIDS, and came up with the chords to "In This Life"; she wrote the lyrics in 15 minutes.<ref name="ViceErotica" /> Title track "Erotica" underwent "numerous radical changes" during the recording process, with four different versions being recorded; the singer would first sing it one way, and then decide to erase everything and start all over again.<ref name="BB25" /> Shimkin affirmed that the original version was not "as slinky and sexy and grimy and dirty", until the mixing process; at that stage, the song was still an "experimentation", but when they realized it was going to be the lead single, a "different, darker vibe" was taken on.<ref name="BB25" /> While recording Erotica, Madonna was also working on Sex; for the book, she incorporated a dominatrix alter-ego named Mistress Dita, heavily inspired by German actress Dita Parlo.<ref name="Guilbert">Template:Harvsp</ref> After seeing the book, Pettibone suggested that the singer incorporate the dominatrix theme into the song's lyrics: "'You have all these great stories [in the book]', I told her, 'Why don't you use them in the song?'".<ref name="EroticaDiaries" /> Madonna left the studio with a copy of Sex with her, came back and recorded her vocals to "Erotica" in a "very dry" way; Pettibone then realized the song "would never be the same again".<ref name="EroticaDiaries" /> The chorus and bridge were changed entirely and the song's "psyche" became "sexier, more to the point".<ref name="EroticaDiaries" />

For "Deeper and Deeper", Madonna wanted to have a flamenco guitar in the middle, an idea Pettinbone disagreed with, but eventually gave in.<ref name="EroticaDiaries"/> He later decided to add castanets to "really take it there".<ref name="BB25" /> According to Shimkin, while they were recording the song, Pettibone began singing some lines of "Vogue"; Madonna, who heard this and emulated it, liked the sound and decided to keep it.<ref name="BB25" /> She later explained: "When we were actually recording, doing the final vocals, I just went off into that for a second because ['Vogue'] to me it's just one of those great kind of feel good dance songs."<ref name=bbcradio>Template:Cite episode</ref> "Where Life Begins" was the first song for the album Madonna composed with André Betts, who was pleased with the song's explicit subject.<ref name="BB25" /><ref name="ViceErotica" /> The singer and Betts also worked together on "Waiting", which samples her vocals from "Justify My Love", and thus was "an easy sell [to Madonna]".<ref name="ViceErotica" /> During a break from recording, Shimkin and Pettibone went on vacation to the Cayman Islands and Jamaica, respectively. Having heard a lot of reggae on their trips inspired them to come up with the music to "Why's It So Hard".<ref name="ViceErotica" /> "Did You Do It?" began as a joke; while Madonna was out, Betts began freestyling over the instrumental of "Waiting" after being asked if he'd ever been intimate with Madonna.<ref name="BB25" /> The singer liked the result and decided to keep the track on the album.<ref name="ViceErotica" />

"Fever"Template:'s inclusion was a "happy accident".<ref name="EWMakingof" /> Madonna and Pettibone were working on "Goodbye to Innocence", a house song that talks about "living at the center of a controversial media storm", but, according to the singer, "[it] just wasn't working [...] the vibe wasn't right".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="GoodbyeFever">Template:Cite magazine</ref> When they decided to try and record the song one final time, Madonna started singing bits of Little Willie John's "Fever; she had previously attended a Peggy Lee concert, and her rendition of the song had "made a strong impression on [me]".<ref name="GoodbyeFever"/> Pettibone liked how it sounded, and they decided to record a cover. The problem, however, was that neither knew the full lyrics.<ref name="EroticaDiaries" /> Madonna called Seymour Stein from Sire Records and, "within an hour, we had the lyric sheets, the Peggy Lee version, and the original version of the song in our hands".<ref name="EroticaDiaries" /> "Fever" was the last song to be recorded for Erotica.<ref name="MenBehindErotica" />

Composition

Sounds and themes

Author J. Randy Taraborrelli described Erotica as a "melting pot of nineties urban music ― burgeoning hip-hop and house, partnered with a more conventional synthesizer-based rhythm and blues".<ref name="tarareview" /> It is a dance album that incorporates elements from classic disco, modern house, techno, and New Jack Swing.<ref name="SlantErotica" /><ref name="MTVKyle" /> Additionally, it marked a departure from the "four-on-the-floor disco romp that listeners came to expect from [Madonna]", focusing instead on "heavy, cold [...] difficult and unpleasant" themes such as homophobia, queerness, female sex and sexuality, "not only in the hottest moments of physical relationships, but in their darker, more intimate instances, particularly in relation to the growing AIDS crisis", as noted by the Portland MercuryTemplate:'s Jeni Wren Strottup.<ref name="PopMattersCulture">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="PortlandErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Masterpiece" /> It has been referred to as a concept album about looking for romance in a post-AIDS era.<ref name="DigErotica" /><ref name="MTVKyle" /><ref name="RSEroticaReview" />

Music and lyrics

Template:Multiple image Opening track "Erotica" is a pop hip-hop<ref name="BBSingleDescription">Template:Cite magazine</ref> dance<ref name=Backlot>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> song with "scratchy, trip-hop loops" and Middle Eastern influences.<ref name="PinkNews">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="BBSingleDescription" /> Described by Pettibone as an "ode to S&M", the song continued Madonna's exploration of potent spoken-word vocals, which she had previously introduced in "Justify My Love", and samples Kool and the Gang's "Jungle Boogie" (1973), and "El Yom 'Ulliqa 'Ala Khashaba" by Lebanese singer Fairuz.<ref name="SlantErotica" /><ref name="liner">Template:Cite AV media notes</ref> It begins with a "put-a-record-on scratchiness" sound that mimics a record player.<ref name="BestDanceSlant">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Madonna invites her lover to be submissive while she makes love to him, and suggesting him to explore boundaries between pain and pleasure, demanding: Give it up, do what I say/ Give it up and let me have my way.<ref name="OhYesNYT" /> Madonna's cover of "Fever" follows "Erotica"; it is an "apathetic house thumper" with "[her] airy deadpan [vocals] floating listlessly over the pulsing beats".<ref name="PopMattersCulture" /> It removes the chord movement from the original and has additional lyrics about Pocahontas, marimbas, and finger snaps at certain parts.<ref name="rikky2" /> Third track "Bye Bye Baby" is a techno pop song that samples LL Cool J's "Jingling Baby" (1990), and opens with Madonna stating, This is not a love song.<ref name="MadonnaPorn" /><ref name="Violanti" /><ref name="SlantErotica" /> Her voice is filtered to sound like it’s being projected "through an old-fashioned Victrola", while the lyrics talk about taking control rather than exacting revenge on a domineering, mind-game-playing partner.<ref name="MadonnaPorn" /> The track ends with an explosion and the singer saying you fucked it up, which is bleeped out.<ref name="rikky2" />

Noted for being the album's "pure disco" moment, "Deeper and Deeper" has a "thicker arrangement" than the rest of the songs.<ref name="RSEroticaReview" /><ref name="rikky2" /> Opening phrase When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most anything references "Do-Re-Mi" from The Sound of Music (1959).<ref name=GHV2>Template:Cite AV media notes</ref> Its lyrics talk about sexual desire, but Dan Cadan argued in his text in the liner notes of Madonna's 2001 compilation GHV2, that they are actually about a young man coming to terms with his homosexuality.<ref name="glamrock">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name=GHV2/> Also present are "a juxtaposition of swirling disco synths", a flamenco guitar, and castanets on its bridge.<ref name="SlantErotica" /><ref name="BB25">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="rikky2" /> Towards the end, it includes a line from "Vogue": Let your body move to the music.<ref name="rikky2" /> Set to a "jazzy, juicy" groove, with lyrics about the "finger-licking good" pleasures of cunnilingus, "Where Life Begins" includes long sustained strings, and wah-wah guitars in its instrumentation.<ref name="BBEroticaTrackbyTrack" /><ref name="rikky2"/> Madonna sings that it's something every girl should experience.<ref name="Violanti" /> Considered EroticaTemplate:'s "most overtly sexual track", it's the only one to reference safe sex: I’m glad you brought your raincoat/I think it’s beginning to rain.<ref name="SlantErotica" /> The lyrics to sixth track "Bad Girl" talk, in the singer's own words, about a woman in a toxic relationship, trying to "distract herself from reality" through behaviors such as drinking and chain smoking.<ref name="TheIndependentBadGirl">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> This is reflected in the refrain: Bad girl, drunk by six/Kissing someone else's lips/Smoked too many cigarettes today/I’m not happy when I act this way.<ref name=shoulda>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore</ref> Instrumentation is provided by swing piano and wind chimes, with Madonna singing some parts in a falsetto.<ref name="rikky2">Template:Harvnb</ref> "Waiting" begins with the sound of a scratchy old vinyl before a sliding bass note.<ref name="rikky2"/> It is a "brooding ballad noir" with spoken words, in which a scorned and defiant Madonna faces up to the lover who's broken her heart, and samples her own "Justify My Love";<ref name="MadonnaPorn" /><ref name="SlantErotica" /><ref name="ViceErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> lyrics include Don’t go breaking my heart like you said you would, and I wish I could believe you or at least have the courage to leave you.<ref name="MadonnaPorn" /><ref name="SlantErotica" /> It ends with the singer uttering the phrase The next time you want pussy, just look in the mirror, baby.<ref name="IdolatorErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Template:Multiple image

"Thief of Hearts" is a "dark, rumbling" and "smug" track that echoes the AngelsTemplate:' "My Boyfriend's Back" (1963), and Blondie's "Rip Her to Shreds" (1977).<ref name="Baltimore" /><ref name="OhYesNYT" /><ref name="Madonnica2" /> It opens with the sound of smashing glass, and sees Madonna using "tough hip-hop language" such as Bitch!/Which leg do you want me to break? to attack and ward off a "cuckolding" rival, referred to only as "Little Susie Ho-Maker".<ref name="OhYesNYT" /><ref name="Madonnica2" /><ref name="IdolatorErotica"/> Ninth track "Words" begins with an "atmospheric" G♯ chord, which is followed by the sound of drum machine.<ref name="rikky3">Template:Harvnb</ref> Its "sharp" lyrics find the singer lashing back at a lover who "won her with romantic letters, then used the same verbal skills to manipulate and humiliate her";<ref name="OhYesNYT" /> also present in the song are "typewriter-esque effects", and Pettibone's "clattering programs and icy synth block-chords".<ref name="BBEroticaTrackbyTrack">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="YahooErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="StylusErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The next song is "Rain", which has been described as an "optimistic" New Age ballad, comparable to the work of Peter Gabriel.<ref name="MadonnaPorn" /><ref name=RainAV>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It features two spoken parts, "thunder-claps of percussion", a crescendo towards the end, and lyrics that compare rain to the idea of being in love.<ref name="rikky3"/><ref name="SlantErotica" />

In the reggae-infused "Why's It So Hard", EroticaTemplate:'s "vulnerable plea for solidarity", Madonna specifically asks: Why's it so hard to love one another?/What am I gonna do with all this anger/ Why do I have to fight?<ref name="OhYesNYT" /><ref name="Madonnica2" /> It has a "heavy" bass line, a piano break, and a coda, where the artist sings the phrase before it's too late.<ref name="rikky3"/> Twelfth track "In This Life" is a slow song with orchestral arrangements, that samples George Gershwin's blues lullaby "Prelude No. 2" (1926).<ref name="InThisLife">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Madonna talks about the gay friends she has lost to AIDS, including Martin Burgoyne, her dance teacher and mentor Christopher Flynn, and artist Keith Haring.<ref name="InThisLife"/> Lines sung include, Have you ever watched your best friend die? [...] Someday I pray it will end/I hope it's in this life/I hope it's in this lifetime.<ref name="Violanti" /> At one point, Madonna "bitterly" wonders, Who determines, who knows best?/Is there a lesson I'm supposed to learn? The song's drums have been likened to a doomsday Clock, and its refrain recalls that of the BeatlesTemplate:' 1965 song "In My Life".<ref name="Baltimore" /><ref name="rikky3"/><ref name="SlantErotica" /> Penultimate track "Did You Do It?" is a "raunchy" rap song, in which guest rappers Mark Goodman and Dave Murphy tell their "disbelieving friends" about their sexual conquest of Madonna, who sings and repeats the phrase waiting for you.<ref name="YahooErotica" /><ref name="MadonnaPorn" /><ref name="rikky3"/> Closer "Secret Garden" features instrumentation from "shuffling drums, rolling bass and jazzy piano".<ref name="SlantErotica" /><ref name="reneowned" /> A "hymn to the singer’s vagina", its lyrics conjure up imagery of flowers, roses, thorns, lovers, and rainbows.<ref name="rikky3"/><ref name="Telegraph" />

Artwork and release

File:Madonna street art.jpg

Urban art in Athens, Greece inspired by the cover artwork of Erotica.

The artwork for Erotica was created by Steven Meisel, under the artistic direction of Baron & Baron Inc. —consisting of Fabien Baron and photographer Siung Fat Tjia— who also oversaw the packaging and design of Sex.<ref name="liner" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The cover follows the "same monochromatic blue-ink cover shot" that had been used on the book, and shows Madonna's "faded" face on a pale background.<ref name="Begeo">Template:Harvsp</ref><ref name="EroticaCover">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Photographs used for Sex were also included on the album's booklet; one shows Madonna in S&M garb, wielding a riding crop and licking her arm; another one features her bound and gagged.<ref name=TaraOnlineCover>Template:Harvnb</ref> The backcover has the singer engaging in "foot worship - blissfully sucking on someone's big toe", as noted by J. Randy Taraborrelli.<ref name=TaraOnlineCover/> According to the author, "one didn't really need to hear the music to understand Madonna's intention with Erotica. If the title itself wasn't a tip-off, the CD's cover artwork certainly made the point clear".<ref name=TaraOnlineCover/> Mark Bego, in his book Madonna: Blonde Ambition, wasn't fond of the "off-putting" picture, and felt it was "a bit too much, even for her fans".<ref name="Begeo"/> BillboardTemplate:'s Melinda Newman saw similarities between EroticaTemplate:'s artwork and that of the Darling Buds' album of the same name, which was released two weeks before Madonna's.<ref name="EroticaCover"/> From This is Dig! Mark Elliott said it's one of Madonna's "most provocative" album covers.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Erotica was released on October 19, 1992, in the UK and on October 20, 1992, in the US through Madonna's Maverick label.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="BBEroticaTrackbyTrack" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It was the singer's first release to bear the Parental Advisory label due to explicit content in tracks such as "Did You Do It?", and thus was banned in several Asian countries, such as China and Singapore.<ref name="MadonnaPorn" /><ref name="Violanti" /><ref name="Bolton"/><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Two versions of Erotica were released: a clean 13-track version that omits "Did You Do It?", and the complete 14-track version that bears the Parental Advisory label.<ref name="liner" /><ref name="liner2">Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>

Promotion

On October 22, 1992, MTV aired a special called The Day in Madonna, hosted by Kurt Loder, which profiled the release of both Sex and Erotica. New York City's HMV music store held a Madonna look-alike contest, and set up a booth where people could view Sex for one dollar a minute. All the proceeds went to Lifebeat, the music industry organization founded to help fund AIDS research.<ref name="tres">Template:Harvnb</ref>

Media appearances and tour

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File:EroticaGirlieShowUnderGround sh (cropped).jpg

Madonna performing lead single and title track "Erotica" as the opening number of the Girlie Show.

On January 16, 1993, Madonna appeared on late-night live television show Saturday Night Live and sang "Bad Girl" and "Fever".<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The singer also appeared on the 1000th episode of The Arsenio Hall Show, and sang "Fever" in its original version. She also performed "The Lady Is a Tramp" (1937) alongside Anthony Kiedis; they wore matching skirts, stockings, leather vests, cat-ear caps and lipstick.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On September 2, 1993, Madonna opened the MTV Video Music Awards with a Burlesque-themed performance of "Bye Bye Baby". The "risqué" number saw the singer in a tailcoat and top hat, with three scantily clad women, and included "stroked inner-thighs, spanks, [and] frottage".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Erotica was further promoted on the Girlie Show, Madonna's fourth concert tour.<ref name="Announcement">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Seen as an attempt to "revive" her musical career after the critical and commercial failure of Body of Evidence, an erotic thriller which she starred, it began in London on September 25, 1993, and ended in Tokyo on December 19.<ref name="Announcement"/><ref name=Gavin2>Template:Cite journal</ref> It was initially planned not to visit the United States, instead focusing on regions the singer had never toured before, such as Turkey, Israel, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South America and Australia. However, due to demand, some shows were booked in certain US cities.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Madonna opened the show dressed as a dominatrix surrounded by topless dancers, while lighter moments included her descending from the ceiling on a giant disco ball wearing an Afro wig for "Express Yourself" (1989), as well as singing "Like a Virgin" (1984) in the guise of actress Marlene Dietrich.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="LATimes">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Subscription required</ref><ref name="Wirgin">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Subscription required</ref> The tour received generally positive reviews from critics, and was commercially successful, with a gross of $70 million from 39 concerts.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="TimeReview">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Harvsp</ref> Several organizations in different countries protested to force the cancellation of the concerts, due to their explicit sexual nature. In Puerto Rico, Madonna passed the island's flag between her legs on stage, resulting in outrage among Puerto Rican society;<ref name="showstealer">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Orthodox Jews staged protests to force the cancellation of the concerts in Tel Aviv to no avail.<ref name="showstealer"/>

Singles

File:Rebel Heart DAD.jpg

Madonna singing second single "Deeper and Deeper" during 2015–2016's Rebel Heart Tour. The track peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100.

In Australia and most European countries, title track "Erotica" was released as the album's lead single on September 29, 1992;<ref>Citations regarding the Australian and European release date of the "Erotica" single:

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|CitationClass=web }} </ref> in the United States, it was released on October 13.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> It was met with generally positive reviews from critics, with some deeming it one of Madonna's darkest and most experimental songs.<ref name="Remixes">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore</ref> It performed well commercially, debuting at number 13 on the US Billboard Hot 100―becoming one of the highest debuts on the chart history at the time―and peaking at number three.<ref name=tie>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="Madonna40Biggest">Template:Cite magazine</ref> It also saw success on the Hot Dance Club Play chart, where it reached the top position.<ref name="BBDance">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Its accompanying music video was directed by Fabien Baron, and features scenes of Madonna dressed as a masked dominatrix interspersed with footage of the making of Sex;<ref name="MTVKyle" /><ref name=Metz>Template:Harvnb</ref> it was highly controversial, being aired by MTV only three times, all after the 10pm watershed, before being completely banned.<ref name="BBtoohotaustralia">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

"Deeper and Deeper" was issued in Australia and Europe as second single on November 17, whereas in the US, the release date was December 8.<ref>Citations regarding the Australian and European release date of the "Deeper and Deeper" single:

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EroticaTemplate:'s third single was "Bad Girl"; like its predecessors, it was first published in Australia and Europe on February 2, 1993.<ref>Citations regarding the Australian and European release date of the "Bad Girl" single:

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|CitationClass=web }} </ref> In the United States, it was released one month later with "Fever" as B-side.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Critics reacted positively towards the track, with some noting a departure from Madonna's highly sexual image of the time.<ref name="Benson">Template:Harvsp</ref> The song had a lukewarm reception on the charts: it became Madonna's first single to not reach the top 30 or top 20 of the Hot 100, breaking a streak of 27 consecutive top 20 singles that began with "Holiday" (1983) and ended with "Deeper and Deeper".<ref name="BBLowest">Template:Cite magazine</ref> "Bad Girl"'s music video was directed by David Fincher; in it, Madonna plays Louise Oriole, a successful but promiscuous Manhattan businesswoman who engages in one-night stands with multiple men, until one of them murders her.<ref name="Vice">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The clip was acclaimed by critics, who deemed it one of Madonna's best.<ref name=Odyssey>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Parade">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

"Fever" was released as the album's fourth single outside North America on March 28, 1993.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Despite not being published as an official single in the US, "Fever" reached the top spot of BillboardTemplate:'s Hot Dance Club Play chart.<ref name="BBDance" /> In the United Kingdom, it reached the chart's sixth position.<ref name="uk" /> The song received generally positive to mixed reviews from critics; Madonna's vocal performance was compared both positively and negatively to that of Lee's.<ref name="MadonnaPorn" /><ref name="qreview"/> The music video was directed by Stéphane Sednaoui, and was Madonna's first to use chroma key.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In Australia and most European countries "Rain" was released as EroticaTemplate:'s fifth single on July 17, 1993.<ref>Citations regarding the Australian and European release date of the "Rain" single:

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|CitationClass=web }} </ref> In the US, it was the fourth and final single, released on August 5.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Critics referred to "Rain" as one of the best songs in Erotica, and one of Madonna's best ballads.<ref name="Violanti" /><ref name="Independent" /><ref name=Odyssey/> In the visual, directed by Mark Romanek, Madonna is seen during a film shoot, with Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto playing the director alongside a Japanese film crew.<ref name="romanek">Template:Cite AV media</ref> "Rain" peaked at number 14 on US Hot 100, and at 7 on the UK.<ref name="Madonna40Biggest"/><ref name="uk" /> The sixth and final single was "Bye Bye Baby", released only in Australia on November 15, 1993, to coincide with Madonna's visit to the country with the Girlie Show.<ref name="ByeByeBabyAus">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It reached the chart's 15th spot.<ref name="ByeByeBabyAus"/>

Critical reception

Template:Music ratings Template:Music ratings Erotica was generally well received by critics upon release and in later decades. AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine said it was an "ambitious" album, that contains "some of Madonna's best and most accomplished music".<ref name="AllMusicErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> From The Daily Telegraph, James Hall opined Erotica is a "venturous epic that was eclipsed by the audacity of the idea that spawned it", even if it's not Madonna's best album.<ref name="Telegraph">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Mark Elliott from website This is Dig! called Erotica a "more noble" concept album than I'm Breathless (1990).<ref name="DigErotica">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Matthew Rettenmund, author of Encyclopedia Madonnica, deemed it Madonna's best, and J. Randy Taraborrelli her "most promiscuous".<ref name=Madonnica2>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="tarareview">Template:Harvnb</ref> To the staff of Billboard, "La M's first studio outing since 1989's Like a Prayer [...] is her most varied and creatively challenging collection to date".<ref name="BBAlbumReview">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Less positively, Charlotte Robinson from PopMatters referred to Erotica as the "first disappointment of [Madonna's] seemingly enchanted career".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

One element focused on by critics such as J. D. Considine, from The Baltimore Sun, was the sexual and romantic themes.<ref name="Baltimore">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Some critics acclaimed the presentation of them as raw and harshly realistic elements that justified the singer's unpolished and amateur vocals, and unexpectedly found the songs to be more about the pains of romance than sex.Template:Efn Other critics argued the sexual display was excessive, for some critics at the expense of musical depth.<ref name=Violanti/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="MTVKyle">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Mark Bego expressed a mixed view, deeming it "artistic yet suggestive, some of it is genuinely sexy, and some of it is lewd and musically unappealing".<ref name="Begeo" /> Barbara Walker of the Sun-Sentinel complained that the overtly sexual tone made the album uninteresting due to its frequency in Madonna's public image at the time. Additionally, she said it was "loaded with just enough rootless shock value to rile her critics".<ref name=SunSentinelBarbara>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Subscription required</ref> Richard Harrington from the Washington Post likened the record to a number from Bob Fosse's All That Jazz (1979), in which "dancers-as-nearly-naked stewards and stewardesses say, as they explore all manner of sexual coupling before a small, shocked audience of potential investors, 'Our motto is we take you everywhere but get you nowhere'".<ref name="MadonnaPorn"/>

The music and sound was also a source of division. According to Daryl Easley, in his book Madonna: Blond Ambition, Erotica showcases the continuation of Madonna's "musical maturity".<ref name=EasleaEro>Template:Harvnb</ref> Conversely, reviewers such as Stephen Holden considered the lack of an upbeat, joyous vibe to be a downside for the dance style.<ref name="EWErotica"/><ref name=OhYesNYT>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Tom Ford, from the Toledo Blade, was the only critic to dismiss the musical styles as "recycled" from Madonna's previous albums.<ref name="ToledoBlade">Template:Cite news</ref> Priya Elan from NME expressed that, "ditching Patrick Leonard for Shep PettibornTemplate:Sic was a bold move that didn't wholly pay off. The hard house beats of Erotica may have reflected the sexually explicit lyrically content brilliantly on tracks like 'Deeper And Deeper' and 'Thief Of Hearts', but over a whole album it seemed a bit much".<ref name="NMERanking">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Both Entertainment WeeklyTemplate:'s David Browne and Slant MagazineTemplate:'s Sal Cinquemani reacted negatively towards Madonna's vocals: the former deemed them "soulless", and the latter "nasal and remote".<ref name="EWErotica">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="SlantErotica"/>

The instrumental parts of the songs was praised by some writers, however. The QuietusTemplate:' Matthew Barton called it a non-commercial but "intoxicating cocktail of house, samples, jazz, [and] trip-hop", an elevated version of the "'full-length piece of art' modus operandi" of Like a Prayer.<ref name="EroticaQuietus">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> BillboardTemplate:'s Larry Flick described the tracklist as consisting of "intelligent, pensive tunes and tough, dance/hip-hop jams" that "comes across like a conscious return" to Madonna's club origins.<ref name="Madonnarama&TheRecord" /> For The Buffalo NewsTemplate:' Anthony Violanti, it is a "remarkable and engrossing album laced with tight, funky dance beats and some surprisingly moving songs".<ref name=Violanti>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Commercial performance

File:Garth Brooks (49627465292).jpg

The Chase by Garth Brooks (picture) kept Erotica from the Billboard 200's first spot.

In the United States, Erotica debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 on November 7, 1992, with first week sales of 167,000 copies.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The Chase by Garth Brooks kept it from the top spot; Erotica was Madonna's first studio album since her 1983 debut to not top the chart.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Bolton">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The next week, the album dropped to the chart's fourth spot.<ref name="Bolton"/> In January 1993, it was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of two million units.<ref name="riaa" /> According to Nielsen SoundScan, Erotica has sold 1.91 million copies in the United States as of December 2016, along with 79,000 sold through BMG Music Clubs.<ref name="EroticaUSSales">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="BMG">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In Canada, Erotica debuted on the seventh spot of the RPM Albums Chart on November 7, 1992; it peaked at number four on November 21, and was present for a total of 38 weeks on the chart, and was certified two times platinum by Music Canada (MC) for shipments of 200,000 copies.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="rpm" /><ref name="mc" /> In Argentina, the album received four-times platinum from the Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videograma (CAPIF) for shipments of 240,000 copies.<ref name="Argentina">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Similarly in Mexico, Erotica achieved sales of 250,000 units according to Billboard.<ref name="Mexico">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The album received a gold certification from Pro-Música Brasil, denoting shipments of 100,000 units.<ref name="abpd" /> Sales in Brazil stand at 180,000 copies, as of October 1993.<ref name="BrazilSales">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Across Europe, Erotica sold 1.5 million copies in its first week, and reached the top of the European Top 100 Albums chart.<ref name=Spain1>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=EuropeanTop100>Template:Cite journal</ref> In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart on October 24, 1992. It peaked and remained in that spot for three weeks, being held off the top by Simple Minds' greatest hits collection Glittering Prize 81/92, and a total of 38 weeks on the chart.<ref name="uk" /> The album was certified two times platinum on June 1, 1993, by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for shipments of 600,000 copies.<ref name="bpi" /> In France, the album debuted at number one on the French Albums Chart on October 28, 1992, staying there for two weeks, then descending down the chart, selling a total of 250,000 copies by May 1993.<ref name="France1">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="France2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In Germany, the album reached the top five on the Media Control Charts and was certified gold for shipments of 250,000 copies.<ref name="ger" /><ref name="bvmi" /> In Italy, Erotica sold 250,000 copies in its presales.<ref name="Italian">Template:Cite journal</ref> In Sweden, the album debuted in its peak of number six and spent only seven weeks on the chart.<ref name="swe" /> Similarly in Switzerland, Erotica peaked number five and was certified gold by IFPI Switzerland.<ref name="ifpiswi" /> It also received a platinum certification in Spain and sold 150,000 units there as of 1993.<ref name="spain" /><ref name="SpanishSales" /> 350 copies were sold in Iceland during November 1992.<ref name="Iceland">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In Australia, the album entered the ARIA chart at number 159,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }} N.B. This only contains peaks from the ARIA-produced chart era (June 5, 1988 onwards). The High Point number in the NAT column indicates the release's peak on the national chart.</ref> before climbing to number one in its second week, and was certified triple platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipments of 210,000 copies.<ref name="aria" /> It also reached the top five on the New Zealand Albums Chart.<ref name="nz" /> Erotica reached a peak of number five on the Japan Oricon Albums Chart, and received a double platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipping 400,000 copies.<ref name="japan" /><ref name="riaj" /> At the 7th annual Japan Gold Disc Awards, Madonna was awarded the RIAJ's Artist of the Year with sales totaling ¥844 million throughout the year, an equivalent of $6.5 million ($Template:Inflation million in Template:Inflation-year dollars)<ref name="JapanBodyguard">Template:Cite magazine</ref>Template:Inflation-fn Erotica was honored as 1993's Top Selling English Album by Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Initial shipments of the album in Singapore were of 20,000 units, but quickly managed to sell 37,000 copies and became Warner Music's best-selling album of 1992 in Singapore.<ref name="Bolton"/><ref name="Singapore2">Claimed sales for Erotica in Singapore:

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Legacy

Template:See also Erotica has been referred to as one of Madonna's best and most important albums.<ref name="SecondBest">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=BBRankig>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="SlantImportant">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2017, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame considered it one of the most revolutionary albums of all time, writing that, "few women artists, before or since Erotica, have been so outspoken about their fantasies and desires. [Madonna] made it clear that shame and sexuality are mutually exclusive [...] [Erotica] remains one of the boldest expressions of female sexuality".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Kurt Loder added that, although she wasn't the first female artist to "exploit sexiness", with Erotica and Sex, Madonna "set a template for what women could get away with".<ref name="USAToday">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Influence of Erotica can be seen in the work of contemporary female artists such as Britney Spears, Beyoncé, Janet Jackson, Christina Aguilera, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande, Lana Del Rey, Cardi B, and Kim Petras.<ref name="Masterpiece" /><ref name="USAToday" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> With the album, Joe Lynch from Billboard held that Madonna "set the blueprint for singers to get raw", while for Chuck Arnold it "forever sexed-up pop music".<ref name="BBEroticaTrackbyTrack"/><ref name="BB25" /> USA TodayTemplate:'s Edward Segarra felt it "helped expand female expression, usher in 'confessional' style".<ref name="USAToday" /> Similarly, Reece Shrewsbury deemed it "a huge step for women's sexual liberation".<ref name="Reece">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

According to Taraborrelli, at the time of EroticaTemplate:'s release, "much of society seemed to reexamining its sexuality. Gay rights issues were at the forefront of social discussions globally, as was an ever-increasing awareness of AIDS".<ref name=Tara>Template:Harvnb</ref> In this vein, Eric Henderson from Slant Magazine referred to it as a record that "[r]evealed a full understanding of the bipolarity of the gay experience circa AIDS".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> AttitudeTemplate:'s Joseph Ryan-Hicks concluded that, "although Erotica was provocative, at its core were messages of safe sex and liberation at a time when people needed to hear them the most".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Through the album, Madonna was able to advocate for AIDS awareness and help bring the epidemic into the public discourse, according to StereogumTemplate:'s Mary Von Aue.<ref name="Stereogum">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> From the Evening Standard, El Hunt wrote: "Both Erotica and Sex came out at a time when certain kinds of sex –specifically queer sex– were steeped in debilitating amounts of shame and fear [...] By putting forward a vision of sexual exploration that often feels cold, detached, and uneasy, Madonna flawlessly captured the emotional disconnect of searching out an intimacy that has suddenly become deadly".<ref name="SecondBest"/> Sal Cinquemani elaborated:

By 1992, Madonna was an icon —untouchable, literally and figuratively— and Erotica was the first time the artist's music took on a decidedly combative, even threatening tone, and most people didn't want to hear it. [EroticaTemplate:'s] irrefutable unsexiness probably says more about the sex=death mentality of the early '90s than any other musical document of its time. This is not Madonna at her creative zenith. This is Madonna at her most important, at her most relevant. No one else in the mainstream at that time dared to talk about sex, love, and death with such frankness and fearlessness.<ref name="SlantErotica" />

Erotica was named "one of the biggest affronts to white, Christian, middle-class America ever to appear in pop music" by the staff of Gay Times.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Its biggest achievement, according to Rolling StoneTemplate:'s Barry Walters, is "the embrace of the Other, which in this case means queerness, blackness, third-wave feminism, exhibitionism and kink. Madonna took what was marginalized at the worst of the AIDS epidemic, placed it in an emancipated context, and shoved it into the mainstream for all to see and hear".<ref name="Masterpiece" /> Joe Lynch concluded: "If her earlier work was an invitation to celebrate sexuality without shame, Erotica was a challenge [...] to witness and perhaps even indulge in society’s sexual taboos. Madonna may have addressed the male gaze before, but on Erotica, she wasn’t just staring back – she was making the world her sub".<ref name="BB25" /> Brian McNair, the author of Striptease Culture: Sex, Media and the Democratization of Desire, stated that upon the album's release, "academic books began to appear about the 'Madonna phenomenon', while pro- and anti-porn feminists made of her a symbol of all that was good or bad (depending on their viewpoint) about contemporary sexual culture".<ref name="McNair">Template:Harvnb</ref>

According to Slant Magazine, "no Madonna album was ever met with a louder backlash or was more rampantly misrepresented" than Erotica.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Taraborrelli commented that it is unfortunate that the album has to be historically linked to other "less memorable ventures" in the singer's career, such as Sex and Body of Evidence, as it has "true value".<ref name="Tara" /> When asked to name her biggest professional disappointment, Madonna answered: "The fact that my Erotica album was overlooked because of the whole thing with the [Sex] book. It just got lost in all that. I think there's some brilliant songs on it and people didn't give it a chance".<ref name="EroticaQuietus"/> Writing for Stylus Magazine, Alfred Soto felt Erotica "proved too sophisticated for a mainstream besotted with The Bodyguard and a college-radio claque eager to praise R.E.M.'s opaque dirges".<ref name="StylusErotica" /> This sentiment was echoed by Reece Shrewsbury, who added that the general public "just wasn't ready to see a pop star who once had a clean image in such provocative positions".<ref name="Reece"/> Musician Doug Wimbish referred to Erotica as "ahead of its time", and applauded Madonna for being "enough of an artist to take the hues and shades of what's happening and put a concept together [...] She had Maverick, she'd done the [Sex] book, the film Dick Tracy, she dated a big-ass Hollywood actor (Warren Beatty). [Erotica] was her first record with her concept. She turned the system upside down for a moment, and they had to deal with the shock and awe of it all".<ref name="doug">Template:Harvnb</ref> Brian McNair added that, by "dabbling in the pornosphere" with Sex and Erotica, Madonna took a financial risk with her career, and it wasn't until the release of 1998's Ray of Light that her record sales went back to "pre-Erotica" levels; nonetheless, the author concluded that, "what she lost in royalty payments, [she] more than made up for in iconic status and cultural influence".<ref name="McNair"/> From music portal Albumism, Justin Chadwick wrote: "Erotica was, is, and will forever be a fearlessly fierce album that only Madonna could make. No one has ever come close to replicating it and no one ever will".<ref name="Albumism">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Track listing

Notes<ref name="liner" /><ref name="liner2"/>

• ^{Template:Note}"Erotica" samples "Jungle Boogie" (1973), recorded by Kool and the Gang, and written by Robert Earl Bell, Ronald Nathan Bell, Donald Boyce, George Melvin Brown, Robert Spike Mickens, Claydes Charles Smith, Clifford Adams and Dennis Thomas. It also samples "El Yom 'Ulliqa 'Ala Khashaba", performed by Fairuz.
• ^{Template:Note}The clean version of the album does not include "Did You Do It?".<ref name="liner2"/>
• ^{Template:Note}Mark Goodman and Dave Murphy are credited for "special guest appearances" on "Did You Do It?".
• ^{Template:Note}"Fever" contains lyrics written and rearranged by singer Peggy Lee, who remains uncredited for her contribution.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
• ^{Template:Note}Anthony Shimkin has been officially added by ASCAP as a co-writer to "Erotica", "Bye Bye Baby", "Bad Girl", "Thief of Hearts", "Words", and "Why's It So Hard". Inlay notes to the album do not include this. Shimkin was only allowed to add his credit to one composition on the album; he originally chose "Deeper and Deeper".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• ^{Template:Note}CD, vinyl, cassette, and Digital Compact Cassette – explicit version, comes with a Parental Advisory label. The vinyl was reissued in 2012 and 2016 by Warner Bros. Records with a different catalog number.<ref name="liner" /><ref name="lin3">Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>
• ^{Template:Note}Limited Australian tour edition – explicit version. Australian digipak edition released in November 1993 to commemorate Madonna's first visit to the country as part of the Girlie Show tour.<ref>Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>

Credits

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.<ref name="liner" />

• Recorded at Master Mix Studios, Clinton Recording Studios and Soundworks, New York
• Mastering at Sterling Sound Studios
• Design and art direction by Baron & Baron Inc.
• Maverick Recording Company. © 1992 Sire Records Company.

Musicians

• Madonna – vocals
• Dave Murphy – guest vocals
• Mark Goodman – guest vocals
• André Betts – synthesizer, bass, piano, strings, drums, keyboard, synthesizer strings
• Shep Pettibone – keyboard
• Donna De Lory and Niki Haris – background vocals
• Anton Fig – drums
• Jerome Dickens – guitar
• Paul Pesco – guitar
• Doug Wimbish – bass
• Glen Dicterow – conductor, concertmaster
• James Preston – piano, keyboard, synthesizer strings
• Danny Wilensky – saxophone
• Jeremy Lublock – string arrangements

Composition and production

• Madonna – composition, production
• Shep Pettibone – production, engineering, sequencing
• André Betts – production
• Eddie Cooley – composition
• John Davenport – composition
• Emile Charlap – contractor
• Mark Goodman – assistant engineer
• Joe Moskowitz – programming
• Tony Shimkin – programming
• Mike Farrell – engineer
• Robin Hancock – engineer, mixing
• George Karras – engineer
• P. Dennis Mitchell – engineer
• Ted Jensen – mastering
• Sander Selover – programming

Design

• Siung Fat Tjia – art direction, design
• Steven Meisel – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Template:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chartTemplate:Album chart

Weekly chart performance for Erotica

Chart (1992)	Peak position
Argentine Albums (CAPIF)<ref name="ArgentinaPeak">Template:Cite journal</ref>	1
Belgian Albums (IFPI — SIBESA)<ref name=EuropeanTop100/>	9
Brazilian Albums (Nopem/ABPD)<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>	1
Canadian Albums (The Record)<ref name="Madonnarama&TheRecord">Template:Cite magazine</ref>	3
Danish Albums (IFPI)<ref name=EuropeanTop100/>	2
European Top 100 Albums (Music & Media)<ref name=EuropeanTop100/>	1
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)<ref name="fin">Template:Harvnb</ref>	1
French Albums (SNEP)<ref name=EuropeanTop100/>	1
Greek Albums (IFPI Greece)<ref name="Greece">Template:Cite journal</ref>	3
Icelandic Albums (Tónlist)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	10
Irish Albums (IFPI)<ref name="ireland">Template:Cite journal</ref>	5
Italian Albums (Musica e dischi)<ref name=EuropeanTop100/>	2
Japanese Albums (Oricon)<ref name="japan">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	5
Portuguese Albums (AFP)<ref name=EuropeanTop100/>	6
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)<ref name="spain">Template:Harvnb</ref>	5
South African Albums (RISA)<ref name=Africa>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	28

Template:Album chart

2006–2023 weekly chart performance for Erotica

Chart (2006–2023)	Peak position
Croatian International Albums (HDU)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	5
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	69
Greek Combined Albums (IFPI Greece)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	8

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for Erotica

Chart (1992)	Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	30
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>	32
European Top 100 Albums (Music & Media)<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>	50
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)<ref name="fin" />	40
Japanese Albums (Oricon)<ref name="oriconyearend">Template:Cite book</ref>	88
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	67
UK Albums (OCC)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	27
Chart (1993)	Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	49
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)<ref name="Canadayearend">Template:Cite journal</ref>	71
US Billboard 200<ref name="BBYearEnd">Template:Cite magazine</ref>	61
US Top 100 Albums (Cash Box)<ref name="Cashbox93">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	44

See also

• List of European number-one hits of 1992
• List of number-one albums in Australia during the 1990s

Bibliography

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External links

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• Library + Archives: Erotica at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame