Drowned World - Dramatically sets up not only the complex electronic feel of the album, but finds Madonna swimming in sound as she returns to her traditional themes of awakening and self-awareness. William Orbit: "It's one of my favourite tracks. You feel like you're drowning in it. I listen to it a lot, which is something I don't do [with other albums]. I can't resist it." Swim - A lyrically-heavy, guitar adventure about the struggle to keep your head above water in a stressful world. WO: "Very interesting vocals. The day she did it she got a call on the way to the studio that her next door neighbour [Versace] had been murdered. Lyrically it was written before that but it is topical. Musically my guitar is pretty retro - there's a lot of buzzing - and eventually we gave up trying to fix it."
Ray Of Light - The title track - which is dotmusic's favourite - is a serious dance jaunt which quickly plunges from sweet guitar into an indulgent disco number for listeners to go mad or simply sway to. Will be massive. WO: "That's the one which got everyone jumping and that's how I mixed it. We put a lot of emphasis on body language; we literally had a disco in the studio and it got people who don't naturally dance to dance. Engineer Pat McCarthy is a big man but he'd move and I'd watch that and mix it."
Candy Perfume Girl - Not that sweet a track, it's packed with beats, distorted sound and circus-like music breaks with significant lyrical input by Melvoin. WO: "We dived into an abyss of sound with this one. I let it boil overnight and the flavour ripened as I listened to it. We had Marshalls in cupboards and lots and lots of other stuff going on. It's a real outdoor track."
Skin Churning - A very Eurodance-influenced, complex dancefloor stomper twisted from a Pat Leonard song. WO: "We were running vocals through hi-hats and all kinds of things. She likes that, deconstructed music. She loves repetition and simple sounds. You can make a lot of music with simple sounds."
Nothing Really Matters - Classic Madonna cut (another Leonard song with DeVries assisting with the production), which plunges from deep vocals into pop dance. WO: "That's real boogie. It's a straightforward dance pop song. Very good lyrics. Very good."
Sky Fits Heaven - Heavy bass-led track peppered with mad drumming and eerie synth sounds. WO: "Haven't you ever heard drums before? Well, it stands out but they are kind of mistakes. I'd fiddle for hours to get a little sound you can't hear right and not spend a lot of time on something you get to hear right upfront."
Shanti/Ashtangi - A Sanskrit poem which folds neatly into the pounding ethnic groove and soul of the track. WO: "She's heavily into yoga and esoteric hardcore stuff and this came out of that. She's a very serious student and when a couple of the phrases got in the wrong order she was very persistent we got it right. It took more than four days - one of the quick ones."
Frozen - The first single is one of the slowest songs and, complete with sweeping orchestration, smacks of Leonard and Orbit's input. WO: "The song is preserved in terms of its arrangement but made completely new, all rhythms and synths. You'll see us all (including the original orchestra) on the National Lottery. I'll be on for a nanosecond though!"
Power Of Goodbye - Another of the songs for Madonna fans (this time one of Nowels'), it is all keyboard and drums and circus-like swirls and stands out for its all-knowing lyrics. WO: "This track took a long time. I really did struggle. This was the midnight of the tracks. There was a point on the album when I thought I was going to give it up. But like Robert the Bruce and the spider in the cave, I kept cracking away on it and then we were flying."
To Have And Not To Hold - A delicate chant-like track in which Madonna's voice weaves through the melody. WO: "It was pretty straightforward, the sound just fell into place. Rico Conning put bells on and a great descending bell-line and I totally neglected him in the credits."
Little Star - A lullaby-like track not least for its lyrics, which show Madonna's daughter Lourdes as being the most important thing in her life. The most ambient track which has restrained beats and complex effects held back by sweeping strings. WO: "I had nothing to do with this track, apart from being around when it was done. Marius came in and went down the corridor to come up with that. I walked by, loved it and gave them the thumbs up."
Mer Girl - From its landscape and the emotional resonances, this is a powerful ending to the album. WO: "I'm very proud of this one. I set out to do something complex and I felt like I'd pulled it off. It has a lot more structure than it would first appear. She sang it so incredibly beautifully - in one take - early in the project. It's just a moment in time I'll cherish. Most people don't get that far on an album."
