The 10 Best Madonna Songs Of All Time

What are your favorite 10?

Updated 11 years ago, July 9, 2013

Madonna is one of those artists that you either love or hate. Some people l-o-v-e Madonna (get it?) and swear by her every utterance of feminism and progress in music. And others are just kind of like meh, don’t really see what all the fuss is about. You can talk someone until their ears fall off about why this or that musician is great-fantastic-awesome-wow, but sometimes the proof is in the pudding. Sometimes you have bring them PROOF of greatness before they will even be slightly interested.

I’m not a Madonna Queen, as these people are called in the gay world, but I do appreciate her hard work and innovations in music. Here are 10 great Madonna songs that just about anybody should like.

1. “Lucky Star”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThHz9wlBeLU&w=584&h=390]

The video for this one is awesome because Madonna looks so current and now and in fashion. There’s just something about 80s fashion that always seems so edgy and now.

2. “Dress Me Up”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt2Bcn6aY9E&w=584&h=390]

I admit: there was that one holiday season where I worked at The Gap and this was the theme song of all the Gap commercials and they played this song SO MUCH in the store I thought I would lose it. Still a great song, though!

3. “Human Nature”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrGDn82ea8M&w=584&h=390]

I’ve never been the biggest Madonna fan on the planet, but I admit that this was probably the first music video I’d ever seen her in. I remember watching it and thinking, wow who is that powerful betch in the black latex catsuit who is like punching stuff? She seems awesome.

4. “Skin”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TCmjwxpP-o&w=584&h=390]

A surprising turn for Madge on this album. Still, “Skin” haunts and floats above you even while it makes you want to get up and dance.

5. “Ray Of Light”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGf8GwXG0eM&w=584&h=390]

And I feeeeelllllllllll.

6. “Justify My Love”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Np_Y740aReI&w=584&h=390]

The best part of this song is the video though. It was banned by MTV, which of course only made people want to see it more.

7. “Hung Up”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDwb9jOVRtU&w=584&h=390]

Madonna circa “Human Nature” might have been the first Madonna I was aware of, but disco queen Madonna is the one that made me start to like her. This album came out during my last year of college and i swear it’s all I listened to for MONTHS.

8. “Candy Shop”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOwmzNgLp4w&w=584&h=390]

Okay, by now things are getting less creative and more commercial. However! When you attach Timbaland to a song, I mean it’s going to be a good song.

9. “Die Another Day

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOf4MyY032c&w=584&h=390]

I think in Madonna lore “American Life” was pretty roundly considered a flop :( but that doesn’t mean that there wasn’t at least ONE good record on there.