Christgau in 1983

Madonna [Sire, 1983]
In case you bought the con, disco never died—just reverted to the crazies who thought it was worth living for. This shamelessly ersatz blonde is one of them, and with the craftily orchestrated help of a fine selection of producers, remixers, and DJs, she’s come up with a shamelessly ersatz sound that’s tighter than her tummy—essence of electro, the D in DOR. At first I thought the electroporn twelve-inch that pairs “Burning Up” with “Physical Attraction” was the way to go, but that was before she’d parlayed the don’t-let-me-down vagueness of “Borderline” into a video about interracial love (sex, I mean) and a sneaky pop hook simultaneously. At one stiff per four-song side, smarter than Elvis Costello. A-