Kenny and Mark bust out the pom-poms for a LIVE show at the Francis Kite Club in Alphabet City to discuss the first single and so much more from MDNA

.  Topics include cheerleading, female collaborators, garage rock, bananas, ZZ Top, Burgundy wine, Martin Solveig, Michael Tordjman, Bob Costas, mascots, Megaforce, trench coats and baby carriages, THE SUPER BOWL HALFTIME PERFORMANCE, Midwestern farm hands, the NY Giants and the New England Patriots, Kelly Clarkson, LMFAO, CeeLo Green and the ultimate version of “Like a Prayer”, slack lining, the brilliant Moment Factory collaboration, and setting up a stage in under eight minutes.  Plus, an appreciation of the star power of Nicki Minaj and Kenny deep dives into the fascinating and complicated M.I.A.  Special thanks to the fabulous staff at Francis Kite Club, our Special Guest Sadonna, and all of the beautiful listeners, friends, and family who came out on a rainy night to celebrate the show with us.  See you in two weeks!

Live from the Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center in New York City!  Mark and Kenny hop back in the car with Madonna to rave about the final single from MDNA.  Topics include Martin Solveig, Jade Williams, Bridgette Bardot and Barcelona, cleavage and convertibles, handsy chauffeurs, sweetheart Brahim Zaibat, Laidback Luke, R3hab, Tom Munro, missing dance breaks, the chart-toppers Autograph, and whether this song should have been the opening of the entire MDNA Tour.  Plus, a deep dive into travel time management at airports - and exactly who would get to join Madonna on a road trip when she swings by the studio.  La festa è finita, adesso allacciati la cintura stronzetta!

Special thank you to Mr. Joe Hazan for his assistance - both technical  and emotional - with this episode.

Mark and Kenny load it up to discuss one of the two new tracks included on Madonna’s third (or fourth?) greatest hits collection from 2009.  Topics include: Lil Wayne (and his many feuds), DJ Frankie, the Jackie Boyz, R&B swagger, cigars, drive-by recording, the return of Louise Oriole, troublesome mixes, Paul Van Dyk, David Guetta, Tracy Young, gun metaphors in songwriting, the appeal of a 5PM curtain time, Kenny goes rifle shooting upstate, incriminating evidence, Snow White, and Mark plays Chester Fletcher - the beloved grandson of JB Fletcher - in a reboot of Murder She Wrote.  “I don’t know Page Corbin!”

Kenny and Mark wrap up their conversation about Erotica with the moody and restless final Andre Betts track on the album - and the impact of Madonna beginning to take her time.

Mark and Kenny dive into the crushing and complicated final ballad from Erotica and take time to discuss Madonna’s long and personal commitment to the AIDS crisis as well as her relationship to those who suffered and were lost. They then welcome a special guest - UK-based playwright and theatre-maker Brian Mullin -who discusses his own relationship to Madonna, what it means for him to live and thrive with HIV and his newest work - Live to Tell: (a proposal for) The Madonna Jukebox Musical. Learn more about Brian and his piece @mullin_brian and @LiveToTellShow

Reggae and Protest join hands as Kenny and Mark discuss the “sing-a-long” song on Erotica, the song’s musical siblings in the Madonna catalog (we are NOT looking at you, “Hey You”), earnestness, the vocal debut of Tony Shimkin, guitarist Paul Pesco, and when it is appropriate to grab a soda during a Madonna concert. Why’s it STILL so damn hard?

Mark and Kenny celebrate the gorgeous (and multi-meaning) power ballad from Erotica. Topics include the importance of counterpoint vocals, the necessity of a radio remix, Mark Romanek’s video of beauty portraiture, Whitney Houston’s radio dominance, bukkake, the glorious maxi-single and justice of its forgotten (and rare) non-album track, and Kenny’s reaction to the possibility of working with Madonna. PLUS, special guest (and fellow podcaster) Gilad Barash joins Kenny for a conversation about the song and its impact on his life, as well as his smart and insightful podcast “Who’s Your Data?” - and Mark issues a social media challenge. Never go away …

Kenny and Mark return to the “Rain Tapes” to discuss the evolving and evolving versions of this personal (and restless) favorite. Topics include the importance of a writing life, the notorious romance letters with Amanda Cazalet, Bette Midler, reading lists, Pain & Glory, THAT brilliant musical bridge, the power, and limits, of words, and the moment that makes EroticaTHE Madonna masterpiece.

Theories abound as Mark and Kenny dig into the backside of Erotica with this “dance” track – Madonna’s breaking glass, verbally slapping, and – yes – rapping. It’s getting crazy during this hot August summer, y’all – folk heroes Peter, Paul, and Mary make THEIR inaugural appearance on the podcast. Calling all remixers!!

The feud over the 14-track version of Erotica continues ... though not before Kenny and Mark celebrate one of the thrilling and genre-bending centerpieces on Erotica (and which closes out it's cassette Side A). Topics include another sojourn into Mark's teen years spent at the mall, the welcome appearance of jazz and horns on a Madonna record, and a final tribute to Madonna protégé Nick Kamen (RIP Nick) - then Mark goes it alone to discuss the odd inclusion of "Did You Do It?" with rappers Mark Goodman and Dave Murphy. Absolutely NO regrets.

Mark and Kenny dive deep into the beloved and much admired first ballad on Erotica and its masterpiece of a video (the final - so far - collaboration with David Fincher) as well as some other not-so-masterful pieces Madonna worked on in 1993. Featuring Louise Oriole, Jonathan Ross, Christopher Walken, Willem Dafoe, Joe Mantegna, Anne Archer, Julianne Moore, Alfred Hitchcock, Gregory Peck, Louis Jordan, Alida Valli, Abel Ferrara, Harvey Keitel, James Russo, and … yes … Joey Buttafuoco.

Kenny and Mark kick-off the Andre Betts celebration with the notorious (and brilliant) first Madonna/Betts collaboration on Erotica. Mark muses on Dre’s contributions to the songwriting process, Jonathan Ross proves a worthy interviewer for Dita Parlo, and Kenny makes a controversial stance about the “deluxe editions” of future Madonna albums. It’s warm inside …

Mark and Kenny celebrate the house classic hit from Erotica - the only song where Shep Pettibone and Udo Kier could possibly convene - with a minute-by-minute dissection of a reference-filled video, a recalibration of Mark’s ever present “Top Five of All Time” list, Kenny’s deep love of remixes using organs, AND welcoming special guest Jonathan Norton to celebrate the return of Donna DeLory & Niki Haris!

Kenny and Mark take a mega, near-THREE hour dive into the 2008-2009 world tour as well as the documentary I Am Because We Are.  Topics include: Nathan Rissman, Michael Moore, Desmond Tutu, Hustling at Cannes, Hamutsan Serve, Kevin Antunes, Stefanie Roos, Sofia Boutella, unnecessary thrones, Madonna’s hat, Britney Spears, ad hoc car shows, Keith Haring, double-dutch jump rope, a tribute to Michael Jackson, Little Orphan Annie, destructive rage, subways, Nikki Richards, Monte Pittman, Eurythmics, skirting paneling and skirting camp, the Madonna stance, accordion players, political statements, the glorious echoes of Niki Haris, fan requests, chess metaphors, the challenges of “Frozen”, and proving that we don’t have “the luxury of time”.  Plus, connecting Sticky&Sweet to the current Celebration Tour, shuffling setlists, Kenny drags Sheldon to another mall in Miami, and Mark tries to skip Kenny’s concert grading system!  “Before your very eyes!”

Kenny and Mark dig into their diaries to discuss this ode to relationship “flings” and “fizzles.” Madonna demonstrates a new mastery of specificity in the studio … and demands her fans pay attention to those brilliant lyrics. And yet had the popular tide turned by the time it was released as a single? To love you IS a sin, apparently …

Dita hands Erotica back over to Madonna as Mark and Kenny hit the club floor to discuss this (now) classic cover. Peggy Lee, Little Willie Joe, EGOT Rita Moreno and the Muppet Show, Anthony Kiedis and Arsenio Hall, the lost “Goodbye to Innocence” and THOSE remixes. What a lovely way to burn, indeed.

Did we do it? You KNOW we did it! At long last, Kenny and Mark kick off their conversation about all things “Erotica” - the song, the video, the remixes, AND the Sex book. Maverick Records, Shep Pettibone, Dita Parlo, Big Daddy Kane, Vanilla Ice … they’re all here, kids. And - if that weren’t enough - Kenny kicks off the episode with his testimonial on why this album is Madonna’s masterpiece - and how formative it remains in his own life narrative. “We’re not full of rage … we’re full of HOPE!”

Mark and Kenny recall shopping malls and cassingles while discussing the gorgeous (and surprising #1 charting) single from the 1992 summer blockbuster A League of Their Own. Topics include: Penny Marshall, Tom Hanks, Rosie O'Donnell, Arsenio Hall, Tank Girl, and "All the Way" Mae.

Led by a guiding document by scribe Marsha Norman, Mark and Kenny break down the seminal and genre-shattering (now classic) documentary, celebrating it’s 30th (!) anniversary this year. Will Mark ever pronounce Wuthering Heights correctly? Will Kenny ever share a viewing experience of TorD with his husband? Will a restored full version of the concert footage (or the deleted footage) ever see the light of day? And why aren’t Madonna and company eating anything on that hotel veranda with those Perrier bottles? “Basta, per favore!”

Kenny and Mark do battle over the “other” new song on Madonna’s definitive (early) greatest hits collection. Topics include the staying power of Shep Pettibone, Tony winner Lilias White, jazz singer Catherine Russell, and Kenny’s conviction that recording vocals in a French toilet is the right way to go.

Mark and Kenny explore the not-so-seceret legacy behind the authorship of this head-spinning (and chapter turning) single which proved to be one of Madonna’s greatest triumphs - and controversies. Topics include: INGRID CHAVEZ, Lenny Kravitz, Howard Stern, the return of Prince, unpacking in hotels, Tony Ward, Jean-Baptiste Mondino, “The Beast Within” Remix, SNL, Wayne & Garth, Jeanne Moreau, Wallis Franken, Herb Ritts, Forrest Sawyer, and the first game-changing collaboration Andre Betts. So now what?

Kenny and Mark return to August 5, 1990 – when HBO broadcast Madonna’s final performance of the legendary and career-defining BA Tour.  Topics include: Madonna’s hair, Madonna’s costumes, Madonna’s dancing, Madonna’s troop of back-up singers & dancers (and the comforts of the road), Madonna’s tour band, Madonna’s setlist negotiations, Madonna’s brother Christopher Ciccone, and the emerging allure of younger men.  Settle in with a bottle of Perrier and enjoy!

Mark and Kenny attempt to discuss and explore THE ground-breaking classic. Period.

Kenny and Mark double-dip on this charming 180 turn from I’m Breathless.  Topics include Warren Beatty warbling, kudos from Beach Boy Brian Wilson, wisdom from Socrates, Picasso channeling, and the expansive (and eclectic!) career of Mr. Andy Paley.

Mark and Kenny wrap up their conversations about Hard Candy and also welcome Special Guest Zachary Pace (author of I Sing to Use the Waiting: A Collection of Essays About the Women Singers Who’ve Made Me Who I Am) to discuss this urgent ballad (and final Timbaland/Timberlake collaboration).  Topics include Hello Suckers, singing in the shower, Kabbalah, essential b-sides, Cher, Rihanna, asking questions without waiting for answers, and the power - and evolving definition - of the queer voice.  Plus, Kenny breaks apart and remixes “Voices” and Mark gets down on his hands and knees for the lost song “Animal”. The Sugar’s Still Raw!

Two Dollar Radio page for Zachary Pace

Mark and Kenny fall into a musical theatre wormhole while discussing Mandy Patinkin and his cameo role as 88 Keys in Dick Tracy – AND only the second male duet partner (after Prince) on a Madonna record for this gorgeous ballad – as well as Breathless Mahoney’s back story and a deep take on how her film career functions in the entire Madonna universe.

Kenny and Mark start a Sondheim submerge with the sassy showtune ode to excess. Topics include anatomy insurance policies, the definition of true artistry, screechy chorines, and Kenny launches a telethon to track down the lost video of footage of Mark performing this song … IN 1990.

Mark and Kenny celebrate the second side of I’m Breathless with the “other” song about Business from Dick Tracy.  Topics include the timing of musical sequences, Jon Bon Jovi and Young Guns II, a long-awaited distinction about the term “iconic”, Madonna being “fun”, Jeff Clayton’s saxophone solo and how all roads lead back to Breathless Mahoney herself.  PLUS … Special Guest Dan Fortune joins Mark to discuss Madonna scatting, an Ella Fitzgerald nod, and the magnificent work Dan produces to support the Ali Forney Center.

Kenny and Mark clash while discussing the “other” torch song on I’m Breathless.  Topics include Mark’s version of a synopsis of Dick Tracy, Kenny’s editing suggestions, and the Musical Impact of Pathos.  Dick Van Dyke Shout-Out!

Mark and Kenny celebrate the reunion of Nikki Finn and Madonna on this polarizing obscurity from I’m Breathless – and Mark makes (yet another) case for the casting brilliance of Dick Tracy. Will Kenny ever watch this movie again? Other topics include musical story arcs, musical outliers, post-breakups, and a moment when Madonna herself has cried. Sensitive Men to the front of the line!

Madonna gives us a musical 180 while Kenny and Mark continue to conceive the Breathless Mahoney downtown cabaret act and discuss Madonna’s need for creative release, working outside of her comfort zone, the brilliance of Andy Paley, and the legacy (and influence) of Carmen Miranda.

Mark and Kenny treat Her like a bad girl (and not for the last time) while breaking down the brassy second single from I’m Breathless.  Topics include: Madonna’s relish of pastiche writing, Kenny’s summer job commute, Breathless Mahoney’s lost cabaret setlist, the Bare Bottom 12” Remix, the Collected Lyrics of Cole Porter, and the song’s doorway to the singer-song ladies of the past.

Kenny and Mark discuss the Oscar-winning torch song from Dick Tracy (and its many guises) by the musical theatre master Stephen Sondheim.  Topics include the challenges of properly learning Sondheim, being chummy with Jeremy Irons, Michael Jackson, the lost movie musical Singing Out Loud, the humane foibles of live performances, and how Madonna gave Broadway a hip moment.

Kenny and Mark BREATHLESSly dive into the beloved 1990 film soundtrack to the blockbuster Dick Tracy – as well as the musical psyche of certain gangster moll.  Topics include the friends of Warren Beatty, Danny Elfman, the impact of Batman on the summer blockbuster, The Damned Don’t Die, musical “noir”, Lilith Fair, the strangest of Al Pacino’s Oscar nominated performances, and the crucial vocal contributions of N’Dea Davenport.  Oh, and more guns.

The Eighties are officially over as Mark and Kenny come full circle while wrapping up Like a Prayer – and pay a visit to a (semi) intoxicating oddity.

Kenny and Mark celebrate the return of Brother-in-Law of the Decade Joe Henry and the haunting story song ballad from Hard Candy.  PLUS - at long last - a reckoning and reassessment of Madonna’s film directing debut, Filth & Wisdom.  Spoilers abound so do yourself a favor and head over to the indispensable www.ifc.com to stream the film beforehand!  Thank you and you’re welcome!

Kenny and Mark close out their conversations about Like a Prayer (and the 80s) with the final track – a ground-breaking (and one of the strangest) moment of Madonna’s canon.  Topics include Catholic imagery, the upcoming onslaught of tell-all biographies, Prince’s guitar solos, and Madonna’s first “I Don’t Give A ****” moment.

Mark makes a passionate case for the closing ballad (and official song) on Like a Prayer while Kenny comes around to see the light from that candle.  Is this song about AIDS?  About gang violence?  About war?  Is it about Marco Loya’s backing vocals?  All (or nothing) is revealed!

Kenny and Mark sway along with the oft-forgotten fifth single from Like a Prayer.  Topics include: turning Detroit beats into stadium anthems, magnets and the legendary Madonna cheese, Joe Henry, fedoras, the troublesome British accent, safe havens and sleeping on the floor, the fabulous maxi-single remixes for this song, and the complicated sibling rivalries that impact all of us – while Mark outs himself as a potential Madonna back-up singer!  “Keep people together!”

Kenny and Mark continue exploring Madonna’s (semi) autobiographical songwriting on this “shoulda been” classic Madonna power ballad.  Topics include: male authority figures, Simon & Garfunkel’s Concert in Central Park, Kenny’s love of acoustic gravitas, the return of David Fincher, threatening shadows, singing statues, Charlton Wilborn, and an ode to one of the greatest moments in Madonna Hair History.  Plus … another Special Guest (and longtime listener) joins Mark to discuss his experience performing the song … Dominic Yacobozzi!

Mark rescues this off-beat gem from Like a Prayer while not even candy kisses and a sunny day can keep Kenny from hijacking the episode with a dreadful reminder of what a difference a decade makes.  It’s not ALWAYS a holiday (or a love parade) around here, kids.

Kenny and Mark dive into Side Two of Like a Prayer with one of the most romantic songs in the whole canon.  Topics include Herb Ritts, shooting mermen in black & white, Tony Ward, the importance of reading plays to write sincere lyrics, and Mark’s dream Shakespeare casting for Madonna.  Plus … a Very Special Guest joins Mark to discuss her long and quite personal relationship with the song … his sister Kate!

Kenny and Mark close Side One of Like a Prayer with this gorgeous and aching Pat Leonard ballad.  Topics include Madonna’s recording style, the power of long creative relationships, shifting narrative perspectives in songs, and the impact therapy can have on the creative process as well as Madonna’s spide-y sense about the changing landscapes in pop music.

Kenny and Mark deep dive into the true lost gem from side one of Like a Prayer. Topics include Sean Penn, Sean Penn, Sean Penn, and … oh yeah … Sean Penn Version.2016 as well as autobiographical songwriting, Madonna’s brand of artistic revenge, the frustrations and merits of working hard, and lots of armchair psychology over the nature of relationships, time, and the need for vulnerability. Stuff is getting REAL, kids

The music universe explodes (implodes?) as Madonna and Prince team up in the studio at last … to create this experimental, slightly bizarre pop oddity.  Topics include Minneapolis and Paisley Park, Batdance and Sign O’ The Times, Daisy Miller, Kenny’s favorite Prince duet, gender, and the long-lost Royal Tour.  The first true “duet” in the Madonna canon begs the question … are there any lost Madonna/Prince tracks?

And the hits keep coming!  Kenny and Mark dive deep into the anthemic, brash, and second track (and single) from Like a Prayer.  Topics include DAVID FINCHER (welcome to MadonnaUniverse, David!), Metropolis, the return of Stephen Bray, the intriguing beauty of Cameron Alborzian, and the polarizing Shep Pettibone remixes of (yet another) classic Madonna song.

Mark and Kenny dive back into their respective school days to discuss the joyfully divisive palate cleanser of a song from Hard Candy.  Topics include Mrs. Ritchie the Art Teacher, banging erasers, phonetic worksheets and language lessons, Monte Pittman, hooded monks, and The Percolator.  Plus EXTRA SPECIAL GUESTS Parrita Duarte and Augustin Aguirre (hosts of the magnifico/caliente Spanish podcast Santa Madonna) join for a deep discussion on Madonna’s long history embracing and celebrating Latin American culture, communal celebration, Parri’s and Augustin’s favorite HC tracks, Death Becomes Her, Madonna’s visits to Argentina, especially during the filming of Evita, extra special moments that were cut from the Sticky and Sweet tour film, their personal singalong with Madonna when the electricity went out, and forging friendships through Madonna fandom.  Plus, some spanish lesson corrections and re-discovering the lost and haunting “Latte.”  Baby, I’m on to your game! IG: @santamadonnapodcast

Mark kicks off the conversation about Madonna’s masterpiece fourth album with a testimony to Kenny about the personal power and passion of Like a Prayer.  Topics include Prince, Mary Lambert, Sean Penn, Pepsi-Cola, Niki Harris, the Andre Crouch Choir, and the narrative hiccups in the ground-breaking video of this classic Madonna song.

Waiting is the hardest part … Finally … At LONG Last … Season Two (1988-1993) kicks off! Kenny and Mark drops back into New York, circa 1988 - a year when Madonna starred on Broadway, sashayed with Sandra, laid into Letterman, and got photographed … a LOT! She also wrote and recorded what would become considered her first masterpiece album Like a Prayer and faced the truth about her future as Mrs. Sean Penn. There are many special surprises and treats in store for you this season so stay safe and keep listening! We missed you so much.

It’s August 16th and we all know what that means - time to stop what you’re doing, get on the appropriately socially distant dance-floor and celebrate the birth of M. Mark and Kenny check in about everything from M’s guest spot on Dua Lipa’s “Levitating”, her instagram hits and misses, a new record deal and how each are coping in month five of the pandemic. There’s a lot in M’s orbit as she begins her 63rd trip around the Sun.