Wikipedia

Madrugada (Melanie album)

Madrugada is a 1974 album released by Melanie featuring the singles "Lover's Cross" and "Love to Lose Again". In November 1973, "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" became a Top 40 hit in the United Kingdom and was subsequently added to the British release of the album.

Madrugada
Studio album by
Melanie
Released1974
Studio914 Sound Studios, Blauvelt, New York
GenrePop
LabelNeighborhood
ProducerPeter Schekeryk
Melanie chronology
Please Love Me
(1973) 		Madrugada
(1974) 		As I See It Now
(1974)

The album consists of leftover material from the 1972 sessions for Stoneground Words which was initially conceived as a double album.[1] As with Gather Me, the album featured arrangements and conduction by Roger Kellaway.

The word madrugada is Portuguese and Spanish for the time of the night between midnight and sunrise.

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [2]

In their review of the album, Billboard stated that "Melanie expands her horizons on this new Neighborhood effort. Her singing is clearer than ever and her writing just as refreshing as she explores new musical ideas."[3]

Cashbox noted that the album was "an interesting and exciting departure from her unique style."[4]

Record World called it "an album that will undoubtedly be her grandest to date. Melanie never sounded better on her own tunes and her unique voice lends itself well to The Stones' "Wild Horses" and Randy Newman's sensitive "I Think It's Going To Rain Today."[5]

AllMusic were more mixed in their praise, conceding the album contained "a few new musical ideas" with "Melanie striding boldly into high-flown, fretful autobiography with some success. As a performer, she was displaying more skill and restraint than ever before. As a songwriter, there were signs that her gifts were on the wane; Madrugada was half covers... nothing on Madrugada is anything less than pleasant."[2]

Track listing

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All songs written by Melanie Safka except where noted:

  1. "Love to Lose Again"
  2. "Lover's Cross" (Jim Croce)
  3. "Pretty Boy Floyd" (Woody Guthrie)
  4. "Wild Horses" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards)
  5. "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (Randy Newman)
  6. "Maybe Not for a Lifetime"
  7. "Holding Out"
  8. "I Am Being Guided"
  9. "The Actress"
  10. "Pine and Feather"

U.K. version

  1. "Love to Lose Again"
  2. "Lover's Cross" (Jim Croce)
  3. "Pretty Boy Floyd" (Woody Guthrie)
  4. "Wild Horses" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards)
  5. "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (Randy Newman)
  6. "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" (Gerry Goffin, Carole King)
  7. "Maybe Not for a Lifetime"
  8. "Holding Out"
  9. "The Actress"
  10. "Pine and Feather"

Personnel

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Technical
  • Artie Kaplan - contractor
  • Brooks Arthur - engineer
  • Larry Alexander - assistant engineer
  • Pacific Eye & Ear - cover design

Charts

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Chart Peak
position
US Billboard Albums Chart [6] 192
US Cash Box Albums Chart [7] 114

Singles

Chart Title Peak
position
U.S Billboard Hot 100 "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" 82
U.S Billboard Adult Contemporary "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" 42
U.S Cash Box "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" 54
UK Singles Chart "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" 37
Australian Chart "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" 93
Canadian Chart "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" 90
U.S Cash Box "Lover's Cross" 70
U.S Record World [8] "Lover's Cross" 73
US Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 "Lover's Cross" 109
Canadian Chart "Lover's Cross" 64

References

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  1. ^ "Melanie's 'Stoneground Words' set for deluxe reissue in March 2024". 15 January 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Melanie Madrugada". AllMusic. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  3. ^ "Top Album Picks" (PDF). Billboard. No. 30 Mar, 1974. p. 104. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  4. ^ "Album Reviews: Pop Picks" (PDF). Cash Box. No. 14 December 1974. p. 30. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  5. ^ https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Record-World-IDX/IDX/70s/74/Record-World-1974-03-30-OCR-Page-0001.pdf#search=%22madrugada%22 [bare URL]
  6. ^ "Melanie". Billboard.
  7. ^ "Cash Box" (PDF). Worldradiohistory.com. June 29, 1974. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  8. ^ "Record World" (PDF). Worldradiohistory.com. September 7, 1974. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
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