Author Giulio Mazzoleni talks new publication ‘Madonna Songbook’: “Her music writing talent has been buried under her controversial career”

The Queen of Pop jumps from the Top 10 charts to glossy paper through this new book covering every material that made her move from girl to icon. Guillermo Nazara chats with the man living to tell her story, to learn more about the development of this massive, exciting project all fans will surely get hung up on.

How did the idea for this book come about? Why Madonna among all other singing icons?

There are several books like this on stars like Prince and David Bowie or Elton John, but not on Madonna, yet she is the biggest female recording artist of all time. She deserves more credit for her music making. She’s a pioneer woman in a misogynist world like the music industry, but her music writing talent has been long underrated, buried by the brouhaha around her controversial career and the extremely impactful visual element of her art. However, everything she does starts from a music point and she’s a true and talented music writer and producer, who does partner with different collaborators, but definitely is the creator of several of the most memorable songs in the last 40 years. She has released fifteen studio albums,with a long list of very different co-producers and in very diverse styles, yet all of her songs sound unmistakably Madonna.

I’m a huge Madonna fan, and I wished there was a book like this about her. My dear friend Matthew Rettenmund – novelist, blogger and editor, as well as writer of the famed and quintessential Encyclopedia Madonnica – encouraged me to write the book myself, knowing that I have been collecting an archiving records, files, interviews, and information about Madonna‘s music since 1985, while also working with the lady herself for the promotion of a couple of her albums in more recent years.

The book comprises over 700 illustrated pages featuring interviews, reviews, and every possible fun fact about her career. How long has it taken to deliver such a colossal project?

It started as a part-time hobby which produced a few pages in the span of some months, but once I found a publishing company that believed in the project, it became a serious thing for me – and having settled for a sabbatical year from my music artist management career, I almost completely dedicated myself to it for twelve months and delivered the book for printing the day before my husband and I left for our honeymoon last October.

Would you say this the ultimate Madona book? What makes this book stand out in comparison to other music-themed anthology books?

I would say this is the ultimate book on Madonna‘s music. There is no other publication that analyses her musical career in such detail. I cover over 500 songs, released and unreleased, and analyse them individually while also telling the stories behind her albums, her tours, her collaborators, the many messages Madonna has been putting in her music. I also created cross referential playlists that can be accessed on Spotify directly from the book. But what’s most fascinating is discovering how inspired and instinctive Madonna is when it comes to making music. As meticulous and carefully planned everything is in her visual output, the music is instead the results of a very organic and spontaneous, fast process. Some of her monumental hits came out of a flash inspiration and she only ever sang them once for the demo, so those takes would end up on the final versions of masterpieces like Live to Tell, Like a Prayer or Hung Up.

What has the process of developing the book been like? How much original content is featured in it?

I started by drafting an editorial project that divided her career into eighteen chapters or eras – and each of them comprised the songs of that time. Then, I collected all the information I could find and wrote the book in chronological order, while also doing research on all the illustrations. My first sources were my archives. Every interview quote’s source is mentioned in the footnotes. I also researched publishing archives and even flew from Italy to Washington DC to visit the Library of Congress and listen to unreleased demos that have never been covered before.

As the author, have you faced any particular challenges?

I believe the main challenge was the one I set myself for, that to be consistent and keep the level of quality and critical investigation consinously throughout the book.

Has anyone related to Madonna’s career been involved in the process?

I have interviewed several of her music collaborators, from her long time backup singers, Niki Harris and Donna De Lory, to the main music partner of the first decade of Madonna‘s music career, the incredible Stephen Bray, whom she shaped her musical talent with during her early days. She cowrote astonishing hits with him, songs like Into the Groove and Express Yourself. I have also interviewed talented writers and producers such as Rick Nowels, Andre Betts, as well as engineers and musicians like Demo Castellon, Paul Pesco, Brian Malouf, Tomi Martin, Mike McKnight, Doug Wimbish, Gary Burke, Daniel Abraham, and Danny Wilensky. They have all been generous and told me stories on her work ethic and her inspiration. Also, they helped me gather information about obscure and hard-to-find songs, as well as reporting in depth about Madonna’s relentless commitment through her art in support of equality, female rights, the LGBTQ community, the fight against AIDS.

Have you got any response from Madonna herself?

Her team appreciated my project and understood that it is a love letter to Madonna and her music. Also, the book is dedicated to her long-time publicist, Liz Rosenberg, who has blessed me with inspiration and friendship for many years. She was ecstatic when she got the book, and that made me very happy. This is a limited edition publication that I specifically set out to release for a specific audience of fans, but it seems to be appreciated by a wide audience, and while the stock lasts,  I am very happy to spread the message on Madonna‘s iconic and immaculate collection of songs.

Are you planning any future books?

The great and totally unexpected feedback I am getting about Madonna Songbook is inspiring me to write more, and I’m starting to think about it. But in the meantime, I want to fully enjoy being able to tell the stories of Madonna‘s great songs through my book and the Instagram page (@MadonnaSongbook)  I have created about it. There will also be a podcast soon.

Why check Madonna Songbook?

I think it’s a great item, not only for the pleasure of taking a journey across forty-five years of music that have marked the lives of many of us,  but also for its exceptionally visual aspect, created by the very talented, New York based designer Anthony Coombs. So, the book is a cross between a thorough essay and a luxurious coffee table. It weighs over six pounds… Madonna has shared so many stories with us, and it’s been delightful to collect and analyze them all.

The Madonna Songbook is currently available for purchase and can be ordered on the following link.

By Guillermo Nazara