MADONNA FRIDAY: LA ISLA BONITA

Madonna loves a Latin beat. She's had many songs inspired by latin flovor such as Borderline, Spanish Eyes, Love Makes the World Go Round, Deeper and Deeper, Take a Bow, You'll See, etc etc etc, but her most successful song in that genre, in my opinion, has to be La Isla Bonita. From her 1986 album True Blue, La Isla Bonita was the fifth and final single released on February 27, 1987 reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, #1 on the Hot Dance Singles Sales chart and #1 in the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Austria and the Eurochart for three weeks, becoming Madg'es fourth #1 on that chart. It is noted as the first heavily Latin influenced single by Madonna. Clearly one of Madonna's favorite among her back catalog, La Isla Bonita has been performed on almost all of her tours in different arrangements. The song has stood the test of time, feeling as fresh today as it did in 1986, and remains a favorite among Madonna's fans. FUN FACT: La Isla Bonita was previously written as a lament for the mythical Spanish island called San Pedro and was offered to Michael Jackson for his Bad album, but was turned down by Michael. While working with Patrick Leonard on the True Blue album, Madonna accepted it in Jackson's place and re-wrote the song's lyrics. The rest is history. So now, enjoy the "tropical..island breeze" of La Isla Bonita.