Madonna’s Gone, Gone, Gone: A 90s Demo Resurrected from the Vault

Releasing previously rejected songs is always a risky proposition. Usually, they were left off the record for a reason. However, Bruce Springsteen’s Tapes series and Taylor Swift’s songs from the vault on her Taylor Version records prove that there can be gems that were almost lost to time. There is also a long history of musicians taking on alter egos to free them creatively… Beyoncé’s Sasha Fierce comes to mind. Around the time Madonna recorded her late 90s electrifying comeback record Ray of Light she decided to do both. She recorded some tracks and remixes under her alter ego Veronica Electronica, which ultimately sat on a shelf…until now. Madonna is about to release a remix record under her Veronica Electronica persona, but with a very special previously unreleased track.

Madonna-heads have been highly anticipating this record, which became more myth than truth as the years went by. The late 90s was an interesting time for Madonna. She was drifting off the popular consciousness with let downs like Erotica and Bedtime Stories. It had been almost 10 years since her last big hit with Like a Prayer and she needed something. In 1998 out comes Madonna with red hair, a new focus on wellness/yoga and tracks like Frozen and the title track Ray of Light, which put her back into the ‘Queen of Pop’ discussion. Moreover, her vocal underwent this evolution where her range expanded, while her deeper notes gained an added warmth that elevated the entire record. The latest previously unreleased track Gone Gone Gone is a lost song from this era and one that has Madonna fans spinning.

Musically, this track is 100% her alter ego Veronica Electronica and I can see why it never made Ray of Light. This is an aggressive club track closer to I’m Addicted off of MDNA than the loving cosmic energy of Ray of Light. There are sharp electro cuts paired with some expansive synth and buggy club beats. This really doesn’t fit the musical landscape Madonna had at the time and shows how Veronica gave her the freedom to experiment, which will pay off over a decade later with her harder club vibe.

Even though musically this track is a glimpse into Madonna’s future, the vocal isa luxurious time capsule. Her vocal at the time of Ray of Light is unlike other periods in Madonna’s career and it is exhilarating to re-live that vocal with a new track. The range is so expansive and her deep notes have such a warmth and texture to them that I lacking in her later work. I just want to snuggle up in that vocal and have a hot tea. The vocal is so good and the post work on this demo really brings it to life.

Even though much of the fun of Gone Gone Gone is experiencing this lost aspect of Madonna’s vocal in a new way, this is not a dated track. It still has a freshness to it that elevates it above some general cash grab unreleased tracks. We all have the experience of unreleased tracks being used to sell greatest hits records, but in reality they are filler that should have been left on the cutting room floor. Gone Gone Gone feels like a track with life that gives you a new appreciation of Madonna’s brilliant career.

Listen to Gone Gone Gone