Rooksby, the single features instrumentation from Cuban drums, Spanish guitar, maracas, harmonicas, and a mix of synthesized and real drumming. According to the sheet music published by Alfred Publishing Inc., "La Isla Bonita" is set in the time signature of common time, with a tempo of 100 beats per minute. It is written in the key of C minor, with Madonna's voice in a high register, spanning between F13 to G. Lyrically, it describes a "humble observer, captured by the rhythm of an imagined island", and has four lines sung in Spanish. The title "La Isla Bonita" translates to "The Pretty Island". The song starts with a musical introduction performed on bongos, before descending into synthesized beats from castanets. Madonna sings the chorus in the same G3 to C5 range; after the second chorus, there is a Spanish guitar interlude where her voice expands to F minor, which can be heard when she sings "I want to be where the sun warms the sky", before coming down to C minor when she sings the phrase "loves a girl". Toward the end, there is another musical interlude with a harmonica and another chorus. Ending with a gradual fade-out, the song has Madonna utter the words "Él dijo que te ama (He said he loves you)". Critical reception Upon release, "La Isla Bonita" was met with positive reviews from music critics and authors. In his biography of the singer, J. Randy Taraborrelli deemed it an "exotic [...] enchanting, uptempo Spanish-themed song with an equally enchanting melody". Similarly, in Rock and Roll is Here to Stay (2000), William McKeen referred to it as "tranquil", and as an example of the "Latin-flavored sweet[s] that Blondie could never resist". For Creems Ken Barnes, "['La Isla Bonita'] is no 'Open Your Heart', but its lilting (yet reflective) quality transcends the south-of-the-border cliches". Slant Magazines Sal Cinquemani named it "timeless", and one of Madonna's "biggest, most influential hits". From Entertainment Weekly, Chuck Arnold added that the single explored Latin pop "before it became trendy", and noted influence on other songs, such as Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" (2010). AllMusic's Stewart Mason considered it True Blues "most prescient" track, that sounds "fresh and enjoyably new"; he further singled out the singer's "purring" vocals as one of her "sexiest and most understated performances". Dawn Keetley in Public Women, Public Words said it was "smooth [and] transparent", as well as one of