the later choruses for support with the strings, cascading down to a minor arrangement before the third one. The song ends with fading out and devoid of any musical climax. A number of remixes were issued alongside the regular version. The maxi-single had four different versions, three being those of "I'll Remember" and the fourth being a live version of the Erotica track, "Why's It So Hard", performed on The Girlie Show World Tour. According to Jose F. Promis from AllMusic, "the mixes of [the song] were conjured by William Orbit, giving each version an ethereal, spacey, and very mellow feel". The "Guerilla Beach" mix was different from the original version, making it more adult contemporary oriented, while the "Orbit Remix" remained similar to the actual version. Critical response Author Christopher Feldman in his book, Billboard Book of Number 2 Singles, described the song as a "tender ballad." Billboard music editor Timothy White called the song as lilting and one of Madonna's classics in his book Music to My Ears: The Billboard Essays : Portraits of Popular Music in the '90s. He also complimented the song for talking about a dead relationship. Larry Flick stated that it finds Madonna "inside an easy-paced pop chugger that is etched with slightly Caribbean percussion. Subdued synth pulses frame Madonna's pensive performance." Troy J. Augusto from Cash Box said that "this tender, down-tempo stroll that will serve to re-introduce the ambitious one to her old friends at top 40 radio—folks who, based on some of her recent, questionable material, might have wondered if the girl’s best work was well behind her. Actually, the sky’s the limit with this smoothly textured, deliberately paced song (produced by Patrick Leonard and Madonna) that will perform well in all hit and adult formats. After a number of stinkers, it’s nice to hear her return to her greatest strength, the moody power ballad." John Hamilton from Idolator called it a "pulsating ballad", adding it as "at once lilting and powerful". Author Rikky Rooksby noted the song as one of Madonna's biggest ever singles and a stronger cut. Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented that she "becomes more ambient with every release", adding that this song "further cements this impression." James Hamilton from Music Weeks RM Dance Update deemed it a "sweetly warbled quovery slow roller". John Kilgo from The Network Forty said that the song is "compared as a