page:  = <unk> ( Madonna song ) = 
   
   " <unk> " is a song by American singer Madonna from her tenth studio album Confessions on a Dance <unk> ( 2005 ) . It was written and produced by Madonna and Stuart Price , and released as the second single from the album on February 7 , 2006 . It later appeared on Celebration , her 2009 greatest hits album . An uptempo dance song , " <unk> " was one of the first tracks developed for the album and had numerous remix treatments before the ultimate version of the track was finalized . One of the remixes was done by the Pet Shop Boys , featuring added lyrics by the band . The actual song features a dance groove tempo . It talks about personal <unk> and self @-@ <unk> . 
   " <unk> " received positive reviews from contemporary critics , who declared the track the strongest song on Confessions on a Dance <unk> . Some critics also commented on the song 's disco @-@ influenced beats while comparing it to Madonna 's older dance songs . It achieved commercial success , topping the singles charts in Italy , Spain , Romania and the United Kingdom , where it became Madonna 's twelfth number one single . Elsewhere , the song was a top ten hit . However , in the United States , the song did not perform well due to an <unk> on radio but was able to reach the top of Billboard 's dance charts and became one of the decade 's most successful dance hits . 
   The accompanying music video , directed by Madonna 's <unk> Jamie King , was a continuation from the " <unk> Up " music video . It featured Madonna and her dancers <unk> around a city in a van , dancing on roller <unk> and Madonna fighting with a group of men in a cage . She performed the song on her 2006 Confessions Tour in a similar fight sequence to that shown in the video . An additional video was created as a backdrop for a remix of the song , which depicted political leaders and scenes of war and destruction . 
   
   = = Background and composition = = 
   
   " <unk> " was one of the first tracks developed for Confessions on a Dance <unk> , along with " <unk> Up " and " Future Lovers " . It was also the one which took the most time to finish because Madonna " thought it was too melodramatic and could never decide when it was right . " The songs were developed with a remixed perspective in mind . Madonna commented that , " Whenever I make records , I often like the remixes better than the original ones . [ ... ] So I thought , screw that . I 'm going to start from that perspective " . She promoted the album at the dance party " <unk> " held at Luke & <unk> 's nightclub in Greenwich Village , invited by Junior <unk> to take over the DJ booth where she mixed " <unk> Up " with " <unk> " . Musically , " <unk> " is an uptempo dance song containing layers of beats and strong vocal on the chorus . It is set in common time with a moderately fast dance groove tempo of 132 beats per minute . <unk> in the key of C minor , Madonna 's vocal range spans from <unk> to <unk> . It follows the chord progression of E ♭ – <unk> – A ♭ – B ♭ during the spoken introduction . It then changes to <unk> – <unk> @-@ <unk> in the chorus , while continuing in A ♭ – <unk> – A ♭ – <unk> in the intermediate verses , ultimately ending in repeated lines of " I 've heard it all before " . 
   Lyrically the song has <unk> of different languages including French , Spanish , Italian , Dutch , Hebrew , Hindi , Polish and Japanese . The song talks about personal <unk> and self @-@ <unk> , denoting a shift in focus of Madonna as an artist from her previous songs about supremacy like " Everybody " ( 1982 ) , " Vogue " ( 1990 ) or " Music " ( 2000 ) which was centered around the subject of music itself . Among the various remixes , the Pet Shop Boys remix incorporated Whitney Houston 's " I Wanna Dance with Somebody ( Who Loves Me ) " with a more pronounced bassline and uses a double breakdown in the introduction . Pet Shop Boys and Madonna had always mutually admired each other , from the time they wrote the song " Heart " ( 1988 ) for Madonna but never delivered it . The remix had added lyrics sung by band member Neil Tennant which subsequently appeared on their remix album <unk> Four . Madonna 's voice hits on the first chorus which was remixed to have a masculine synth and a serious hook . A breakdown happens before the fifth minute ends , leading to the entry of programmed drum sounds after which the song ends . 
   
   = = Critical response = = 
   
   Jennifer <unk> of MTV News wrote that " <unk> " is the " album 's strongest track " and that it is a " Pet Shop Boys @-@ esque " song . <unk> went on to say that it " ... <unk> evokes the sounds of the ' 80s @-@ era dance clubs that first <unk> her toward stardom . " According to a review in the BBC 's <unk> , " New single ' <unk> ' states Queen <unk> 's <unk> stance , and though the song is wrapped up in relationship sentiment , one cannot help but hear the subtext , perhaps directed at her more savage critics : ' there are more important things than hearing you speak ' . " Alan <unk> from BBC Music called the song " <unk> catchy " . Mike <unk> of The Times and Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine noted that the bassline of the song utilizes The Jacksons ' 1980 song " Can You Feel It " . The song was noted by Slant Magazine as one of the best songs of 2006 . In a review of " <unk> " from Virgin Media , it wrote that the song 's <unk> features an " infectious <unk> of pumping , filtered synths and disco beats " . Keith <unk> from Billboard commented that , " [ <unk> ] should keep fans hung up on Madonna 's ability to create instant radio and club classics . " He also called the song " <unk> " while reviewing the album . 
   Ben Williams of New York magazine , wrote that the song is " propelled by a catchy bass melody " . Joan Morgan of The Village Voice , in review of Confessions on a Dance <unk> , wrote : " The party continues <unk> with the <unk> , kick @-@ your @-@ man @-@ to @-@ the @-@ curb ' <unk> ' . " Stephen M. <unk> of Pitchfork Media wrote , " The <unk> of sound wash directly into ' <unk> ' , setting up the song 's <unk> <unk> and shifting bass <unk> . " Jon Pareles of The New York Times wrote that the first half of the album consists of love songs , happy and sad , and included " <unk> " into the mix . Alexis <unk> from The Guardian called the song as triumphant . Kitty Empire from the same newspaper said that " ' <unk> ' sees Madonna taking a lover to task over an <unk> dance @-@ pop rush . " Alan Light from Rolling Stone called the song " <unk> " . Thomas <unk> from <unk> magazine commented that " <unk> " and first single " <unk> Up " may not be as <unk> like Madonna 's initial singles " Burning Up " ( 1984 ) or " Physical <unk> " ( 1984 ) , but they have the same <unk> <unk> of being designed for all @-@ night dancing . 
   
   = = Chart performance = = 
   
   In the United States , " <unk> " debuted at number 70 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the issue dated March 11 , 2006 and reached a peak of 58 the following week . The same week it reached a peak of 46 on the Pop 100 chart . Its low chart performance in America was attributed to limited radio airplay . A petition was signed by about 3 @,@ 300 fans at <unk> Known as the " End the Madonna U.S. Radio <unk> " ; it was addressed to <unk> Channel Communications CEO Mark P. Mays . Message boards at Entertainment Weekly and VH1 were filled with entries by users showing support for Madonna , as well as conspiracy theories about why she was not played on radio . The song , however , reached the top of the Hot Dance Club Play chart for two weeks , as well as Hot Dance Airplay chart for five weeks . As of April 2010 , the song has sold 366 @,@ 000 digital units in the United States . 
   In the United Kingdom , it debuted at number one on the chart dated February 26 , 2006 . The song became Madonna 's 12th number one single in Britain and second consecutive single from the album to peak the British chart , after " <unk> Up . " This made Madonna the female artist with most number one songs in the United Kingdom , while placing her in fifth place in overall <unk> . According to the Official Charts Company , the song has sold 200 @,@ 000 digital downloads there and was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry ( BPI ) . In Australia , the song debuted and peaked at four . 
   The song peaked at number two on the Canadian Singles Chart and was certified platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association ( CRIA ) on April 10 , 2006 for sales of 80 @,@ 000 units of paid digital downloads . " <unk> " debuted at number five in Ireland and was on the chart for 12 weeks . Elsewhere in Europe , the song became a top ten hit for Madonna reaching the top ten of countries like Austria , Belgium ( Flanders and Wallonia ) , Denmark , Finland , France , Germany , Netherlands , Norway , Sweden and Switzerland while reaching the top of the charts in Italy , Spain and Billboard 's <unk> Hot 100 Singles . 
   
   = = Music video = = 
   
   The music video incorporated parts of the television show <unk> My Ride , and was shot by Madonna in London in January 2006 while she was making plans for her then forthcoming Confessions Tour . It was directed by Madonna 's longtime <unk> Jamie King and featured choreography from The <unk> Brothers . Many of the performers featured in Madonna 's " <unk> Up " video were in that of " <unk> " , which was shot as a continuation from the " <unk> Up " video . Madonna 's parts in the video were shot first , followed by the shot of the <unk> . The shoot took place for over two days . 
   The video starts with Madonna standing in front of neon <unk> screen in a purple <unk> <unk> " <unk> " in different languages . As the music starts she comes out from the gaming <unk> of her " <unk> Up " video with her dancers . They board a van where Madonna and her dancers strip of their clothes into new ones . Madonna wears a white <unk> with a matching <unk> <unk> with her hair in 1970s retro inspired style and pair of knee high silver platform boots . 
   As they move around the city in the van , they pick up different men from the streets to join them . These scenes are interspersed with the scenes of Madonna singing in front of the neon screen . The video progresses like this until the intermediate verse <unk> Madonna is shown standing in a cage opposite to a number of men . As the bridge builds up , Madonna starts fighting with the men . She starts <unk> backwards and tying herself in knot like positions , while doing <unk> and <unk> which defeats the men . The chorus starts again and Madonna and her dancers are shown skating in circles around a roller <unk> . The video ends with the close @-@ up of Madonna in the purple <unk> and fades into her <unk> . 
   
   = = Live performances = = 
   
   " <unk> " was performed on the 2006 Confessions Tour as part of the <unk> themed segment . Madonna was dressed in a Jean @-@ Paul <unk> <unk> with pants and high <unk> boots . As Madonna finished the performance of the song " Isaac " , she took off the <unk> and wore a jacket given to her by the dancers and <unk> them one by one . The Pet Shop Boys music for the song 's remix start in the background . Madonna and her female dancers take to one side of a giant cage and start singing the song . As the song progresses to the intermediate verses , Madonna engages in an energetic fight with her male dancers which demonstrated her <unk> her body and putting her leg over her head and jumping from the cage on a dancer 's back . 
   The song was also used as a video backdrop during the interlude between the <unk> and the <unk> / rock sections . The video featured images of fascists and political leaders from past and present like Adolf Hitler and <unk> <unk> <unk> to George W. Bush and Tony Blair . Their images <unk> across the screen , with text and footage of war atrocities <unk> in between . Madonna appears on the screens wearing her " <unk> " video <unk> and <unk> the words " talk is cheap " and " don 't speak " , along with the music and Bush 's lips <unk> . The performances of " <unk> " and the remix video was included in The Confessions Tour CD and DVD . 
   The Daily Mail called the performance " energetic " . Tom Young from BBC Music called the performance a " delight " but described the video as the " <unk> " of the tour . Ed Gonzalez from Slant Magazine wrote that the performance was not among the concert 's highlights . However , he commented that the remix backdrop " feels <unk> [ ... ] a <unk> of <unk> weight you can dance too " . Thomas <unk> from <unk> described the song 's performance and remix as " fantastic " . 
   
   = = Track listings and formats = = 
   
   
   = = Credits and personnel = = 
   
   Madonna – Lead vocals , producer 
   Stuart Price – Producer 
   Neil Tennant – Supporting vocals 
   Guy <unk> – Management 
   <unk> <unk> – Mixing 
   Giovanni Bianco – Graphic Design , Art Direction 
   Orlando <unk> – <unk> , A & R 
   Angela Becker – Management 
   Ian Green – Programming , Producer 
   Paul <unk> – <unk> 
   Pete <unk> – Programming 
   Steven Klein – <unk> 
   Pet Shop Boys – <unk> , Producer , <unk> 
   
   = = Charts = = 
   
   
   = = Certifications = = 
   
   
   