Madonna And Pharrell Break Out The Cowbells

ARTIST: Madonna TITLE: “The Beat Goes On” WEB DEBUT: Aug. 22, 2007 RELEASE DATE: ?

ONE-LISTEN VERDICT: “Let’s do something different, let’s change things up,” Madonna says to Pharrell at the beginning of “The Beat Goes On”–too bad that my first thought after she said that was, “Wait, isn’t she singing this over the opening chords to ‘Like I Love U’?” Anyway, “Beat” is sort of like a mini-tour of the dance-music genres that Madonna hasn’t yet tried to assimilate–DFA handclaps and cowbells, Bee Gees-ish falsettos on the chorus, Pharrell background interjections sprinkled throughout the track. The singsong “always a bridesmaid, never a bride” pre-chorus is a lot catchier than its “Stayin’ Alive”-like follow-up, and it will probably be stuck in my head for the rest of the day now. Overall, in the grand scheme of Madonna songs, “Beat” is definitely better than “Hey You,” but I’m not quite sure if it’s all that much of an achievement over “American Life.” WHERE TO FIND IT: Kevipod Music, who seems to have a bit more faith in Pharrell than I do.

Madonna [Official site]