Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” got a piano-ballad revamp from one of its original creators, co-writer and co-producer Patrick Leonard. Watch the video, below.
Leonard, along with vocalist Dana Williams, teamed up for a redux of Madonna’s classic No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit from 1989. Williams has a personal link to the song too: Her father, David Williams, played on Madonna’s album of the same name. And bonus fun fact for Madonna devotees: The microphone Williams uses in the video is the same one Madonna herself used to record her “Like a Prayer” vocals.
Back in 2014, Billboard spoke with Leonard about the 25th anniversary of the Like a Prayer album, and we asked if he and Madonna knew they had something special on their hands when they completed the title track.
“I think there was a point when we realized that it was the title track, and the lead track, and it was going to be a powerhouse,” Leonard said. “It became obvious that there was something unique about it. And that somehow we made this thing work: with its stopping and starting, and a minimalistic rhythmic thing, and the verses, and these bombastic choruses, and this giant choir comes in. This is ambitious, you know?!
“Of the songs I've worked on in the studio -- which is in the thousands -- there is something different when you write something and you just have a sense that you can't break this, you can't really ruin this. It exists already. And that used to be what made a hit song.”
