Samiksha Jaiswal (Editor)

Mad About You (Belinda Carlisle song)

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Released
  
1986

Label
  
I.R.S.

Length
  
3:36

B-side
  
"I Never Wanted a Rich Man"

Format
  
CD single 7" single 12" single

Genre
  
Pop rock new wave dance-pop

"Mad About You" is a song written by Paula Jean Brown, James Whelan and Mitchel Young Evans, produced by Michael Lloyd, for Belinda Carlisle's debut solo album Belinda. It was released as the album's first single, in 1986, as a CD single (one of the first ever marketed), 7" single and a 12" single. It was her first hit after leaving the Go-Go's, peaking at number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and at number one on the Canadian Singles Chart.

Contents

The year the song was released, Carlisle married Morgan Mason, who appears with Belinda in the video for "Mad About You". The guitar solo on the song was performed by Andy Taylor (of Duran Duran), who also appears in the video.

Paula Jean Brown (who took Jane Wiedlin's spot in the band just before it broke up) co-wrote the song with Jim Whelan, and Wiedlin and Charlotte Caffey sang back-up vocals. "Mad About You" was one of a few songs being considered for the fourth (unrecorded) Go-Go's album. The Go-Go's split and "Mad About You" and two other songs co-written by Paula Jean Brown ended up on Belinda.

The single's B-side, "I Never Wanted a Rich Man", was also featured on Carlisle's first long playing work (it closed Side 1 on the vinyl edition). The extended version of "Mad About You", originally on the A-side of the 12" single, was then included on the album compact disc re-release by Virgin in 2003.

Composition

The song is written in the key of A major in common time with a tempo of 144 beats per minute. Part of the appeal of the song's chorus lies in the rapid-fire kick drum double stroke pattern on every bar, performed using either a single or double bass pedal.

Music video

The music video was directed by Leslie Libman, and features Andy Taylor of Duran Duran, and Carlisle's husband Morgan Mason. During one scene she dances to a vinyl LP of Yma Sumac's Mambo!. The outdoor scenes are largely set in or near Palisades Park in Santa Monica, California.

Track listing

7" single
  1. "Mad About You" (single mix) — 3:30
  2. "I Never Wanted a Rich Man" — 4:12
12" single
  1. "Mad About You" (extended mix) — 5:03
  2. "Mad About You" (single mix) — 3:30
  3. "Mad About You" (instrumental mix) — 3:30

References

Mad About You (Belinda Carlisle song) Wikipedia