Who played guitar on Madonna song ‘Like a Prayer’?
When Madonna released ‘Like A Prayer’, it signalled a change.
Although she emerged from New York’s gritty art scene, the singer’s early image was styled more like a Lolita-esque starlet. But in 1989, she shed that persona the moment the opening riff of her new hit kicked in.
Of course, it was never that Madonna was lily white. She rose to the top with the tongue-in-cheek ‘Like A Virgin’, a song that led to protests from conservative groups outraged by the popular track and its even more popular music video. It was the start of the same scandal that would come back around for the singer over and over throughout her career, but back in those early days, she generally kept it more PG.
However, that kind of sexual-but-sweet branding became her thing. With her Marilyn Monroe-type blonde ringlet curls, her early 1980s energy was girlish. By the end of the decade, she was tired of that.
‘Like A Prayer’ marked the change. Her aesthetics became more cinematic as the song’s music video sees her behind bars and amongst fire, looking more grown-up and grungy than she’d been seen before, as her style began to lean more into the incoming wave of rough-looking rockers.
But sonically, too, the song feels more mature. It’s still a radio-ready, hyper-catchy pop song, but there is undeniably a far stronger rock influence as Madonna wanted to commit more to a heavier sound inspired more by guitars and live music.
The second Madonna walked into the studio with lyrics about her catholic guilt and a melody to match it, she and her producer knew this one was something special. “I think there was a point when we realised that it was the title track, and the lead track, and it was going to be a powerhouse,” Patrick Leonard said about working on the song.
Adding, “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?”
But the boldness of the song hinges so much on the guitar. The track opens up the album and starts it with a fading-in, huge guitar riff. In that moment, Madonna announced something new, and so naturally, she called in a great to announce it for her.
Who plays guitar on ‘Like A Prayer’?
Technically, there are four guitar players on the track. Chester Kamen, Dann Huff, David Williams and then Bruce Gaitsch on acoustic guitar all play on the song, giving it that huge, stadium feel through sheer man-power alone, allowing the rock elements of the track to compete with the full choir present.
But the guitar you’re hearing in your head right now, playing the song’s iconic opening and riff, it’s pretty easy to guess whose hands are playing that.
It’s Prince, although he goes uncredited on the record. “We’ve been friends for years and admirers of each other’s work,” Madonna said of this song and their other collaborations on the 1989 album, including their co-write, ‘Love Song’.
They recorded their collaborations separately, though, as Madonna admitted, “I had to be in LA, and he couldn’t leave Minneapolis, and quite frankly, I couldn’t stand Minneapolis. When I went there, it was like 20 degrees below zero, and it was really desolate. I was miserable, and I couldn’t write or work under those circumstances.”
So, instead, Prince recorded his parts and sent the tapes to Madonna under the nickname ‘Daisy Miller’ to ensure no bootlegging fans would steal the mail.
