"Deeper and Deeper" is a song by American singer Madonna from her fifth studio album, Erotica (1992). It was written by Madonna, Shep Pettibone, and Anthony Shimkin and was produced by Madonna and Pettibone. In Australia and most European countries, the song was released as the album's second single on November 17, 1992; in the United States, a release was issued on December 8. It was included on Madonna's second greatest hits compilation, GHV2 (2001). A dance-pop and deep house song, it has disco and Philadelphia soul influences; the bridge features instrumentation from flamenco guitars and castanets and features background vocals from the singer's collaborators Donna De Lory and Niki Haris. Lyrically, the song talks about sexual desire, though it has been argued that it is actually about a young man coming to terms with his homosexuality. It includes a reference to Madonna's single "Vogue" (1990).
Upon release, the song received positive reviews from music critics. They often praised the singer for returning to a more dance-oriented nature in comparison to her previous single "Erotica", and singled out the "Vogue" sample. In retrospective reviews, it is now considered one of Madonna's best singles. The song also was commercially successful, peaking at number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and reaching the top 10 in several other countries, including Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, while peaking at number one in Italy. The accompanying music video was directed by Bobby Woods. It was seen as a homage to American artist Andy Warhol and Italian director Luchino Visconti, with Madonna playing a character based on Edie Sedgwick, who goes out to a nightclub to meet her friends and boyfriend. The clip received generally mixed to positive reviews from critics. Madonna has performed "Deeper and Deeper" in three of her concert tours, the last being 2015–2016's Rebel Heart Tour.
Background and recording In 1992, Madonna founded her own multi-media entertainment company Maverick, consisting of a record company (Maverick Records), a film production company (Maverick Films), and associated music publishing, television broadcasting, book publishing, and merchandising divisions. The first two projects from the venture were her fifth studio album Erotica and a coffee table book of photographs featuring Madonna, entitled Sex. For Erotica, Madonna primarily collaborated with American producer Shep Pettibone; Pettibone first began working with the singer during the 1980s, providing remixes for several of her singles. Pettibone would build the base music of the songs in a style similar to his remixes, while Madonna wrote the melodies and lyrics. According to the producer in an article titled "Erotica Diaries", published in Madonna's Icon magazine, he created a tape of three tracks for Madonna to listen to; he traveled to Chicago, where she was filming A League of Their Own (1992), played the songs for her and she liked all of them. In October 1991, Madonna met with Pettibone in New York City to start working on demos. The first batch of songs they worked together on were "Erotica", "Deeper and Deeper", "Rain" and "Thief of Hearts". Anthony Shimkin, who also worked on the album, recalled that Madonna had with her a "book full of lyrics and melody ideas".
At first, the singer did not like the songs she had recorded. She wanted Erotica to have a raw edge, as if it were recorded in an alley in Harlem, and not a light glossy production, according to Pettibone. In the case of "Deeper and Deeper", the producer revealed that they tried different bridges and changes, but in the end, Madonna wanted the middle of the song to have a flamenco guitar, an idea he disagreed with; "I didn't like [...] taking a Philly house song and putting 'La Isla Bonita' in the middle of it. But that's what she wanted, so that's what she got", he recalled. He later decided to add castanets to "really take it there". According to Shimkin, while they were recording the song, Pettibone began singing some lines of "Vogue" (1990); Madonna, who heard this and emulated it, liked the sound and decided to keep it. She later explained: "When we were actually recording, doing the final vocals, I just went off into that for a second because ['Vogue'] to me it's just one of those great kind of feel good dance songs."
Composition and lyrics
"Deeper and Deeper" was written by Madonna, Pettibone and Shimkin, and produced by Madonna and Pettibone. Recording took place at Astoria's Sound Work Studios; personnel working on the song included Pettibone on the sequencing, keyboard arrangement, and programming, alongside Shimkin; Paul Pesco on guitars, Dennis Mitchell and Robin Hancock were the song's recording engineers, while George Karras was the mixing engineer. Background vocals were provided by Niki Haris and Donna De Lory. Musically, "Deeper and Deeper" is a house-flavored track with disco and Philadelphia soul influences. Its lyrics talk about sexual desire, but Dan Cadan argued in his text in the liner notes of GHV2 (2001), that they are actually about a young man coming to terms with his homosexuality. Madonna herself described the lyrics as "not terribly intellectual". Shimkin said he saw the song as a "big nod" to Madonna's earlier works with John "Jellybean" Benitez; De Lory on the other hand, recalled that, "[Niki and I]'d sung with [Madonna] before so it was just a really comfortable relationship. And oh my God, this song! All Niki and I wanted to do was sing sweeter and sweeter and sweeter".
"Deeper and Deeper" begins with Madonna singing Deeper and deeper and deeper, followed by the refrain I can't help falling in love, I fall deeper and deeper the further I go. The song's opening line When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most anything references "Do-Re-Mi" from The Sound of Music (1959). Also present are "a juxtaposition of swirling disco synths", a flamenco guitar, and castanets on its bridge. According to the sheet music published by Alfred Publishing Inc., "Deeper and Deeper" is set in the time signature of common time with a fast tempo of 120 beats per minute. It is composed in the key of G minor, with Madonna's voice in a high register, spanning between F1 to G3. The song has a basic sequence of G7–Cm7/G as its chord progression. Towards the end, the song includes a lyrical sample of "Vogue" which, according to academic Georges-Claude Guilbert, author of Madonna as Postmodern Myth, "enhance[s] the ending of the song, in an ultimate post-modern twist".
Release and critical reception
In Australia and most European countries, "Deeper and Deeper" was released as the official second single from the Erotica album on November 17, 1992; in the United States, it was released on December 8. It was then included on Madonna's second compilation album, GHV2 (2001). Upon release, the song was met with generally positive reviews from music critics. J. Randy Taraborrelli, author of Madonna: An Intimate Biography, noted it was a "change of pace from the title track. A straight-ahead house groove in the tradition of the funkiest New York clubs". Similarly, Billboards Joe Lynch expressed that, "if 'Erotica' was a bold sonic departure for Madonna, the second single, 'Deeper and Deeper', found her in more familiar disco and house territory". Also from Billboard, Larry Flick stated that, "the chorus embeds in your brain upon impact", and highlighted the "Vogue" sample as "one of the song's cooler moments". On his review of Erotica, the magazine's Paul Verna referred to "Deeper and Deeper" as a "playful disco-throwback". AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine considered it among Madonna's "best and most accomplished music". For Rolling Stone, Arion Berger highlighted the track as one of the album's "pure disco" moments that do not need "emotional resonance to make them race".
Anthony Violanti from The Buffalo News compared "Deeper and Deeper" to the work of Donna Summer. In this vein, Matthew Rettenmund, author of Encyclopedia Madonnica, said it was the singer's take on "Never Can Say Goodbye". J. D. Considine, from The Baltimore Sun, called it "explosive, exultant", and one of Madonna's best singles. Slant Magazines Sal Cinquemani deemed the single "both a product of its time and a timeless Madge classic", as well as one of the singer's "gems" that "get lost to pop history". In another occasion, Cinquemani said that it is "one of the few tracks from Erotica not weighed down or muddled by Pettibone's gritty production" that sounds equally good today to how "it did nearly a decade ago". Entertainment Weeklys David Browne opined the single "whooshes like a subway train going express at 4 a.m.". Charlotte Robinson of PopMatters hailed it a "great pop song about the importance of listening to Mom and Dad's advice". For Qs Phil Sutcliffe, "Deeper and Deeper" was the biggest surprise on Erotica that "could be mistaken for a bopalong tribute to Kylie". At Blender, Tony Powers considered it one of the album's standout tracks. Music writer James Masterton praised Madonna for returning to the "basic pop/dance she does best", but felt the song did not have "chart topping potential". Barbara Walker, writing in the Sun-Sentinel, opined that, "the set's showcase dance track, 'Deeper and Deeper', never quite takes off", and deemed the "Vogue" sample lazy. In a less favorable review, Cashboxs Randy Clark dismissed its "soulless and formulaic disco/kiddie-pop sounds dating back to 'Into the Groove'" and "simpleton Madonna lyrics [and] overdone melodic phrases".
Retrospective reviews have been largely positive. In 2011, Slant Magazine placed the song at number 36 on their list of "The 100 Best Singles of the 1990s"; Ed Gonzalez wrote: "Among Madonna's finest achievements, the angsty pop anthem 'Deeper and Deeper' is both an acute distillation of Eroticas smut-glam decadence and the singer's lifelong blond ambition". Matthew Jacobs from HuffPost placed the song at number 35 of his ranking of Madonna's singles, calling it her "finest disco flourish". On Gay Star News ranking, the single came in at number 11; Joe Morgan called it "infectious, entrancing and one of her best dance anthems". Jude Rogers, from The Guardian, opined "Deeper and Deeper" is a "classy post-'Vogue' excursion into 90s R&B", and placed it at number 27 of her ranking of Madonna singles. Nayer Missim from PinkNews considered "Deeper and Deeper" Madonna's 19th greatest song, and Entertainment Weeklys Chuck Arnold her 25th; the former said it is "house and pop that’s equal parts disco and bedroom", while the latter deemed it a sequel to "Vogue", due to the lyrical nod. Writing for The A.V. Club, Stephen Thomas Erlewine placed the track in the 28th position of the publication's ranking of Madonna's singles: "['Deeper and Deeper'] is a ray of light within the darkly provocative Erotica". Louis Virtel, writing for The Backlot, named "Deeper and Deeper" the seventh best song of Madonna's discography, referring to it as "jubilant and driving", and comparing it to her 1987 single "Causing a Commotion". Nick Levine from NME deemed it underrated and said it deserves to be "embraced as a classic".
Commercial performance