Background

Madonna’s “Get Together” is the third single from her tenth studio album, Confessions on a Dance Floor. Madonna, Stuart Price, Anders Bagge and Peer Åström are credited as songwriters, while Madonna and Price also serve as producers. Bagge and Åström are credited for “Original Production” because the song started as a demo they created. However, the final dance version heard on the album was almost entirely reworked by Price.

This song review of Madonna’s “Get Together” explores the track’s subtle and dreamy production, how it fits in the entirety of the album, and its underwhelming music video.

Do You Believe I Can Make You Feel Better?

The production of “Get Together” is subtle. That’s partially its appeal, and partially its downfall. My limited appreciation for the track has less to do with elements of the song feeling clunky or out of place. But I’m just not drawn to the genre or style.

Yes, this is dance music. But Madonna and Price blend different styles into one smooth sound, specifically House and Trance. The song has a steady, rolling rhythm that doesn’t jump around too much. However, it does take inspiration from a 90s track that I absolutely love – Stardust’s “Music Sounds Better with You”. I cannot explain my dissonance.

The sound is “filtered”, as if it’s coming from a distance or through a cloud. The song feels sophisticated rather than aggressive. And maybe my taste level is just not refined.

Find, Find, Find the Secret

While I may have reservations about the production of “Get Together”, I would say it fits perfectly with the album experience. It acts as a bridge, and there’s no troubled water.

On the Confessions on a Dance Floor, it appears right after the opening track “Hung Up”, and flows directly into the third song, “Sorry.” The transition from “Hung Up” is very smooth – the ticking clock sound at the end of the first song turns into the electronic pulse of “Get Together” without any silence. When “Get Together” ends, its fast, energetic beat blends naturally into the rhythm of “Sorry.”

This style of mixing highlights that the album is a “body of work,” meaning it is meant to be heard from start to finish. I normally press shuffle on Spotify. But with Confessions on a Dance Floor, I do not. In modern music, people often listen to singles in isolation (Hello, Today’s Top Hits!). But Madonna and producer Stuart Price designed this album to sound like a continuous DJ set.

It wasn’t until I met a DJ in real life that I started appreciating transitions as an artform. And Madonna and Price not only served a hit, but delivered an album.

It’s an Illusion, I Don’t Care

I still consider Madonna’s videography as the gold standard for artists to follow. She wasn’t the Queen of MTV for no reason.

But “Get Together” feels underwhelming because Madonna is famous for having some of the most expensive and creative music videos in history. Before this song, she released iconic videos like “Vogue,” “Ray of Light,” and “Hung Up”. They featured high-fashion costumes, complex dance routines, and cinematic storytelling. “Get Together” feels very simple. It mostly uses animation and bright colors over old footage.

I sometimes wonder whether I should complain less. Would I rather live in a world where “Get Together” did not have a video? No. And so, I have some sympathy.

The main reason why it feels small is because of timing and budget. When it was time to film, Madonna was extremely busy preparing for her massive Confessions Tour. The directors used a technique called rotoscoping. This allowed them to take video of her performing the song during a small club show (at Koko in London) and turn it into a cartoon-like animation later.

Seeing footages of The Confessions Tour make me believe the tradeoff was worth it. Sadly, it just had to come at the expense of the music video for “Get Together”.

Conclusion

“Get Together” tried to get me in a trance. I wasn’t pulled in. But I still appreciate its existence and its role in “Confessions on a Dance Floor”.

I stand by what I said. It’s simply a matter of preference. The elements make sense. It’s just not for me.