Madonna’s first album is one of my favorite albums ever, and it has my favorite Madonna song on it, Physical Attraction. It’s been 32 years, and I still listen to it from beginning to end all the time, usually cranked pretty high in my car with the top down.

Facts. I waited on her once when I was cocktailing at the Tea Room on Melrose (which became the Martini Lounge, where I also worked, both of which are long gone). She was in her black hair and nose-ring-with-a-chain-to-an-earring phase, which I’m guessing was around 1994. She ordered a glass of water. I was dying. I sprained my ankle in high school doing the Lucky Star dance—specifically, I was doing the kick-up. I stood in line for the Sex book when I lived is San Francisco. I think it was $100. I used to take my dog to the park right under the Hollywood sign, at the top of Beachwood Canyon, right by Madonna’s house. It has a name: Castillo del Lago, and Bugsy Siegal used to own it. She painted the huge outside wall with some stupid stripes; you couldn’t miss it.  I saw her once again at a different bar where I worked on Sunset & Vine. I’m here to tell you, those photos of her arms aren’t photoshopped. They were insane. I just found the acoustic guitar chords to Physical Attraction. It’s harder to play than you would think.

In no order, (probably) my top 10 Madonna songs:

madonna, a playlist by Anne Clendening on Spotify 30 years later, Rolling Stone and Billboard offered a look back at how it all began I couldn’t decide which one was better, so here’s both. How Madonna Became Madonna: An Oral History

‘Madonna’ Turns 30: A Look Back at the Queen of Pop’s Debut Album