Live To Tell
Lyrics
I have a tale to tell
Sometimes it gets so hard
To hide it well
I was not ready for the fall
Too blind to see the writing on the wall
A man can tell a thousand lies
I've learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned
'Til then
It will burn inside of me
I know where beauty lives
I've seen it once
I know the warmth she gives
The light that you could never see
It shines inside
You can't take that from me
A man can tell a thousand lies
I've learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned
'Til then
It will burn inside of me
The truth is never far behind
You kept it hidden well
If I live to tell
The secret I knew then
Will I ever have the chance again
If I ran away
I'd never have the strength
To go very far
How would they hear
The beating of my heart
Will it grow cold (will it grow cold?)
The secret that I hide
Will I grow old
How will they hear
When will they learn
How will they know
A man can tell a thousand lies
I've learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned
'Til then
It will burn inside of me
The truth is never far behind
You kept it hidden well
If I live to tell
The secret I knew then
Will I ever have the chance again
A man can tell a thousand lies
I've learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned
'Til then
It will burn inside of me
Credits
Written by Madonna and Patrick Leonard
Produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard
Drums by Johnathan Moffett
Keyboards and drum programming by Patrick Leonard
Guitars by Bruce Gaitsch
Background vocals by Madonna
Album
Single
Patrick Leonard originally composed this song for the film score of Fire With Fire. When he showed it to Madonna, she decided to write the lyrics for it and to use it instead for the movie 'At Close Range', starring her husband Sean Penn. The song was also released as the lead-off single for True Blue on March 26, 1986 (and on April 21, 1986 in the UK). It shot to #1 in the States (her third #1 hit), Canada, Japan and Italy, while in the UK it got stuck at #2, behind Falco's 'Rock Me Amadeus'.
Video
For the video director James Foley used mainly scenes from the movie At Close Range, but also shots from Madonna, who is sitting all by herself on a chair surrounded by darkness. She's wearing a tight flower dress, rather conservative compared to the videos of Like A Virgin and Material Girl. No controversy, this is an emotional, more vulnerable Madonna.
Tour
During the Who's That Girl Tour Madonna built in a quiet moment in between the uptempo songs Where's The Party and Into The Groove. All alone on stage she did an emotional version of Live To Tell. At the end she lays down on the ground and then slowly gets up and disappears in the dark.
Live To Tell was performed on the Blond Ambition Tour as part of the church medley. Dressed in a black gown, Madonna sings this beautiful ballad as she kneels down on a confession bench. During the instrumental part she twirls around, then stands still with her head tilted back, building up the tension. As she continues the song, it flows into Oh Father.
This gorgeous masterpiece was performed 16 years later on the Confessions Tour as it's Madonna's most confessional song. First we hear tales of 3 dancers about how they survived tough times and how they ended up dancing professionally. Then, with some organ music, the most talked about moment of the show arrives: a mirrored cross emerges from beneath with Madonna hung up on it. She's wearing a red blouse and velvet pants with a crown of thorns on her head. The whole audience is amazed by that iconic image while she starts her sorrow rendition of the ballad. After the second chorus, the counter above her stops at 12 million (number of children in Africa who die of aids in a year), she climbs off the cross and sings the inspiring bridge as a beautiful acapella. She then takes off her crown of thorns and as the screens behind her show explosions, she lies down on stage as if she's dying, mirroring the fate of those who raise their voices but never get understood. It truly is one of the best performances of her entire career.