1995 saw the release of “Inner City Blues”, a Marvin Gaye tribute album featuring the likes of Boyz II Men, Neneh Cherry, Massive Attack and… wait. Massive Attack with Madonna?
Indeed! The respective giants collaborated on a cover of Gaye’s “I Want You”, offering a six minute, gritty trip-hop rendition of the classic - complimented by a noir music video directed by Earle Sebastian. Born in East London and now based in New York City, Sebastian has worked with the likes of Dua Lipa, Missy Elliott, and Tori Amos, (just to list a few), and revealed to me that the process of the track was not as straightforward as some may have imagined.
Beginning as part of a would-be Marvin Gaye documentary, the music video’s direction pivoted after the head of Motown was replaced as a result of “internal conflicts” - as Sebastian says. While the new head, Andre Harell, reportedly “did not want to touch anything” that was a WIP as of previously, “I Want You” was still set to have a music video, and Sebastian was still set to direct it. “We reached out to Madonna, and we met. And obviously, I thought who she is and what she does, is really wonderful”, he said.
But something didn’t feel right. When Sebastian received the track, it was about 1:40 shorter, and he felt like it was missing something. He imagined a cacophony of strings and gritty beats over the song presented, that he “couldn’t get out of his head.” So he scheduled another meeting with the Queen of Pop to reveal his premonitions.
A conversation similar to this allegedly happened next:
Earle: The track’s great. I keep hearing huge strings under it, and it should be about 6 minutes long.
Madonna: Okay… like what?
Earle: Like Massive Attack.
Madonna: Like Massive Attack?
Earle: Yeah!
Madonna: Who’s going to ask Massive Attack?
Earle: I will.
Sebastian then called electronica extraordinaire Nellee Hooper - resident producer for Massive Attack, Björk, and Madonna. Their conversation sounded something like this:
Earle: Nellee, it’s Earle.
Nellee: How are you?
Earle: I’m in New York with Madonna.
Nellee: Okay?
Earle: She’s done this wonderful track called “I Want You”, but I keep hearing huge strings underneath it.
Nellee: Okay.
Earle: Is that something that interests you?
Nellee: Earle, can you do me a favour? Is Madonna in the room?
Earle: No, she’s not.
Nellee: My first ecstasy is about to kick in. Can we talk tomorrow?
The scene pauses for a while. Re-enter Madonna, approx. 4 minutes later.
Madonna: And?
Earle: I just spoke to Nellee Hooper. He said it interests him, but his first E is about to kick in. Can we talk to him tomorrow?
“And with that, she just went white. She laughed her head off,” Sebastian said. Massive Attack were then reportedly flown out to New York City to record with Madge, and the rest is electronica history! While “I Want You” is a cover, it stands among both artists’ discography as one of their greatest tracks. A tangy “aye-aye-aye-aye” by Madonna serenades the 2 minute introduction, complimented by Massive Attack’s heavy compositions.
As discussed in our ‘9 Best Electronica Music Videos’, it’s a simplistic cut. Most of it features Madonna prancing around a Brownstone apartment, a midi leopard dress swaying in rhythm to her blonde bob. It was previously believed to be inspired by Dorothy Parker’s “A Telephone Call”, but Sebastian denied. “Bullshit.” The moodboard was actually French new wave cinema - with Madonna posing as an American Anna Magnani.
“I Want You” is truly a cataclysmic moment in music history - one that Earle Sebastian seemingly should’ve received a production credit on!
