Drowned Madonna: Bruce, first of all welcome on Drowned Madonna.

Bruce Gaitsch: Thank you for the invitation.

DM: You are a very talented and appreciated musician. When did you understand that you were born to play music?

BG: When I heard the Beatles the first time.

DM: Great... What are your favourite Beatles tracks?

BG: "Yesterday", "Elanor Rigby", "Sgt Peppers", the entire thing and "Hard Days Night" the entire thing.

DM: The Beatles completely changed the way people make music. Don't you think?

BG: You are correct.

DM: How many instruments do you play?

BG: Just guitar.

DM: Bruce, how did you get into the music industry?

BG: My father owned a music store and I learned to read music from him and then I taught there and started playing in bands during grade school and just kept at it. Eventually getting into a band that made a record and going on the road to promote that record.

DM: Where did you spend your childhood?

DM: In a suburb of Chicago, Des Plaines Illinois, USA.

DM: Did Des Plaines influence you? Has your childhood ever been a source of inspiration for your compositions?

BG: My childhood was influenced by my fathers music, my brothers music and the musicians I'd meet at the store he ran.

DM: In 1986 it was time for you to collaborate with Pat Leonard and Madonna for her successful album called "True Blue" and "La Isla Bonita" was the track you worked on with them. Who did introduce you to Madonna?

BG: Patrick Leonard.

DM: And.. who did introduce you to Pat?

BG: I've known him since he was 8 years old. He grew up in Des Plaines too.

DM: Do you remember the first time you met Madonna? What was your first impression?

BG: Yes, I met her at the first band try outs for her Virgin Tour..She was incredibly focused.

DM: The first band try outs for the Virgin Tour?!

BG: I didn't get to do the tour but David Williams and I were the guitarists in the band before she got the young guys for the tour.

DM: Was it "love at first sigh"?

BG: Not love, respect.

DM: Tell us something about the process that leads to one of the biggest song of ever. Did it start to be a Spanglish song?

BG: It started out as a musical idea of Pat’s, no words, just music.

DM: Who had the idea of recreating a Latin sound?

BG: Pat Leonard.

DM: Who wrote the lyrics?

BG: Madonna.

DM: Have the lyrics changed from the first composition or all the lines have been included in the final cut? What was the original work-in-progress title?

BG: All the same. There wasn’t one.

DM: So, who chose the title?

BG: Madonna.

DM: What was the main inspiration?

BG: I don’t know for Pat but my inspiration was Pat's track.

DM: What about San Pedro?

BG: There are quite a few of them it turns out. I've been to the one just south of LA and of course they think the song is about them.

DM: The song seems to transmit a feel of freedom, brotherhood and thoughtlessness. What was the intention?

BG: I don’t think there was an intention, I think Madonna writes from the heart not from an intention.

DM: How long did it take to finish the song?

BG: Pat and I did the music in minutes and she did the lyrics in China so I don't know how long she worked on them.

DM: In the video-clip Madonna has two faces: the one who prays in the silence of her bedroom and the one who escape from that "closed world" and start dancing in the "barrio" with a hot red dress. It's like a sort of comparison of the "Saint" and the "Whore".. Does it fit the song theme?

BG: No, the song is about the beauty of an island and her self discovery.

DM: Did you expect it would have been such a huge success?

BG: No one did.

DM: It's rumoured that the song has been originally conceived for Michael Jackson. Is it true? Or is it just a gossip?

BG: The track was offered to him but luckily for us the id*ot didn’t want it.

DM: Why did you originally want to give "La Isla Bonita" to him?

BG: I didn't, Pat was working with Michael who was the biggest act in the world at the time and he thought it would be easy to get him involved. Turned it down..I was so happy..never liked the guy.

DM: Bruce, you had the chance to work with an incredible team - among them Pat Leonard - while recording with Madonna again in another masterpiece, the "Like a Prayer" album. Can you tell something about that period?!

BG: It was wonderful. Great songs, great vibes and the outcome was a masterpiece.

DM: What are the musical differences between "True Blue" album and "Like A Prayer" album?

BG: A more spiritual direction mainly.

DM: What are your favourite Madonna's songs and albums?

BG: "True Blue" and "Like a Prayer"…"Live To Tell" and "Oh Father".

DM: "Live To Tell" is a masterpiece and "Oh Father" is so touching... just like "Promise To Try". What do you think of "Promise To Try"?

BG: It's awesome.

DM: What do you think of Madonna's collaboration with your friend Pat?

BG: I think of all her collaborators that Pat brings out the deepest and most creative sides of Madonna.

DM: Besides "La Isla Bonita", did you write other tracks with Madonna that have never been released?

BG: No I only co-wrote the one song with her and Pat.

DM: You are all over "True Blue" and "Like A Prayer" albums.. There are so many tracks rumoured to be recorded for these albums but never released. Maybe you played the guitar on these songs...Do you remember of any of them?!

BG: "True Blue" no, but there were some cool ones for "Like A Prayer" never used.

DM: You have worked and collaborated with hundreds of artists such as Timothy B. Schmidt from "Eagles", Peter Cetera from "Queen", Richard Marx, Phillip Bailey, Agnetta Faltskog from "ABBA", Lara Fabian, just to say the most famous, what have you got from all those artists and what did you give to them?

BG: I received the most precious of all gifts from all of these people, their inspiration and friendship. I returned the favor.

DM: What does give you the inspiration in making music?

BG: Daily life and the wonder of it all.

DM: Maybe this question to you could sound silly, but we are really curious to know how you can make fit the lyrics to the music. Have you already got prepared the melody, maybe in your mind, and you just put the lyrics together or you need to listen to the words of the song before getting the music?

BG: For me the melody comes first and as I listen to the singer singing just the melody I start to hear the words coming out of the melody, as a painting seems to grow out of an empty canvas.

DM: Nowadays technology has made so much progress, computers, synth, etc., which are your fav tools for making music?

BG: My favorite tools for making music are a guitar and a singer..any recording tool laying around is fine with me, I use Garage Band a lot because it is with me on my computer.

DM: Did you meet Madonna recently? Any hope to see you working together again one day?

BG: No I haven’t seen her since “Like A Prayer”, I would be honored.

DM: What are your next projects?

BG: Ilse DeLange, a Dutch super star. We are playing for Pat Leonard and Universal USA in two weeks to get her more know around the world. She and I have written 25 cool songs over the past year. We want Pat to produce.

DM: What would you say to those who say that Madonna's not talented and based all her career on controversies?

BG: I'd say they are full of shit..

DM: Bruce, you won an ASCAP award for "La Isla Bonita" now if you were asked to give an Award to Madonna, which kind of would it be?

BG: Hardest working and sexiest lady in show business.

DM: Thank you so much for chatting with us. Time has flown. It has been an honour to talk with a professionist like you.

BG: Thank you for asking.

Credits

Special thanks to Vincenzo (aka Vincy).