Cherish (Madonna Song) - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

"'Cherish' was a particular triumph for the Madonna/Patrick Leonard partnership. A delightful confection of radio-ready proportions, the song had it all—strong, positive, remarkably dysfunction-free lyrics about love, a memorable, singalong vocal melody, and a tight, pungent rhythm arrangement. It remains, quite simply, one of the best songs Madonna has ever written; sweet and happy, but by no means corny, it's a perfectly constructed pop song which Madonna delivered beautifully, and with undeniably sassy charm. Indeed, if 'Cherish' had been released in the Sixties, it would have most likely emanated from Detroit's Motown or the New York song writing Mecca, the Brill Building."

—Biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli talking about "Cherish" in his book, Madonna: An Intimate Biography

Wayne Robins from Newsday believed that the song exemplified the "kind of random pop we'd get if William Burroughs were the program director of a Top 40 radio station." Burt compared the song and Madonna's delivery of the lyrics with the dialogues spoken by Shakespeare's Juliet, and found similarity in the, "Sweet so would I, Yet I should kill thee with much cherishing" from the play, with the lyrics of "Cherish". Allen Metz, one of the authors of The Madonna Companion, felt that "Cherish" as the opening song of the B-side of Like a Prayer, reaffirmed the sweet and happy romanticism that was missing from the A-side of the album. "As much a child of pop" he says, "as of the church, Madonna is restored by music's healing power, in this case with a mixture of classic sweet soul and L.A. pop moderne." Lucy O'Brien, author of Madonna: Like an Icon, felt that the song was typical of Madonna's previous musical endeavors, and would have been more suitable for her third studio album, True Blue, whose songs mainly dealt with romance and relationships. Music critic J. D. Considine, while reviewing the Like a Prayer album for Rolling Stone complimented the song for creating an effective balance, contrasting its lighthearted nature with the trauma of "Oh Father", the next song. Considine also found retro-rock references in the song.

Freya Jarman-Ivens, one of the authors of Madonna's Drowned Worlds, felt that the song was one of the last works on pure romanticism by Madonna. "She should come back to the formula from time to time, but I guess she has moved beyond all of that", Jarman-Ivens added. Carol Clerk, author of Madonnastyle noted that the "refreshing" nature of the song was particularly noticeable if one follows Madonna's catalog chronologically, especially embedded between the anthem like nature of the previous release, "Express Yourself", and the lament of the succeeding release, "Oh Father". Scholar Maria Raha wrote in her book Cinderella's Big Score: Women of the Punk and Indie Underground that the song was full of "trite" lyrics. Andy Goldberg from The Jerusalem Post said that "Cherish" took "Madonna back to her old stomping grounds, the lively bass line and lilting melodies of hit albums past." Kevin Phinney from Austin American-Statesman was surprised by Madonna's contribution to the song and confessed that he " it difficult to be believe that she even wrote this?" Phinney continued that he wanted Madonna to go in a more mature direction and compose songs musically similar to "Cherish". Writing for The Washington Post, Richard Harrington explained that "while songs on Like a Prayer dealt with matters opening her heart, with 'Cherish' Madonna dealt with matters which were close to her heart." This view was also shared by Ian Blair from Chicago Tribune who categorized the song as being sung for the "happy-go-lucky lovers and dreamers". The Dallas Morning News' Lennox Samuels appreciated the light-hearted theme of the song and complimented Madonna and Leonard for not sticking with personal subject matters only on the album. Dale Anderson from The Buffalo News opined that the song would become one of Madonna's most forgettable releases, but was also hopeful that it would not. This opinion was shared by Don McCleese of Chicago Sun-Times, who added that "Cherish" was not something expected from Madonna at that point of time. McCleese was disappointed that Madonna went back to the "happy-go-lucky, lovey-dovey" kind of songs, which did not match her self-image. Dan DeLuca from The Philadelphia Inquirer, while reviewing Madonna's Drowned World Tour in 2001, compared "Cherish" with songs by Chris Robinson, humorously adding that "only if he was gay he would sing something like that."