Background
The track was written by Joe Henry, Madonna's brother-in-law. He performed and released the track, originally named "Stop", on his 2001 album Scar. His wife Melanie sent a demo of the track to her sister, who liked it and recorded her own version with the help of Mirwais Ahmadzaï. The song is an unusual departure from most mainstream songs and Madonna's own sound up to that point, as the vocals used in its production are often 'dry', or without reverb. Ahmadzai convinced Madonna to try this as a unique effect. Strings were arranged by Michel Colombier, who would continue working with Madonna on subsequent projects.
The unexpected brief pauses of silence heard on the guitar riff at the beginning of the song initially caused some listeners to think that track on the Music album was defective; these intentional pauses help form the unusual beat of the song.
Read more about this topic: Don't Tell Me (Madonna Song)
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