1984-1990 Holiday to Vogue
1992-1997 Erotica to Ray of Light
2000-2009 Music to Hard Candy

Poll coming up ...

The first one - classic Madonna!

Ooo it's a toughie.

Confessions on a Dance Floor all the way!

90s for me, start of my youth. Bedtime Stories and Erotica, brilliant!!

My own personal favourite Madonna period is from Ray of Light to Confessions, but there isn't a vote option that includes both.

80's Madonna. So many classic songs too many to write. I was too young for the 84-87 years, i soon caught up in 1989.

I'm hoping for more 80's Madonna than we usually get on the new tour. I want Holiday, Like A Virgin, Gambler, True Blue, Open Your Heart, Who's That Girl, Like A Prayer and Express Yourself. I know i will not get all of them but i am hopeful.

No offense to the person who started this poll, but I think you need to have more eras. Each choice has too many things included.
For me, the first era was from when she started up to around 85/86 when she did bubblegum pop.

Then she did Live to Tell and LAP in the late 80's when she became more serious and more controversial in a political way, which is totally different from her early 80's stuff.

Then you have very in your face sexy Madonna which was Justify Love through Erotica, including the Sex Book.

After that she went softer, sang ballads and did Evita which was its own period.

After that we go to her experimental electronica phase of ROL, Music and AL, and a more subdued image due to her marriage to Guy.

Then we have a return to fun dancey in your face sexy Madonna with Confessions and HC.

Having had it divided in to decades 2000-09 as it was when i first became aware of her overall impact before that she was just a big popstar and this era has Confessions Al and music and hard candy all offor controversy pure pop avant garde dance etc

I guess these are more Madonna decades than eras, but I think my favourite is from 2000 to present. I wasn't born until 1995, so my first Madonna era really was Confessions (though I remember 2003 American Life Madonna vaguely, and MatM with Britney), where Hung Up and Sorry were everywhere, and then 2008 with 4 Minutes and Hard Candy (that cover)

But I didn't become a fan until early 2011, so I tend to judge the albums over the eras, and I actually think her strongest albums were from 2000 to present on the whole. All of her 80s albums were good, but the only really strong album imo was Like a Prayer, she found her footing as an artist for the first time with that I think.

I think Ray of Light is her strongest work (though it isn't my favourite), but Bedtime Stories at present is a snoozefest for me... I should probably listen to it more, and I haven't given Erotica a proper chance yet, it hasn't grabbed me yet.

I love Music, most of American Life and Confessions on a Dance Floor. Hard Candy is kinda average, probably my second least favourite M album, but I can overlook that because I like the others so much in that decade. I just think in general her albums have gotten better/ been more consistent over the years in general, and MDNA looks like it'll continue the trend.

Favourite era is 1986 through to 1991 - from the 'True Blue' album (where she started to put out more grown up singles like Live to Tell and Papa Don't Preach) up to and including the 'Like A Prayer' album (her best) and the Blonde Ambition tour and subsequent 'In Bed With Madonna' movie. It felt like she was even bigger and more ubiquitous than she is now.

No, they are certainly eras. Madonna's 80s era didn't start (in the UK) until 1984, nearly halfway through. It ends with Vogue in 1990 and her Imaculate Collection.

Her 90s era starts with 1992 and Erotica and ends with Ray of Light just five years later.

Only in the 2000s does she start and end at the decade.

I love all her eras because every decade she has at least two masterpeice albums IMO

Like A Virgin and Like A Prayer in the 80s

Erotica and Ray Of Light in the 90s

Music and Confessions On A Dance Floor in the 00s.

Tough to vote really for me :-S.

I'd disagree on Music JP i would have said AL as it was controversial and was something different i.e the acoustic elements were more overt on it Music was just a big wonky pop dance opus with continuing ambient sounds from ROL

Yeah but at the same point i majorly prefer repeating Music on play because i love how disjointed it is...i love each song individually and as a collective piece as an album. I love the introduction of heavy Trance rhythms and branching herself into experimental/Electro Acoustics.

AMerican Life is a really good album but for me Music is all the more powerful.

But that is The Power Of Madonna right there...different tastes for different audiences

True ive recently come to enjoy it and it is an overlooked and underrated album i just like Indie Madonna on AL

Well as i say Hav...i literally love each of Madonnas albums to different degrees. I mean while i prefer Music i do love AL to death too . And COnfessions massively made an impact on me in 2005 and Hard Candy doesnt deserve the flack it gets IMO.

But thats just me

Well hard candy was neither new fresh or exciting as i said Loose got there before it

Hav...your are loose

Haha only on occasion but unfortunately Loose got me before HC her only weak point in the noughties like BS low point of the nineties

Yeah...to be fair though her weak points are as good as a load of artists stronger points

So all swings and roundabouts

she does deliver two top album per decade, so it is so difficult to pin point one decade as a favourite. even the 90s was just as exiting as the 80s being a long term fan. there were plenty of low points in the 90s with two under performing albums, but it just made the evita/ray of light period all the more satisfying with her regaining commercial and critical acclaim.

the 2000-2009 period had the `music` and `confessions` highlights. even though `american life` and `hard candy` were solid in comparison to her albums in general. so i don't regard period disappointing either. although, her losing ground commercially post `music` in the us must have annoyed her and it didn't surprise me when she returned to the states. however, i like this period where she became `british`. it made her seem more accessible for a while, doing theatre in london and getting married in scotland.

The first one for me

I personally loved the 2 eras from 1984-1990 and 1992-1997. Still love Madonna now, but for me those were her best years.

This poll is a joke. Ray of Light came out in 1998 and that isn't even an option!