Critical response Live to Tell

madonna performing medley of live tell , oh father during blond ambition world tour in 1990

live tell received music critics. in review of album true blue, stephen thomas erlewine allmusic called tremendous ballad rewrites rules of adult contemporary crossover . jim farber entertainment weekly called song best ballad date . in review of compilation album immaculate collection, david browne same magazine called 1 of few successful shots @ being balladeer . alfred soto stylus magazine felt song s set of lyrics remain best , vocals seethes lifetime s worth of hurts nevertheless refuses share . sal cinquemani slant magazine called song striking adding rewrote rules of pop song supposed sound . edna gundersen usa today called song moody heart-tugger, may best song ever.

adam sexton, author of desperately seeking madonna: in search of meaning of world s famous woman, felt live tell made provocative companion papa don t preach , second single album. added madonna appropriately measured safety of silence against urge unburden herself. sexton complimented production, saying music suggests threatened annihilation, fact makes more haunting. allen metz , carol benson, authors of madonna companion: 2 decades of commentary, felt track expanded madonna s musical horizons. according them live tell compelling track madonna sang moving conviction. j. randy taraborrelli, author of madonna: intimate biography, pleased track, denoting vehicle of growth madonna. erica wexler spin, while reviewing true blue, called live tell dark , moody, dense dramatic mystery. in mushy tale of lost innocence, madonna theatrically conveys lost fatalism. fragile voice aches reassurance , healing when sings grow cold? secret hide, grow old? rolling stone called song cutting melancholic , said arguably [madonna s] finest , distinctive ballad.