Like a Prayer (album) April 27, 1990, and "Blond Ambition World Tour Live", taped in Nice, France, on August 5, 1990. "Like a Prayer" received critical acclaim. Stephen Thomas Erlewine, from AllMusic, said in retrospect that it was Madonna's "most explicit attempt at a major artistic statement", and that though she is trying to be "serious" Madonna delivers a range of well-written pop songs, making the album her "best and most consistent". In "The New Rolling Stone Album Guide", Barry Walters wrote that with its more substantial songs that "covered topics such as spousal abuse and familial neglect", "Like a Prayer" "effectively upped Madonna's
Like a Prayer (album) language and imagery". According to the list of "All-TIME 100 Albums" by "Time" magazine's critics, "Like a Prayer" is one of the 100 greatest and most influential musical compilations since 1954. In 2003, "Rolling Stone" magazine named it the 239th greatest album of all time. Apart from that the album was also featured in the "Women Who Rock" list made in 2012, at number 18. "Like a Prayer" is also featured in the book "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die". In 2006, "Q" magazine placed the album at number 14 in its list of "40 Best Albums of