Madonna was once asked which song she wished she had never recorded. Her answer? "Material Girl." The reason for that answer probably has less to do with the merits of the song itself than with the nickname that has hounded her since 1985. Since the name Material Girl is now so ubiquitous, it may come as a bit of a surprise that this does not rank as one of her many #1 singles, and in fact became the first in a stretch of songs which have stalled at the runner-up position.

The video was one of the most fully-realized efforts of her early '80s work, combining the storyline of a woman being wooed by a would-be suitor with the over-the-top choreography of Madonna as the material girl, donned in gaudy jewelry and fur. The video also served as one of the first glimpses of Madonna's fondness for Marilyn Monroe.

TRIVIA: "Material Girl" was originally written with a male singer in mind, but after some of the lyrics were changed around, Madonna made the song her own and took on the title role at the pinnacle of yuppiedom.