Take a bow, the night is over
This masquerade is getting older
Lights are low, the curtains down
There's no one here
(There's no one here, there's no one in the crowd)
Say your lines, but do you feel them?
Do you mean what you say when there's no one around?
(No one around)
Watchin' you, watchin' me, one lonely star
(One lonely star, you don't know who you are)
[Chorus: Madonna, Babyface, Both]
I've always been in love with you (Always with you)
I guess you've always known it's true (You know it's true)
You took my love for granted, why, oh, why?
The show is over, say good-bye
Say good-bye (Bye-bye)
Say good-bye
[Verse 2: Madonna & Babyface]
Make them laugh, it comes so easy
When you get to the part where you're breakin' my heart
(Breakin' my heart)
Hide behind your smile, all the world loves a clown
(Just make 'em smile the whole world loves a clown)
Wish you well, I cannot stay
You deserve an award for the role that you played
(Role that you played)
No more masquerade, you're one lonely star
(One lonely star, you don't know who you are)
I've always been in love with you (Always with you)
I guess you've always known it's true (You know it's true)
You took my love for granted, why, oh, why?
The show is over, say good-bye
I've always been in love with you (Always with you)
I guess you've always known it's true (You know it's true)
You took my love for granted, why, oh, why?
The show is over, say good-bye
Say good-bye (Bye-bye)
Say good-bye
[Bridge: Madonna & Babyface]
All the world is a stage (World is a stage)
And everyone has their part (Has their part)
But how was I to know which way the story’d go?
How was I to know you'd break (You'd break, you'd break, you'd break)
You'd break my heart?
[Chorus: Madonna, Babyface, Both]
I've always been in love with you
(I've always been in love with you)
Guess you've always known
You took my love for granted, why, oh, why?
The show is over, say good-bye
I've always been in love with you (Always with you)
I guess you've always known it's true (You know it's true)
You took my love for granted, why, oh, why?
The show is over, say good-bye
Say good-bye (Bye-bye)
Say good-bye
Say good-bye
About
“Take a Bow” is a song by American singer Madonna from her sixth studio album Bedtime Stories (1994). It was released as the album’s second single on October 28, 1994, by Maverick Records. It is a mid-tempo pop ballad.
A commercial success, the single reached the top position on the Billboard Hot 100. Topping the chart for seven weeks, it is her longest-running number-one in the US.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
The idea going in was to juxtapose my singing style with a hardcore hip-hop sensibility and have the finished product still sound like a Madonna record. I began the process by meeting with the hip-hop producers whose work I most admired. It was important, if I were to use a variety of collaborators, that the end product sound cohesive and thematically whole. I wasn’t interested in the variety pack approach.
- Madonna explaining the concept of the song in Fred Bronson’s The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits
- 1.Hung Up
- 2.Music
- 4.4 Minutes
- 5.Holiday
- 13.Open Your Heart
- 15.Secret (Edit)
- 17.Justify My Love
- 18.Revolver
- 19.Dress You Up
- 20.Material Girl
- 21.La Isla Bonita
- 23.Lucky Star
- 24.Burning Up
- 25.Crazy for You
- 26.Who’s That Girl
- 27.Frozen (Edit)
- 28.Miles Away
- 29.Take a Bow
- 30.Live to Tell
- 32.Hollywood
- 33.Die Another Day
- 35.Cherish
- 36.Celebration
- 38.It’s So Cool
