"Holiday" is a song by American singer Madonna from her self-titled debut album (1983). It was written by Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens-Crowder for their own musical act Pure Energy, and produced by John "Jellybean" Benitez. Hudson came up with the lyrics of the song while watching negative news on television, and together with Stevens-Crowder worked on the music. They recorded a demo, which was turned down by their label Prism Records. Afterwards, Benitez pitched the track and offered it to several artists, including former The Supremes singer Mary Wilson, but it was rejected. Around the same time, Benitez was working with Madonna on her album; after realizing they needed a song for the project, Benitez thought of "Holiday" and approached Hudson and Stevens-Crowder.
Recording for the song took place at New York City's Sigma Sound Studios; although Madonna and Benitez did not want the final version to differ too much from the demo, minor alterations were made in the composition, including the addition of a piano solo, which was done by their friend Fred Zarr. Described as a dance-pop, post-disco song, the lyrics talk about the "universal feeling" of needing and wanting to take a holiday. It features instrumentation from guitars, electronic clapping, a cowbell, and synthesized strings. Initially released as a double-sided single with "Lucky Star" in August, "Holiday" was published by Sire Records as the official third single from the album on September 7, 1983.
Critics reacted positively towards the track, deeming it infectious and a highlight from the album; in retrospective reviews, it is now considered to be among Madonna's best singles. "Holiday" performed well commercially: in the United States, it was considered Madonna's breakthrough, peaking at number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100, and reaching number one on the Dance Club Songs chart. It found success outside North America as well, reaching the top-ten in Australia, Belgium, Germany and Ireland, among others. In the United Kingdom it was released three times: first in 1984, then one year later, and finally in 1991; the last two times, it reached the chart's top five.
No official music video was shot for "Holiday"; to promote it, Madonna appeared on several nightclubs and television programs in the United States and the United Kingdom. She has also included the track in nearly all of her concert tours, the last being 2015―2016's Rebel Heart Tour. "Holiday" has been covered and sampled by several artists, and featured in television programs and movies.
Background
"Holiday" was written and composed by ex-spouses Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens-Crowder for their own group, Pure Energy. According to Hudson, he was inspired to come up with the musical arrangement and lyrics as response to all the "bad news" he'd see on television: "[It] was like, 'Man, what’s going on? We need a holiday or something'". Stevens-Crowder created the initial chord progression on the keyboard as a ballad and, after a couple of days had passed, she decided to speed it up. Hudson came up with the Bassline and the hook Holiday, celebrate, while Stevens-Crowder added the line It would be so nice. They then recorded a demo, sung by Stevens-Crowder, which was presented to their label Prism Records, who decided not to record it. Hudson and Stevens-Crowder knew John "Jellybean" Benitez from Fun House nightclub, where he was the resident DJ, and had presented him songs before; Benitez had remixed some of the songs they had released as Pure Energy, and offered "Holiday" to Mary Wilson from The Supremes, Phyllis Hyman, and disco group The Ritchie Family, but they all turned it down. Hudson revealed that he and Stevens-Crowder were not involved with pitching the song, as they still had hope they could record it themselves.