Album of the Day

Madonna pulled out all the stops for her 11th – and final – Warner Bros. studio album, HARD CANDY. Enlisting a team of A-list producers including Timbaland, Justin Timberlake and Pharrell Williams (all of whom also contribute vocals, along with Kanye West), the performer created a tough-but-sweet confection that was “like 'Holiday' with an R&B groove,” in Timbaland's words. The urban-oriented dance-pop of this set shines as brightly on LP-only tracks like “Candy Shop” and “Devil Wouldn't Recognize You” as it does on singles “Give It 2 Me,” “Miles Away,” and Top 10 hit “4 Minutes.” Needless to say, HARD CANDY was a smash, reaching No.1 on the U.S. album chart on this day in 2008 and racking up more than 4 million sales worldwide.