| "Beautiful Stranger" | ||||
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| Single by Madonna | ||||
| from the album Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me | ||||
| Released | May 19, 1999 | |||
| Recorded | February 1999 | |||
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| Length | 4:22 | |||
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| Madonna singles chronology | ||||
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| "Beautiful Stranger" on YouTube | ||||
"Beautiful Stranger" is a song by American singer and songwriter Madonna. It was released on May 19, 1999, by Maverick and Warner Bros. Records as a single from the soundtrack of the film, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. Madonna co-wrote and co-produced the song with William Orbit. The soundtrack for Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me was a much expected release and Madonna's song was chosen by the album's executive producers to promote it. "Beautiful Stranger" has appeared on three separate Madonna greatest hits collections: GHV2 (2001), Celebration (2009) and Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones (2022). Musically, "Beautiful Stranger" is a psychedelic pop and disco song that features heavily reverberated guitars and bouncy drum loops. Its lyrics tell the tale of a romantic infatuation.
The song received positive feedback from music critics who praised the production and Madonna's progress with her music, following her critically acclaimed album Ray of Light (1998). It was a commercial success reaching the top of the charts in Canada, Finland, Iceland and Italy, number two in the United Kingdom and top-ten in many markets. Although the song was not commercially released in the United States, it reached number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 due to airplay. It reached number one on the US dance charts. "Beautiful Stranger" also earned Madonna her fifth Grammy Award, winning the trophy for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
The song's music video, directed by Brett Ratner, prominently features Madonna singing in a club, visited by Mike Myers as his character Austin Powers. At the end of the video Madonna seduces Myers and goes off in his car. It won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Video from a Film in 1999. Madonna performed the song on her 2001 Drowned World Tour, and it has been covered by some artists, including a critically acclaimed version by Australian rock band DMA's.