The man whose bad break-up gave Madonna her breakthrough hit Like A Virgin

2 hours agoHarry SekulichandIan Youngs,Culture reporterGetty ImagesMadonna famously performed Like a Virgin in a wedding dress at the 1984 MTV AwardsGrammy-winning US songwriter Billy Steinberg, a key figure behind a string of chart-topping hits including Madonna's Like a Virgin, has died at the age of 75.Steinberg's family described him as a "visionary lyricist, devoted husband, loving father, and one of the most influential songwriters of his era".With Tom Kelly, he also wrote classic 1980s and 90s songs like Cyndi Lauper's True Colors, Whitney Houston's So Emotional, The Bangles' Eternal Flame, Lauper and Roy Orbison's I Drove All Night, and the Pretenders' I'll Stand By You.Reflecting on his work, Steinberg's family said "his lyrics often began as deeply personal reflections, transformed into anthems in which millions found themselves".That was certainly true of Like a Virgin, which was both his breakthrough as a songwriter and Madonna's first US number one single.Getty ImagesBilly Steinberg said some people asked him to change the song's title"I had been in a difficult relationship. It was difficult to free myself from it. I managed to do that, and I met somebody new, and I was elated about that, so I started to write the story of it. 'I made it through the wilderness, somehow I made it through'."Steinberg gave the lyrics to Kelly, who initially tried to compose a tune as a ballad. But that didn't work so he started playing around with it in the style of Motown and Michael Jackson, sung by Kelly in his falsetto voice. It suddenly sounded right, and they recorded a demo.The record companies they initially offered it to weren't keen, however."Some people even asked us to change the title. I knew that compared to most mainstream pop lyrics, the title and theme might seem a bit jolting and risque. But I liked the idea of writing a lyric concept which hadn't quite been done before."The BBC's London Plus reports on the "Madonna craze" on 5 September 1985Steinberg refused to change the title, and the pair were wary of playing it to Warner Bros Records senior vice president Michael Ostin when they met him."At the end of the meeting we finally played it," Kelly explained. "When he heard it, he flipped over the song."Ostin loved it, and immediately knew it would fit an up-and-coming singer who was signed to the label.Madonna was not initially as enthusiastic, saying she thought the demo sounded "really stupid".But she quickly changed her mind. "It's weird because I couldn't get it out of my head after I played it, even though I didn't really like it. It sounded really bubble-gummy to me, but it grew on me. I real­ly started to like it, my little gears started clicking, and I thought, 'This could be really cool.'"Her recording, produced by Nile Rodgers, spent six weeks at number one in the US in 1984, selling more than two million copies.It was met by critics, though - some were outraged by its sexual content and religious allusions.Funk throbWhen Rolling Stone ranked the song fifth in its list of her greatest ever tracks in 2016, the magazine noted: "Even if the word 'virgin' is the only sexual reference in the lyrics, Like a Virgin still sounds saturated in lust – it's all in the way Madonna sings it over that Nile Rodgers funk throb."The song's combination of sweetness and naughtiness made it the perfect calling card for Madonna as has career took off.Her playfully suggestive performance of the song as she writhed on the stage of the MTV Awards in a wedding dress and "BOY TOY" belt (and accidentally flashed her bottom) cemented her status as the decade's provocative pop superstar.Steinberg and Kelly, however, never met the newly crowned Queen of Pop at the time."A couple of years went by after the success of Like a Virgin, and Tom and I had never met Madonna," Steinberg said.They were eventually invited to her manager's 50th birthday party, where they were introduced to the singer and her then-boyfriend Warren Beatty."I said, 'Madonna, I've wanted to meet you for so long'," Steinberg recalled."And she looks at me and she says, 'Well, now you did'. She grabbed Warren and walked away."So that was the big moment. I was crestfallen, and Tom was in stitches."Getty ImagesChrissie Hynde inducted Steinberg (centre) and Kelly (right) into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame in 2011Despite that anti-climax, the song meant Steinberg and Kelly were in high demand as songwriters.They soon scored hits with Lauper, Houston, The Divinyls and others, and also wrote for Pat Benatar, Tina Turner, Roy Orbison, REO Speedwagon, Cheap Trick, Bette Midler and Belinda Carlisle.Steinberg went on to co-write songs in the early 2000s, such as JoJo's Too Little Too Late and Demi Lovato's Give Your Heart a Break.The Songwriters Hall of Fame, into which Steinberg was inducted in 2011, described him as one of the "most successful songwriters", whose songs have turned into "enduring classics".Announcing his death on Monday, his family said: "Billy Steinberg's life was a testament to the enduring power of a well-written song - and to the idea that honesty, when set to music, can outlive us all."Steinberg's lawyer confirmed to the BBC he had died in Los Angeles following a cancer diagnosis.His family noted that he received multiple industry accolades throughout his four-decade career, including a Grammy Award for his work on the title track from Celine Dion's 1996 album Falling Into You."Yet those closest to him knew that what mattered most was not recognition, but connection - the magic of hearing a crowd sing back something that once lived only in his notebook."He is survived by his wife Trina, two sons and two stepchildren.