August 24, 1984 "Lucky Star" enters the Billboard singles chart.

Lucky Star

August 24, 1984

"Lucky Star" enters the Billboard singles chart.

 

 

One of UK vinyl editions

 

Single by Madonna

from the album Madonna

 

B-side

"Holiday" (NA)

"I Know It" (EU)

Released September 8, 1983

Format 7", 12", CD single

Recorded February—March 1983

Genre Dance-pop

Length 5:37

Label Sire Warner Bros.

Writer(s) Madonna

Producer(s) Reggie Lucas

 

"Lucky Star" is a song by American singer Madonna from her debut studio album of the same name. Originally released in the United Kingdom on September 8, 1983, by Sire Records, it was the fourth single from the album. The song also appears on her hits compilations The Immaculate Collection (1990) and Celebration (2009). "Lucky Star" was written by Madonna and produced by Reggie Lucas. However, during recording, Madonna was not impressed by Lucas' version. She called her then boyfriend John "Jellybean" Benitez to remix the track according to her ideas. "Lucky Star" is a medium-paced dance track and combines the heavy beats of a drum with the sounds of a guitar played in a high riff. The lyrics juxtapose the male body with the heavenly stars in the sky.

 

Both contemporary and modern critics praised the song, heralding it as the introduction to upbeat dance music. "Lucky Star" became Madonna's first top-five hit on the Billboard Hot 100, when it reached the peak position of four, becoming the first single in her record-breaking string of 16 consecutive top-ten hits. It had already become Madonna's first number-one song on the Billboard dance charts, when it peaked the chart alongside the previously released single "Holiday".

 

The music video portrayed Madonna dancing in front of a white background, accompanied by her dancers. After the video was released, Madonna's style and mannerisms became a fashion trend among the younger generation. Scholars noted that in the video, Madonna portrayed herself as narcissistic and an ambiguous character. She referred to herself as the lucky star, unlike the lyrical meaning of the song. Madonna has performed the song in a number of live appearances, most recently at the Confessions Tour (2006). It has also been covered by a number of artists.

 

Composition

 

Musically a medium-paced dance track, "Lucky Star" starts off with a sparkle of synth note and is followed by heavy beats of electronic drum and handclaps. A guitar is played in high riff and a bubbling bass synth is produced to accompany the guitar sound. The song revolves around the "star light, star bright" hook for more than a minute, before going to the chorus. According to author Rikky Rooksby, the lyrics are repetitive and inane and revolves around the transparent ambiguity of the stars and juxtaposition of the male character with being a heavenly body in the sky. "Lucky Star" is set in the time signature of common time with a moderate dance tempo of 108 beats per minute. It is set in the key of G major with Madonna's voice spanning from the tonal nodes of G3 to F♯5. The song has a basic sequence of Gdouble sharp–Adouble sharp–B♭–Dhalf flat–E♭–F♯ as its basic chord progression.

 

Chart performance

 

"Lucky Star" was released as the album's fifth single in the United States and debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at 49, on the week of August 25, 1984. It finally reached a peak of four, and was present for a total of 18 weeks. It was able to enter other Billboard charts, such as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Adult Contemporary, where it peaked at 42 and 19 respectively. Prior to its release, the song had already reached the top of the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart along with "Holiday". In Canada, the song debuted at position 89 of the RPM Singles chart, reaching a peak of eight in November 1984, and it was present on the chart for 19 weeks. It placed at 72 on the RPM year-end chart for 1984.

 

In the United Kingdom, "Lucky Star" was originally released as the album's second single in September 1983, simultaneously with "Holiday" in the United States. However, it only bubbled under the UK Singles Chart at number 171. In March 1984, it was re-issued and then debuted on the UK Singles Chart at 47, and reached a peak of 14 after three weeks. The song was present on the chart for nine weeks. According to The Official Charts Company, "Lucky Star" has sold 117,470 copies in the United Kingdom, as of August 2008. In Ireland, the song was able to reach 19 on the Irish official charts. In Australia, the song made the top 40 of the Kent Music Report chart and peaked at 36.

 

Track listing and formats:

 

7" single

A. "Lucky Star" (Edit) – 3:50

B. "I Know It" – 3:47

 

EU/UK 12" single

A. "Lucky Star" (U.S Remix) – 7:14

B. "I Know It" – 3:44

 

US 12" promo single

A. "Lucky Star" – 5:30

B. "Holiday" – 6:08

 

Germany / UK CD Maxi Single (1995)

"Lucky Star" (U.S. Remix) – 7:14

"I Know It" – 3:47

 

Note: This song was released as a Maxi-Single only in the E.U.