“I just think of you and I start to glow”
Taken from the album Madonna
US #4, UK #14, AUS #36
You could not possibly argue against the fact that a huge reason for Madonna’s legend is due to her use of image and visuals. Along with ‘Borderline’, ‘Lucky Star’ was her first major exposure to the eyes of the world, and it was instrumental in making her style a phenomenon. Released as the fifth single from the album, ‘Lucky Star’ is one of Madonna’s most glorious moments, a dance floor anthem with deceptively sparse production and simple but genius lyrics.
There are two tiny but very important little bits that add to ‘Lucky Star’s magic. The first is that sparkle noise at the start. On a list of 1001 noises that are good, that sparkle noise would be somewhere in the top 50. I think I might fire up Audacity and make a version called the ‘Sparkle Noise Mix’ which consists of the noise on repeat for ten minutes. The rest of the song is great, catchy and complicated enough to draw people in while staying very simple for easy radio and club play, but that noise… amazing.
The second bit is Madonna taking her glasses off and putting them on at the start and end of the video. How could one woman be so cool? By just that little movement she seemed to command the entire song, the entire video. The premise was simple: Madonna and two dancers in front of a white background. Cheap as, but completely effective and eventually iconic. She high-kicks and writhes her way around, slinky and shimmering just like that noise I’m obsessed with. I remember being transfixed by ‘Lucky Star’ as a child watching the Immaculate Collection VHS, and I still recognise it as an absolute eighties classic today.
July 20, 2010 at 12:18 am |
I have always loved Lucky Star because of its transcendent melody and that catch, quiver and sob in Lady Madonna’s voice, her graceful and lithe dance moves and her glowing smile. However, I really didn’t fully appreciate the magnitude of the beautiful art song-her first Top 5
-until I Heard the live version from The Confessions Tour CD/DVD combo package. As soon as I Heard the transcendent live encore coupled with Hung Up-this song’s newer relative, I started to cry. When Madonna cried “You must be my Lucky Star/Because you shine on me wherever you are,” Madonna was singing to her audience and crying to her mother. It was an unforgettable moment and a beautiful experience. I felt happy and sad all at once. And it was at that point that Madonna had become-and will always be my Lucky Star. With this artwork, Madonna shows us we all are and can be Lucky Stars. Because in the end, it’s up to each of us-and all of us-as her fans/audience
to do so.