Saying that Daft Punk’s ‘Get Lucky’ is the Song Of The Summer has turned into a bit of a meme, hasn’t it? Scottish comedian Limmy has been calling it “Song Of The Summer” on Twitter every Friday for years now. When we asked this morning for the song that reminds you of summer, lo and behold, there was some Daft Punk answers in there of course.
Daft Punk – GetnLucky. Sound of the summer. Check it out.
— James (@bigfuriousgiant) April 19, 2018
Few songs continue to provoke this kind of reaction quite like ‘Get Lucky’ does. The hype around its release, which was five years ago today (April 19), is hard to put into words. In the weeks prior, a 15-second teaser of Nile Rodgers’ immortal riff first aired as a TV advert, with a star-studded teaser clip appearing between bands at that year’s Coachella. The Robots stole the show without even turning up. Fans even managed to craft homemade remixes out of a tiny snippet of music. And we listened!
Then the whole song came, and it was good. Like, impossibly good. If the musical overlords were tinkering in a laboratory trying to make the perfect pop song – we reckon it would sound a little bit like this. Rodger’s funky guitars were a superb opener and the chorus’ melody felt like one you’d known your whole life. Daft Punk even did their funny little Robot voice towards the end. The result? An evergreen slice of pop magic, that is perfectly summed up by Robot #1 Thomas Bangalter in an interview with BBC in 2013. “The whole point of this record was not to go back to the past; rather, it was to try and bring the timeless quality of the past into the present.”
‘Get Lucky’ continues to operate outside the traditional time and space barriers of music. It still feels just as right in a sweaty club as it does sat in your back garden, and as welcome at the start of the night as it does as the close. But that’s exactly what the song’s immortal hook is all about: “we’re up all night to get lucky”. It’s the sound of the party that you’re always chasing, and though it hasn’t come – you feel like next time will be your night. In essence, this is what the ‘Song Of The Summer’ chatter is all about, really. We listen, we argue, we drink and then we dance – imaging ideas of why this summer is going to be different than the last, only to realise it’s probably already over.
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But ‘Get Lucky’ refuses to go away. Chic & Nile Rodgers continue to play the song in their live sets, and your local radio station will give it a spin as soon as your winter coat is banished to the depths of your wardrobe, and yet, ‘Get Lucky’ still sounds fresh. It’s an old-school jam session that’s been spun into a super-sleek slice of pop magic. Sure, the song has been played into oblivion – but if the opening chords doesn’t make your foot bounce and your head go a bit woozy we may want to check your pulse.
After the song dropped Daft Punk released their fourth album ‘Random Access Memories’, performed some of it at The Grammys then powered down for the long nap. Since, they’ve only worked with The Weeknd on his album ‘Starboy’ and rising Australian band Parcels on the funky ‘Overnight’. But if your song is still the subject five years on, surely you’re doing something right.