Lucky Star

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"Lucky Star"
Single by Madonna
from the album Madonna
Released	August 8, 1984 (Worldwide) August 25, 1984 (Japan)
Format	Vinyl (12") CD Single Vinyl (7")
Recorded	1983
Genre	Pop
Length	5:38
Label	Warner Bros.
Writer(s)	Madonna
Producer(s)	Reggie Lucas
Chart positions
#4 (U.S.) #14 (U.K.)
Madonna singles chronology
"Borderline" (1984)	"Lucky Star" (1984)	"Like A Virgin" (1984)

For other uses, see Lucky Star (disambiguation).

"Lucky Star" is the fifth and final single from American singer Madonna released from her 1983 debut album, Madonna.

Contents 1 Song history 2 Personnel 3 Credits 4 Chart Performance 4.1 Chart Trajectories 4.2 Charts 5 Official versions 6 Included On 7 References

[edit] Song history

"Lucky Star" was penned by Madonna and produced by collaborator Reggie Lucas. The song was the first song Madonna wrote when she signed with Warner Bros. The simple but catchy love song, was released as the last single from her debut album in August 1984 and became a big hit charting in the Top 10 in multiple countries. The songs chorus is famed for incorporating the famous Mother Goose nursery rhyme "Starlight, star bright, first star I see tonight...".

In the summer of 1983 the album versions of "Holiday" and "Lucky Star" were released in the U.S. to DJs as a 12" promotional vinyl single. The song was originally released in September 1983 in the U.K., but failed to make an impact on the charts. The single was re-issued the following year and became Madonna's second Top 20 hit in the UK.

In the UK the 12" vinyl release came with a free poster. The U.K. 7" single is one of Madonna's rarest single releases and can sell for £250 or more.

A music video was made for the 1984 single release of the song and was directed by Arthur Pierson. The video showed Madonna dancing around with her backup dancers (her brother Christopher and friend Erica Bell), dressed in black on a white background. The video exploited her "Boy Toy" image and featured Madonna with a wild haircut and dressed in black punky clothes, that she would later describe as 'rags'. The video is also famous for showing off her much talked about belly button. Two versions of the video were released commercially: an extended version using an edited remix of the song was released in Madonna's very first video collection in 1984 (which also included "Burning Up", "Borderline", and "Like A Virgin"), and a shorter version using the album edit of the song was released with the "Immaculate Collection" DVD.

The single's B-side was the album version of "I Know It", a song written by Madonna. On the German 7" vinyl single the song "Think of Me" was included as the B-side. Again, like "I Know It", "Think of Me" was also originally included on Madonna's debut album. Some maxi-singles also featured "Borderline" as a B-side.

Madonna re-recorded this song in 1990 for The Immaculate Collection but this version was later abandoned and the original was used. This 1990 version has surfaced on the internet - the backing track appears to be same.

[edit] Personnel

• Vocals by Madonna.
• Synthesizers by Dean Gant, Fred Zarr and Ed Walsh.
• Electric and acoustic pianos by Dean Gant and Fred Zarr.
• Guitars by Reggie Lucas, Ira Siegal and Paul Pesco.
• Drum programming by Reggie Lucas and Leslie Ming.
• Tenor saxophone by Bobby Malach.
• Background vocals by Gwen Guthrie, Norma Jean Wright, Madonna, Brenda White and Chrissy Faith.

[edit] Credits

• Written by Madonna and Reggie Lucas.
• Produced by Reggie Lucas.
• Remixed by John "Jellybean" Benitez.

[edit] Chart Performance

"Lucky Star" became Madonna's first Top 5 hit on the Billboard Hot 100; perhaps more importantly, it was the first of 16 consecutive Top 5 hits on the chart for her, a feat that surpassed even The Beatles' record. The track also had modest showings on both the Adult Contemporary and R&B charts. The song spent four months of the Billboard charts only to be pushed aside by her next release, "Like A Virgin".

In the U.K., the song was a moderate success, peaking within the Top 20.

[edit] Chart Trajectories

UK Top 40 Singles Chart Trajectory 1984
Week	01	02	03	04	05	06	07
Chart position	30	27	16	14	20	34	37

U.S. Singles Chart Trajectory 1984
Week	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16
Chart Position	49	40	27	24	16	13	8	5	4	5	6	17	30	55	86	97

[edit] Charts

Chart (1984)	Peak position
Australia AMR Sales Chart	36
Canada	16
Japan (ChartJapan)	2
UK Singles Chart	14
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	4
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary	19
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks	42

[edit] Official versions

Original versions

1. Album Version aka Full Length Version 5:38
2. LP Edit 3:57
3. Instrumental 4:35

Remixes

1. New Mix/ U.S. Remix 7:15
2. Shep Pettibone/Goh Hotoda Mix 3:36
3. German 7" Remix 3:33
4. UK 7" Dub 4:31
5. UK 7" Remix 3:16
6. UK Dub Version by Rusty Egan 6:03
7. Spanish 7" Instrumental 4:15
8. Spanish Remix/Edit #1 6:22
9. Italian Remix/Edit 6:11
10. 1982 Dub Version 8:58
11. Extended Version 6:02

Music Video Versions

1. Video Edit 3:44
2. Video of Edit of New Mix 5:04

[edit] Included On

• Madonna
• The Immaculate Collection
• Snatch Original Soundtrack

[edit] References

• "Chart Performance of Madonna Records - A Compiled History" (2004). MLVC.ORG: Charts Retrieved from http://charts.mlvc.org/CHThist.php on December 9, 2005.
• "Holiday" (2004). Madonna: Single Summaries Retrieved from http://www.madonnanation.com/charts/ on December 9, 2005.
• Mad-Eyes.net - "Lucky Star" Single Page

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