| "Kelly Watch the Stars" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Air | ||||
| from the album Moon Safari | ||||
| B-side | "Remember" | |||
| Released | 4 May 1998 | |||
| Recorded | 1997 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:44 | |||
| Label |
| |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
| |||
| Air singles chronology | ||||
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"Kelly Watch the Stars" (also written "Kelly, Watch the Stars!") is a song by French electronic music duo Air from their debut studio album, Moon Safari (1998). It was released on 4 May 1998 as the album's second single.
"Kelly Watch the Stars" was inspired by the Charlie's Angels character Kelly Garrett, played by Jaclyn Smith. "It's a silly song. But you need silly songs to make good records," explained Nicolas Godin in 2019. "It's about Jaclyn Smith, Kelly from Charlie's Angels. Me and JB are really in love with her. It was our first sexual shock when we were kids. I remember talking about who we thought was the most beautiful woman in the world. For me, it was Kelly, so we wrote 'Kelly Watch the Stars' about her." [3]
The only lyrics in the song are the title. As Jean-Benoît Dunckel explained: "Unlike American or British bands, we weren't always thinking “verse-chorus”. And singing in English made us sound even more French, because of our thick accents." [4]
The song was well-received by music critics. AllMusic called the song "accessible pop." [1] Drum 'n' Bass: The Rough Guide described the song as "retro-electronics". [2] The song was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . [5]
The song was commercially successful in the United Kingdom, entering the UK Singles Chart at number 18 on the chart dated 16 May 1998 and spending a total of three weeks in the top 50. [6] The song remains Air's second highest-peaking single in the UK. [6]
The music video, directed by Mike Mills, [7] drew attention due to its surreal concept. [5] It depicts a girl named Kelly playing table tennis. She is knocked unconscious and floats into the night sky, but eventually regains consciousness, continues playing, and wins the match. [8] Meanwhile, the members of Air seem to be simulating her game while playing Pong on a TV.
Keeping with the Charlie's Angels theme, the names on the scorecards are 'Kelly' (Kelly Garrett) and 'Smith' (Jaclyn Smith, who played Kelly on the show).
The group performed the song on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in 2016, to promote the release of their retrospective collection Twentyears . [9] [10]
A remix of the song was featured on the soundtrack for the 1999 film Splendor . [11] The song was also featured on the 2012 electronica retrospective collection "Electrospective". [12] The song was also featured in an episode of TV shows Daria and Back in Time for Dinner . [13]
|
|
| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA) [20] | 77 |
| Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders) [21] | 12 |
| Scotland (OCC) [22] | 18 |
| UK Singles (OCC) [6] | 18 |
Moon Safari is the debut studio album by French electronic music duo Air, released on 16 January 1998 by Source and Virgin Records. Moon Safari was re-released on 14 April 2008 to mark the album's 10th anniversary, including a bound book, a DVD documentary about the duo, and a bonus CD with live performances and remixes, and on 15 March 2024, to mark the album's 25th anniversary.
"Song 2" is a song by English rock band Blur. The song is the second song on their eponymous fifth studio album. Released physically on 7 April 1997, "Song 2" peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, number four on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, and number six on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.
"No Regrets" is a song by English singer Robbie Williams. It was released on 30 November 1998 as the second single from his second studio album, I've Been Expecting You (1998). The track was written by Williams and Guy Chambers and features backing vocals from Neil Tennant of Pet Shop Boys and Neil Hannon of the Divine Comedy. In the United Kingdom, the song was released as a double A-side with a cover of Adam and the Ants' "Antmusic".
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"Strong" is a song by English recording artist Robbie Williams. It was released on 15 March 1999 as the third single from his second studio album, I've Been Expecting You (1998). The song managed to break into the top five in the United Kingdom. The B-side is the live version of "Let Me Entertain You" recorded at the 1999 Brit Awards, the performance was included on the single in the enhanced section.
"Old Before I Die" is a song by English singer-songwriter Robbie Williams, released as the first single from his debut album, Life thru a Lens (1997). The Oasis-influenced song became a number-two hit in the United Kingdom and a number-one hit in Spain following its release on 14 April 1997. Williams wrote the song along with Desmond Child and Eric Bazilian, with production by Guy Chambers and Steve Power.
"I Turn to You" is a song by British singer Melanie C. It was released as the fourth single from her debut solo album, Northern Star (1999), on 7 August 2000 in the United Kingdom and became Melanie's second UK number-one single, selling 120,000 copies in its first week. "I Turn to You" also topped the Austrian Singles Chart, the Danish Singles Chart, the Dutch Top 40, the Swedish Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. The main single was released as the "Hex Hector Radio Mix", for which Hex Hector won the 2001 Grammy as Remixer of the Year.
"I Want You Back" is the debut solo single of British singer Melanie B, featuring American rapper Missy Elliott. It was released as a single from the soundtrack to the 1998 film Why Do Fools Fall in Love. After two years, the song was also included on Melanie B's debut album, Hot (2000). "I Want You Back" topped the UK Singles Chart on 20 September 1998.
"True Colors" is a song written by American songwriters Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. It was both the title track and the first single released from American singer Cyndi Lauper's second studio album of the same name (1986). Released in mid-1986, the song spent two weeks at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, being Lauper's second and last single to occupy the top of the chart. It received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
"Santa Monica" is a song by American rock band Everclear, from their 1995 album Sparkle and Fade. The song was written by the band's lead singer, Art Alexakis. Though it was not commercially released as a single in the United States, radio stations played "Santa Monica" enough for it to reach number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart and number one the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart for three weeks in 1996. It became a top-40 hit in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom; it is the band's highest-charting single in Australia.
"Fly Away" is a song by American singer Lenny Kravitz. It was released as the fourth single from his fifth studio album, 5 (1998). Released to the radio on May 11, 1998, "Fly Away" peaked at number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Fly Away" topped the charts in Iceland and the United Kingdom and peaked within the top ten of the charts in several countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Republic of Ireland. The song won a Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Performance in 1999.
"Caught Out There" is the debut single by American singer Kelis, released on October 5, 1999, from her debut studio album, Kaleidoscope (1999). Written and produced by the Neptunes, the song peaked at number 54 on the US Billboard Hot 100 but fared better outside the United States, reaching the top ten in Canada, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Pharrell Williams of the Neptunes said in an interview that the instrumental track was originally meant for rapper Busta Rhymes, who rejected it.
"You Don't Care About Us" is a song by English alternative rock band Placebo. It is the third track from their second studio album, Without You I'm Nothing (1998), and was released as the album's second single on 28 September 1998. The song reached No. 5 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Every You Every Me" is a song by British alternative rock band Placebo, released as the third single from their second album, Without You I'm Nothing, on 25 January 1999. It was released as a 2-CD set and on cassette, but promotional copies on 12-inch vinyl exist. The single managed to chart at number 46 in Australia, number 99 in Germany, and number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. There are two versions of the video, both filmed live at London's Brixton Academy; one includes clips from the film Cruel Intentions. An alternative video taking place at a casino was filmed in November 1998 but would not be released until 18 years later as part of the promotion for A Place for Us to Dream.
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