Music Sounds Better With You

Album: Best Club anthems '99 (1998)
Charted: 2 62
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In 1998 Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter formed the anonymous one-off disco project Stardust with studio buddies Alan Queme and Benjamin Cohen to record this nu-disco anthem. The song was released independently in Bangalter's native France on his own Roule label in 1998, and it took Ibiza by storm that summer and was the club smash of 1998. However, when Bangalter was offered a £3 million deal for a full Stardust album, he declined.
  • The bassline guitar is a sample from a Chaka Khan track "Fate," which appeared on her 1981 album, What Cha' Gonna Do For Me.
  • Despite rumors to the contrary, Bangalter insists in interviews that the suggestive lyrics are not about drugs.
  • Madonna's "Get Together," from her 2005 Confessions on a Dance Floor album, samples this song.
  • The Michel Gondry-directed music video follows a young boy as he builds a model airplane and watches a video countdown on TV, featuring Stardust up against fictional bands. Gondry has directed classic music videos for Björk, The White Stripes, The Chemical Brothers, and others.
  • The song originated when Alan Queme was invited to perform at the Rex Club in Paris. He asked Thomas Bangalter to play keyboards and Benjamin Diamond, who he knew from school, to sing. "We were searching for a new song, looking for things to sample," he told The Guardian. "Benjamin put on Fate, a Chaka Khan track, and that was it. We knew it had something, so we sampled it and jammed around, playing it during the live show. Afterwards, we decided to make a record, spending a week collaborating in Thomas's studio."

Comments: 2

  • Alex from SheffieldMy favourite song ever. Absolute perfection
  • Sam-whoo-ra from BrazilOne of the best songs of all time, no wonder.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Tanita Tikaram

Tanita TikaramSongwriter Interviews

When she released her first album in 1988, Tanita became a UK singing sensation at age 19. She talks about her darkly sensual voice and quirky songwriting style.

Jon Foreman of Switchfoot

Jon Foreman of SwitchfootSongwriter Interviews

Switchfoot's frontman and main songwriter on what inspires the songs and how he got the freedom to say exactly what he means.

Kiss

KissFact or Fiction

Kiss is the subject of many outlandish rumors - some of which happen to be true. See if you can spot the fakes.

Steve Cropper (Booker T & the MG's, Blues Brothers)

Steve Cropper (Booker T & the MG's, Blues Brothers)Songwriter Interviews

Steve Cropper on the making of "In the Midnight Hour," the chicken-wire scene in The Blues Brothers, and his 2021 album, Fire It Up.

"Private Eyes" - The Story Behind the Song

"Private Eyes" - The Story Behind the SongSong Writing

How a goofy detective movie, a disenchanted director and an unlikely songwriter led to one of the biggest hits in pop history.

Dick Wagner (Alice Cooper/Lou Reed)

Dick Wagner (Alice Cooper/Lou Reed)Songwriter Interviews

The co-writer/guitarist on many Alice Cooper hits, Dick was also Lou Reed's axeman on the Rock n' Roll Animal album.