"Star Guitar" is the second single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 from The Chemical Brothers

The Chemical Brothers

The Chemical Brothers are a British electronic music duo comprising Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons. Originating in Manchester in 1991, along with The Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, The Crystal Method, and fellow acts, they were pioneers at bringing the big beat genre to the forefront of pop culture.- Background...

 2002 album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

 Come with Us

Come with Us

Come with Us is the fourth studio album by British big beat duo The Chemical Brothers, released on 28 January 2002. It features Richard Ashcroft and Beth Orton as guest vocalists. The album debuted at number 1 on the UK Albums Chart...

. The song reached number eight in the UK Singles Chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 and number two on the American dance chart.

Structure

"Star Guitar" is approximately 126 beats per minute and in the key

Key (music)

In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C major or in the key of F-sharp. Sometimes the terms "major" or "minor" are appended, as in the key of A minor or in the...

 of F major.

The song contains a four measure

Bar (music)

In musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined by a given number of beats of a given duration. Typically, a piece consists of several bars of the same length, and in modern musical notation the number of beats in each bar is specified at the beginning of the score by the top number of a...

-long acoustic guitar sample

Sampling (music)

In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...

 from the beginning of the David Bowie

David Bowie

David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...

 song, "Starman

Starman (song)

"Starman" is a single by David Bowie, released in April 1972. The song was a late addition to The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, included at the insistence of RCA’s Dennis Katz, who heard a demo and loved the track, believing it would make a great single...

," hence the name, "Star Guitar." This sample is repeated throughout the majority of the track, with various musical elements playing off of it as a main theme

Theme (music)

In music, a theme is the material, usually a recognizable melody, upon which part or all of a composition is based.-Characteristics:A theme may be perceivable as a complete musical expression in itself, separate from the work in which it is found . In contrast to an idea or motif, a theme is...

.

Video

The music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

, directed by Michel Gondry

Michel Gondry

Michel Gondry is an Academy Award winning filmmaker, whose works include being a commercial director, music video director, and a screenwriter. He is noted for his inventive visual style and manipulation of mise en scène. - Life and career :...

, features a continuous shot filmed from the window of a speeding train passing through towns and countryside; however, the buildings and objects passing by appear exactly in time with the various beats and musical elements of the track. The video is based on DV footage Gondry shot while on vacation in France; the train ride between Nîmes

Nîmes

Nîmes is the capital of the Gard department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire, and is a popular tourist destination.-History:...

 and Valence

Valence, Drôme

Valence is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Drôme department, situated on the left bank of the Rhône, south of Lyon on the railway to Marseilles.Its inhabitants are called Valentinois...

 was shot ten different times during the day to get different light gradients. The Pont du Robinet as well as Pierrelatte

Pierrelatte

Pierrelatte is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France.-Population:-References:*...

's station can be seen. Gondry had experimented with a different version of the same effect in his video for Daft Punk

Daft Punk

Daft Punk are an electronic music duo consisting of French musicians Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter . Daft Punk reached significant popularity in the late 1990s house movement in France and met with continued success in the years following, combining elements of house with synthpop...

's "Around the World

Around the World (Daft Punk song)

"Around the World" is a song by the French electronic music duo Daft Punk. It appeared on the duo's debut album, Homework and was released as a single the same year. It subsequently became a major club hit around the world and arrived at #1 in dance charts. The song is particularly known for the...

", where he had represented each element of the music with a dancer.

Gondry actually plotted out the synchronization of the song on graph paper

Graph paper

Graph paper, graphing paper, grid paper or millimeter paper is writing paper that is printed with fine lines making up a regular grid. The lines are often used as guides for plotting mathematical functions or experimental data and drawing diagrams. It is commonly found in mathematics and...

 before creating the video, eventually "modelling" the scenery with oranges, forks, tapes, books, glasses and tennis shoes.

Track listing

UK/Europe CD

1. "Star Guitar (Edit)" – 4:00
2. "Base 6" – 6:34
3. "Star Guitar (Pete Heller
   Pete Heller
   Pete Heller is an English electronic and house music producer. He is recognised in the dance community for his solo work, and his remixes with frequent collaborator Terry Farley. As a duo they have released popular tunes under the names Heller & Farley Project , Fire Island plus The Look and Feel...
   
   's Expanded Mix)" – 8:30

US/Japan CD

1. "Star Guitar (Edit)" – 4:00
2. "Star Guitar" – 6:55
3. "Star Guitar (Pete Heller's Expanded Mix)" – 8:30
4. "Star Guitar (Pete Heller's 303 Dub)" – 7:23
5. "Base 6" – 6:34

UK 12"

1. "Star Guitar"
2. "Star Guitar (Pete Heller's Expanded Mix)"

UK DVD

1. "Star Guitar" video – 4:00
2. "Star Guitar" – 6:34
3. "Star Guitar (Pete Heller's 303 Dub)" – 7:23

Cover versions

An electro house style cover of the track, featuring vocals by Au Revoir Simone

Au Revoir Simone

Au Revoir Simone is an electronic dream pop band from Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York, formed in late 2003. The group is composed of Erika Forster , Annie Hart , and Heather D'Angelo...

, was featured in Shinichi Osawa's 2007 album The One

The One (Shinichi Osawa album)

The One is a 2007 album by Shinichi Osawa, and the first studio album released under his real name. The album is a major departure for Osawa; mainly electro house based, it also touches on fidget, glitch and more traditional house as well as rock...

and was also released as a single, with remixes by The Brookes Brothers, Streetlife DJs, Jaymo, The Japanese Popstars

The Japanese Popstars

The Japanese Popstars are an electronic act from Derry, Northern Ireland, consisting of Declan McLaughlin aka Decky Hedrock, Gary Curran, and Gareth Donoghue. They are signed to indie label, Gung-Ho Recordings in the UK, and Beatink in Japan . Each member has his own alias...

 and Cagedbaby.

"Star Guitar" was featured in the beginning of Steve Angello's 2009 track "Monday".

Release history

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Region	Release date	Label	Format	Catalogue
UK		Freestyle Dust	CD CD single A CD single is a music single in the form of a standard size Compact Disc, not to be confused with the 3-inch CD single, which uses a smaller form factor. The format was introduced in the mid-1980s, but did not gain its place in the market until the early 1990s...	CHEMSD14
			12" 12-inch single The 12-inch single is a type of gramophone record that has wider groove spacing compared to other types of records. This allows for louder levels to be cut on the disc by the cutting engineer, which in turn gives a wider dynamic range, and thus better sound quality...	CHEMST14
			DVD DVD single A DVD single is a music single in the form of a DVD. The format was introduced in the late 1990s/early 2000s as a replacement for the VHS single...	CHEMSDVD14
USA		Astralwerks Astralwerks Astralwerks is a New York-based record label that releases primarily electronic music. It is owned by Virgin Records/EMI and distributed by Caroline Distribution in the United States....	CD CD single A CD single is a music single in the form of a standard size Compact Disc, not to be confused with the 3-inch CD single, which uses a smaller form factor. The format was introduced in the mid-1980s, but did not gain its place in the market until the early 1990s...	ASW 38812-2
Japan		Virgin Japan Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...	CD CD single A CD single is a music single in the form of a standard size Compact Disc, not to be confused with the 3-inch CD single, which uses a smaller form factor. The format was introduced in the mid-1980s, but did not gain its place in the market until the early 1990s...	VJCP-12153