Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger"
Single by Daft Punk
from the album Discovery
Released 13 October 2001
Format CD single, 12", digital download
Recorded 2000–2001
Genre House
Length 3:45
Label Virgin
Writer(s) Thomas Bangalter
Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo
Edwin Birdsong
Producer(s) Daft Punk
Daft Punk singles chronology
"Digital Love"
(2001)		 "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger"
(2001)		 "Face to Face"
(2003)
Music sample
Daft Punk - "Harder Better Faster Stronger" (album version)
Music video
"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" on YouTube
"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger (Alive 2007)"
Single by Daft Punk
from the album Alive 2007
Released 15 October 2007 (worldwide)
22 October 2007 (USA)
Format Digital download
Recorded 14 June 2007
Genre House
Length 3:34
Label Virgin
Writer(s) Thomas Bangalter
Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo
Edwin Birdsong
Producer(s) Daft Punk
Daft Punk singles chronology
"The Prime Time of Your Life"
(2006)		 "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger (Alive 2007)"
(2007)		 "Derezzed"
(2010)

"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" is a song by French duo Daft Punk. The single was first released on 13 October 2001. A live version of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" was released as a single from the album Alive 2007 on 15 October 2007.[1][2] This version won a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording in 2009. In October 2011, NME placed it at number 132 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[3]

Composition

"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" features a robotic vocal performance by Daft Punk.[4] As mentioned in the Discovery liner notes, "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" contains a sample of "Cola Bottle Baby" by Edwin Birdsong.

A live version of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" was recorded at Bercy in Paris from 14 June 2007. It was released as a digital download single on 15 October 2007, for the live album Alive 2007.[2] The track also contains a part of the "Television Rules the Nation / Crescendolls" segment of the Bercy performance that features elements of the songs "Around the World", "Steam Machine", "Television Rules the Nation".[5] This version of the song won the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording at the 51st Grammy Awards.[6]

Kanye West's song "Stronger" from the album Graduation prominently features a sample of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger". Two actors who wore the robotic Daft Punk costumes in the film Daft Punk's Electroma appear in the music video for "Stronger".[1] It was later performed live at the 2008 Grammy Awards with Daft Punk in their trademark pyramid while West was on stage rapping.[7] Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo clarified that "Stronger" was "not a collaboration in the studio, but the vibe of the music we do separately connected in what [West] did with the song."[8] He later clarified that the live version was "truly a collaboration from the start. We really did it all hand in hand."[9]

Diplo released a remix of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" titled "Work Is Never Over". It appeared in his compilation album Decent Work for Decent Pay. The title of the song was also parodied in an episode of The Cleveland Show called '"Harder, Better, Faster, Browner", which was a part of season two.

Music video

The animated music video for "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" was produced by Daft Punk and directed by Kazuhisa Takenouchi, a veteran director for Toei Animation, under the supervision of Leiji Matsumoto. It features the four characters shown on the single cover in a vast electronic facility. The victims are transformed by various machines to resemble humans. The video was first released as an individual episode in promotion for the single release. It later appeared as a scene in the feature film Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem.

A music video for the live version of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" was directed by Olivier Gondry. It contains footage shot by the audience on 250 cameras at Daft Punk's Brooklyn performance in KeySpan Park. The video was inspired by the Beastie Boys concert film Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That!.[1] The video had its world premiere online on 26 October 2007, at Webcastr.[10]

"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" is featured in a popular YouTube video titled "Daft Hands",[11] which later appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.[12] The video was ranked among the top viewed YouTube videos in the "All Time" category.[11] "Daft Hands" was referenced in Weezer's "Pork and Beans" music video along with the variant "Daft Bodies" and multiple other Internet viral videos.

Track listing

  1. "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" (album version) – 3:43
  2. "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" (Breakers Break remix) – 4:38
    • Remixed and edited by Dominique Torti
  3. "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" (The Neptunes remix) – 5:12
  4. "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" (Pete Heller's stylus mix) – 9:14

Alive 2007 digital single track listing

  1. "Harder Better Faster Stronger" (Alive 2007) – radio edit
  2. "Harder Better Faster Stronger" (Alive 2007) – extended
  3. "Harder Better Faster Stronger" (Alive 2007) – video clip

Chart positions

Original version

Chart (2001) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[13] 8
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[14] 38
France (SNEP)[15] 17
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[16] 70
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[17] 25
US Hot Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[18] 3

2007 live version

Chart (2007) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[19] 43
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[20] 58
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[21] 16
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[14] 17
France (SNEP)[15] 19
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[22] 50

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Live Album To Chronicle Daft Punk Tour Billboard.com. Retrieved on 17 August 2007.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Daft Punk's official YouTube channel's channel on YouTube. Retrieved on 13 October 2007.
  3. ↑ http://www.nme.com/list/150-best-tracks-of-the-past-15-years/248648/page/2
  4. ↑ Discovery liner notes: "Vocals performed by Daft Punk".
  5. ↑ Daft Punk Alive 2007 ilikemusic.com. Retrieved on 14 October 2007.
  6. ↑ MTV News Staff (2009-02-08). "Grammy 2009 Winners List". MTV. Retrieved 2009-02-09.
  7. ↑ Daft Punk Make Surprise Grammy Appearance with Kanye West nme.com. Retrieved on 10 February 2008.
  8. ↑ Cohen, Jonathan (2007-08-14). "Exclusive: Live Album to Chronicle Daft Punk Tour". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved August 27, 2007.
  9. ↑ Blurt, "Encounters of the Daft Kind" (September 2008) pgs. 28-29. Retrieved on July 26, 2009.
  10. ↑ webcastr.com - Daft Punk - Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Daft Hands" video on YouTube. Retrieved on 1 December 2007.
  12. ↑ Carleton College: shout: Daft Hands Does L.A
  13. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved May 22, 2012..
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "Ultratop.be – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved May 22, 2012..
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "Lescharts.com – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved May 22, 2012..
  16. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved May 22, 2012..
  17. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2001-11-17" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved May 22, 2012..
  18. ↑ "Daft Punk Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs for Daft Punk. Retrieved May 22, 2012..
  19. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger (Alive 2007)". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  20. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger (Alive 2007)" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  21. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger (Alive 2007)" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  22. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger (Alive 2007)". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved May 21, 2012.

External links