"Saw Lightning"
Single by Beck
from the album Hyperspace
ReleasedApril 15, 2019[1]
GenreAlternative rock, synth-pop, folk pop[2]
Length4:01
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Beck
  • Pharrell Williams
Beck singles chronology
"Colors"
(2018) 		"Saw Lightning"
(2019) 		"Uneventful Days"
(2019)

"Saw Lightning" is a song by the American musician Beck. It was released in 2019 as the first single[3] from his fourteenth studio album Hyperspace.[4] It was co-written by Beck and Pharrell Williams. Aside from vocals, Williams also plays drums and keyboards in the song.[5][6]

Background

Beck said: "I was making a record called Midnite Vultures and while we were making it… I remember the Neptunes [Pharrell's production duo] had just come out, and I said I'm gonna do the next record with the Neptunes, and here we are 20 years later".[7]

Reception

Daniel Kreps of Rolling Stone wrote that the song "melds the jangly acoustic guitar of Beck's folksier work with the dancefloor-ready programmed beats prominent in his 2017 LP Colors".[4]

UDiscoverMusic wrote of the song: "A classic slice of cross-genre boundary-breaking, 'Saw Lightning' sees Beck taking an about-turn from the euphoric pop of Colors to assemble a junkyard-blues-hip-hop confection featuring rapped vocals" and "some One Foot in the Grave- style blues harmonica".[7]

Charts

References

  1. ^ Aswad, Jem (April 15, 2019). "Beck Drops New Song, the Pharrell Collaboration 'Saw Lightning'".
  2. ^ "Beck announces new album, Hyperspace, shares "Saw Lightning": Stream". April 15, 2019 – via consequence.net.
  3. ^ "Beck Announces New Album Hyperspace, Shares Song With Pharrell: Listen". Pitchfork.
  4. ^ a b Kreps, Daniel (April 15, 2019). "Hear Beck's New Single 'Saw Lightning,' Co-Written By Pharrell Williams". Rolling Stone.
  5. ^ "Beck - "Saw Lightning"". April 15, 2019.
  6. ^ "Listen to Beck's surprise new floor-filler 'Saw Lightning'". NME. April 15, 2019.
  7. ^ a b Draper, Jason (April 15, 2019). "Beck Shares New Song, 'Saw Lightning', Reveals New Album Title, 'Hyperspace'".
  8. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Overseas" (in Japanese). Billboard Japan. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
  9. ^ "Beck Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  10. ^ "Beck Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  11. ^ "Beck Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  12. ^ "Beck Chart History (Rock Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  13. ^ "Adult Alternative Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
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