I Love Saturday Explained

I Love Saturday
Cover:Erasure - I Love Saturday.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Erasure
Album:I Say I Say I Say
B-Side:Dodo
Genre:Synth-pop
Length:
  • 4:02 (album version)
  • 3:59 (single version)
Label:
Producer:Martyn Ware
Prev Title:Run to the Sun
Prev Year:1994
Next Title:Stay with Me
Next Year:1995
I Love Saturday
Type:EP
Artist:Erasure
Cover:Erasure - I Love Saturday (EP).jpg
Genre:Synth-pop
Length:24:55
Label:Mute
Producer:Martyn Ware
Chronology:Erasure EPs
Prev Title:Abba-esque
Prev Year:1992
Next Title:Rain: Plus
Next Year:1997

"I Love Saturday" is a song by English synth-pop duo Erasure, released as the third single from their sixth studio album, I Say I Say I Say (1994), on 18 November 1994 in Japan. The track was written by Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, and produced by Martyn Ware. In the United Kingdom, Mute credited the first CD single as the I Love Saturday EP, which contains several new tracks; it was released on 21 November 1994.

"I Love Saturday" was issued via Mute Records in the UK and Elektra Records in the US. The single peaked at number 20 on both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. The song also reached number 34 in Sweden and number 69 in Germany. Its music video was directed by Caz Gorham and Francis Dickenson.

Critical reception

AllMusic editor Ned Raggett wrote that "I Love Saturday" "neatly balances pepped up energy on Clarke's part with a lower-key delivery from Bell", and called it a "striking combination".[1] Larry Flick from Billboard described it as a "bouncy foray into trance-colored hi-NRG waters." He complimented Bell's "always striking voice".[2] Ross Jones from The Guardian commented, "Every melancholic pop hook from the last 10 years lovingly stitched together with asphyxiating grace."[3] Chris Gerard from Metro Weekly said the song is "great" and "infectious", adding that it "features Bell showing off his falsetto in the verses."[4]

Mario Tarradell for The Miami Herald called it "bouncy fun" and "ideal summer fare – light, bubbly and innocuous."[5] A reviewer from Music & Media wrote, "Saturday night fever is ruling again. Only the musical format has changed from disco to camp electro pop with, as ever, a high sing-along quotient."[6] John Kilgo from The Network Forty declared it "another fun pop hit".[7] Johnny Cigarettes from NME viewed it as "a low-calorie, caffeine-free, dilute-to-taste slush about some non-existent lost love, set to a Bontempi automatic beat."[8] Dejan Kovacevic from Pittsburgh Post-Gazette praised the song as "an instant Erasure classic",[9] while David Sinclair from The Times named it the best number of the album.[10]

Music video

A music video was produced to promote the single. It was directed by Caz Gorham and Francis Dickenson and was released on November 21, 1994. The video is made as a jaunty holiday clip shot in Bell's Majorcan home.[11]

Track listings

  1. "I Love Saturday"
  2. "Ghost"
  3. "Truly, Madly, Deeply"
  4. "Tragic" (live vocal)

Australian CD and cassette single[14] [15]

Japanese mini-CD single[16]

  1. "I Love Saturday"
  2. "I Love Saturday" (JX mix)
  3. "I Love Saturday" (Beatmasters dub mix)
  4. "Dodo"
  1. "I Love Saturday" (Beatmasters club mix)
  2. "I Love Saturday" (Flower mix)
  3. "I Love Saturday" (303 mix)
  4. "Always" (X dub cut)

A1. "I Love Saturday"

A2. "I Love Saturday" (Beatmasters club mix)

B1. "I Love Saturday" (JX mix)

B2. "I Love Saturday" (Flower mix)

  1. "I Love Saturday"
  2. "Dodo"
  3. "Because You're So Sweet"
  1. "I Love Saturday" (JX mix)
  2. "I Love Saturday" (Beatmasters dub mix)
  3. "I Love Saturday" (Beatmasters club mix)
  4. "I Love Saturday" (Flower mix)
  5. "Dodo"
  6. "Because You're So Sweet"

A1. "I Love Saturday" (JX mix)

A2. "I Love Saturday" (Beatmasters dub mix)

B1. "I Love Saturday" (Beatmasters club mix)

B2. "I Love Saturday" (Flower mix)

  1. "I Love Saturday"
  2. "Dodo"

Charts

Chart (1994–1995)Peak
position
Belgium (BRT Top 30)[23] 27
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[24] 76
UK Club Chart (Music Week)[25] 51

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)
Japan18 November 1994Mini-CDMute[26]
United Kingdom21 November 1994[27]
28 November 1994CD3[28]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ned. Raggett. Erasure - I Say, I Say, I Say. AllMusic. 17 February 2020.
  2. Larry. Flick. Single Reviews. Billboard. 7 January 1995. 3 February 2020. 85. Larry Flick.
  3. Jones, Ross (12 November 1994). "Reviews: Singles". p. 28. The Guardian.
  4. Chris . Gerard . Erasure's 40 Greatest Tracks . . 17 September 2014 . 21 November 2020 .
  5. Tarradell, Mario (6 July 1994). "Album Reviews: Erasure, I Say I Say I Say". p. 7E. The Miami Herald.
  6. New Releases: Singles . . 12 November 1994 . 16 . 16 March 2021 .
  7. John. Kilgo. Mainstream: Music Meeting. The Network Forty. 20 January 1995. 20. 2 April 2020.
  8. Johnny. Cigarettes. Singles. NME. 3 December 1994. 34. 28 November 2023.
  9. Kovacevic, Dejan (10 June 1994). "Recording Review". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 16
  10. Sinclair, David (13 May 1994). "Pop On Friday". The Times.
  11. Promos In Production . Music Week . 5 November 1994 . 10 . 22 April 2021.
  12. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. UK CD1 liner notes. Mute Records. EPCdMute 166.
  13. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. UK CD2 liner notes. Mute Records. Cd Mute 166.
  14. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. Australian CD single liner notes. Liberation Records. D11867.
  15. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. Australian cassette single sleeve. Liberation Records. C11867.
  16. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. Japanese mini-CD single liner notes. Liberation Records. PCDY-00128.
  17. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. UK CD3 liner notes. Mute Records. Lcd Mute 166.
  18. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. UK 12-inch single sleeve. Mute Records. 12 Mute 166.
  19. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. UK cassette single sleeve. Mute Records. C Mute 166.
  20. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. US maxi-CD single liner notes. Mute Records, Elektra Records. 66171-2.
  21. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. US 12-inch single sleeve. Mute Records, Elektra Records. 0-66171.
  22. I Love Saturday. Erasure. 1994. US cassette single sleeve. Mute Records, Elektra Records. 4-64485.
  23. Web site: BRT Top 30 . BRT Top 30. 2024-02-28.
  24. Eurochart Hot 100 Singles. Music & Media. 11. 51. 27. 17 December 1994. 26 June 2021.
  25. The RM Club Chart. Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). 12 November 1994. 6. 20 May 2023.
  26. Web site: アイ・ラブ・サタデイ イレイジャー. I Love Saturday Erasure. Oricon. ja. 2 September 2023.
  27. New Releases: Singles. Music Week. 39. 19 November 1994. 26 June 2021.
  28. New Releases: Singles. Music Week. 27. 26 November 1994.