感受到爱 (1977)

"I Feel Love" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Donna Summer. Produced and co-written by Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, it was recorded for Summer's fifth studio album, I Remember Yesterday (1977). The album concept was to have each track evoke a different musical decade; for "I Feel Love", the team aimed to create a futuristic mood, employing a Moog synthesizer.

"I Feel Love" was released as the B-side to the single "Can't We Just Sit Down (And Talk It Over)", which reached number 20 on the US Billboard R&B chart. Two months later, the single was reissued with the sides reversed. "I Feel Love" reached number one in countries including Australia, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and on the UK Singles Chart. It reached number three in West Germany and number six on the US Billboard Hot 100.

"I Feel Love" became popular during the disco era, influencing acts such as David Bowie, Brian Eno, Kylie Minogue, the Human League and Blondie. The Financial Times named it one of the most influential records, laying the foundations for electronic dance music. In 2011, the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important". It has been covered by acts including Bronski Beat, Messiah and Sam Smith, while Beyoncé sampled it on her song "Summer Renaissance" from the 2022 album Renaissance.

Recording

In 1970s Munich, Musicland Studios, led by the producers Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, had produced a number of disco hits, including Donna Summer's 1975 single "Love to Love You Baby". Summer had moved from the US to Munich to perform in the musical Hair, and had become a successful session vocalist. Moroder described her as "an incredibly talented singer, who could improvise but was also very disciplined".

For Summer's fifth album, I Remember Yesterday (1977), the production team wanted each track to evoke a different musical decade, such as '40s swing, '60s girl groups, and '70s funk and disco. For the final track, "I Feel Love", the team wanted to create a futuristic mood. Whereas most disco recordings had been backed by orchestras, the team produced "I Feel Love" with a Moog synthesizer borrowed from the classical composer Eberhard Schoener, aided by Schoener's assistant, Robby Wedel. Wedel demonstrated how to synchronize the elements using a click track, a feat Moroder described as "a revelation". Wedel's help with the technically complex synthesizer proved essential and Moroder described him as the "unsung hero" of the project.

"I Feel Love" was recorded on a 16-track tape recorder, with the various parts programmed on a sequencer. As the Moog went out of tune quickly, it had to be recorded in bursts of 20 or 30 seconds before being retuned. To create the hi-hat sound, the team took white noise generated by the Moog and processed it with an envelope. As the Moog could not create a satisfactory kick drum sound, the kick was played on a drum kit by the drummer Keith Forsey. Aside from the vocals, the kick is the only element not played by a machine.

The lyrics were written by Bellotte. Summer recorded her vocal in one take. In contrast to the deeper chest voice of most disco vocals, Summer sang in head voice.

Composition

"I Feel Love" was the first song to combine repetitive synthesizer loops with a continuous four-on-the-floor bass drum and an off-beat hi-hat, which became a main feature of techno and house music ten years later.

Unusually for a disco track of the era, Moroder composed the backing track and bassline before the melody. He introduced variety by altering the key at regular intervals and layering Summer's vocals. Each note of the bassline is doubled by a delay effect. The unmodified bassline plays through the left channel and the delayed repetition through the right, creating a flickering, strobe-like effect.

"I Feel Love" is in the key of C major, with electronic dance flavor, and choruses and interludes. The album version has a length of 5:53. It was extended to 8:15 for release as a 12-inch maxi-single, and is included on the 1987 compilation The Dance Collection: A Compilation of Twelve Inch Singles.

The song was edited to 3:45 on the 7-inch format, the fade-in opening sound reaching maximum volume sooner and fades out before the third verse and final choruses. This version has been included on a large number of greatest hits packages and other compilations issued by PolyGram, Mercury Records, Universal Music and others, such as 1994's Endless Summer: Greatest Hits and 2003's The Journey: The Very Best of Donna Summer. A new edit of 3:20 was released on Donna Summer's first compilation album On the Radio: Greatest Hits Volumes I & II in 1979.

Critical reception

According to the singer David Bowie, during the recording of his Berlin Trilogy, his collaborator Brian Eno "came running in" and told him he had heard "the sound of the future". According to Bowie, Eno accurately predicted that "I Feel Love" would change the sound of club music for the next 15 years.