I Don't Wanna Be a Star

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"I Don't Wanna Be a Star"
Single by Corona
from the album The Rhythm of the Night
ReleasedNovember 1995
StudioCasablanca, Italy
GenreEuro disco
Length3:58
LabelDWA
Songwriter(s)
  • Francesco Bontempi
  • Antonia Bottari
  • Ivana Spagna
Producer(s)
  • Checco
  • Soul Train
Corona singles chronology
"Try Me Out"
(1995) 		"I Don't Wanna Be a Star"
(1995) 		"Megamix"
(1997)
Music video
"I Don't Wanna Be a Star" on YouTube

"I Don't Wanna Be a Star" is a song by Italian band Corona, released in November 1995 as the fourth and final single from their debut album, The Rhythm of the Night (1995). It was a club hit in many European countries, but unlike the previous Corona singles, it has disco sonorities.[1] The song peaked at number one in both Italy and Spain, number five in Hungary and number six in Finland. In the UK and on the Eurochart Hot 100, it peaked within the top 30. It was Corona's last major hit.

Critical reception[edit]

AllMusic editor Jose F. Promis described the song as "irresistible", naming it one of the standout tracks on The Rhythm of the Night album.[2] James Masterton for Dotmusic commented, "All hail the return of the synth drum. Ever since Corona first hit the dizzy heights of Number 2 with "The Rhythm of the Night" at the end of 1994 they have proved that they are far from one-hit wonders but instead are one of the finest pop acts around." He added that it is "possibly their best single yet", and "such a perfect pastiche of a 1970s disco track that it could almost be a reissue. It isn't, instead being a completely up to date track but sounding every inch a classic already - right down to the cheesy synth drum which has surely not been heard since the days of Kelly Marie and "Feels Like I'm In Love"."[3] A reviewer from Music Week gave it three out of five, writing, "A Seventies version featuring Chic-like string flourishes, handclaps and syn-drums, which should go down a storm in the gay clubs."[4] In an retrospective review, Pop Rescue deemed it as "catchy", noting the single version as "laden with a disco sound", while the album version is not.[5]

Chart performance[edit]

"I Don't Wanna Be a Star" peaked at number one in Spain and Italy and entered the top 10 in Finland and Hungary. Additionally, the single was a top-20 hit in France, Iceland, and Scotland. In the UK, it reached number 22 on 17 December 1995, during its first week on the UK Singles Chart.[6] On the RM On a Pop Tip Club Chart, it reached number one.[7] On the Eurochart Hot 100, it entered the top 30, peaking at number 23 in January 1996, while peaking at number four on the European Dance Radio Chart. Outside Europe, the song reached number six on the RPM Dance chart in Canada, number 23 in Israel and number 109 in Australia.

Music video[edit]

The accompanying music video for "I Don't Wanna Be a Star" was shot in Rome, Italy. Many famous places from the city can be seen in the video, like Colosseum, Harry's Bar, and Via Veneto. Many scenes are also showing Corona's frontwoman Olga de Souza singing in front of the Trevi Fountain. Other scenes show her in a restaurant where she poses for photographs or sitting in a taxi while paparazzi are following her. The video is made in a 70s-style, and throughout the video, de Souza wears many different costumes and wigs in different colors.[8]

Track listings[edit]

Personnel[edit]

  • Created, arranged and produced by Checco and Soul Train for a Lee Marrow production
  • Engineered by Francesco Alberti at Casablanca Recordings (Italy), Graphic Art Sunrise (Italy)
  • 'UK Hardcor-Ona Dub' :
    • Remix and additional production by Gino Olivieri and Ivan Palvin for Premier Musik Productions Inc.
    • Assisted by Marco Vani
    • Mix engineered by Bruno Ruffolo at In-Da-Mix Studio, Montreal (Canada)
    • Re-organised, replayed and reconstructed by DJ Moisha and Mixmaster Irving

Charts[edit]

Release history[edit]

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
Italy November 1995
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
 DWA
Spain Blanco y Negro
United Kingdom 11 December 1995
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 Eternal [23]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Habib, Elia (2002). Muz hit.tubes (in French). Alinea Bis. p. 294. ISBN 2-9518832-0-X.
  2. ^ Promis, Jose F. "Corona - The Rhythm of the Night". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  3. ^ Masterton, James (17 December 1995). "Week Ending December 23rd 1995". Chart Watch UK. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  4. ^ "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 2 December 1995. p. 18. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  5. ^ "Review: "The Rhythm Of The Night" by Corona (CD, 1995)". Pop Rescue. 7 February 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  6. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100 17 December 1995 - 23 December 1995". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  7. ^ "The RM On A Pop Tip Club Chart" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). 9 December 1995. p. 8. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  8. ^ "Corona - I Don't Wanna Be a Star [Official Video]". YouTube. 5 September 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  9. ^ "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 2015-06-05". Imgur. Archived from the original on 5 June 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  10. ^ a b c d e "I Don't Wanna Be a Star", in various singles charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved 13 February 2008)
  11. ^ "Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 2915." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  12. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. 6 January 1996. p. 9. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  13. ^ "European Dance Radio Top 25" (PDF). Music & Media. 20 January 1996. p. 16. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  14. ^ "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. 3 February 1996. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
  15. ^ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (10.02.1996 – 16.02.1996)" (PDF). Dagblaðið Vísir – Tónlist. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
  16. ^ 2 January 1996
  17. ^ "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 1. 6 January 1996. p. 11. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  18. ^ "Corona - I Don't Wanna Be A Star" (in Dutch). top40.nl. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  19. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 (17 December 1995-23 December 1995)". officialcharts.com. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
  20. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  21. ^ "The RM on a Pop Tip Club Chart" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental insert). 9 December 1995. p. 8. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  22. ^ "1996 Year-End Sales Charts: Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 51/52. 21 December 1996. p. 12. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
  23. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 9 December 1995. p. 35.
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