Lucas with the Lid Off

"Lucas with the Lid Off" is a 1994 song by Danish rapper Lucas Secon that was released as the lead single from his album Lucacentric. It features a sample from the 1935 Benny Goodman song "When Buddha Smiles".[2] The single was a hit in the United States, reaching number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 22 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. It was most successful in Australia, where it reached number 15, and it peaked within the top 40 in Canada, Iceland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

"Lucas with the Lid Off"
Single by Lucas
from the album Lucacentric
ReleasedOctober 1994
GenreJazz rap
Length4:02[1]
LabelBig Beat
Songwriter(s)Nacio Herb Brown, Arthur Freed, Lasse Jensen, Lucas Secon, Zany King
Lucas singles chronology
"Wau Wau Wau"
(1994)		 "Lucas with the Lid Off"
(1994)

The music video for the song was directed by the French film maker Michel Gondry[3] and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Video at the 37th Annual Grammy Awards.[4]

Michel Gondry video

The video is known for its technical achievement in that it was shot in one long continuous single take with no edits, cuts or digital enhancement. In an RES magazine interview, Gondry explained:

"Michel called this video 'a big turn for me, because it was so challenging. Nobody really believed - even me - that we could pull that off when we made it after 17 takes, because it was really done all in-camera in one shot. There is no post-production at all. I think this one really gave me a lot of attention.'"[5]

Lucas with the Lid Off was nominated in the Best Music Video (short form) category at the 37th Grammy Awards,[6] (one of two Michel Gondry music videos nominated that year, the other being Sinead O'Connor‘s Fire On Babylon)[7]

The video was also received a MTV Video Music Award nomination for Best Male Video at the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards, and was No. 20 in Slant Magazine’s 100 Greatest Music Videos.[8]

Charts
Chart (1994) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[9] 15
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[10] 21
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[11] 16
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[12] 29
Scotland (OCC)[13] 29
UK Singles (OCC)[14] 37
US Billboard Hot 100[15] 29
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[16] 22
US Hot Dance Singles Sales (Billboard)[17] 35
US Hot Rap Songs (Billboard)[18] 27
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[19] 29

Cover versions

On the album A Century of Song (Polyholiday Records), the song was covered by the American band La Musique Populaire.[20]

It was performed in the form of a spoof in an episode of the PBS series Bill Nye the Science Guy in 1995, but renamed "Whether the Weather" as part of the episode's scientific lesson about climates.

The song was featured in the Jennifer Love Hewitt film, Can’t Hardly Wait.

References
  1. iTunes: Lucacentric: track listing
  2. , WhoSampled.com, Benny Goodman - When Buddha Smiles
  3. "Michel Gondry website: videos: Lucas". Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  4. Los AngelesTimes, 37th Grammy Award Nominations, best music video (short form)
  5. Director: RES magazine interview, Michel Gondry
  6. Los AngelesTimes, 37th Grammy Award Nominations, best music video (short form)
  7. Michel Gondry website: videos: Sinead O’Connor
  8. Slant magazine: 100 greatest Music Videos
  9. "Australian-charts.com – Lucas – Lucas with the Lid Off". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  10. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2694." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
  11. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (22.–27.12 '94)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 22 December 1994. p. 20. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
  12. "Charts.nz – Lucas – Lucas with the Lid Off". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  13. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  14. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  15. "Lucas Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  16. "Lucas Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  17. "Lucas Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  18. "Lucas Chart History (Hot Rap Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  19. "Lucas Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  20. Polyholiday records: discography - A Century Of Song
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