B-side I Give You Rendez-Vous Format 7"
12" Label Aquarius | Released 1978 Genre Disco Writer(s) Patrick Hernandez | |
"Born to Be Alive" is a song written by French singer Patrick Hernandez. It became a worldwide smash hit and reached number one on the US Disco chart. It was first conceived as a hard rock song.
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Chart performance
"Born to Be Alive" first became a hit in France, and has become one of the biggest singles in that country.
The song also gained gold status in the USA.
After this single hit record, Hernandez dropped out of the music business, making occasional TV appearances.
Cover versions and uses
The first cover version, by Rick Summer, was released during the same year as Hernandez's hit, 1979. "Born to Be Alive" was also covered by Spanish pop punk group Los Nikis, with lyrics consisting just of repetitions of Me voy a Benidorm, as well as Nekromantix, Roberto Blanco and Kelly Marie.
"Born to Be Alive" was also covered in the Pump It Up series of rhythm dance video games. The song was also featured in the 1997 film Vegas Vacation, starring Chevy Chase and Randy Quaid. A cover of the song also featured on a 2011 advert for Diesel's "Fuel for Life" perfume range.
A music video set to the song using footage from Adolf Hitler's many rallies and speeches became a viral hit on the Internet.
An adaption of the song was made by Belgian performer Flip Kowlier as lead song for the movie Madonna's Pig.
The song was also used at the start of the 2000 Australian movie The Wog Boy.
Born to Be Alive
Born to Be Alive, titled after the song, is a 1979 album by Patrick Hernandez.
- "Born to Be Alive"
- "You Turn Me On"
- "It Comes So Easy"
- "Disco Queen"
- "Show Me the Way You Kiss"
- "I Give You Rendezvous"