"Days Go By" is a song by British electronic group Dirty Vegas, released as their debut single in the United Kingdom on 7 May 2001. It served as the lead single from their self-titled debut album (2002). The song initially peaked at number 27 on the UK Singles Chart the same month. The single's artwork was done by American artist Richard Phillips.
In mid-2002, "Days Go By" became a US radio hit following its usage in a television advertisement for the 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse, eventually peaking at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and receiving the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording at the 45th Annual Grammy Awards in 2003. In the wake of its success in the US, it re-entered and peaked at number 16 on the UK Singles Chart, topped the UK Dance Singles Chart, and reached number six in Canada.
Music video
Early one morning, a man is wearing a business suit and a well-worn pair of orange high-top Chuck Taylor All-Stars trainers. He lays out a cardboard mat in front of a restaurant, turns on a boombox, and starts a routine of popping, locking, and doing the robot to the music.
A few people stop to watch. As they do, the man is replaced by a younger version of himself wearing a tracksuit and brand-new orange Chucks, and he begins breakdancing to the music. One of the spectators tells the story: one day each year, the man comes to the restaurant and dances on the pavement from sunrise to sunset. He does so in the hope of bringing back a lost girlfriend, who gave him the orange trainers as a present when they were young but who ultimately left him because he "couldn't stop." (What he couldn't stop is left ambiguous.) The music pauses briefly while a few spectators voice their thoughts about the young woman's fate. At the end of the day, two of them leave to get a cup of coffee together. The man in the business suit catches a brief glimpse of his girlfriend's younger self, then he picks up his belongings and leaves.
The video was filmed at Chroni's Famous Sandwich Shop in East Los Angeles, California. Garland Spencer and Byron McIntyre portrayed the dancer's younger and older selves, respectively.
There are two versions of the music video; one has the three band members observing from a table at the restaurant, while the other replaces those shots with footage of them in a silver Mitsubishi Eclipse stopped at a traffic light. In addition to the replaced shots, the Eclipse version of the video includes footage of the car arriving at and departing from a traffic light, suggesting that they arrived in the morning and remained at the light all day to watch the man dance.
Mitsubishi Eclipse advert A Mitsubishi executive saw the music video for "Days Go By" in a hotel room, and personally tracked the group down to procure rights to feature the song in an advertisement. The song was licensed to be used in the Mitsubishi ad, which began airing in early 2002. A New York radio station began playing the song, which was subsequently released to rhythmic and top 40 radio stations in mid-2002. American brand awareness for Mitsubishi went from 44% to 60% following the use of the song in the commercial.
Track listings Original release
UK and European CD single; UK cassette single "Days Go By" (7-inch mix) "Days Go By" (full vocal mix) "Days Go By" (acoustic)
UK 12-inch single A. "Days Go By" (full vocal mix) B. "Days Go By" (Lucien Foort remix)
Belgian CD single "Days Go By" (radio edit) "Days Go By" (Lucien Foort remix)
Canadian 12-inch single A1. "Days Go By" (Vegas mix) – 6:06 B1. "Days Go By" (original extended) – 8:10 B2. "Days Go By" (Lucien Foort remix) – 9:00
Re-release
UK CD1 "Days Go By" "Days Go By" (Scumfrog vocal remix) "Days Go By" (Paul Oakenfold vocal remix)
UK CD2 "Days Go By" (radio edit) "Days Go By" (Steve Osborne acoustic mix) "1979" (live—BBC Radio 1 Evening Session) "Days Go By" (video)
One-track digital download "Days Go By" – 7:12
Three-track digital download "Days Go By" – 3:43 "Days Go By" (Hydrogen Rockers vocal mix) – 6:51 "Days Go By" (2001 acoustic) – 2:43
Charts
Weekly charts +Chart (2001)PeakpositionIreland (IRMA)41
+Chart (2002)PeakpositionCanada (Nielsen SoundScan)6Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)65Ireland Dance (IRMA)4US Billboard Hot 10014US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)21US Dance Club Play (Billboard)1US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)7US Maxi-Singles Sales (Billboard)2US Rhythmic Top 40 (Billboard)12
Year-end charts +Chart (2002)PositionCanada (Nielsen SoundScan)23Canada Radio (Nielsen BDS)45US Billboard Hot 10080US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)67US Dance Club Play (Billboard)14US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)46US Maxi-Singles Sales (Billboard)15US Rhythmic Top 40 (Billboard)67
Release history +RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)United Kingdom7 May 2001SpainJuly 2001VendettaAustralia23 July 2001CDVarious23 April 2002One-track digital downloadNew State MusicUnited States13 May 2002Radio20 May 2002Hot adult contemporary radioAustralia (re-release)12 August 2002CDUnited Kingdom (re-release)30 September 2002Various23 February 2003Three-track digital downloadNew State Music
References