The horn stabs in the verses are still pretty rad sure, but the chorus is really weak - irritating, and repetitive, and ott. The verses themselves are ok (if a little unfulfilling), but it's the chorus which really rubs me up the wrong way. It just blares at you, implanting that horn riff in your head by force more than skill. Maybe it's a symptom of its ubiquity that it just seems so obvious and tactless now. A giant booming behemoth of route one glamour, a rampaging Nazi tank of oppressive good-timism

And beyond all that, Beyonce sounds interested and attached for about 10% of the running time. The less said about Jay-Z's guest rap, the better. But the thing that sticks with me most is that it seems much less than the sum of its parts. The slightly subdued vocals don't seem to fit with the upfront nature of everything else. The beat doesn't swing with the things around it. And Beyonce just doesn't sound like her heart is in it.. is she Crazy In Love? I don't think so

so how did it get so popular, even amongst the selective indie internet poptimists that fill these pages? I dunno, maybe they're all idiots. Maybe they'll believe anything you tell them. Give it a listen now with fresh ears, see if it sounds as spectacular as before