live in, let's celebrate it. That was a radical thing to do when everyone was so miserable and grey!" Music video In the "Once in a Lifetime" music video, Byrne appears in a large, empty white room, dressed in a suit, bowtie and glasses. In the background, inserted via bluescreen, footage of religious rituals or multiple Byrnes appear. Byrne dances erratically, imitating the movements of the rituals and moving in "spasmic" full-body contortions. At the end of the video, a "normal" version of Byrne appears in a black room, dressed in a white, open-collared shirt without glasses. The video was directed by Byrne and Toni Basil and choreographed by Basil. They studied archive footage of religious rituals from around the world, including footage of evangelists, African tribes, Japanese sects and people in trances, for Byrne to incorporate his performance. The televangelist Ernest Angley was another inspiration. According to Basil, "David kind of choreographed himself. I set up the camera, put him in front of it, and asked him to absorb those ideas. Then I left the room so he could be alone with himself. I came back, looked at the videotape, and we chose physical moves that worked with the music. I just helped to stylize his moves a little." To emphasize Byrne's jerky movements, Basil used an "old-fashioned" zoom lens. The video was made on a low budget; Basil described it as "about as low-tech as you could get and still be broadcastable". Release In February 1981 "Once in a Lifetime" reached on the Dutch Top 40 and in March peaked at on the UK Singles Chart. In the UK it was certified silver in January 2018 and gold in April 2021. A live version, taken from the 1984 concert film Stop Making Sense, reached number 91 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 1986. At the beginning of COVID-19 lockdowns in the US, "Once in a Lifetime" reached no. 10 on Rock Digital Song Sales. Record World called the single "a polyrhythmic journey through his heart of darkness" and said that "the vocal intensity and melodic beauty are enthralling." A 12-inch promotional dance club mix was released by Sire in October 1984. An early version of "Once in a Lifetime", "Right Start", was released on the 2006 Remain in Light reissue. Legacy In 1996, Kermit the Frog performed "Once in a Lifetime" on Muppets Tonight while wearing Byrne's