Few songs reel you in quite as confidently as Gloria Gaynor's 1978 disco masterpiece I Will Survive. Though Gaynor scored other hits during the disco era, most notably with her driving 1974 cover of the Jackson 5's Never Can Say Goodbye, I Will Survive has become her undeniable signature song. When Gaynor sings "at first I was afraid, I was petrified" after a melodramatic piano flourish, it's incredibly evocative but also slightly misleading. Because a few bars later, Gaynor reveals the song's true message is not one of fear, but of strength, empowerment and resilience.

Source: BBC