[8] When Harrison played the sample to Beyoncé in the studio, the singer initially had doubts about the "sound so full of blaring fanfare;"[8] it seemed too retro and according to her, no one used horn riffs in the 21st century.

[7] Nevertheless, Beyoncé accepted the sample, much to Harrison's delight, and gave him two hours to write and compose the song while she went out to shop for a birthday present for Destiny's Child bandmate Kelly Rowland.

"[25] Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone wrote that "Crazy in Love" has "such a cauldron of energy," that Beyoncé sounds "loose and sexy," gripped by emotions she "can neither understand nor control.

The chorus follows, giving way to the second verse-rap which contains the lyrics: "Jay Z in the range, crazy and deranged [...] I been iller than chain smokers, how you think I got the name 'Hova', I been real and the game's over".

[38] "Crazy in Love" was released as a digital EP in several European countries, including Austria,[39] Belgium,[40] Denmark,[41] Finland,[42] Italy,[43] the Netherlands,[44] Norway,[45] and Sweden on July 8, 2003.

[51] Tim Sendra of AllMusic described the song as a "stunning pop masterpiece",[3] while Stephen Thomas Erlewine of the same website called it "deliriously catchy".

[16] Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone wrote: "'Crazy in Love' ... roars out of the speakers on the strength of a propulsive horn sample and the charged presence of her pal, Jay-Z.

[54] Similarly, Allison Stewart of The Washington Post called it the best song on the album, praising its instrumentation, harmonies, and the rap verse of Jay Z.

[18] This was echoed by Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times who wrote that "Crazy in Love" is the best one on the album thanks to its "simplicity, irresistible combination of triumphant horns and a wicked hip-hop beat".

"[19] Likewise, Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine wrote the lyrical arrangement, the music structure and the guest vocals by Jay Z all contributed in making "Crazy in Love" a wonderful resume for Beyoncé.

[12] Rob Fitzpatrick of NME called "Crazy in Love" a "head-nodding [and] body-rocking funk-soul genius" and wrote that it is "a 100 per cent, stone-cold, dead-cert classic".

[64] "Crazy In Love" also has the distinction of being the first number-one single on Billboard's inaugural Hot Dance Airplay Chart, which debuted on August 16, 2003, where it spent seven weeks at the top spot.

[72] "Crazy in Love" reached top ten throughout Europe,[72] including Austria, the Belgian territories of Flanders and Wallonia, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.

Jay Z performs his rap in front of the burning car, and Beyoncé dances beside him, wearing an exotic silk print over a fur coat, before kicking the valve off a fire hydrant.

Cynthia Fuchs, writing for PopMatters commented that the photo shoot scene uses the routine used by Jennifer Lopez in the video for "Jenny from the Block" (2002) with hot lights, scary makeup, and inclusion of many shots of legs.

[81] The song is also recognized as the Best Selling Mobile Ringtone in the United Kingdom for 2003[82] In 2014, The Guardian writer Michael Cragg included the clip for "Crazy in Love" in his list of the ten best music videos by Beyoncé.

He offered high praise for it, saying "Aware of how much of a statement the song was, the video is a checklist of icon-making visuals, from the locations... the dance moves... to the part where she makes bubble blowing look like the sexiest thing a human could do.

Monique Jessen And Todd Peterson wrote that she, "...lit up the stage with her performance of "Crazy in Love", wearing a white Roberto Cavalli dress and nearly half a million dollars worth of diamonds.

The pop diva, appearing onstage in a puff of smoke, stopped midway through the song to pull up her top before walking away with the best international female solo artist award.

"[97] Jon Pareles of The New York Times wrote: "Beyoncé needs no distractions from her singing, which can be airy or brassy, tearful or vicious, rapid-fire with staccato syllables or sustained in curlicued melismas.

[108] Jim Farber of New York Daily News wrote that "The first, and last parts of the show stressed the steeliest Beyoncé, told in bold songs" like "Crazy in Love".

In 2003, Irish singer-songwriter Mickey Joe Harte recorded an acoustic rendition of "Crazy In Love" for the charity album Even Better Than the Real Thing Vol.

Snow Patrol's version was released as a B-side to the single "Spitting Games",[113] on the compilation Cosmosonica – Tom Middleton Presents Crazy Covers Vol.

[118] British band The Magic Numbers performed "Crazy in Love" on the Australian radio station Triple J, and recorded it for the Starbucks (Hear Music) compilation album, Sounds Eclectic: The Covers Project (2007).

[120] British close harmony trio The Puppini Sisters covered "Crazy in Love" for their 2007 album The Rise and Fall of Ruby Woo; this was remixed by the electronica jazz outfit The Real Tuesday Weld.

[128] Kate Kroll of Rolling Stone gave a negative review for Chisholm's performance, saying that "Her voice sounded thin, and she just can't seem to shake that Stepford Wife stare.

[140] In 2005, this song started off the reality competition show called Dancing With the Stars with a bunch of pro dancers choreographing the opening number.

[164] In October 2011, to mark NME's fifteenth birthday, its staff members selected the one-hundred-and-fifty tracks "that have meant the most to [them] over the site's lifetime", placing "Crazy in Love" at number sixteen.

[180] The slowed-down version was produced by Boots with violin arrangements by Margot, both of whom worked on Beyoncé's self-titled fifth studio album (2013), and, unlike the original, doesn't feature Jay-Z.

The rendition was performed for the first time during the 2015 Budweiser Made in America Festival on September 5, 2015, and was included on the setlist of The Formation World Tour (2016), alongside the original version.