Fatboy Slim
Encyclopedia
Norman Quentin Cook better known by his former stage name Fatboy Slim, is a British DJ, electronic dance music
Electronic dance music
Electronic dance music is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...

 musician, and record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

. He is a pioneer of the big beat
Big beat
Big beat is a term employed since the mid-1990s by the British music press to describe much of the music by artists such as The Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, The Chemical Brothers, The Crystal Method, and Propellerheads typically driven by heavy breakbeats and synthesizer-generated loops and patterns in...

 genre that achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s. Cook has achieved considerable success in the UK charts, performing as Fatboy Slim and with The Housemartins
The Housemartins
The Housemartins were an English indie pop band that was active in the 1980s. Many of the Housemartins' lyrics were a mixture of Marxist politics and Christianity, reflecting singer Paul Heaton's beliefs at the time .-Formation:The band was formed in late 1983 by Paul Heaton and...

, Beats International
Beats International
Beats International was a British electronic music band, formed in the late 1980s by Norman Cook , after his departure from The Housemartins.-Career:...

, and Freak Power. He currently performs as the Brighton Port Authority.

History

Quentin Leo Cook was raised in Reigate, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

, England, and was educated at Reigate Grammar School
Reigate Grammar School
Reigate Grammar School is an independent co-educational day school located in the town of Reigate, Surrey, United Kingdom. Intake is from 11 to 18, with the majority of its pupils entering at the age of 11, and others entering at 13 and 16.- History :...

. He played drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

 in Disque Attack (a British new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...

-influenced rock band). When frontman Charlie Alcock was told by his parents that he had to give up the band to concentrate on his O levels, Cook took over as lead vocalist. At Reigate College
Reigate College
Reigate College is a state sixth form college in Reigate, Surrey, for students over 16 years of age. The College is situated very near to both the town centre and the train station...

 he also met Paul Heaton
Paul Heaton
Paul David Heaton is an English singer-songwriter. He was a member of The Housemartins, who disbanded in 1988, and a member of The Beautiful South, who disbanded in 2007. He is currently pursuing a solo career....

 with whom he formed the Stomping Pondfrogs. At 18, he went to the Brighton Polytechnic
University of Brighton
The University of Brighton is an English university of the United Kingdom, with a community of over 23,000 students and 2,600 staff based on campuses in Brighton, Eastbourne and Hastings. It has one of the best teaching quality ratings in the UK and a strong research record, factors which...

 to study a BA in English, politics, and sociology. Although he had begun DJ
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...

ing some years before, it was at this time that he began to develop his skills on the thriving Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...

 club scene.

Known as DJ Quentox (The OX that Rocks), Cook and DJ Baptiste started putting on youth club
Youth club
A youth club or youth social club is a place where young people can meet and enjoy activities such as football, soccer, basketball, table tennis, or video games, and other religious, sports activities are frequently sponsored by a community center....

 hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...

 jams
Jam session
Jam sessions are often used by musicians to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. Jam sessions may be based upon existing songs or forms, may be loosely based on an agreed chord progression or chart suggested by one...

 in Brighton, sowing the seeds of the city's flourishing hip hop scene today. These primitive '80s block parties
Block party
A block party is a large public party in which many members of a single neighbourhood congregate, either to observe an event of some importance or simply for mutual enjoyment. The name comes from the form of the party, which often involves closing an entire city block to vehicle traffic...

 are recalled in the music documentary South Coast, which documents Brighton's cult hip hop scene from its grass roots to the present day.

In 1985, Cook's friend Paul Heaton
Paul Heaton
Paul David Heaton is an English singer-songwriter. He was a member of The Housemartins, who disbanded in 1988, and a member of The Beautiful South, who disbanded in 2007. He is currently pursuing a solo career....

 had formed a guitar band called The Housemartins
The Housemartins
The Housemartins were an English indie pop band that was active in the 1980s. Many of the Housemartins' lyrics were a mixture of Marxist politics and Christianity, reflecting singer Paul Heaton's beliefs at the time .-Formation:The band was formed in late 1983 by Paul Heaton and...

. Their bassist quit on the eve of their first national tour, so Cook agreed to move to Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...

 to join them. The band soon had a hit single with "Happy Hour". They also reached number one just before Christmas 1986 with a version of "Caravan of Love
Caravan of Love
"Caravan of Love" is a 1985 R&B hit originally recorded by Isley-Jasper-Isley, the second half of The Isley Brothers' 3 + 3 lineup of the 1970s.-Isley-Jasper-Isley version:...

", originally a hit the year before for Isley-Jasper-Isley
Isley-Jasper-Isley
Isley/Jasper/Isley was a splinter group of the Isley Brothers formed in 1984 by brother-in-law Chris Jasper , Ernie Isley and Marvin Isley , due to creative differences that arose among the group....

. However, by 1988 they had split up. Heaton and the band's drummer Dave Hemingway went on to form The Beautiful South
The Beautiful South
The Beautiful South were an English alternative rock group formed at the end of the 1980s by two former members of Hull group The Housemartins, Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway. The duo were initially joined by Sean Welch , Dave Stead and Dave Rotheray , all of whom stayed with the group throughout...

, while Cook moved back to Brighton to pursue his interest in the style of music he preferred. It was at this time that he first started working with young studio engineer Simon Thornton
Simon Thornton
Simon Thornton is a Brighton-based recording engineer, mix engineer, remixer, producer and musician.First worked at Esselle Beat studios in late 1980s, but later became resident engineer for Norman Cook in all his various guises as Fatboy Slim, Freakpower, Pizzaman, Mighty Dub Katz et al.Thornton...

, with whom he continues to make records. All of Cook's records released from that point onwards have involved both of them to varying degrees (Thornton is credited in 2004 as "Executive Producer", for example).

Cook achieved his first solo hit in 1989, featuring his future Beats International
Beats International
Beats International was a British electronic music band, formed in the late 1980s by Norman Cook , after his departure from The Housemartins.-Career:...

 member MC Wildski, called "Blame It on the Bassline". Credited to "Norman Cook feat. MC Wildski", the song followed the basic template of what was to come in the style of the music of Beats International. It became a modest hit in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

, reaching number 29.

Cook formed Beats International, a loose confederation of studio musicians including vocalists Lindy Layton
Lindy Layton
Lindy Layton was a founding member of, and vocalist for, Beats International. She has released a number of solo albums and singles, and worked with other musicians, more recently including Hardknox and Dub Pistols.-Career:Layton attended the Barbara Speake Stage School in the 1980s...

, Lester Noel, D.J. Baptiste, rapper MC Wildski, and keyboardist
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...

 Andy Boucher. Their first album, Let Them Eat Bingo, included the number one single "Dub Be Good to Me
Dub Be Good to Me
"Dub Be Good to Me" is a popular single by the club music group Beats International, released in 1990. It is generally considered the band's signature song.-Song information:Written by Norman Cook aka...

", which caused a legal dispute revolving around allegations of infringement of copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...

 through the liberal use of unauthorised samples
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...

: the bassline
Bassline
A bassline is the term used in many styles of popular music, such as jazz, blues, funk, dub and electronic music for the low-pitched instrumental part or line played by a rhythm section instrument such as the electric bass, double bass, tuba or keyboard...

 was a note-for-note lift from "The Guns of Brixton
The Guns of Brixton
"The Guns of Brixton" is a song by the English punk rock band The Clash. It was written and sung by bassist Paul Simonon, who grew up in Brixton, south London...

" by The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...

 and the lyrics borrowed heavily from "Just Be Good to Me
Just Be Good to Me
"Just Be Good to Me" is a 1983 single by The SOS Band, written and produced by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. The single reached number two on the U.S. R&B chart, number 55 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number three on the dance chart that year...

" by The S.O.S. Band. The 1991 follow-up album Excursion on the Version, an exploration of dub and reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...

 music, failed to repeat the success of its predecessor, as it did not chart.

Cook then formed Freak Power with horn player Ashley Slater
Ashley Slater
Ashley Slater is a UK based trombone player and best known for his work with Norman Cook in the band Freak Power. He was born in Schefferville, Canada in 1961...

 and singer Jesse Graham. They released their debut album Drive Thru Booty in 1994, which contained the single "Turn On, Tune In, Cop Out
Turn On, Tune In, Cop Out
"Turn on, Tune in, Cop out" was the biggest hit single for Norman Cook's dance-jazz group, Freak Power, released in 1993 as a single. The song features a smooth jazz sound and the baritone vocals of lead singer Ashley Slater...

". The cut was picked up by the Levi's company for use in a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign. In 1996, Cook re-joined Freak Power for their second album, More of Everything for Everybody.

Cook enlisted help from producer friends Tim Jeffery and JC Reid to create a house music
House music
House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American, Latino American, and gay communities; first in Chicago circa 1984, then in other...

 album under the name Pizzaman
Pizzaman (band)
Pizzaman was a British electronic duo, consisting of John Reid and Norman Cook.They released their debut album Pizzamania in 1995, and it spawned three singles; all three reached the top forty on the UK Singles Chart, but the highest charting of these was "Sex on the Streets", which sampled a...

. The 1995 Pizzamania album spawned three UK Top 40 hits: "Trippin' on Sunshine", "Sex on the Streets", and "Happiness". "Happiness" was picked up by the Del Monte Foods
Del Monte Foods
Del Monte Foods is an American food production and distribution company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Del Monte Foods is one of the country's largest producers, distributors and marketers of branded food and pet products for the U.S. retail market, generating approximately $3.6...

 corporation for use in a UK fruit juice ad. The music videos for the three singles were all directed by Michael Dominic
Michael Dominic
Michael Dominic is a Photojournalist and filmmaker from New York City.In the early 90s Dominic directed over a dozen music videos, including three for Norman Cook as "Pizzaman," now Fatboy Slim....

.

Cook also formed the group The Mighty Dub Katz along with Gareth Hansome (aka GMoney), Cook's former flatmate. Together they started the Boutique Nightclub in Brighton, formerly known as the Big Beat Boutique. Their biggest song together was "Magic Carpet Ride".

Fatboy Slim, 1997–2008

Cook adopted the new pseudonym Fatboy Slim in 1996. The Fatboy Slim album and Cook's second solo album Better Living Through Chemistry
Better Living Through Chemistry (album)
Better Living Through Chemistry is the first studio album by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released on 23 September 1996. Its name is a variation of a DuPont advertising slogan; for more information on the slogan, see "Better Living Through Chemistry".The founder of Skint Records, Damian...

(released through Skint Records
Skint Records
Skint Records is a Brighton based dance music record label owned by JC Reid, Tim Jeffery and Damian Harris. It was created as a sublabel of Loaded Records, also founded by Reid and Jeffery...

) contained the Top 40 UK hit, "Everybody Needs a 303
Everybody Needs a 303
"Everybody Needs a 303" is the debut single by British big beat artist Fatboy Slim. It was released from his first album, Better Living Through Chemistry, in 1996. The original version placed at No. 191 on the UK Singles Chart. The first remix of the song, however, went to a higher place on the UK...

".

Fatboy Slim's next work was the single "The Rockafeller Skank
The Rockafeller Skank
"The Rockafeller Skank" is a song by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim. It was a hit single released from the 1998 album You've Come a Long Way, Baby....

", released prior to the album You've Come a Long Way, Baby
You've Come a Long Way, Baby
You've Come a Long Way, Baby is the second studio album by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released on 19 October 1998 through the label Skint Records. The album liner notes state that the album was made at The House of Love. The album peaked at number one on the UK Albums Chart and number...

, both of which were released in 1998. "Praise You
Praise You
"Praise You" is a song by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim. It was released as the third single from his second studio album, You've Come a Long Way, Baby, in 1999. It reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in January 1999 and No. 36 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States on 11 May 1999....

", also from this album, was Cook's first UK solo number one. Its music video, starring Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze is an American director, producer and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television...

, won numerous awards.

Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars
Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars
Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars is the third studio album by British big beat artist Fatboy Slim, released in 2000. It features Macy Gray, Ashley Slater, Bootsy Collins, Roland Clark, Jim Morrison, and Roger Sanchez as guest contributors...

was his fourth solo album, released in 2000 and featured two collaborations with Macy Gray
Macy Gray
Macy Gray is a Grammy Award-winning American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress, famed for her distinctive raspy voice, and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday and Betty Davis.Gray has released five studio albums, with her fifth studio album, The Sellout,...

 and "Weapon of Choice
Star 69 / Weapon of Choice
"Star 69" and "Weapon of Choice" are two songs by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released as a double A-side single from his third studio album, Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars. The single peaked at No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart....

", which also was made into an award-winning video starring Christopher Walken
Christopher Walken
Christopher Walken is an American stage and screen actor. He has appeared in more than 100 movies and television shows, including Joe Dirt, Annie Hall, The Deer Hunter, The Prophecy trilogy, The Dogs of War, Sleepy Hollow, Brainstorm, The Dead Zone, A View to a Kill, At Close Range, King of New...

.

In 2003, he produced tracks 3 and 12 for the Blur
Blur (band)
Blur is an English alternative rock band. Formed in London in 1989 as Seymour, the group consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Blur's debut album Leisure incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing...

 album Think Tank, and in 2004, Palookaville was Cook's first studio album for four years.

Fatboy Slim's greatest hits album Why Try Harder
The Greatest Hits - Why Try Harder
The Greatest Hits – Why Try Harder is a compilation album by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released on 19 June 2006. In addition to previously released material, the album includes two new tracks: "Champion Sound" and "That Old Pair of Jeans"...

was released on 19 June 2006. It comprises eighteen tracks, including ten Top 40 singles, a couple of Number Ones and two exclusive new tracks – "Champion Sound" and "That Old Pair of Jeans". Most of the songs were shortened and heavily edited, resulting in almost fifteen minutes of unused space on the compact disc release.

In 2006, Cook travelled to Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

, and wrote and produced two original Cuban crossover tracks for the album The Revolution Presents: Revolution, which was released by Studio !K7
Studio !K7
Studio !K7 is an independent record label based in Berlin, Germany that focuses mostly on electronic music. The name is an abbreviation of the company's original Berlin address, Kaiserdamm 7 . !K7 has since opened branch offices in New York City, Hamburg, London, and Tokyo.It has four independent...

 and Rapster Records in 2009. The tracks were called "Shelter" (which featured long term collaborator Lateef
Lateef
Lateef the Truthspeaker also known as The Truthspeaker or simply Lateef, is an American hip-hop artist who is part of the groups Latyrx and The Maroons AKA Lateef and the Chief...

); and "Siente Mi Ritmo", featuring Cuba's top female vocal group Sexto Sentido. The recordings took place in Cuba's legendary EGREM Studios, home of the Buena Vista Social Club
Buena Vista Social Club
The Buena Vista Social Club was a members club in Havana, Cuba that held dances and musical activities, becoming a popular location for musicians to meet and play during the 1940s...

, and featured a band made up of Cuba's top young musicians, including Harold Lopez Nussa
Harold Lopez Nussa
Harold López-Nussa Torres is a jazz pianist who plays Cuban music and lives in a little apartment in Havana's Vedado neighbourhood in Cuba. The 26-year-old pianist is Cuban, and French through his grandmother....

. Another track recorded during these sessions entitled "Guaguanco" was released separately under the Mighty Dub Katz moniker in 2006.

Cook has also been responsible for successful remixes for Cornershop
Cornershop
Cornershop are a British indie rock band formed in 1991 by Wolverhampton-born Tjinder Singh , his brother Avtar Singh , David Chambers and Ben Ayres , the first three having previously been members of Preston-based band General Havoc, who released one single in 1991...

, Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....

, A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006...

, and Wildchild
Roger McKenzie
Roger McKenzie also known under his production aliases of Wildchild or DJ Wildchild, was an English musician and DJ. Born in Southampton, England, he released many singles on labels such as Hi Life Recordings, Ultra Records, and Polydor...

. In 2008, he did a remix of the track "Amazonas" for the charity Bottletop
Bottletop
Bottletop is a registered charity based in London, UK. It empowers young people through sexual health education, using fashion and music to raise funds and awareness. It has released a range of fashion accessories with Fenchurch made entirely from recycled ring pulls from the tops of cans....

.

Cook released a mix album in 2010 titled The Legend Returns as a covermount album in the June 2010 issue of Mixmag
Mixmag
Mixmag is a British dance music and clubbing magazine. It styles itself as "the world's biggest selling dance music magazine", with an Audit Bureau of Circulations audited circulation of approximately 21,250...

.

The Brighton Port Authority

The Brighton Port Authority debuted in 2008 with a collaboration with David Byrne
David Byrne (musician)
David Byrne is a musician and artist, best known as a founding member and principal songwriter of the American new wave band Talking Heads, which was active between 1975 and 1991. Since then, Byrne has released his own solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography,...

 and Dizzee Rascal
Dizzee Rascal
Dylan Kwabena Mills , better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a Ghanaian British rapper, songwriter and record producer. His music is a blend of garage, hip hop, grime, ragga, pop and electronic music, with eclectic samples and more exotic styles...

 titled "Toe Jam", along with a music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 featuring nude dancers with censor bars on them, making pictures and words with them.

The soundtrack album for the TV series Heroes
Heroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...

also includes the BPA's track "He's Frank (Slight Return)" (a cover of a song by The Monochrome Set
The Monochrome Set
The Monochrome Set are an English post-punk band originally formed in 1978 from the remnants of a college group called The B-Sides...

), with Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...

 as vocalist. The video for this track features a near life size puppet of Iggy Pop. An alternative club version was released under the "He's Frank (Washing Up)" title with the video featuring some footage of Iggy Pop acting and saying lyrics.

The band's first album, I Think We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat
I Think We're Gonna Need A Bigger Boat
I Think We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat is the debut album of British electronic act The Brighton Port Authority. It was released on Southern Fried on 6 January 2009 exclusively on amazon.com, with a regular release on February 3....

, is the first to be co-produced by Cook's longtime engineer Simon Thornton
Simon Thornton
Simon Thornton is a Brighton-based recording engineer, mix engineer, remixer, producer and musician.First worked at Esselle Beat studios in late 1980s, but later became resident engineer for Norman Cook in all his various guises as Fatboy Slim, Freakpower, Pizzaman, Mighty Dub Katz et al.Thornton...

, who also sings on one track. The album was released 6 January 2009 exclusively at Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...

 on CD, with downloadable format and other stores scheduled for a month later on 3 February.

Performances

On 13 July 2002, Fatboy Slim performed the second of his free, open air concerts on Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...

 Beach. Although organisers expected a crowd of around 60,000 people, the event instead attracted an estimated 250,000 who crammed the promenade and beach between Brighton's piers. Local police forced the event to end early amid safety concerns, overcrowding, and one death. After the music had finished and the crowd began to dissipate, traffic ensued throughout the Brighton area with many caught in traffic jams until the morning.

In June 2005, Fatboy Slim filled the Friday night headline slot on the "Other Stage" at the Glastonbury Festival
Glastonbury Festival
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...

. In 2006, Fatboy Slim filled the Saturday headline slot at the Global Gathering
Global Gathering
GlobalGathering is an annual dance music festival by Angel Music Group. Festivals are held in countries such as the UK, Poland, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and feature leading electronica artists from across the globe...

 festival, Long Marston
Long Marston, Warwickshire
Long Marston is a village about southwest of Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, England. The southern and western boundaries of the parish also form part of the county boundary with Worcestershire.-History:...

 Airfield in the English Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...

. He played a two hour set, appearing in front of a visual stage set comprising video screens and 3D lighting. A firework
Fireworks
Fireworks are a class of explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. The most common use of a firework is as part of a fireworks display. A fireworks event is a display of the effects produced by firework devices...

 display rounded off the show.
Having being banned by police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...

 from playing in Brighton since 2002, Fatboy Slim was given permission in 2006 to play again in his home town. On 1 January 2007, he played to an audience of more than 20,000 fans along Brighton's seafront. Tickets to the event, titled "Fatboy Slim's Big Beach Boutique 3", were made available only to Brighton residents. The concert was deemed a stunning success by Sussex Police, Fatboy Slim, and the crowd. The Cuban Brothers and David Guetta
David Guetta
Pierre David Guetta , known professionally as David Guetta , is a French house music producer and DJ. Originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster and Pop Life...

 opened the concert. The next similar event, 'Big Beach Boutique 4', was held on 27 September 2008.

In 2008, Fatboy Slim played at the Glastonbury Festival again, and headlined the O2 Wireless Festival and Rockness Festival. According to an NME interview, this may have been one of the last times he performed as Fatboy Slim, as he may now focus on his new album, The Brighton Port Authority (BPA). Also in 2008, Fatboy Slim closed out the famed "Sahara" tent on Friday of the legendary Coachella Valley Music Festival. His introduction included a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a 1964 children's book by British author Roald Dahl. The story features the adventures of young Charlie Bucket inside the chocolate factory of the eccentric chocolatier, Willy Wonka....

opening, that has been called by many one of the most memorable Sahara performances ever.

In 2009, he toured Australia in the Good Vibrations festival. Also in 2009, he played in Marlay Park
Marlay Park
Marlay Park is a suburban public park located in Rathfarnham in the administrative area of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, in Co. Dublin, Ireland. Lying about nine kilometres from Dublin city centre. The parkland comprises woodlands, ponds and walks...

, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 alongside David Guetta, Dizzee Rascal
Dizzee Rascal
Dylan Kwabena Mills , better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a Ghanaian British rapper, songwriter and record producer. His music is a blend of garage, hip hop, grime, ragga, pop and electronic music, with eclectic samples and more exotic styles...

, and Calvin Harris
Calvin Harris
Calvin Harris is a Scottish singer-songwriter, record producer and DJ. His gold-selling debut album, I Created Disco, was released in 2007 and contained the top ten singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls"...

, as well as one huge performance at the Sziget Festival in Budapest. He also performed at V Festival 2009.

At Glastonbury 2009, he played an unadvertised concert in the "pinball-machine" stage at trash city.

In 2010, Fatboy Slim headlined the east dance at Glastonbury Festival
Glastonbury Festival
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...

. On 18 June 2010, he performed in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...

, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

 as part of the Cool Britannia FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...

 music festival at the Cape Town International Convention Centre
Cape Town International Convention Centre
The Cape Town International Convention Centre is a convention centre in Cape Town, South Africa. The centre opened in June 2003. It hosted the Final Draw of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa...

. On 30 May 2011, he performed as the headliner for Detroit's Electronic Music Festival in Detroit, Michigan, USA. 25 September 2011, Fatboy Slim headlined the Terrace at Ibiza's famed Space nightclub's We Love Sundays closing party. On 29 October 2011, Fatboy Slim opened at the San Francisco Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, following up on the 30th, closing out the Red Bulletin/Le PLUR Stage at the Voodoo Music Experience in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.

Personal life

Cook was awarded a star on the city of Brighton's Walk of Fame, next to that of Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...

.

He married TV personality Zoë Ball
Zoë Ball
Zoë Louise Ball is an English television and radio personality, most famous for becoming the first female host of the BBC Radio 1 breakfast show and for her earlier work presenting the 1990s children's show, Live & Kicking.-TV career:The daughter of the children's TV presenter Johnny Ball and his...

 in 1999 at Babington House
Babington House
Babington House is a Grade II* listed manor house, located in the village of Babington, between Radstock and Frome, in the county of Somerset, EnglandConverted to a private members club and hotel by Nick Jones, it is currently owned by Soho House Ltd...

 in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...

; in January 2003, Cook broke up with Ball but three months later, they reconciled. They have a son named Woody Fred Cook (born 15 December 2000) and a daughter named Nelly May Lois (born 14 January 2010). Cook is a 12% shareholder of the football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 club he has supported since moving to Brighton in the late 1980s, Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club are an English association football club based in the coastal city of Brighton & Hove, East Sussex. They currently play in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system....

.

Q magazine named Fatboy Slim in their 50 Bands to See Before You Die list.

On 4 March 2009, Cook checked into a rehabilitation centre in Bournemouth
Bournemouth
Bournemouth is a large coastal resort town in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. According to the 2001 Census the town has a population of 163,444, making it the largest settlement in Dorset. It is also the largest settlement between Southampton and Plymouth...

 to fight a "booze addiction" that he has been battling "for some time".

Because of an extended stay in rehab, his performance at Snowbombing, a week-long winter sports and music festival held in the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

n ski
Ski
A ski is a long, flat device worn on the foot, usually attached through a boot, designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now mainly used for recreational and sporting purposes...

 resort of Mayrhofen
Mayrhofen
- Twin towns : Chur, Switzerland Bad Tölz, Germany Bad Homburg, Germany Terracina, Italy Cabourg, France Bad Mondorf, Luxembourg- Transport :Mayrhofen has one railway station, which is located next to the Zillertaler Bundestrasse. The station is a terminus for all Train services operated by the...

) was canceled – with the slot being filled by 2ManyDJs. Cook then left the clinic at the end of March.

Cook completed the inaugural Brighton Marathon
Brighton Marathon
The Brighton Marathon is a road race run over the distance of 42.195 km or 26 miles and 385 yards. The inaugural Brighton Marathon was organised by former international athlete Tim Hutchings and former Brighton club athlete, Tom Naylor. The first running of the race took place on 18th April 2010....

 on 18 April 2010 in a time of 4:53:10.

Awards

In 1999, the video to "Praise You" won three MTV awards: for best direction (Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze is an American director, producer and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television...

), best choreography (Jones as "Richard Koufey
Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze is an American director, producer and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television...

"), and best breakthrough video. Fatboy Slim's single "The Rockafeller Skank
The Rockafeller Skank
"The Rockafeller Skank" is a song by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim. It was a hit single released from the 1998 album You've Come a Long Way, Baby....

" topped the Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...

1999 Pazz & Jop
Pazz & Jop
The Pazz & Jop critics' poll is a poll of music critics run by The Village Voice newspaper. It is compiled every year from the top ten lists of hundreds of music critics...

 singles poll. In September 2001, Fatboy Slim's video for "Weapon of Choice
Star 69 / Weapon of Choice
"Star 69" and "Weapon of Choice" are two songs by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released as a double A-side single from his third studio album, Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars. The single peaked at No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart....

", also directed by Spike Jonze, received six prizes at the MTV Video Awards, the most given to a single winner that year. In May 2007, Cook received an Ivor Novello Award for his "outstanding contribution to British music". Cook was also a judge for the 6th annual Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards is an international program that honors top-ranked independent artists and releases in more than 50 Album, Song, Music Video and Design categories....

 to support independent artists' careers. He has won two Brit Awards
Brit Awards
The Brit Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain" or "Britannia", but subsequently became a backronym for British Record Industry Trust...

, in 1999 and 2001, both for British Dance Act.

Bands and pseudonyms

  • Norman Cook, now his real name
  • Beats International
    Beats International
    Beats International was a British electronic music band, formed in the late 1980s by Norman Cook , after his departure from The Housemartins.-Career:...

  • Brighton Port Authority
  • Cheeky Boy
  • Chemistry
  • DJ Delite – used in DJ Tools (e.g. acapellas) for Fatboy Slim singles
  • Fatboy Slim
  • Freak Power
  • Fried Funk Food
  • Mighty Dub Katz ("Magic Carpet Ride" dance song, 1996)
  • Pizzaman
    Pizzaman (band)
    Pizzaman was a British electronic duo, consisting of John Reid and Norman Cook.They released their debut album Pizzamania in 1995, and it spawned three singles; all three reached the top forty on the UK Singles Chart, but the highest charting of these was "Sex on the Streets", which sampled a...

  • Rockaway 3
  • Sensataria
  • Slimboy Fat
  • Son of a Cheeky Boy
  • Son of Wilmot
  • Sunny Side Up
  • The Feelgood Factor
  • The Housemartins
    The Housemartins
    The Housemartins were an English indie pop band that was active in the 1980s. Many of the Housemartins' lyrics were a mixture of Marxist politics and Christianity, reflecting singer Paul Heaton's beliefs at the time .-Formation:The band was formed in late 1983 by Paul Heaton and...

    , the indie rock
    Indie rock
    Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...

     band for which Cook was the bassist for from 1985 to 1988.
  • Wildchild ("Renegade Master")
  • Yum Yum Head Food

Discography

Studio albums
  • Better Living Through Chemistry
    Better Living Through Chemistry (album)
    Better Living Through Chemistry is the first studio album by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released on 23 September 1996. Its name is a variation of a DuPont advertising slogan; for more information on the slogan, see "Better Living Through Chemistry".The founder of Skint Records, Damian...

    (1996)
  • You've Come a Long Way, Baby
    You've Come a Long Way, Baby
    You've Come a Long Way, Baby is the second studio album by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released on 19 October 1998 through the label Skint Records. The album liner notes state that the album was made at The House of Love. The album peaked at number one on the UK Albums Chart and number...

    (1998)
  • Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars
    Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars
    Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars is the third studio album by British big beat artist Fatboy Slim, released in 2000. It features Macy Gray, Ashley Slater, Bootsy Collins, Roland Clark, Jim Morrison, and Roger Sanchez as guest contributors...

    (2000)
  • Palookaville
    Palookaville (album)
    Palookaville is the fourth studio album by English big beat musician Fatboy Slim, released on 4 October 2004. It was also a temporary name of Brighton and Hove Albion F.C.'s Withdean Stadium, due to their sponsorship deal with Skint Records.- Background :...

    (2004)
  • Here Lies Love
    Here Lies Love
    Here Lies Love is a concept album and rock musical made in collaboration between David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, about the life of the former First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Marcos along with the woman who raised her—Estrella Cumpas—and follows Marcos until she and her family were forced to leave...

    (with David Byrne
    David Byrne
    David Byrne may refer to:*David Byrne , musician and former Talking Heads frontman**David Byrne , his eponymous album*David Byrne , Irish footballer*David Byrne , English footballer...

    ) (2010)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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