The Rockafeller Skank (6/20/98) #64a US, #6 UK, #39 MR
Gangster Trippin’ (10/17/98) #3 UK
Praise You (1/16/99) #36 US, #1 UK, #2 MR
Right Here, Right Now (5/1/99) #2 UK
Awards:
You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby
Fatboy Slim
Review:
“Norman Cook's bubble-gum techno songs – put out under a variety of guises over the years, including Pizzaman and Freak Power--are essential staples on any international dance floor. Fatboy Slim, however, is the former Housemartin’s most successful incarnation, launching a Top 40 crossover hit and popular advertising jingle with last year’s "Going out of My Head’.” AV
“Fatboy Slim’s debut album, Better Living Through Chemistry, was one of the surprises of the big beat revolution of 1996 – an eclectic blowout, all tracked to thunderous loops and masterminded by Norman Cook.” STE. “It might not have been as startlingly fresh as the Chemical Brothers, but the hard-hitting beats and catchiness, not to mention consistency, of Better Living was a shock, and it raised expectations for Fatboy Slim’s second album, You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby.” STE
“That record itself was something of a surprise, since it not only exceeded the expectations set by the debut, but came damn close to being the definitive big beat album, rivaling the Chemicals’ second record, Dig Your Own Hole. The difference is, Cook is a record geek with extensive knowledge and eclectic tastes,” STE “cheekily pairing acidic synthesizers and drum machines with big, dumb vocal samples.” AV “His juxtapositions – the album swings from hip-hop to reggae to jangle pop, and then all combines into one sound – are wildly original, even if the music itself doesn’t break through the confines of big beat.” STE
“Then again, when a record is this forceful and catchy, it doesn’t need to break new stylistic ground – the pleasure is in hearing a master work. And there’s no question that Cook is a master of sorts – You've Come a Long Way, Baby is a seamless record, filled with great imagination, unexpected twists and turns, huge hooks, and great beats. It’s the kind of record that gives big beat a good name.” STE
It can take “considerable effort sitting through an entire album of these energized tunes, but taken in small doses, songs like The Rockafeller Skank and Soul Surfing are like rays of sunshine.” AV
1.0
0.9
3.9
