Fat Boy Slim

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Norman Cook has experienced an exceptionally diverse musical career. He’s produced or played on records covering a multitude of genres, including indie pop, hip hop, house and big beat, and is also one of the most famous DJs in the world under his Fatboy Slim moniker.

Fatboy was born Quentin Cook in Bromley in 1983, and grew up in Reigate in Surrey.

He was heavily into music at an early age, producing a punk fanzine as a teenager before meeting Paul Heaton at 6th form college. He went to University in Brighton (he studied English, Sociology and Politics) and began to DJ around the town where the club scene was thriving at that time.

In 1985 he received a call from Heaton asking him to join up with The Housemartins to replace their recently departed bassist. The group were based in Hull, and Norman (as he was now known) moved north to be with them. They soon had a hit with “Happy Hour”, and eventually had a number one single in 1986 with a cover of “Caravan Of Love”.

The group broke up in 1988 and Cook returned to Brighton to re-invigorate his love for the club scene. He teamed up with Lindy Layton to produce a dub house classic in “Dub Be Good To Me” (a mashup of the bassline from The Clash’s “The Guns Of Brixton” and vocals inspired by SOS band’s “Love Be Good To me”) which went to number one.

Beats International had 2 albums before disbanding. Norman went on to form Freakpower with vocalist and brass-player Askley Slater, and had a massive hit with when it was picked up by Levi’s to be used in a commercial.

The following year the band had a hit with ”Rush”, and the single also contained a remix by Pizzaman – another Cook alias. He went on to produce some massive club hits in the next couple of years under the Pizzaman alias – ”Trippin On Sunshine”, ”Sex On The Streets” and ”Happiness” being particularly popular.

Freakpower continued to record albums together, and in 1996 had a hit with ”New Direction”. This track was appropriately titled as Norman had just released a record under what was to become his most famous alias yet – that of Fatboy Slim.

Norman had teamed up with Damien Harris to create a new record label in Brighton, and Fatboy Slim’s ”Santa Cruz” was to be its first release. They called the label Skint Records, and set themselves a mission to release music with massive beats big and basslines that would be equally popular in house and indie clubs alike.

Fatboy had a further hit in 1996 with ”Everybody Loves A 303”, an homage to the classic Roland synth that still sounds fresh today. He went on to release his debut album “Better Living Through Chemistry”, an album that spawned two further singles in ”Going Out Of My Head” and ”Punk To Funk” and helped to create the Big Beat genre.

Fatboy's hugely anticipated second album, You've Come a Long Way, Baby, followed in 1998. The album displayed huge international appeal, and went platinum in the U.S. and included two massive hits, "The Rockafeller Skank" and "Praise You", which also boasted a Spike Jonze-directed video that earned three MTV Video Music Awards as well as two Grammy nominations.

The next Fatboy Slim album, 2000’s “Halfway Between The Gutter And The Stars”, showed a bit more diversity and contained tracks with R&B, hip hop and hard house influences. The big single from the album, ”Star 69” contained a big sweary vocal and a huge kick drum to send the crown mental.

Fatboy went on to release another album, 2004’s Palookaville, and a compilation album and is still one of the biggest DJs and producers in the world.

Aliases: Pizzaman, Freakpower, Beats International, Mighty Dub Kats

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Soul Asylum

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Soul Asylum was an outgrowth of a previous band, Loud Fast Rules, formed in 1981 by guitarist and vocalist Dave Pirner, guitarist and backing vocalist Dan Murphy, bassist Karl Mueller, and drummer Pat Morley. Soul Asylum began performing around the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and they quickly developed a core following. Pat Morley was later replaced by Grant Young in 1984. 

Shortly before the group signed with Twin/Tone Records in 1984, they had changed their name to Soul Asylum. They released their debut album, Say What You Will in 1984 and quickly developed a core following and became known for their powerful, dynamic stage shows. Although the young band's inexperience was apparent, the album was a hellafied post-punk romp. Unfortunately it was largely overshadowed by releases from fellow Minnesotans Husker Du and the Replacements. 

1986 was both a productive and distressing year for the band. Early in the year they released Made To Be Broken, an album that showcased their growth as musicians. After touring for several months and releasing a collection of outtakes and live tracks called Time's Incinerator, the band recorded and released their third album, While You Were Out before year's end. A collection of smartly written punk songs, the album received good reviews, but once again failed to break through to a national audience. 

The improvements in the band were enough to get them their first major label contract. The band signed to A&M in 1987 and released Hang Time the following year, a stunning, riff-heavy record that finally provided the band the sound it deserved. However, after playing a series of acoustic shows in the early 1990's Soul Asylum was picked up by Columbia Records. 

In 1992 they released Grave Dancers Union, which became their most popular album. The magical third single, "Runaway Train," propelled by a public service announcement-style video for missing children, helped push the single to number five and the album to number 11, and turned the band into a household name. The next year, Soul Asylum received the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song for "Runaway Train." 

Soul Asylum’s 1995 release, Let Your Dim Light Shine, saw the track "Misery" reach the Top 20, followed in 1998 by Candy from a Stranger which would be their last studio album on Columbia Records.

In May 2004, bassist Karl Mueller was diagnosed with throat cancer and underwent treatment. Karl Mueller’s diagnosis hastened the band’s resolve to commit another album together. His insistence on finishing the record became the driving force behind (and in front of) its completion. Karl Mueller recorded his last Soul Asylum album that year (2006's The Silver Lining). However, the cancer later returned, and he died at his home on June 17, 2005.

Renewed and revitalized, Soul Asylum founders Dave Pirner and Dan Murphy returned to rock’s front line with the July 2006 release of The Silver Lining, their first studio release of new material in 8 years since Candy from a Stranger. The Silver Lining, Soul Asylum’s ninth full-length album is every bit as quirky and off-centered rock as their fans have come to expect, an indication that the Minneapolis-bred band has lost none of its edge hardcore.

The album was not as commercially successful as some had hoped and the band was dropped from Columbia Records' roster. Pirner said, "It's sort of sad to say, but you could see the whole grunge-rock-band thing getting totally over-saturated and people were looking for something new." The band took a step back.

Soul Asylum completed their American tour in support of The Silver Lining in late 2006. In November and December 2006 they opened for Cheap Trick on their American tour. On March 10th, 2007, Soul Asylum joined Cyndi Lauper, Mint Condition, and Lifehouse to hold a concert to benefit Wain McFarlane, the leader of the legendary reggae band Ipso Facto, to help pay for the expenses of a kidney transplant.

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