The sources of Fatboy Slim's inspiration will be revealed on an upcoming release titled, A Break From the Norm. Fatboy, a.k.a. Norman Cook, has culled many of the original tracks he sampled and incorporated into his own tunes including the ubiquitous "Praise You" and "Rockafeller Skank" from Slim's 1998 release You've Come a Long Way Baby. The compilation features these songs in their entirety without any of Slim's tinkering.
"It is a joy to see these people who I have sometimes cruelly repositioned in my records finally getting props and exposure in their pure form," Cook explains in the album's liner notes.
Among the interesting precursors is "I Can't Write Left-Handed," the source for Slim's track "Demons" from Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars featuring vocals by Macy Gray. The track was written by soul singer Bill Withers, who wrote the classic "Lean on Me." Camille Yarbrough's "Take Yo' Praise" helped create Slim's "Praise You," while his other monster hit from You've Come a Long Way Baby, "Rockafeller Skank," has two sources, the Just Brothers' "Sliced Tomatoes" and John Barry Seven's "Beat Girl." Even 60s pop singer Lulu who sang, "To Sir With Love" had her "Loveloves to love love" sampled by Slim on the track "Santa Cruz."
A Break From the Norm is due out on June 5th on Restless Records.
CHRISTINA SARACENO
(April 7, 2001)