Norman Quentin Cook, also known by his stage name Fatboy Slim, is an English musician, DJ, and record producer who helped to popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. In the 1980s, Cook was the bassist for the Hull-based indie rock band the Housemartins, who achieved a UK number-one single with their a cappella cover of "Caravan of Love". After the Housemartins split up, Cook formed the electronic band Beats International in Brighton, who produced the number-one single "Dub Be Good to Me". He then played in Freak Power, Pizzaman, and the Mighty Dub Katz with moderate success.
Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian rock band formed in 1988 in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their self-titled 1991 cassette becoming the first independent release to be certified gold in Canada. They reached mainstream success in Canada when their debut with Reprise Records, Gordon, featuring the singles "If I Had $1000000" and "Brian Wilson", was released in 1992. The band's popularity subsequently spread into the US, beginning with versions of "Brian Wilson" and "The Old Apartment" off their 1996 live album Rock Spectacle, followed by their fourth studio album Stunt, their breakout success in 1998. The album featured their highest-charting hit, "One Week", as well as "It's All Been Done" and "Call and Answer". Their fifth album, Maroon, featuring the lead single "Pinch Me", also charted highly. In the 2010s the band became well-known for creating the theme song for the sitcom The Big Bang Theory.
The Beautiful South were an English pop rock group formed in 1988 by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway, two former members of the Hull group the Housemartins, both of whom performed lead and backing vocals. Other members throughout the band's existence were former Housemartins roadie Sean Welch (bass), Dave Stead (drums) and Dave Rotheray (guitar). The band's original material was written by Heaton and Rotheray.
Paul David Heaton is an English singer-songwriter. He was the frontman of the Housemartins, who had success with the singles "Happy Hour" and the UK number one "Caravan of Love" in 1986 before disbanding in 1988. He then formed The Beautiful South, whose debut single and album were released in 1989 to commercial success. They had a series of hits throughout the 1990s, including the number-one single "A Little Time". They disbanded in 2007. He subsequently pursued a solo career, which produced three albums, and in 2014 he released What Have We Become?, a collaboration with former Beautiful South vocalist Jacqui Abbott. As of 2022, he has recorded four more albums with her: Wisdom, Laughter and Lines in 2015, Crooked Calypso in 2017, Manchester Calling in 2020 and N.K-Pop in 2022.
The Housemartins were an English indie rock group formed in Hull who were active in the 1980s and charted three top-ten albums and six top-twenty singles in the UK. Many of their lyrics conveyed a mixture of socialist politics and Christianity, reflecting the beliefs of the band. The group's a cappella cover version of "Caravan of Love" was a UK number one single in December 1986.
Gordon is the debut studio album by Canadian band Barenaked Ladies. It was released through Sire Records on July 28, 1992. After The Yellow Tape was certified platinum in Canada, the group won a contest hosted by a local radio station. With the winnings, Barenaked Ladies were able to hire producer Michael Phillip Wojewoda and record the album at Le Studio, north of Montreal, Quebec, Chalet Recording Studios, and Reaction Studios. Though most of the album was recorded without incident, difficulty with "The King of Bedside Manor" caused the band to record the track naked—a tradition they would continue on other albums. Horn parts, guest vocalists, and nods to other bands including Rush allowed Barenaked Ladies to expand on the sound they had developed while touring. "They had a real clarity about what they wanted [the album] to be ... I just captured what it is they do", said Wojewoda.
Everything to Everyone is the sixth full-length studio album by Barenaked Ladies. It was released in 2003 and was produced by Ron Aniello. Singles from the album include "Another Postcard", "Testing 1, 2, 3", "For You", "Celebrity" and "Maybe Katie". The content of the album is noted for its increased political commentary over previous albums. This was their last album with Reprise Records before switching to a more independent label, Desperation Records and subsequently Raisin' Records.
London 0 Hull 4 is the debut album by The Housemartins, released in June 1986. It contains the singles "Flag Day", "Sheep", "Happy Hour" and "Think for a Minute".
Barenaked for the Holidays is a holiday-themed studio album released by Canadian band Barenaked Ladies on October 5, 2004. The album includes Christmas and Hanukkah songs as well as "Auld Lang Syne", which is traditionally sung on New Year's Eve. There are also several songs that are simply about the winter season. The album was the first album recorded at Steven Page's studio, Fresh Baked Woods and was the first released independently by Barenaked Ladies' Desperation Records label. It was the band's first studio album for which a "naked track" was not recorded. This album achieved Gold status in Canada.
"One Week" is a song by Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies released as the first single from their 1998 album, Stunt. It was written by Ed Robertson, who is featured on the lead vocal of the rapped verses. Steven Page sings lead on the song's chorus, while the two co-lead the prechoruses in harmony. The song is notable for its significant number of pop culture references, and remains the band's best-known song in the United States, where it topped the Billboard Hot 100. Coincidentally, when the song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, it remained in the top spot for one week.
0898 Beautiful South, also referred to as 0898, is the third studio album by English band the Beautiful South. After the success of their previous work over 1989–1991, the band hired prolific record producer Jon Kelly and recorded the album at AIR Studios in London. The album contains a more "muscular" yet sometimes more sombre sound than their previous albums, although still entirely retains lyricist Paul Heaton's witty and bitter lyrical style. The album "deals in fragile melodies and harmonies, soulful but low-key instrumentation, and lyrics full of subtle social commentary and humour." The album title refers to the 0898 premium rate dialling code associated with sex hotlines in the UK at the time.
"The Old Apartment" is a song by the Canadian alternative rock group Barenaked Ladies. It was the band's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 and first Mainstream Top 40 hit, appearing on the albums Born on a Pirate Ship, Rock Spectacle and Disc One: All Their Greatest Hits. The music video for the song, which garnered a Best Director nomination at the 1997 MuchMusic Video Awards, was directed by fellow Canadian and fan Jason Priestley at his own suggestion.
"Brian Wilson" is a song by Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies from their 1992 album Gordon. The song was written by Steven Page as a tribute to the Beach Boys' co-founder Brian Wilson. It was released as a single and peaked at number 18 on the Canadian Singles Chart. In 1998, the song peaked at number 68 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Wilson himself covered the song on his live album Live at the Roxy Theatre (2000).
"It's All Been Done" is a song by Canadian alternative rock group Barenaked Ladies. It was released as the second single from their fourth studio album, Stunt (1998). The song was successful in Canada, peaking at No. 1 on the RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart and becoming the band's highest-charting song in their native country. The song was used as the theme song for the television series Baby Blues. The song is also notable for being one of the band's first to feature an electric guitar solo by Ed Robertson.
"Love Is the Drug" is a 1975 song from English rock band Roxy Music's fifth studio album Siren, released as a single in September 1975. Co-written by Bryan Ferry and Andy Mackay, the song originated as a slower, dreamier track until the band transformed its arrangement to become more dance-friendly and uptempo. Ferry's lyrics recount a man going out looking for action.
This Is the Story is the debut studio album from Scottish rock duo The Proclaimers, released in 1987. It was originally released with 12 tracks but after the success of the Gerry Rafferty-produced full band version of "Letter from America", which reached number 3 in the UK Single Chart, it was re-pressed later that year with that track added.
"Too Little Too Late" is a single by the Barenaked Ladies from their 2000 album, Maroon. The single included a remix of another single from Maroon, "Pinch Me". Another version was also released as a "Special Enhanced CD Single" with album art work based on the song's music video. The song is also featured on the band's 2001 compilation album, Disc One: All Their Greatest Hits. The song was written by Ed Robertson and Steven Page, and sung by Page.
Soup is an album released in November 2007 by The Housemartins and The Beautiful South on Mercury Records. It is in effect a greatest hits album for both of the bands, the first seven tracks bracketed together as "The Housemartins Condensed" and the remaining fifteen as "The Cream of The Beautiful South". All twenty-two songs were released as singles by the bands, and the track listing runs in chronological order by year of song release from 1985's "Flag Day" to 2003's "Just A Few Things That I Ain't". An associated DVD of the bands' music videos was also released.
The discography of Canadian alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies consists of 14 primary studio albums, three themed studio albums, 41 singles, three live albums, two greatest hits compilations, and three video releases. This list does not include material recorded by band members individually or with other side projects.
"Boomerang" is a song by Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies. It is the first single from their 2013 album, Grinning Streak. It was released as a downloadable single on March 26, 2013.
