In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for time, plural: tempi) is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece. 's Sonata K. 331, which indicates the tempo as "Andante grazioso" and a modern editor's metronome marking: " = 120".]]

Measuring tempo

The tempo of a piece will typically be written at the start of a piece of music, and in modern music is usually indicated in beats per minute (BPM). This means that a particular note value (for example, a quarter note or crotchet) is specified as the beat, and the marking indicates that a certain number of these beats must be played per minute. The greater the tempo, the larger the number of beats that must be played in a minute is, and, therefore, the faster a piece must be played. Mathematical tempo markings of this kind became increasingly popular during the first half of the 19th century, after the metronome had been invented by Johann Nepomuk Mälzel, although early metronomes were somewhat inconsistent. Beethoven was the first composer to use the metronome, and in 1817 he published metronomic indications for his (then) eight symphonies. Some of these markings are today contentious, such as those on his "Hammerklavier" Sonata and Ninth Symphony, seeming to many to be almost impossibly fast, as is also the case for many of the works of Schumann.

With the advent of modern electronics, BPM became an extremely precise measure. Music sequencers use the BPM system to denote tempo.

As an alternative to metronome markings, some 20th century composers (such as Béla Bartók and John Cage) would give the total execution time of a piece, from which the proper tempo can be roughly derived.

Tempo is as crucial in contemporary music as it is in classical. In electronic dance music, accurate knowledge of a tune's BPM is important to DJs for the purposes of beatmatching.

Musical vocabulary for tempo

Whether a music piece has a mathematical time indication or not, in classical music it is customary to describe the tempo of a piece by one or more words. Most of these words are Italian, because many of the most important composers of the 17th century were Italian, and this period was when tempo indications were first used extensively.

Before the metronome, words were the only way to describe the tempo of a composition. Yet after the metronome's invention, these words continued to be used, often additionally indicating the mood of the piece, thus blurring the traditional distinction between tempo and mood indicators. For example, presto and allegro both indicate a speedy execution (presto being faster), but allegro also connotes joy (from its original meaning in Italian). Presto, on the other hand, indicates speed as such.

Additional Italian words also indicate tempo and mood. For example, the "agitato" in the Allegro agitato of the last movement of George Gershwin's piano concerto in F has both a tempo indication (undoubtedly faster than a usual Allegro) and a mood indication ("agitated").

Understood tempo

In some cases (quite often up to the end of the Baroque period), conventions governing musical composition were so strong that no tempo had to be indicated. For example, the first movement of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 has no tempo or mood indication whatsoever. To provide movement names, publishers of recordings resort to ad hoc measures, for instance marking the Brandenburg movement "Allegro", "(Allegro)", "(Without indication)", and so on.

In Renaissance music most music was understood to flow at a tempo defined by the tactus, roughly the rate of the human heartbeat. Which note value corresponded to the tactus was indicated by the mensural time signature.

Often a particular musical form or genre implies its own tempo, so no further explanation is placed in the score. Thus musicians expect a minuet to be performed at a fairly stately tempo, slower than a Viennese waltz; a Perpetuum Mobile to be quite fast, and so on. Genres can be used to imply tempos; thus Ludwig van Beethoven wrote "In tempo d'un Menuetto" over the first movement of his Piano Sonata Op. 54, although that movement is not a minuet. Popular music charts use terms such as "bossa nova", "ballad", and "Latin rock" in much the same way.

It is important to remember when interpreting these words that not only have tempos changed over historical time, and even in different places, but sometimes even the ordering of terms has changed. Thus a modern largo is slower than an adagio, but in the Baroque period it was faster.

==Beats per minute== Beats per minute (BPM) is a unit typically used as a measure of tempo in music.

The BPM tempo of a piece of music is conventionally shown in its score as a metronome mark, as illustrated to the right. This indicates that there should be 120 crotchet beats (quarter notes) per minute. In simple time signatures it is conventional to show the tempo in terms of the note duration on the bottom. So a 4/4 would show a crotchet (or quarter note), as above, while a 2/2 would show a minim (or half note).

In compound time signatures the beat consists of three note durations (so there are 3 quavers (eighth notes) per beat in a 6/8 time signature), so a dotted form of the next note duration up is used. The most common compound signatures: 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8, therefore use a dotted crotchet (dotted quarter note) to indicate their BPM.

Exotic time and particularly slow time signatures may indicate their BPM tempo using other note durations.

Beats per minute became common terminology in disco because of its usefulness to DJs, and remain important in the same genre and other dance music.

In this context the beats measured are either crotchets (quarter notes) in the time signature (sometimes called down-beats, although the term is ambiguous), or drum beats (typically bass-drum or another functionally similar synthesized sound), whichever is more frequent. Higher BPM values are therefore achievable by increasing the number of drum beats, without increasing the tempo of the music. House music is faster around 120-128 bpm (from regular house music to UK Garage), and Jungle music generally ranges between 150-180 bpm. Psytrance is almost exclusively produced at 145 BPM, whereas Speedcore and Gabber music both frequently exceed 180 bpm.

Extreme BPM

More extreme BPMs are achievable at the same underlying tempo with very fast drum patterns, often expressed as drum rolls. Such compositions often exhibit a much slower underlying tempo, but may increase the BPM by adding additional percussive beats. Extreme music subgenres such as speedcore and cybergrind often strive to reach excessively high BPM rates. The use of extreme tempo was very common in the fast bebop jazz from the 1940s and 1950s. A common jazz tune such as "Cherokee" was often performed at quarter note equal to or sometimes exceeding 368 BPM. Some of Charlie Parker's famous tunes (Bebop, Sha Nuff, Donna Lee) have been performed at 380 BPM plus. John Coltrane's "Giant Steps" was performed at 374 BPM.

Beatmatching

Beatmatching, a tool amongst DJs, concerns the speeding up or down of a record in order to match the BPM of a previous track so both can be seamlessly mixed.

DJs often beatmatch the underlying tempos of recordings, rather than their strict BPM, particularly when dealing with high BPM tracks. A 240 BPM track, for example, will normally match the beat of a 120 BPM track without slowing down or speeding up, because both are likely to have an underlying tempo of 120 crotchets (quarter notes) per minute. Thus, some soul music (around 75-90 beats per minute) can be mixed well with a drum and bass beat (from 150-185 beats per minute).

Normally, the pitch and BPM of a track are linked: spin a disc 10% faster and both pitch and tempo will be 10% higher. Software processing to change the pitch without changing the tempo, or vice-versa, is called time-stretching or pitch-shifting. While it works fairly well for small adjustments (± 20%), the result can be noisy and unmusical for larger changes.

Measures per minute

Measures per Minute (MPM) or bars per minute is another way to measure the speed of music: the number of measures in one minute. It is commonly used in ballroom dance music.

Italian tempo markings

The definitions of the Italian tempo markings mentioned in this section can be found in the Harvard Dictionary of Music and/or the online Italian-English dictionary, both of which are listed in Sources.

Basic tempo markings

All of these markings are based on a few root words. By adding an -issimo ending the word is amplified/made louder, by adding an -ino ending the word is diminished/made softer, and by adding an -etto ending the word is endeared. The metronome marks are broad approximations. Note: Metronome markings are a guide only and depending on the time signature and the piece itself, these figures may not be appropriate in every circumstance.

Larghissimo — very, very slow (20 bpm and below)

Grave — slow and solemn (20-40 bpm)

Lento — slowly (40–60 bpm)

Largo — broadly (40–60 bpm)

Larghetto — rather broadly (60–66 bpm)

Adagio — slow and stately (literally, "at ease") (66–76 bpm)

Adagietto — rather slow (70–80 bpm)

Andante Moderato — a bit slower than andante

Andante — at a walking pace (76–108 bpm)

Andantino – slightly faster than andante

Moderato — moderately (101-110 bpm)

Allegretto — moderately fast (but less so than allegro)

Allegro moderato — moderately quick (112–124 bpm)

Allegro — fast, quickly and bright (120–139 bpm)

Vivace — lively and fast (˜140 bpm) (quicker than allegro)

Vivacissimo — very fast and lively

Allegrissimo — very fast

Presto — very fast (168–200 bpm)

Prestissimo — extremely fast (more than 200bpm)

Additional Terms: A piacere — the performer may use his own discretion with regard to tempo and rhythm; literally "at pleasure"

L'istesso tempo or Lo stesso tempo — at the same speed

Tempo comodo — at a comfortable (normal) speed

Tempo di... — the speed of a ... (such as Tempo di valse (speed of a waltz), Tempo di marcia (speed of a march))

Tempo giusto — at a consistent speed, at the 'right' speed, in strict tempo

Tempo semplice — simple, regular speed, plainly

Common qualifiers

alla — in the manner or style of, as in:

*alla breve — in short style, i.e., duple time, with the half note (minim) rather than the quarter note (crotchet) as the beat; cut time; 2/2 instead of 4/4; often marked as a semicircle with a vertical line through it (see Time signature)

alla marcia — in the manner of a march (e.g., Beethoven, op. 101)

*all' ongarese — in Hungarian style

alla (danza) tedesca — in the style of the Ländler (ca. 1800), and similar dances in rather quick triple meter (see Beethoven, op. 79, op. 130)

*alla turca — in the Turkish style, that is, in imitation of Turkish military music (Janizary music), which became popular in Europe in the late 18th century (e.g., Mozart, K. 331, K. 384)

*alla zingarese — in the style of Gypsy music

assai — very much, as in allegro assai, quite fast

ben — well, as in ben marcato (well marked or accented)

con bravura— with skill con brio — with vigor and spirit

con fuoco — with fire

con moto — with motion

deciso — decidedly, decisively

fugato — in fugal style, usually part of a non-fugal composition; such passages often occur in the development sections of symphonies, sonatas, and quartets

in modo — in the manner of, in the style of: in modo napolitano (in Neapolitan style), in modo di marcia funebre (in the manner of a funeral march)

meno — less, as in meno mosso (less quickly)

appena — almost none, as in appena forte (almost not at all loud)

misterioso — mysterious

molto — much, very, as in molto allegro (very quick) or molto adagio (very slow)

non troppo — not too much, e.g. allegro non troppo (or allegro ma non troppo) means "fast, but not too much"

non tanto — not so much

più — more, as in più allegro (more quickly); used as a relative indication when the tempo changes

piuttosto — rather, as in piuttosto allegro (rather quick)

poco — slightly, little, as in Poco adagio

poco a poco — little by little

polacca — generic name for Polish dances, usually the polonaise, as in tempo di polacca; note, however, that the "Polacca" in Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 shows little resemblance to the polonaise

primo — principal or early, as in tempo primo, the same tempo as at the beginning

quasi — almost, nearly, as if (such as Più allegro quasi presto, "faster, as if presto")

senza — without, as in senza interruzione (without interruption or pause), senza tempo or senza misura (without strict measure)

sostenuto – sustained, prolonged

subito — suddenly

Note: In addition to the common allegretto, composers freely apply Italian diminutive and superlative suffixes to various tempo indications: andantino, larghetto, adagietto, and larghissimo.

Mood markings with a tempo connotation

Some markings that primarily mark a mood (or character) also have a tempo connotation:

Affettuoso — with feeling/emotion

Agitato — agitated, with implied quickness

Appassionato — to play passionately

Animato — animatedly, lively

Brillante — sparkling, glittering, as in Allegro brillante, Rondo brillante, or Variations brillantes; became fashionable in titles for virtuoso pieces

Cantabile — in singing style (lyrical and flowing)

Dolce — sweetly

Energico — energetic, strong, forceful

Eroico — heroically

Espressivo — expressively

Furioso — to play in an angry or furious manner

Giocoso — merrily, funny

Gioioso — joyfully

Lacrimoso — tearfully, sadly

Grandioso — magnificently, grandly

Grazioso — gracefully

Leggiero — to play lightly, or with light touch

Maestoso — majestic or stately (which generally indicates a solemn, slow march-like movement)

Malinconico — melancholic

Marcato — marching tempo, marked with emphasis

Marziale — in a march style, usually in simple, strongly marked rhythm and regular phrases

Mesto — sad, mournful

Morendo — dying

Nobilmente — nobly (in a noble way)

Patetico — with great emotion

Pesante — heavily

Sautillé/ Saltando — jumpy, fast, and short

Scherzando — playfully

Sostenuto — sustained, sometimes with a slackening of tempo

Spiccato — slow sautillé, with a bouncy manner

Tenerezza — tenderness

Tranquillamente — adverb of tranquillo, "calmly"

Trionfante — triumphantly

Vivace — lively and fast, over 140 bpm (which generally indicates a fast movement)

===Terms for change in tempo===

Composers may use expressive marks to adjust the tempo:

Accelerando — speeding up (abbreviation: accel.)

Allargando — growing broader; decreasing tempo, usually near the end of a piece

Calando — going slower (and usually also softer)

Doppio movimento — double speed

Meno mosso — less movement or slower

Mosso — movement, more lively, or quicker, much like più mosso, but not as extreme

Più mosso — more movement or faster

Precipitando — hurrying, going faster/forward

Rallentando — gradual slowing down (abbreviation: rall.)

Ritardando — less gradual slowing down (more sudden decrease in tempo than rallentando)(abbreviation: rit. or more specifically, ritard.)

Ritenuto — slightly slower; temporarily holding back. (Note that the abbreviation for ritenuto can also be rit. Thus a more specific abbreviation is riten. Also sometimes ritenuto does not reflect a tempo change but a character change instead.)

Rubato — free adjustment of tempo for expressive purposes

Stretto — in faster tempo, often near the conclusion of a section. (Note that in fugal compositions, the term stretto refers to the imitation of the subject in close succession, before the subject is completed, and as such, suitable for the close of the fugue. Used in this context, the term is not necessarily related to tempo.)

Stringendo — pressing on faster

While the base tempo indication (such as allegro) appears in large type above the staff, these adjustments typically appear below the staff or (in the case of keyboard instruments) in the middle of the grand staff.

They generally designate a gradual change in tempo; for immediate tempo shifts, composers normally just provide the designation for the new tempo. (Note, however, that when Più Mosso or Meno Mosso appears in large type above the staff, it functions as a new tempo, and thus implies an immediate change.) Several terms, e.g., assai, molto, poco, subito, control how large and how gradual a change should be (see Common qualifiers).

After a tempo change, a composer may return to a previous tempo in two different ways:

a tempo - returns to the base tempo after an adjustment (e.g. "ritardando ... a tempo" undoes the effect of the ritardando).

Tempo primo or Tempo I - denotes an immediate return to the piece's original base tempo after a section in a different tempo (e.g. "Allegro ... Lento ... Moderato .... Tempo I" indicates a return to the Allegro). This indication often functions as a structural marker in pieces in binary form.

These terms also indicate an immediate, not a gradual, tempo change. Although they are Italian, composers typically use them even if they have written their initial tempo marking in some other language.

Tempo markings in other languages

Although Italian has been the prevalent language for tempo markings throughout most of classical music history, many composers have written tempo indications in their own language. The definitions of the tempo markings mentioned in this section can be found in the Harvard Dictionary of Music and/or the online foreign language dictionaries which are listed in Sources.

French tempo markings

Several composers have written markings in French, among them baroque composers François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau as well as Claude Debussy, Olivier Messiaen, Maurice Ravel and Alexander Scriabin. Common tempo markings in French are:

Au mouvement — play the (first or main) tempo.

Grave — slowly and solemnly

Lent — slowly

Modéré — at a moderate tempo

Moins — less, as in Moins vite (less fast)

Rapide — fast

Très — very, as in Très vif (very lively)

Vif — lively

Vite — fast

Erik Satie was known to write extense tempo (and character) markings by defining them in a poetical and literal way, as in his Gnossiennes.

German tempo markings

Many composers have used German tempo markings. Typical German tempo markings are:

Langsam — slowly

Lebhaft — lively (mood)

Mäßig — moderately

Rasch — quickly

Schnell — fast

Bewegt — animated, with motion One of the first German composers to use tempo markings in his native language was Ludwig van Beethoven. The one using the most elaborate combined tempo and mood markings was probably Gustav Mahler. For example, the second movement of his Symphony No. 9 is marked Im Tempo eines gemächlichen Ländlers, etwas täppisch und sehr derb, indicating a slowish folk-dance–like movement, with some awkwardness and much vulgarity in the execution. Mahler would also sometimes combine German tempo markings with traditional Italian markings, as in the first movement of his sixth symphony, marked Allegro energico, ma non troppo. Heftig, aber markig (Energetically quick, but not too much. Violent, but vigorous).

Tempo markings in English

English indications, for example quickly, have also been used, by Benjamin Britten and Percy Grainger, among many others. In jazz and popular music charts, terms like "fast", "laid back", "steady rock", "medium", "medium-up", "ballad", and similar style indications may appear.

Tempo markings as movement names and compositions with a tempo indicator name

Often, composers (or music publishers) will name movements of compositions after their tempo (and/or mood) marking. For instance the second movement of Samuel Barber's first String Quartet is an "Adagio".

Some such movements may start to lead a life of their own, and become known with the tempo/mood marker name, for instance the string orchestra version of the second movement of Barber's first string quartet became known as Adagio for Strings. A similar example is Mahler's most famous work - the Adagietto from his Symphony No. 5. Another is Mozart's Alla Turca (here indicating the Janissary music type of mood of the final movement of Mozart's 11th Piano Sonata, K. 331)

Sometimes the link between a musical composition with a "tempo" name and a separate movement of a composition is less clear. For instance Albinoni's Adagio, a 20th century creative "reconstruction" based on an incomplete manuscript.

Some composers chose to include tempo indicators in the name of a separate composition, for instance Bartók in Allegro barbaro ("barbaric Allegro"), a single movement composition.

Rushing and dragging

When performers unintentionally speed up, they are said to rush. The similar term for unintentionally slowing down is drag. Musicians generally consider unintentional tempo drift undesirable, and these terms thus carry a negative connotation. Therefore neither rush nor drag (nor their equivalents in other languages) are often used as tempo indications in scores. Mahler is a notable exception. For example, he used schleppend (dragging) as part of a tempo indication in the first movement of his Symphony No. 1.

See also

Alla breve

As Slow As Possible

Half time (music)

Multitemporal music

Stop-time

References

Sources

Books on tempo in music:

Music Dictionaries:

Apel, Willi, ed., Harvard Dictionary of Music, Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1969. ISBN 9780674375017

Sadie, Stanley; John Tyrrell, eds. (2001). The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2nd edition. NewYork: Grove's Dictionaries. ISBN 1561592390.

External links

Research group specializing in rhythm, timing, and tempo, University of Amsterdam

Tempo indications in Mozart's music

Tempo Terminology, Virginia Tech department of music

Tempo variation among and within 300+ recorded performances of Beethoven's 'Eroica' Symphony

Dolmetsch article on tempo

All8.com's - Beats Per Minute counter Tap computer key to the beat

Category:Units of frequency Category:Rhythm Category:Italian loanwords Category:Musical terminology

Name	Fatboy Slim
Background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
Birth name	Quentin Leo Cook
Alias	Fatboy Slim, and others. See pseudonym section
Born	July 31, 1963
Origin	Reigate, Surrey, England
Spouse	Zoe Ball (1999-present)
Genre	Big beat, electronic dance, trip hop, dance, rave
Occupation	DJ, musician, record producer
Instrument	Turntables, keyboard, bass guitar, guitar, drums
Years active	1981–present
Label	Skint, Astralwerks, Southern Fried
Associated acts	The Housemartins, Beats International, Freak Power, Pizzaman, The Brighton Port Authority, David Byrne
Url

Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook on 31 July 1963 in Surrey, England), better known by his stage name Fatboy Slim, is an English DJ, big beat musician and record producer. He is a pioneer of the electronic dance 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, Beats International and Freak Power. He currently performs as the Brighton Port Authority.

History

Quentin Leo Cook was raised in Reigate, Surrey, England, and was educated at Reigate Grammar School. He played drums in Disque Attack (a British new-wave-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 he also met Paul Heaton with whom he formed the Stomping Pondfrogs. At 18, he went to the Brighton Polytechnic to study a BA in English, politics and sociology. Although he had begun DJing some years before, it was at this time that he began to develop his skills on the thriving Brighton club scene.

Known as DJ Quentox (The OX that Rocks) Cook and DJ Baptiste started putting on Youth Club Hip Hop jams in Brighton, sowing the seeds of the City's flourishing Hip Hop scene today. These primitive 80s block parties 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 had formed a guitar band called The Housemartins. Their bassist quit on the eve of their first national tour, so Cook agreed to move to Hull 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" originally a hit the year before for Isley-Jasper-Isley. However, by 1988 they had split up. Heaton and the band's drummer Dave Hemingway went on to form The Beautiful South, 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, with whom he continues to make records. All 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 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, reaching #29.

Cook formed Beats International, a loose confederation of studio musicians including vocalists Lindy Layton, Lester Noel, D.J. Baptiste, rapper MC Wildski, and keyboardist Andy Boucher. Their first album Let Them Eat Bingo included the number one single "Dub Be Good to Me", which caused a legal dispute revolving around allegations of infringement of copyright through the liberal use of unauthorised samples: the bassline was a note-for-note lift from "The Guns of Brixton" by The Clash and the lyrics borrowed heavily from "Just Be Good to Me" by The S.O.S. Band. The 1991 follow-up album Excursion on the Version, an exploration of dub and reggae rhythms, failed to repeat the success of its predecessor, as it did not chart.

Cook then formed Freak Power with horn player Ashley Slater and singer Jesse Graham. They released their debut album Drive Thru Booty in 1994, which contained the single "Turn On, Tune In, Cop Out". 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 album under the name Pizzaman. The 1995 Pizzamania album spawned three UK Top 40 hits in "Trippin' on Sunshine", "Sex on the Streets" and "Happiness". "Happiness" was picked up by the Del Monte Foods corporation for use in a UK fruit juice ad. The music videos for "Trippin' on Sunshine", "Sex on the Streets" and "Happiness" were all directed by Michael Dominic.

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".

Recordings, 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 (released through Skint Records) contained the Top 40 UK hit, "Everybody Needs a 303".

Fatboy Slim's next work was the single "The Rockafeller Skank", released prior to the album You've Come a Long Way, Baby, both of which were released in 1998. "Praise You", also from this album, was Cook's first UK solo number one. Its music video, directed by Spike Jonze, won numerous awards.

In 2003, he produced tracks 3 and 12 for the Blur 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 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, and wrote and produced two original Cuban crossover tracks for the album The Revolution Presents: Revolution, which was released by Studio !K7 and Rapster Records in 2009. The tracks were called "Shelter" (which featured long term collaborator Lateef); 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, and featured a band made up of Cuba's top young musicians, including Harold Lopez Nussa. 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, Beastie Boys, A Tribe Called Quest and Wildchild. In 2008 he did a remix of the track "Amazonas" for the charity Bottletop.

Cook released a mix album in 2010 titled The Legend Returns as a covermount album in the June 2010 issue of Mixmag.

Performances

On 13 July 2002, Fatboy Slim performed the second of his free, open air concerts on Brighton 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,. In 2006, Fatboy Slim filled the Saturday headline slot at the Global Gathering festival, Long Marston Airfield in the English Midlands. He played a two hour set, appearing in front of a visual stage set comprising video screens and 3D lighting. A firework display rounded off the show. Having being banned by police 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 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 Chocholate Factory" 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, Ireland alongside David Guetta, Dizzee Rascal and Calvin Harris; as well as one huge performance at the Sziget Festival in Budapest. He also has 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. On June 18, 2010, he performed in Cape Town, South Africa as part of the Cool Britannia FIFA World Cup music festival at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. On May 30, 2011, he performed as the headliner for Detroit's Electronic Music Festival in Detroit, Michigan, USA.

Biography

Cook was awarded a star on the city of Brighton's Walk of Fame, next to that of Winston Churchill.

He married TV personality Zoë Ball in 1999 at Babington House in Somerset; in January 2003, Cook broke up with Ball but three months later, they reconciled. They have a son named Woody (born 15 December 2000) and a daughter named Nelly May Lois (born 14 January 2010). Cook is a 12% shareholder of the football club he has supported since moving to Brighton in the late 1980s, Brighton & Hove Albion.

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

Because of an extended stay in rehab his performance at Snowbombing (week-long winter sports and music festival held in the Austrian ski resort of Mayrhofen) 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 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), best choreography (Jones as "Richard Koufey") and best breakthrough video. Fatboy Slim's single "The Rockafeller Skank" topped the Village Voice 1999 Pazz & Jop singles poll. In September, 2001, Fatboy Slim's video for "Weapon of Choice", also directed by Spike Jonze, received six prizes at the MTV Video Awards, the most given to a single winner that year. Cook was also a judge for the 6th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers. He has won two Brit Awards, in 1999 and 2001, both for British Dance Act.

Bands and pseudonyms

Norman Cook, now his real name !width="30" align="center"|AUS !width="30" align="center"|AUT !width="30" align="center"|BEL (F) !width="30" align="center"|BEL (W) !width="30" align="center"|FIN !width="30" align="center"|FRA !width="30" align="center"|NLD !width="30" align="center"|NOR !width="30" align="center"|NZ !width="30" align="center"|SWE !width="30" align="center"|SWI !width="30" align="center"|US !width="30" align="center"|USDance |- |1996 |Better Living Through Chemistry

Label: Skint

Released: 23 September 1996

Format: CD, CS, LP

|align="center"|69 |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|50 |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|‒ | |- |1998 |You've Come a Long Way, Baby

Label: Skint (UK), Astralwerks (U.S.)

Released: 19 October 1998

Format: CD, CS, LP, MD

|align="center"|1 |align="center"|2 |align="center"|13 |align="center"|27 |align="center"|35 |align="center"|29 |align="center"|10 |align="center"|27 |align="center"|20 |align="center"|1 |align="center"|24 |align="center"|23 |align="center"|34 |align="center"|‒ | UK: 3× Platinum AUS: 3× Platinum EU: 2×Platinum U.S.: Platinum

FRA: Platinum

|- |2000 |Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars

Label: Skint (UK), Astralwerks (U.S.)

Released: 6 November 2000

Format: CD, CS, LP, MD

|align="center"|8 |align="center"|6 |align="center"|22 |align="center"|30 |align="center"|‒ |align="center"|39 |align="center"|21 |align="center"|64 |align="center"|23 |align="center"|10 |align="center"|49 |align="center"|35 |align="center"|51 |align="center"|‒ | UK: Platinum

Compilation albums

As Fatboy Slim

Featured singles

As Norman Cook

As The Brighton Port Authority

;Notes II Denotes chart position on the Belgian Ultratip chart. III Denotes chart position for the uncensored version of the song ("Star 69 (What the Fuck)"). IV Denotes chart position for the censored version of the song ("Star 69 (What the F*ck)"). V The single release charted as a double A-side single ("Won't Talk About It"/"Blame It on the Bassline") in the UK. Only "Blame It on the Bassline" was counted as charting in New Zealand.

Video

DVDs

As Fatboy Slim

See also

The Chemical Brothers

The Prodigy

The Crystal Method

Notes

External links

A Conversation with Norman Cook

Fatboy Slim (Discography) – beatbuggy.com

Norman Cook's Cuban Tracks on The Revolution Presents: Revolution

Video: Norman Cook In Cuba (Interview)

Category:Electronica musicians Category:English electronic musicians Category:Music from Brighton, England Category:English football chairmen and investors Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:Old Reigatians Category:Alumni of the University of Brighton Category:Breakbeat musicians Category:BRIT Award winners Category:Ivor Novello Award winners Category:Grammy Award winners Category:The Housemartins members Category:Remixers Category:People from Hove