The Fat of the Land is an album by The Prodigy. The album was released by XL Recordings on June 30, 1997 (and on July 1, 1997 in the USA). The album is commonly considered the most successful dance album of all time, as it reached number 1 on the Billboard 200.

History

The album caused some controversy in Britain. The video for the first single, "Firestarter", caused a minor uproar because of vocalist Keith Flint's appearance, and several people objected to the seeming misogyny of "Smack My Bitch Up", though the band maintains that its true interpretation is "...doing anything intensely..."

"Mindfields" later appeared on the soundtrack of the film The Matrix, while "Smack My Bitch Up" has appeared in both Charlie's Angels and Closer. "Funky Shit" appeared in the trailers for the film Event Horizon and also played over the end credits.

"Serial Thrilla" features a sample of a riff by Skunk Anansie, "Funky Shit" features a sample from "Root Down" from the Beastie Boys album Ill Communication, "Fuel My Fire" is a cover of an L7 song from Hungry for Stink. "Smack My Bitch Up" takes a sample from an Ultramagnetic MCs song, "Give the Drummer Some", and thus the Prodigy invited Kool Keith to do the lyrics and vocals for another track, "Diesel Power." Matt Cameron of Soundgarden, who is falsely credited as "Mark" in the liner notes, is also understood to have contributed samples to the album, though it is not clear where.

Reception

The album entered the Guinness World Records as the fastest-selling UK album in 1999 and was also nominated for a Grammy Award. The album debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. This was an extremely rare feat as most electronic music albums fail to sell well in the U.S. The album has since gone double platinum selling over 2 million units in the U.S.

The album was nominated for the 1997 Mercury Music Prize.

In 1998 Q magazine readers voted The Fat of the Land the ninth greatest album of all time. In 2000 Q placed it at number 47 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. Q (10/01, p.46) - Ranked #43 in Q's "Best 50 Albums of Q's Lifetime." Q (12/99, p.92) - Included in Q Magazine's "90 Best Albums Of The 1990s." Q (1/98, p.114) - Included in Q Magazine's "50 Best Albums of 1997."

Rolling Stone (5/13/99, p.82) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Essential Recordings of the 90's."

Spin (1/98, p.87) - Ranked #20 on Spin's list of the "Top 20 Albums Of The Year."

Melody Maker (12/20-27/97, pp.66-67) - Ranked #13 on Melody Maker's list of 1997's "Albums Of The Year."

Village Voice (2/24/98) - Ranked #29 in the Village Voice's 1997 Pazz & Jop Critics' Poll.

NME (12/20-27/97, pp.78-79) - Ranked #17 in NME's 1997 Critics' Poll.

The album is included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

In 2004, KISS co-founder Gene Simmons covered "Firestarter" on his second solo album, Asshole.

Track listing

1. "Smack My Bitch Up" (Liam Howlett, M. Smith, C. Miller, K. Keith, T. Randolph) – 5:42
2. "Breathe" (L. Howlett, Keith Flint, Maxim Reality) – 5:35
3. "Diesel Power" (L. Howlett, Kool Keith) – 4:17
4. "Funky Shit" (L. Howlett) – 5:16
5. "Serial Thrilla" (L. Howlett, K. Flint, Skin, Arran) – 5:11
6. "Mindfields" (L. Howlett, Maxim) – 5:40
7. "Narayan" (L. Howlett, C. Mills) – 9:05
8. "Firestarter" (L. Howlett, K. Flint, T. Horn, A. Dudley, J. Jeczalik, P. Morley, G. Langan, K. Deal) – 4:40
9. "Climbatize" (L. Howlett) – 6:38
10. "Fuel My Fire" (Donita Sparks, Walsh, James, Knight) – 4:19
11. "Molotov Bitch" (Japan bonus track) – 4:56
12. "One Man Army" (Japan bonus track) – 4:10

Personnel

The Prodigy

• Keith Flint – Vocals
• Liam Howlett – producer, art direction, mixing
• Maxim – Vocals

Additional musicians

• Shahin Badar – Vocals
• Jim Davies (Pitchshifter) – guitar
• Kool Keith – Vocals
• Crispian Mills (Kula Shaker) – Vocals
• Saffron (Republica) – Vocals
• Matt Cameron (Soundgarden) – drums

Other personnel

• Neil McLellan – engineer
• Christian Ammann – photography
• Jake Holloway – illustrations
• Alex Jenkins – art direction, design, photography
• Pat Pope – photography
• Alex Scaglia – photography
• Lou Smith – photography
• Terry Whittaker – photography
• Konrad Wothe – photography

Chart positions

Album

Chart (1997)	Peak position
UK Albums Chart	1
Australian ARIA Albums Chart	1
U.S. Billboard 200	1
Canadian Albums Chart	1
Swedish Albums top 60	1

Singles

Year	Song	Chart	Peak position
1996	"Firestarter"	UK Singles Chart	1
1996	"Breathe"	UK Singles Chart	1
1996	"Firestarter"	Australian ARIA Singles Chart	22
1996	"Breathe"	Australian ARIA Singles Chart	2
1997	"Smack My Bitch Up"	UK Singles Chart	8
1997	"Smack My Bitch Up"	Australian ARIA Singles Chart	41
1997	"Smack My Bitch Up"	Canadian Singles Chart	12
1997	"Firestarter"	U.S. Billboard Hot 100	30
1997	"Firestarter"	U.S. Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales	11
1997	"Firestarter"	U.S. Modern Rock Tracks	24
1997	"Breathe	U.S. Modern Rock Tracks	18
1997	"Smack My Bitch Up"	U.S. Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales	19
1998	"Smack My Bitch Up"	U.S. Billboard Hot 100	89

References