Van Helden was born in Boston on February 17, 1970 to a Dutch-Indonesian father and a French-Lebanese mother, but travelled around the world as a child spending time in the Netherlands, Turkey and Italy, as his father was a member of the US Air Force. At the age of thirteen, he bought a drum machine and started DJing two years later.
He returned to Boston in 1988 but also moonlighted as a DJ in Boston clubs. He attended Boston University. He quit his legal review job in 1989 to work as a remixer/producer for Mega-Mixx Productions DJ Remix Service (co-founded by his long time manager, Neil Petricone) where he reworked and re-edited a number of club records for the DJ-only service, including Shawn Christopher's "Another Sleepless Night." He also took up an occupancy at 'The Loft', Boston's leading nightclub.
Mega-Mixx's success was short lived. Mismanagement brought the company to a halt in early 1991. Later that year, he and Petricone, along with founding A&R coordinator, Tony Zeoli, launched X-Mix Productions, a similar DJ Remix service, which still exists today (http://www.xmix.com). Catching the attention of legendary Strictly Rhythm and Nervous Records A&R guru, Glady Pizarro, in 1992 Van Helden released his first official single "Stay On My Mind" under the psuedonym Deep Creed, through Nervous Records.
He released "Move It To the Left" (credited to Sultans of Swing) in 1992 on the Strictly Rhythm label, which became a moderate club hit. His first track to make the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart was "Witch Doktor" which made the top 5 in 1994.
The success of "Witch Doktor" led to opportunities to remix acts such as The Real McCoy ("Another Night", New Order ("Bizarre Love Triangle"), Blondie ("Atomic), Capella ("U Got To Know"), Lightning Seeds ("Jackie Lucky"), Deep Forest ("Marta's Song"), Jimmy Somerville ("Heartbeat"), Deee-Lite ("Dewdrops In The Garden") and Faithless ("Insomnia"). However, it was the "Professional Widow" remix that established him and became a dance hit around the world as well as a number one hit in the UK. Unfortunately, Van Helden did not receive a penny for this mix as he presented it uncommissioned, and thus was not entitled to compensation. However, it led to work remixing The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears and Puff Daddy as well as Daft Punk and the Sneaker Pimps, and adding to his reputation as one of the world's top house musicians.
Within dance music circles, Van Helden is widely credited for the introduction of the U.K. bred Speed Garage sound to the U.S. club scene with incredible set of remixes. The sound, identifiable by its deep bass subtones, long melodic breaks, and devestatingly hard hitting beats are exemplified in the following remixes beginning in 1995 with Jimmy Somerville "Heartbeat"; CJ Bolland's "Sugar Is Sweeter"; Faithless "Insomnia"; Tori Amos "Professional Widow"; Apollo 440 "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub"; and Sneaker Pimps "Spin, Spin, Sugar."
"Cha Cha" was another top ten dance hit from his first album Old School Junkies released in 1996, along with "The Funk Phenomena". A greatest hits album appeared the next year followed by a breakbeat album later in 1997. "U Don't Know Me," a collaboration with vocalist Duane Harden from the album, "2 Futur 4 U," was a number two hit on the Billboard dance chart, a Number one in the UK and a top 20 single on the pop charts in Australia and Canada.
In 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh, Armand Van Helden explained, "You Don't Know Me was a perfect example of putting 2 simple things together, the beats from Jaydee's Plastic Dreams and a disco loop from Carrie Lucas."
Van Helden released the Killing Puritans album in 2000 which contained the dance hit "Koochy". His single "Why Can't You Spend Some Time" made the number 34 in the UK in 2001. His New York: A Mix Odyssey album released in 2004 produced two hits:
* "Hear my Name" reached number 7 on the Billboard dance chart, was top 30 on world and internet charts, made number 34 in the UK, and reached the top 40 in Australia; and
* "My My My" reached number 4 on the world internet charts, number 5 in the Belgian and Dutch charts, number 6 in Australia, number 15 in the UK and top 30 in the world dance charts.
In 2010 Van Helden teamed with A-Trak to form the duo Duck Sauce. They had an international smash hit with "Barbra Streisand," which used an ingenious sample from Boney M.
A Track Called Jack
Armand van Helden Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Check it down
Check it through the underground
Check the place
Check the space
Check the track all in your face
Check it hot
Check with everything you got
Check the roof
Check the proof
Checks the ones that makes you move
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check the sound
Check it down
Check it through the underground
Check the place
Check the space
Check the track all in your face
Check the spot
Check it hot
Check with everything you got
Check the roof
Check the proof
Checks the one that makes you move
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check, check
Check the sound
Check it down
Check it through the underground
Check the place
Check the space
Check the track all in your face
Check the spot
Check it hot
Check with everything you got
Check the roof
Check the proof
Checks the one that makes you move
The lyrics in Armand van Helden's song "A Track Called Jack" include several repetitions of various commands to check the sound, place, track, spot, roof, proof, and more. These commands are all directed at the listener, urging them to engage fully with the music and surroundings. The lyrics emphasize the importance of feeling the rhythm and connecting with others through the shared experience of dancing to a great track.
The repetition of the "check" commands throughout the song creates a hypnotic effect that draws the listener further into the music. The lyrics also reference the underground club scene, where the best dance tracks are often found. The focus on the physical effects of the music, such as making people move, highlights the power of dance to bring people together and create a sense of community.
Line by Line Meaning
Check the sound
Assess the quality of the music
Check it down
Make sure the music is loud
Check it through the underground
Ensure the music is reaching all areas of the venue
Check the place
Ensure the venue is suitable for the desired vibe
Check the space
Ensure there is enough room in the venue
Check the track all in your face
Make sure the music is in your face and engaging
Check the spot
Ensure the specific area of the venue is suitable for dancing
Check it hot
Make sure the energy in the venue is high
Check with everything you got
Put all your effort into enjoying yourself
Check the roof
Ensure the venue has a high ceiling to accommodate energetic dance moves
Check the proof
Confirm that the music is causing people to dance
Checks the one that makes you move
Make sure the music being played is causing people to dance
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: ARMAND VAN HELDEN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
mark connolly 18,04,1970
very intresting to listen too ,i thought is this gonna be another-one of them,but after listening,just reminds me of the warm ups ya get in the clubs.yeh ,i'll give it 7 out ov 10
Nacho Uribe
!♥!
ErdoS845
A Track... A-Trak...... Hmmm
ReliableProductions
Idiotproof remix FTW. This sucks compared to it!