History
Formation and first albums: 1993–1999
The band was formed in 1993 by Huey Morgan, Brian "Fast" Leiser and Steve Borgovini after Leiser, who was already friends with Borgovini, met Morgan at the club where they both worked.[14] They started playing together and would provide the entertainment for the club when a booked act failed to show up. It was during one of these stand-in gigs that they came to the attention of EMI and they were offered a record deal.
Come Find Yourself, the band's first album, was released in the summer of 1996 by Chrysalis Records and followed their single "The Grave And The Constant" (UK No. 72), which was released a month earlier, into the UK charts. The album also featured the UK Top 40 hits, "Scooby Snacks" (UK No. 22), "The Fun Lovin' Criminal" (UK No. 26) and "King Of New York" (UK No. 28). The subject of latter touched on the imprisonment of Italian-American mafioso John Gotti, the wannabe gangsters emulating his style, and his fans and followers in his community that maintained his innocence. The biggest hit, "Scooby Snacks", features samples from films by Quentin Tarantino and a guitar sample from Tones On Tail song "Movement of Fear", interspersed with rap verses and a sung, anthemic, chorus. Come Find Yourself had a slow rise up the UK Albums Chart, finally peaking at No. 7 and spending well over a year in the chart, however it failed to make any impact in the US. The success of the album prompted the re-release of "Scooby Snacks" as a single, alongside a cover of the 10cc classic "I'm Not In Love", which this time reached UK No. 12.[14]
100% Colombian, released in August 1998 by Virgin Records,[14] had a far grittier sound to it tempered by three upbeat songs, and several downtempo tracks, including "Love Unlimited", a tribute to Barry White. "Korean Bodega", one of the aforementioned upbeat songs, was the biggest hit from the album, reaching No. 15, their second-highest placing single so far after the re-release of "Scooby Snacks".[14]
In June 1999 the band played at Glastonbury Festival on the Pyramid Stage. Their December 1999 album Mimosa, released by EMI was a compilation album consisting mostly of laid back lounge style covers and different versions of earlier released tracks. While making reasonable sales, the album was their weakest selling album yet and remained so for some years. It was around this time, in 1999, that Steve Borgovini left the band. He was replaced by Maxwell "Mackie" Jayson. A permanent replacement was found in 2003 in the form of Mark Reid (aka Frank Benbini) from Leicester, United Kingdom, who had previously worked with the band as Jayson's technician.
Mainstream success: 2000–2008
The band's third studio album, Loco, was released in early 2001. Back under EMI, the album had all new songs including the eponymous single which became their biggest hit yet, reaching No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart. It was the only single release from the album to reach the UK Top 40, and its success helped Loco to reach No. 5 in the UK Albums Chart.
Their final album under EMI was a "best of" compilation called Bag of Hits released in 2002. It was released in both one and two disc versions, with the second disc featuring remixes of Fun Lovin' Criminals songs by other artists. EMI released this album against the wishes of the band, who were not happy with the two disc version. However, despite their objections it reached No. 11 in the UK Albums Chart.
After parting company with EMI the band was picked up by Sanctuary Records in the UK, under which they released their fourth studio album Welcome to Poppy's (2003). While it received strong, but not fantastic, music reviews it failed to live up to the commercial success of any of the previous albums, peaking at No. 20 in the UK Albums Chart. The best-selling single from the album reached No. 61.
EMI continued to release the band's back catalog, as well as unreleased songs on two more albums. The Fun Lovin' Criminals made no further releases until 2005 album Livin' in the City, still under Sanctuary Records. This was very much a love letter to New York with many songs extolling the virtues of the city.
In June 2008 they made their second appearance at the Glastonbury Festival, this time on the Jazz World Stage.
2009–present
In April 2010 Classic Fantastic was released, kicking off a European tour which began in Manchester. Legal wranglings with their previous manager meant that this album was their first official output in five years, although they had played live during this period. Leiser and Benbini had produced much of the album in London, while Morgan recorded his parts in New York.
Classic Fantastic was the first album on Kilohertz, the band's own label, and signaled a new business model for the Fun Lovin' Criminals based on touring their live shows rather than relying on record sales alone. Singles from the album were the title track "Classic Fantastic" followed by "Mr Sun". The official video for "Mr Sun" was cancelled due to volcanic ash, and a montage of old home movies was used in its place.
The third single was the double A-side "We The Three" and "Keep On Yellin" featuring South London's Roots Manuva, released August 16, 2010. During July 2010 the band recorded a special series of songs with Roots Manuva. The project, dubbed "Criminal Manuvas", was recorded at Maida Vale studios for BBC Radio 6 Music; songs included a reggae version of "Scooby Snacks" and an alternative version of "Witness".
In September 2010 the band were touring, and they announced a live album: Fun, Live and Criminal via Pledge Music.
In March 2014 they released The Bong Remains The Same, a live concert video.
In February 2016, they released a deluxe, expanded edition of debut album "Come Find Yourself" to mark its 20th anniversary, and the band toured the album by performing it in full alongside some of their other tracks, throughout the UK and Europe, and at a number of festivals that Summer and into 2017. In January 2019, The band released the follow-up to their "Mimosa" compilation, titled "Another Mimosa", which features covers of some of their favourite songs. The band have also been working on their 7th studio album of new original material, expected in 2020.
Side projects
Huey Morgan is a radio personality on BBC.[11][15]Morgan has appeared on Jack Osbourne's Adrenaline Junkie, a boy racer show Slips, sat in for Jonathan Ross and Dermot O'Leary on BBC Radio 2, appeared in Soulboy (film) as a Dick Van Dyke accented London record shop owner, voiced a character in the Scarface: The World Is Yours video game, and most bizarrely appeared with Liza Tarbuck on Liza & Huey's Pet Nation on prime-time SKY TV.
All three band members have released side-projects. Benbini's band Uncle Frank has released an album, as has Leiser, albeit some of his previous 'unreleased' work. Both Leiser and Benbini have collaborated on myriad remixes as well as a full remix album in a reggae-dub style under the moniker Radio Riddler. Morgan has released an album Say it to my Face and toured with several acquaintances, including Benbini, as Huey and the New Yorkers, raising money for veterans as he did so.
Microphone Fiend
Fun Lovin' Criminals Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I melted microphones instead of cones of ice cream
Music orientated so when hip-hop was originated
Fitted like pieces of puzzles, complicated
Cause I grabbed the mic and try to say - Yes y'all!
They tried to take it, and say that I'm too small
Cool, cool 'Cause I don't get upset
Back to the lab without a mic to grab
So then I add all the rhymes I had
One after the other one, then I make another one
To dis the opposite then ask if the brother's done
I get a craving like a fiend for nicotine
But I don't need a cigarette, know what I mean
I'm raging, ripping up the stage and
Don't it sound amazing 'cause every rhyme is made and
Thought of
Cuz it's sort of an addiction,
Magnetized by the mixing
Vocals, vocabulary, your verses, you're stuck in
The mic is a drano, volcanoes erupting,
Rhymes overflowing, gradually growing
Everything is written in the cold, so we can coincide,
my thoughts to guide
48 tracks to slide
The invincible, microphone fiend
Rakim
Spread the word 'cause he's in
E-F-F-E-C-T
A smooth operator operating correctly
But back to the problem
I gotta habit
I ain't a solving it, silly rabbit
The prescription is a hypertone that's thorough when
A fiend for a microphone like heroin
Soon as the bass kicks, I need a fix
So gimme a stage and a mic and a mix
And I'll put you in a mood or is it a state of unawareness
Beware, it's the reanamator
A menace to a microphone, a lethal weapon
An assassinator, if the people ain't stepping
You see a part of me that you never seen
When I'm fiending for a microphone,
I'm the microphone fiend
After 12,
I'm worse than a Gremlin
Feed me Hip-hop and I start trembling
It's the thrill of suspense that's intense, you're horrified
But this ain't the cinemas of "Tales From the Darkside"(darkside)
By any means necessary, this is what had to be done
Make way 'cause here I come
Fisty cuts material, material
Call imperial, call imperial
It's a must that I bust any mic you hand to me,
It's inherited, it's runs in the family
See I wrote the rhyme that broke the bull's back,
If that don't slow 'em up,
I carry a full pack.
Now I don't want to have to let off, you should of kept off
You didn't keep the stage warm, so step off
Ladies and Gentleman
You're about to see
A past time hobby about to be,
Take it to the maximum,
I can't relax see,
I'm hype as a hypochondriac 'cause the rap be one
Hell of a antidote, something you can't smoke
More than dope, you're trying to move away but you can't, you're broke
More than cracked up, you should have backed up
For those who act up need to be more than smacked up
Any entertainer, I got a torture chamber
One on one and I'm the remainder (remainder)
So close your eyes and hold your breath,
And I'm a hit'cha wit the blow of death (death)
Before you go, you'll remember you seen
The fiend from a microphone,
I'm the microphone fiend, fiend, fiend, fiend
The microphone fiend, fiend, fiend, fiend .
The microphone fiend, fiend, fiend
I'm a mic, I'm a mic, I'm a microphone fiend, fiend, fiend
I'm a mic, I'm a mic, I'm a microphone fiend, fiend, fiend
The lyrics to Fun Lovin' Criminal's "Microphone Fiend" describe the addictive nature of hip-hop, particularly the thrill of performing on stage and rapping into a microphone. The singer is a "fiend" for the microphone, constantly seeking its power and using it to create intricate rhymes and verbal puzzles. He compares his addiction to that of a smoker, and the intensity of his performances to the erupting of volcanoes.
The singer acknowledges that his love for hip-hop is complicated, and that he experiences both pleasure and pain from his addiction to the microphone. He refers to himself as an "assassinator" and a "lethal weapon" when it comes to rapping, and warns that he is a menace to anyone who steps in his way. The lyrics also discuss the importance of family heritage in hip-hop, with the singer stating that his talent for rhyming runs in his family.
Line by Line Meaning
I was a fiend (fiend) before I became a teen
I was addicted to the mic before I even turned 13
I melted microphones instead of cones of ice cream
I destroyed microphones with my skills just like ice cream melts under the sun
Music orientated so when hip-hop was originated
I was interested in music, especially hip-hop when it first emerged
Fitted like pieces of puzzles, complicated
I fit perfectly into the world of hip-hop, but it wasn't easy
Cause I grabbed the mic and try to say - Yes y'all!
I grabbed the mic and confidently said 'Yes y'all!'
They tried to take it, and say that I'm too small
Others tried to take my mic away saying that I was too insignificant
Cool, cool 'Cause I don't get upset
I remained calm and didn't get angry
I kick a hole in the speaker, pull the plug, then I jet
I expressed my frustration by damaging the equipment and leaving quickly
Back to the lab without a mic to grab
I went back to my studio without a mic to record with
So then I add all the rhymes I had
I added all the rhymes I had previously written
One after the other one, then I make another one
I wrote new rhymes one after the other
To dis the opposite then ask if the brother's done
I dissed my opponents with my rhymes then asked if they were finished
I get a craving like a fiend for nicotine
I have a strong desire for the mic like a smoker craves nicotine
But I don't need a cigarette, know what I mean
I don't need anything else, just the mic
I'm raging, ripping up the stage and
I'm performing with passion and energy
Don't it sound amazing 'cause every rhyme is made and
My rhymes sound incredible because I worked hard on them
Thought of
Every rhyme I write is meticulously thought out
Cuz it's sort of an addiction,
Writing rhymes is like an addiction to me
Magnetized by the mixing
I'm drawn to the process of mixing music
Vocals, vocabulary, your verses, you're stuck in
My love for rap music and its elements is so strong that I can't escape it
The mic is a drano, volcanoes erupting,
The microphone is like a drain cleaner, it brings out powerful emotions and performances
Rhymes overflowing, gradually growing
My rhymes pour out of me like water and evolve over time
Everything is written in the cold, so we can coincide,
Everything I write is from the heart, even if it's not warm and fuzzy, and it resonates with others
my thoughts to guide
My thoughts guide my writing and performance
48 tracks to slide
I have numerous tracks to perform or record with
The invincible, microphone fiend
I am unstoppable on the mic
Rakim
Referring to the rapper Rakim, who was known for his skills on the mic
Spread the word 'cause he's in
Let others know that Rakim is a force to be reckoned with
E-F-F-E-C-T
Effective in every aspect
A smooth operator operating correctly
I am a smooth performer who does everything right
But back to the problem
Moving on to the main issue
I gotta habit
I have a habit of rhyming and performing
I ain't a solving it, silly rabbit
I can't solve this issue, it's not that simple
The prescription is a hypertone that's thorough when
The solution is to perform with a lot of energy
A fiend for a microphone like heroin
I am addicted to the microphone and performing, just like someone might be addicted to heroin
Soon as the bass kicks, I need a fix
As soon as the bass starts playing, I need to perform
So gimme a stage and a mic and a mix
All I need to perform is a stage, microphone, and music
And I'll put you in a mood or is it a state of unawareness
My performance will either put you in a good mood or a trance-like state
Beware, it's the reanamator
Be careful, I bring life to my rhymes and performances
A menace to a microphone, a lethal weapon
I am dangerous to the microphone, my skills are like a weapon
An assassinator, if the people ain't stepping
I will kill it on the mic, unless the audience is not responsive
You see a part of me that you never seen
My performance shows a different side of myself that you may not have seen before
When I'm fiending for a microphone,
When I'm craving to perform on the mic
I'm the microphone fiend
I am the ultimate performer on the mic
After 12,
After midnight
I'm worse than a Gremlin
I become even more energetic and unstoppable
Feed me Hip-hop and I start trembling
Just like feeding a Gremlin after midnight, giving me hip-hop music makes me excited
It's the thrill of suspense that's intense, you're horrified
The excitement of not knowing what's going to happen next is scary and intense
But this ain't the cinemas of "Tales From the Darkside"
This isn't just a movie, it's real life music
By any means necessary, this is what had to be done
I had to pursue music using any means necessary
Make way 'cause here I come
Watch out, I am coming through with my skills
Fisty cuts material, material
My rhymes are top quality
Call imperial, call imperial
My rhymes are superior, so call me imperial
It's a must that I bust any mic you hand to me,
I have to perform on any microphone given to me
It's inherited, it's runs in the family
Performing runs in my family, it's in my blood
See I wrote the rhyme that broke the bull's back,
I wrote the rhyme that ended someone's career or dominance
If that don't slow 'em up,
If that doesn't stop their momentum
I carry a full pack.
I have more rhymes to use against them
Now I don't want to have to let off, you should of kept off
I don't want to have to diss anyone, they should have stayed away
You didn't keep the stage warm, so step off
You didn't perform well enough, so leave the stage
Ladies and Gentleman
Announcing my arrival
You're about to see
Get ready to witness
A past time hobby about to be,
My hobby is about to become serious business
Take it to the maximum,
Pushing myself to the limit
I can't relax see,
I can't calm down
I'm hype as a hypochondriac 'cause the rap be one
I'm excited and anxious because rap music is my life
Hell of a antidote, something you can't smoke
My music is like medicine, it can't be smoked but it has healing properties
More than dope, you're trying to move away but you can't, you're broke
My rhymes are addictive like drugs and you can't escape them, they leave you wanting more even if you're broke
More than cracked up, you should have backed up
My rhymes are more than just a joke, you should have stayed out of my way
For those who act up need to be more than smacked up
Those who misbehave or challenge me need to be more than just punished
Any entertainer, I got a torture chamber
I am challenging any performer to a battle, and the consequences will be severe
One on one and I'm the remainder (remainder)
I am the last one standing in any battle, winning every time
So close your eyes and hold your breath,
Get ready for a mind-blowing performance
And I'm a hit'cha wit the blow of death (death)
I will hit you with a deadly performance
Before you go, you'll remember you seen
Before you leave, you will never forget what you saw
The fiend from a microphone,
The ultimate performer on the mic
I'm the microphone fiend, fiend, fiend, fiend
I am the unstoppable and addictive microphone fiend
The microphone fiend, fiend, fiend, fiend .
Reinforcing that I am the ultimate performer on the mic
The microphone fiend, fiend, fiend
One last reminder that I am the ultimate performer on the mic
I'm a mic, I'm a mic, I'm a microphone fiend, fiend, fiend
My addiction and love for the microphone is so strong that I become one with it
I'm a mic, I'm a mic, I'm a microphone fiend, fiend, fiend
Reinforcing my addiction and love for the microphone
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ROGER BALL, ERIC BARRIER, MALCOLM DUNCAN, STEPHEN FERRONE, ALAN EDWARD GORRIE, WILLIAM GRIFFIN, OWEN ONNIE MCINTYRE, HAMISH STUART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Valliwulf
on The Fun loving criminal
This is wrong it was released in 96 are you sure it's not a music making program like studio 2000. Where no talent ppl make their fame?