Pulp disbanded in 2002 (although they have reformed on a number occasions since), but Cocker has been busy. In 2003, he re-emerged to promote a new album A Heavy Nite With... for his new band, Relaxed Muscle. 2005 then brought Cocker briefly back into the limelight with his contribution to the soundtrack for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. He also collaborated with and wrote lyrics for Nancy Sinatra's and Charlotte Gainsbourg's comeback albums.
Cocker embarked on a solo career under his own name with an album entitled Jarvis (2006). His sophomore effort Further Complications (produced by Steve Albini) was released in 2009.
Cocker released an album called Room 29 (2017) with Chilly Gonzales and then started a new band called Jarv is..., with which he released the critically acclaimed and very successful album Beyond the Pale (2020).
2021 saw the release of Chansons d'Ennui Tip-Top, which served as a companion release to the soundtrack for Wes Anderson's 2021 film, The French Dispatch. Cocker sang the songs in film character, the name of this character being Tip-Top, which explains why the album is sometimes simply referred to as Chansons d'Ennui, formally credited to Tip-Top.
More film music followed in 2022, as Cocker recorded the original soundtrack to the film This Is Going To Hurt. This where it gets complicated: the band name Jarv is... can be spotted on the artwork of This Is Going To Hurt (Original Soundtrack), but the score is listed on streaming platforms such as Spotify under Jarvis Cocker. As a matter of fact, the band name Jarv is... seems to have been dropped altogether, as all Jarv is... albums are now also listed under Jarvis Cocker.
Fat Children
Jarvis Cocker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They wobbled menacingly
Beneath the yellow street light it became a situation
Well, they wanted my brand-new phone with all the pictures of the kids and the wife
A struggle ensued and then fat children took my life
Fat children took my life
Fat children took my life
Well, some passers-by took me to the station
The police force was elsewhere,
Putting bullets in some guy's head for no particular reason
So I died in the back of the cab
But I'll be back to haunt them
This thing does not end here
My spirit walks the streets of Tottenham
Singing:
Fat children took my life
Fat children took my life
Fat children took my life
Oh, the parents are the problem
Giving birth to maggots without the sense to become flies
So pander to your pampered little princess
Of such enormous size
Jarvis Cocker's song Fat Children tells a story about a man who gets mugged and killed by a group of overweight children. In the first verse, the singer describes the altercation, highlighting the fact that these kids were intimidating even though they were overweight. They demand his brand-new phone, and when he resists, a struggle ensues, and the fat children eventually take his life.
In the second verse, the singer's body is taken to the police station, but the police are too busy with another case to investigate his death. The singer's spirit then haunts the streets of Tottenham, singing about the fact that his life was taken by fat children. In the bridge, the singer blames the parents for the children's obesity, accusing them of giving birth to "maggots without the sense to become flies." He also criticizes parents for pandering to their overweight children's every whim, leading to their enormous size.
Cocker's lyrics are both satirical and biting, highlighting the serious issue of childhood obesity while also mocking societal attitudes towards it. The use of overweight children as the villains of the story challenges cultural perceptions of obesity and its causes, while also drawing attention to the serious health problems associated with it.
Line by Line Meaning
Last night I had a little altercation
The singer had a small dispute last night
They wobbled menacingly
The group of people he had a dispute with were large and threatening
Beneath the yellow street light it became a situation
The disagreement occurred in a dangerous part of town
Well, they wanted my brand-new phone with all the pictures of the kids and the wife
The group of people were attempting to steal the artist's phone which had sentimental value
A struggle ensued and then fat children took my life
After a physical tussle, the overweight children took the artist's life
Well, some passers-by took me to the station
Good Samaritans took the singer to the nearby police station
The police force was elsewhere, Putting bullets in some guy's head for no particular reason
The police were preoccupied with an unrelated violent incident
So I died in the back of the cab
The artist passed away in the taxi while en route to the station
But I'll be back to haunt them
Even though he's dead, the artist wants to haunt his killers
This thing does not end here
The artist doesn't want his death to be forgotten
My spirit walks the streets of Tottenham
The singer's ghost can be felt in the area he died
Oh, the parents are the problem
The song is shifting focus to societal problems that lead to the creation of violent children
Giving birth to maggots without the sense to become flies
Parents are often unaware or irresponsible when it comes to their children's growth and development
So pander to your pampered little princess, Of such enormous size
The singer suggests that parents are too focused on spoiling their kids instead of correcting their problematic behavior
Fat children took my life
The chorus is repeated to emphasize the tragedy of the singer's death
Fat children took my life
The chorus is repeated to emphasize the tragedy of the artist's death
Fat children took my life
The chorus is repeated to emphasize the tragedy of the artist's death
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JARVIS BRANSON COCKER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind