"The Rockafeller Skank", usually called "Funk Soul Brother" by fans, is a song by English

big beat Big beat is an electronic music genre that usually uses heavy breakbeats and synthesizer-generated loops and patterns – common to acid house/techno. The term has been used by the British music industry to describe music by artists such as th ...

musician and DJ

Fatboy Slim Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook, 31 July 1963), also known by his stage name Fatboy Slim, is an English musician, DJ, and record producer who helped to popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. In the 1980s, Cook was the bassist ...

. It was released as the lead single from his second studio album, ''

You've Come a Long Way, Baby ''You've Come a Long Way, Baby'' is the second studio album by Fatboy Slim, a project of English electronic music producer Norman Cook. It was first released on 19 October 1998 in the United Kingdom by Skint Records and a day later in the Unit ...

'' (1998), on 8 June 1998. The single peaked at number six on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in June 1998 and topped the Icelandic Singles Chart for a week the same month and was the second Fatboy Slim single (after "

Praise You "Praise You" is a song by British big beat musician Fatboy Slim. It was released as the third single from his second studio album, ''You've Come a Long Way, Baby'' (1998), on 4 January 1999. It reached number one on the UK Singles Chart and in ...

") to chart on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at number 78. In 2022, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' ranked "The Rockafeller Skank" number 199 their list of ''200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time''.

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' wrote, "Using self-consciously old-school DJ techniques (scratching and repetition of a spoken phrase, dramatic tempo changes), Fatboy Slim has created an organically simple masterpiece. With the accessibility of

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his experimental and lo-fi style, and became known for creating musical colla ...

, the danceability of ska, and the sunny quality of the Beach Boys, the track has a sparse, magnetic beginning that builds in depth and intensity (with the addition of jangly guitar riffs and more complex beats) to a meticulous, frenetic climax. And the wind-down is no less danceable." Will Hermes from ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

'' called it a "remarkable splice-rock roller coaster". He added, "Big, dynamic, spectacularly dumb, it grafts Duane Eddy guitar twang (via John Barry) onto

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film '' Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produ ...

-goes-

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

beats, adds an MC non sequitur, and presses "frappe" on the digital blender. Result? The most potent DJ pop since " Firestarter". If this won't convert the

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

-phobes, nothing will." A reviewer from ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' stated that the track "easily matches the extremely high quality one would expect from a chart veteran with such names as the Housemartins, Beats International, The Mighty Dubcats and Pizzaman on his CV." He explained further, "This time around, he's somehow managed to fuse

and dance with surf—seasoned with a slight pinch of punk—and has come up with what is probably the single most infectious sound around on the airwaves right now."

Samples

The song features the repeated line "Right about now, the funk soul brother / Check it out now, the funk soul brother", which is a truncated vocal sample of rapper

Lord Finesse Lord Finesse (born Robert Hall Jr., February 19, 1970) is an American rapper and hip-hop record producer from The Bronx, New York best known as the leader of the D.I.T.C. crew. About.com ranked him number 29 on its list of the Top-50 Hip-Hop ...

on the track "Vinyl Dogs Vibe" by Vinyl Dogs. The original line, a spoken-word introduction to the instrumental track, was "Check it out right about now, it's no other than the funk soul brother, the Lord Finesse. And you're welcome to the world of the Vinyl Dogs right about now". Lord Finesse spoke about his "contribution" for the first time in 2019. He recalled receiving a fax about Fatboy Slim wanting to use his vocal sample for "The Rockafeller Skank", to which he agreed. However, he was shocked to learn the song was not what he had in mind, thinking it was going to be Hip Hop and not

Big Beat Big beat is an electronic music genre that usually uses heavy breakbeats and synthesizer-generated loops and patterns – common to acid house/techno. The term has been used by the British music industry to describe music by artists such as th ...

. He called it a "big mistake" and expressed regret for not listening to the song first before sending his approval, and not having someone look at the contract before he signed it. Regardless, Lord Finesse remains proud of the success of "The Rockafeller Skank" but says it could have been his "retirement money." The song also features eight other samples, including a sample of the song "Sliced Tomatoes" by the band Just Brothers (a popular Northern soul track);

The Bobby Fuller Four The Bobby Fuller Four (sometimes stylized as Bobby Fuller 4) was a popular mid-1960s American rock & roll band started by Bobby Fuller. First formed in 1962 in Fuller's hometown of El Paso, Texas, the group went on to produce some of its most ...

's " I Fought the Law" (featuring

DeWayne Quirico Robert DeWayne Quirico (better known as simply DeWayne Quirico; born June 19, 1942) is a professional drummer, best known for his work with The Bobby Fuller Four. One of his most notable works is his unique percussion work on the band's biggest hi ...

's drum intro); "Join the Gang" by

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

; and a sample of "

Beat Girl ''Beat Girl'' is a 1960 British teen exploitation film directed by Edmond T. Gréville. The film was released in the United States under the title ''Wild for Kicks''. The title character of ''Beat Girl'' was played by starlet Gillian Hills, w ...

" by John Barry and his Orchestra. Guitar lines were also sampled from "Twistin' 'N' Twangin'" by Duane Eddy and "Why Can't You Love Me" by Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, along with a shout from the song "Soup" by the J.J. All-Stars. Fatboy Slim has stated that to clear the samples and release the song he had to release 100% of the track's royalties, 25% to each artist, meaning he receives no royalties himself.

Track listings

* UK and Australian CD single :US maxi-CD and cassette single # "The Rockafeller Skank" (short edit) # "The Rockafeller Skank" # "Always Read the Label" # "Tweakers Delight" * UK and US 12-inch single :A1. "The Rockafeller Skank" :B1. "Always Read the Label" :B2. "Tweakers Delight" * UK cassette single and European CD single # "The Rockafeller Skank" (short edit) # "Always Read the Label" * Japanese CD single # "The Rockafeller Skank" (short edit) # "The Rockafeller Skank" # "Always Read the Label" # "Tweakers Delight" # " Everybody Loves a Carnival" (radio edit)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rockafeller Skank, The 1998 songs 1998 singles Astralwerks singles Big beat songs Fatboy Slim songs Number-one singles in Iceland Songs with music by John Barry (composer) Songs written by Norman Cook Skint Records singles UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles