Firestarter (The Prodigy song)

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"Firestarter"
Song

"Firestarter" is a song by the British band the Prodigy, released on 18 March 1996. It was the first single from their third album The Fat of the Land, and their tenth single. It was also the group's first number-one single on the UK Singles Chart, staying on top for three weeks, and their first big international hit, also reaching number one in Finland and Norway. It featured Flint's punk rock-style vocals which showcased him as the group's frontman. The title and lyrics were subject of controversy in the UK because of their violent nature. The music video further boosted these controversies. In 2012, the song was covered by De Staat.

Composition

The songwriting credits include Kim Deal of alt-rock group the Breeders. The looped wah-wah guitar riff in "Firestarter" was sampled from the Breeders' track "S.O.S." from the album Last Splash. The drums are sampled from a remix of the song "Devotion" of the group Ten City. Because of the use of a sample from a 1984 single "Close (to the Edit)" songwriting credits also list Art of Noise's then-members: Anne Dudley, Trevor Horn, J. J. Jeczalik, Gary Langan and Paul Morley. The "Empirion Mix," which does not include these samples, is credited solely to Howlett and Flint.

Critical reception

In October 2011, NME placed it at number 52 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[3] Writing for pitchfork.com in 2005, Jess Harvell said, "'Firestarter' sounds like Trent Reznor in one of his all-too-rare moments of self-aware humor, like the Bomb Squad at +5 with a pink-haired British bulldog bellowing about how tuff he is."[4]

Music video

The music video was directed by Walter Stern and was filmed in an abandoned London Underground tunnel at Aldwych.[5]

Track listing

XL Recordings

12-inch single

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Firestarter"4:40
2."Firestarter (Instrumental)"4:39
Side two
No.TitleLength
3."Firestarter (Empirion Mix)"6:45
4."Molotov Bitch"4:51

CD single

No.TitleLength
1."Firestarter (Edit)"3:45
2."Firestarter (Empirion Mix)"7:48
3."Firestarter (Instrumental)"4:39
4."Molotov Bitch"4:51

Charts and certifications

References

  1. ^ Browne, David (11 July 1997). "The Fat of the Land". Entertainment Weekly (387).
  2. ^ Pattison, Louis. "The Prodigy Fat Of The Land Review". BBC.
  3. ^ "150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years". Nme.Com. 2014-03-26. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  4. ^ [1]
  5. ^ "Video - Firestarter | Video". Musicpilgrimages.com. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  6. ^ "The Prodigy – Firestarter". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  7. ^ "The Prodigy – Firestarter" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  8. ^ "The Prodigy – Firestarter" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  9. ^ "The Prodigy – Firestarter" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  10. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  11. ^ "Hits of the World". Billboard. 108 (21). Prometheus Global Media: 67. May 25, 1996. ISSN 0006-2510.
  12. ^ "Hits of the World". Billboard. 108 (18). Prometheus Global Media: 48. May 4, 1996. ISSN 0006-2510.
  13. ^ "The Prodigy: Firestarter" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  14. ^ "The Irish Charts – All there is to Know". Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original (enter search parameter The Prodigy into Search by Artist box, then select Go) on July 21, 2011. Retrieved July 28, 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ "Hit Parade Italia – Indice per Interprete: P". Hit Parade Italia. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  16. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 18, 1996" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  17. ^ "The Prodigy – Breathe". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  18. ^ "The Prodigy – Breathe". VG-lista. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  19. ^ "The Prodigy – Breathe". Singles Top 100. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  20. ^ "The Prodigy – Breathe". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  21. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  22. ^ "The Prodigy Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  23. ^ "The Prodigy Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  24. ^ "Top 40 – Jaargang 32, 1996". Dutch Top 40 (in Dutch). Stichting Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved July 28, 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  25. ^ Zywietz, Tobias. "CIN Singles 1996 – The Top 200 Singles Of 1996". Zobbel.de. Tobias Zywietz. Retrieved July 28, 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  26. ^ a b "Prodigy" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  27. ^ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-05-17. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  28. ^ "British single certifications – Prodigy – Firestarter". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved March 22, 2014. Select singles in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Firestarter in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  29. ^ "American single certifications – Prodigy – Firestarter". Recording Industry Association of America. April 8, 1997. Retrieved July 28, 2012.

External links

Preceded by Finnish Singles Chart number-one single
13/1996 - 18/1996 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Norway Singles Chart number-one single
13/1996 - 16/1996 		Succeeded by
"Children" by Robert Miles
Preceded by UK Singles Chart number-one single
24 March 1996 - 13 April 1996 		Succeeded by
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