As he revealed his silver chain with a miniature silver TB-303, Norman Cook aka Fatboy Slim expressed his fondness for the instrument. It was 2000, and Cook was already a world-renowned producer. PowerOn: The Roland Magazine asked him about the muse for his 1996 debut single, “Everybody Needs A 303.” “It’s my equivalent of the Telecaster,” Cook said. “I think a lot of people in dance music feel the same. For me, it’s the most expressive electronic instrument there is.”
Better Living Through the 303
The former guitar and bass player admitted he’d never connected with traditional instruments. He was frank as he stated that, “They were just things I played.” The 303, however, hit different for him.
The album Better Living Through Chemistry marked the arrival of Fatboy Slim. It’s a wandering, energetic sprint through a multi-room rave. Halfway through the party, he leads you towards his love letter to the acid bassline. “Everybody Needs A 303,” is both a history lesson and a look forward. Acid was the sound that had sparked the rave movement.
The track was also a taste of what would propel Fatboy Slim to become one of the world’s first superstar DJs.
“It’s my equivalent of the Telecaster. For me, it’s the most expressive electronic instrument."
-Norman Cook
A Sample Masterclass
A combination of oversized breaks, nostalgic samples, and a proper slice of rave. “Everybody Loves A 303” layers Edwin Starr and Fuzzy Haskins samples into a walloping bassline, soulful vocals, and jump-up drums. It even throws in the voice of Corey Glover of Living Colour and crowd noise from The Doors’ “Roadhouse Blues.”
Finally, Fatboy Slim’s track becomes unhinged when the 303 appears from the darkness of the breakdown. The song feels as if the listener is emerging from a tunnel into a room soaked in lasers and strobe lights. “Everybody Loves A 303” is proof that the 303 is most effective when allowed to crescendo from a filtered whisper to a squelchy scream.
Beginnings of Big Beat
Even as Cook first invited us into the playful world of Fatboy Slim, you could see notes of his eventual success. His cross-pollination of genres was a blissful balance of warehouse beats, whirling synths, and wistful camp.
Ever the masterful sample hound, Fatboy Slim’s ability to create moods with slices of the past was the model for Big Beat. The genre made him, The Chemical Brothers, Basement Jaxx, The Crystal Method, and Groove Armada household names.
"It was second-hand at every junk shop. If you abuse it, it makes noises that have become part of the tapestry of dance music ever since.”
-Norman Cook
It’s difficult to fathom the kind of ingenuity it took to transform Roland’s misunderstood 303 into a strand of raver DNA. But as Cook told Roger Sanchez in a 2020 interview, “It was second-hand at every junk shop. And then some fine gentleman worked out that if you abuse it, it makes the most sexy noises that have become part of the tapestry of dance music ever since.”
