Fast Food Rockers
Fast Food Rockers were a British pop group known only for their novelty music. The band met at a fast-food convention in Folkestone in summer 2003.[1]
Fast Food Rockers | |
---|---|
Origin | Folkestone, England |
Genres | Bubblegum pop, novelty |
Years active | 2003–2004 |
Labels | Better The Devil Records |
Associated acts | The Honeytraps |
Past members | Martin Rycroft Lucy Meggitt Ria Scott |
Career
Their most successful hit was their 2003 release, "Fast Food Song", which parodies the traditional folk melody "A Ram Sam Sam". The Dutch DJ Eric Dikeb claims to have made a Dutch song out of that traditional melody in 2001, called "Pizzahaha", explaining that at that moment, he was taking part in the Dutch television show Big Diet, in which contestants had to lose as much weight as they could over a few months. Dikeb claims to have come up with the idea to use the names of his favourite fast-food restaurants in the song. The same fast-food restaurant lyrics and tune, together with hand signals, are a scout camp-fire song which pre-dates Dikeb's claim by a number of decades. "Pizzahaha" did not make it to the Dutch charts, but in Belgium the band Dynamite made a big hit out of it, with a Belgian version called "De Pizzadans". It also topped the charts in Germany, called "Burgerdance", by DJ Otzi.[2]
The Fast Food Rockers' version, adapted by Mike Stock, Steve Crosby and Sandy Rass, was the first release of independent record label Better The Devil Records. The song mentioned Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken and McDonald's. In June 2003 it reached #2 in the UK Singles Chart and number 1 in Scotland, despite the criticism of cultural analysts who lamented the "collapse of culture into product placement".[3] The single would go on to sell 150,000 copies in the UK, and was in the year-end Top 40.[4]
The band had its own mascot, a giant blue dog called "Hotdog" (performed by Adrian Reed) who followed the band around and appeared in all three music videos.[1]
Their second single, "Say Cheese (Smile Please)", reached #10.
In 2003, there were rumours that the band did not sing on their own records. However, in an interview with CBBC Newsround, Lucy stated she "trained for three years at a performing arts school, Ria's been in the business for a long time, Martin's been in the business for a long time and we're very proud to say we do sing on [this] song".[1]
After their attempt at a Christmas single only reached #25, and an album that failed to make the charts, their management company decided to drop the band in March 2004.
After the split, the band members found jobs outside of the music industry,[5] and in 2006, former band member Martin Rycroft was poached from his bar-tending job to take part in the Channel 4/E4 show Boys Will Be Girls,[6] where three former male popstars (including Russ Spencer from Scooch) tried to convincingly create a new girl band by former Brother Beyond star Nathan Moore.
Discography
Albums
Title | Details |
---|---|
It's Never Easy Being Cheesy |
|
Singles
Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |
---|---|---|---|---|
UK [7] |
SCO [8] | |||
"Fast Food Song" | 2003 | 2 | 1 | It's Never Easy Being Cheesy |
"Say Cheese (Smile Please)" | 10 | 10 | ||
"I Love Christmas" | 25 | 22 | Non-album single |
References
- "CBBC Newsround | MUSIC | Full interview: Fast Food Rockers". BBC News. 2003-10-13. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
- "Emimusicpub.com". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-05-06.
- Stuart Jeffries (2003-06-28). "Stuart Jeffries: Pizza pop | Global". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
- "ChartsPlus YE2003" (PDF). ChartsPlus. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
- "CBBC Newsround | MUSIC | The Fast Food Rockers are axed". BBC News. 2004-03-31. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
- "Channel4.com". Archived from the original on 2007-03-07. Retrieved 2006-12-24.
- "FAST FOOD ROCKERS | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
- Peak positions on the Scottish Singles Chart:
- For "Fast Food Song": "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100: 22 June 2003 - 28 June 2003". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
- For "Say Cheese (Smile Please)": "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100: 12 October 2003 - 18 October 2003". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
- For "I Love Christmas": "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100: 21 December 2003 - 27 December 2003". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
External links
Band
- Fast Food Rockers at MySpace
- Fast Food Rockers biography, news, discography at Bubblegum Dancer