Born Quentin Leo Cook on July 31, 1963, in Bromley, Kent, England, he is one of the major pioneers of big beat. Actually, he ranks second only to the Chemical Brothers when it comes to breaking the genre in the United States. Later changing his name to Norman, he rose to prominence in the 1980s as the bassist of the indie rock band, The Housemartins. They scored a UK #1 single with their acapella cover of Isley-Jasper-Isley's "Caravan of Love" at the end of 1986. Even though the band split two years later, Cook formed another band called Beats International, whose debut album spawned their signature hit, "Dub Be Good to Me". Their next and last recording was 1991's Excursion on the Version, which failed to repeat the success of its predecessor. Next, Cook went on to join numerous other acts including Freak Power, Pizzaman and The Mighty Dub Katz to moderate success. It was in 1996 that Cook started to record under the alias Fatboy Slim and released his album Better Living Through Chemistry to critical acclaim. His subsequent smash-hits include singles like "You've Come a Long Way, Baby", "Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars", as well as their associated singles including "The Rockafeller Skank", "Praise You", "Right Here Right Now" and "Weapon of Choice". Cook creates his electronic music employing a wide range of music, from house to funk and rock. It is an electric music that is specifically designed for dancing. As Fatboy Slim, he has earned ten MTV Video Music Awards and two Brit Awards. In 2008, he started to work on a project called The Brighton Port Authority.
