Smack My Bitch Up

Infobox Single
Name = Smack My Bitch Up


Artist = The Prodigy
from Album = The Fat of the Land
Released = 17 November 1997
Format = 12 inch vinyl record
CD single
Recorded = Essex, England
Genre = Big beat
Length = 4:45 (Edit)
Label = XL Recordings
Maverick Records
Writer = Liam Howlett
Producer = Liam Howlett
Video director = Jonas Åkerlund
Certification = "None"
Chart position =

• #8 (UK)
• #8 (Norway)
• #89 (US)

Reviews = "N/A"
Last single = "Breathe"
(1996)
This single = "Smack My Bitch Up"
(1997)
Next single = "Baby's Got a Temper"
(2002)

"Smack My Bitch Up" is a song by The Prodigy, released as the band's twelfth single on November 17, 1997. It was the third and final single from the album "The Fat of the Land". The song was highly controversial because its lyrics, title and music video were believed to promote violence against women.

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The lyrics "Change my pitch up / Smack my bitch up" are repeated through the whole song, as can be heard in the sample below. The band defended the song, saying that the lyrics were being misinterpreted as misogynistic and the song actually meant "...doing anything intensely..." [ [http://www.rockonthenet.com/artists-p/prodigy_main.htm Rock On The Net: Prodigy] ] The song led to a publicised disagreement at the 1998 Reading festival after the Beastie Boys asked the group not to play the track. [ [http://www.brainkiller.it/prodigy/readingincident.html Claustrophobic PRODIGY Page - Facts - The Reading Incident ] ] [ [http://www.rockonthenet.com/artists-b/beastieboys_main.htm Rock On The Net: The Beastie Boys ] ] The vocals are sampled and altered from the Ultramagnetic MCs song "Give the Drummer Some". The original lyrics, performed by rapper Kool Keith, are: "Switch up change my pitch up / Smack my bitch up like a pimp". [ [http://www.lyricsdownload.com/ultramagnetic-mcs-give-the-drummer-some-lyrics.html Ultramagnetic MCs - Give The Drummer Some LYRICS ] ] Keith had previously been sampled by the Prodigy in the track "Out of Space" using his spoken vocal "I'll take your brain to another dimension", this time sampled from the Ultramagnetic track "Critical Beatdown" from the 1988 album of the same name, on Next Plateau Records. The female vocals in "Smack My Bitch Up" were performed by Shahin Badar.

Release

Prior to the release of the single Liam Howlett was presented with three remixes of the title song, one by Jonny L, one by DJ Hype and one by Slacker. Eventually, Howlett chose the DJ Hype remix to be released on the single. The Jonny L remix was released through a free CD that came along with the January issue of "Muzik" magazine in 1998, while the Slacker remix was never officially released, although it surfaced on a rare and limited set of white labels.

The song was banned by the BBC and only a lyric-free version was played on Radio 1. On the chart rundown, other tracks from the single release were played, and the title "Smack My Bitch Up" was not mentioned. On BBC World Service radio chart run down it was mentioned as "Smack" and was not played. Yet on the first episode of "Top of the Pops" in which it charted, the DJ Hype remix was played over the Top 10 countdown, including the offending lyric of "Change my pitch up, Smack my bitch up."

Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine covered this song on his 2000 album "Lounge Against the Machine". This is the song where he introduces the whole band.

The song appears in the 2000 film "Charlie's Angels", however the song is not on the film's soundtrack. It also appears in the 2001 film "Scary Movie 2", in the scene that spoofs the Charlie's Angels' scene that uses this song.

The song "No Man Army" appears on the single and is a slightly different instrumental version of "One Man Army", a song which Howlett created together with guitarist Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave for the soundtrack to the movie "Spawn".

The song is used in the Mike Nichols film "Closer".

Music video

Plot and theme

The promotional music video for "Smack My Bitch Up", directed by Swede Jonas Åkerlund, is as controversial and popular as the song itself. The film depicts a night out in the city filmed from an innovative and much imitated first-person perspective, portraying drinking and driving, snorting cocaine, violence, vandalism and sex. The presumption that the protagonist is a man is reinforced throughout the video through stereotypically male drunken behaviour such as violence, groping women and attending a strip club; shaving foam is shown being dispensed at a sink (the viewer assumes to shave a beard) and a gents toilet is used while in a club. In the closing scene following sex with a stripper (Played by model Teresa May), however the central character stares into the mirror and is revealed to be a woman.

Response

The video drew fierce criticism for misogyny despite its ending. Though universally banned from television, massive demands on MTV eventually had them relent and show the video, but only after midnight and following an MTV News warning. In mid-2002, the full unedited version of this video was aired on MTV2 as part of a special countdown showing the most controversial videos ever to air on MTV. This countdown was only shown late at night because of the graphic imagery of "Smack My Bitch Up" and several other videos on the countdown. This video was at #1 on the countdown and therefore named the "Most Controversial Video" in MTV's history. Programming blocks in the United States containing the unedited video for "Smack My Bitch Up" automatically gained a rating of TV-MA-SLV (previously TV-M-DSLV).

Despite the controversy, the video would be nominated for four MTV Video Music Awards, and eventually win Best Dance Video and Breakthrough Video.

In 2006 the full version of this video was aired and voted #1 on New Zealand television show 'U Choose 40', screened on music channel C4 as part of their 'Most Shocking Videos' and 'Top 10 - That's Shocking!' (June 10 2007) countdowns and voted #2 as part of the 'Banned In The USA!' countdown on August 24 2007.

Track listing

XL recordings

12" vinyl record

#"Smack My Bitch Up" (LP version) – 5:42
#"No Man Army" (Featuring Tom Morello) – 4:44
#"Smack My Bitch Up" (DJ Hype remix) – 7:17
#"Mindfields" (Headrock dub) – 4:34

CD single

#"Smack My Bitch Up" (Edit) – 4:45
#"No Man Army" (Featuring Tom Morello) – 4:44
#"Mindfields" (Headrock Dub) – 4:34
#"Smack My Bitch Up" (DJ Hype Remix) – 7:17

Maverick records

12" vinyl record "Black sleeve"

:A1. "Smack My Bitch Up" (Album Version) – 5:43:A2. "Mindfields" (Headrock Dub) – 4:35:B1. "Smack My Bitch Up" (DJ Hype Remix) – 7:17

12" vinyl record

:A1. "Smack My Bitch Up" (LP Version) – 5:42:A2. "No Man Army" (Featuring Tom Morello) – 4:44:B1. "Mindfields" (Headrock Dub) – 4:34:B2. "Smack My Bitch Up" (DJ Hype Remix) – 7:17

Digipak

#"Smack My Bitch Up" (Edit) – 4:45
#"No Man Army" (Featuring Tom Morello) – 4:44
#"Mindfields" (Headrock Dub) – 4:34
#"Smack My Bitch Up" (DJ Hype Remix) – 7:17

The digipak was released in cooperation with Sire.

Notes