- Right Said Fred
Infobox Musical artist
Name = Right Said Fred
Img_capt = Right Said Fred at the Gay Pride Parade 2008 in Vienna, Austria
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Background = group_or_band
Alias =
Origin =East Grinstead ,West Sussex ,England
Genre = Pop
Years_active = 1989–present
Label =
Associated_acts =
URL = http://www.rightsaidfred.com
Current_members =Richard Fairbrass Fred Fairbrass Mark Hollins
Past_members =
Notable_instruments =Right Said Fred are an English pop band, formed in 1989 by brothers
Richard Fairbrass and Fred Fairbrass fromEast Grinstead , as well as their close friendMark Hollins . The group is named after a novelty song of the same name which was a hit forBernard Cribbins in 1962.In 1991 released their single, "
I'm Too Sexy ", which was released by the Gut Reaction firm on an especially-created record label called Tug. The song, a tongue-in-cheek dance song sung from the point of view of a vain malefashion model , became a huge hit in theUnited Kingdom , spending six weeks at number two behindBryan Adams ' "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You ". The song also went to number one on the charts in theUnited States and went on to become a hit around the world. The song's instrumental break is based on the chorus of the 1974instrumental hit "Dance with the Devil" byCozy Powell which itself is based on "Third Stone from the Sun " byJimi Hendrix .Their second single, "
Don't Talk Just Kiss ", which featured soul divaJocelyn Brown , was released for the Christmas market and made number three in the UK charts. In 1992 they released their third single, "Deeply Dippy ." Although it was their lowest-selling single to date, it was also up against weaker opposition and therefore became their only UK No. 1 single to date. The success of the singles resulted in their debut album "Up". In 1993, they released their second album, "Sex and Travel", as well as contributing the regular Comic Relief single, "Stick It Out" in February of that year. Their third album was called "Smashing!".After failing to attract substantial interest in the UK, Right Said Fred went to
Germany in order to work with Alex Christensen'sU96 and released a single called "You're My Mate" and an album titled "Fredhead" in 2002, which both became successful inGermany (at number five on the German Top 100 and gold status),Switzerland andAustria . "You're My Mate" was also used as the official anthem of theSouth African national rugby union team in 2002, and remained in the German Top 100 for 23 weeks, while the album "Fredhead" reached number two. "You're My Mate" achieved gold status inSouth Africa and reached the Top 20 in the UK. The second single, "Mojive," was less successful sales-wise, although it has become a cult record among the three million or so members who attend the MOJIVE dance events after which the song was titled. "Fredhead" was co-written and produced by Clyde Ward who is a US-based successful producer/songwriter and who was drafted in as a replacement for Rob Manzoli. The band remains a duo though Clyde Ward is referred to as the third Fred.The next album, "Stand UP", also reached gold status and the single of the same name reached number one in
Japan . The song, written by Clyde Ward and the Fairbrass brothers, has been adopted by sports teams around the world as their main theme.Heavenly Records
In 1992
Heavenly Records released an EP that featured the label's acts covering Right Said Fred songs for charity.The artists and songs involved on "The Fred EP" were as follows:
*
The Rockingbirds - "Deeply Dippy"
*Flowered Up - "Don't Talk Just Kiss"
* Saint Etienne - "I'm Too Sexy"The Saint Etienne version of "I'm Too Sexy" had different lyrics from the original, managing to reference both Right Said Fred and Jeff Barrett, the founder of Heavenly Records, in the same sentence.
References in popular culture
In the 1993 "
Only Fools & Horses " episode, "Fatal Extraction ," there is a scene where the character Delboy is in a casino and turns his head to see a young woman with a revealing top. He tells Rodney that "for a minute I thought Right Said Fred had walked in".In 1994, the song "Wonderman" was used by Sega Europe in a specific music video to promote the video game "
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 " in Europe.In 2001, the band was parodied on a "
Saturday Night Live " episode, with hostConan O'Brien as a member of the band, speaking before a Congressional Committee on the subject ofNapster .In a series 1 episode of Phoenix Nights, a criminal Right Said Fred tribute act called "Right Said Frank" are hired as replacements for the regular band, Les Alanos.
In early 2007,
Daz , a UK washing powder brand, featured the band's members and music in a TV advertisement involving the play on words: "'White' Said Fred". Following this, their first single was remixed and reissued as "I'm Too Sexy 07."A line in the
Hold Steady song "Knuckles" contains the line "I've been trying to get people to call me Freddy Knuckles, but people keep calling me Right Said Fred".In 2007,
Joe Budden , a rapper fromNew Jersey said in his song titled "DJGreen Lantern Freestyle", "Fuck ho's, I'm too Right Said Fred for 'em".In a March 2006 episode of "
EastEnders ", a character played byChristopher Hehir and credited as "The Joker" sang "I'm Too Sexy" toPhil Mitchell (played bySteve McFadden ) in a toilet of anEssex roadside cafe. Phil responded by punching the Joker and knocking him out.The
Jay-Z song "The Ruler's Back" contains the line, "I'm too sexy for jail like I'm Right Said Fred".Discography
Albums
*"I'm Too Sexy" (1992)
*"Up" (1992) #1 UK, #46 USA
*"Sex & Travel" (1993) #35 UK
*"Smashing!" (1996)
*"Fredhead" (2001)
*"Stand Up" (2002)
*"For Sale" (2006)ingles
References
External links
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