Brimful of Asha

"Brimful of Asha"
Single by Cornershop
from the album When I Was Born for the 7th Time
Released 18 August 1997 (1997-08-18)
Recorded 1997
Genre Indie rock
Length 5:17 (album version)
4:07 (single version)
Label Wiiija
Songwriter(s) Tjinder Singh
Producer(s) Cornershop
Cornershop singles chronology
"Good Ships"
(1997)		 "Brimful of Asha"
(1997)		 "Brimful of Asha (Norman Cook Remix)"
(1997)

"Brimful of Asha" is a 1997 single by British alternative rock band Cornershop. The recording originally reached number 60 on the UK Singles Chart in 1997. After a remixed version by Norman Cook became a radio and critical success, the song was re-released and reached number one on the UK chart in February 1998[1] and number 16 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The lyrics are a tribute to Asha Bhosle.[2]

Background

This song is based on the history of film culture in India. Since their beginnings, Indian films have relied heavily on song and dance numbers. The singing is almost always performed by background singers while the actors and actresses lip sync. Asha Bhosle is a playback singer who has sung over 12,000 songs and is referred to as "Sadi rani" (Punjabi for "our queen") at one point in the lyrics. In the slower, original album recording, playback singers Lata Mangeshkar (her older sibling) and Mohammed Rafi (one of the top male playback singers of the mid-century) are mentioned. The lyrics in the bridge contain a number of references to non-Indian music, including Georges Brassens' song "Les Amoureux des bancs publics", Jacques Dutronc, Marc Bolan, Argo Records and Trojan Records.[3]

DJ Norman Cook ("Fatboy Slim") was asked to remix the track by speeding it up and modulating the song to a higher key (halfway between B-flat and B, rather than in A). The remix saw major success as a number 1 single.

Music video

The music video directed by Phil Harder for the song was produced by Harder/Fuller Films.[4]

Norman Cook remix

"Brimful of Asha
(Norman Cook remix)"
Single by Cornershop and Norman Cook
from the album The Greatest Hits – Why Try Harder
Released 16 February 1998 (1998-02-16)
Recorded 1997
Genre Big beat
Length 4:03 (single version)
7:35 (extended version)
Songwriter(s) Tjinder Singh
Cornershop singles chronology
"Brimful of Asha"
(1997)		 "Brimful of Asha
(Norman Cook remix)"
(1998)		 "Sleep on the Left Side"
(1998)

In October 2011, NME placed the Fatboy Slim remix at number 105 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[5] In August 2010, Pitchfork placed the remix at number 113 in their list of "The Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s".[6] NME ranked the remix at number 2 in their list of "The 50 Best Remixes Ever", saying it "does what the truly great remixes do – render you unable to enjoy the original".[7] The remix was included in Pitchfork's 2010 list of "twenty-five great remixes" of the 1990s.[8] The remix is featured prominently on the French children's TV channel Gulli, playing before each episode.

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (1998) Peak
position
scope="row"Australia (ARIA)[9] 35
scope="row"Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[10] 5
scope="row"Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[11] 20
scope="row"Germany (Official German Charts)[12] 84
Ireland (IRMA)[13] 3
Italy (FIMI)[14] 9
scope="row"Netherlands (Single Top 100)[15] 83
scope="row"New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[16] 26
scope="row"Norway (VG-lista)[17] 18
scope="row"Scotland (Official Charts Company)[18] 1
scope="row"Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[19] 36
scope="row"UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[20] 1
scope="row"UK Indie (Official Charts Company)[21] 1
scope="row"US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[22] 16

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/Sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[23] Platinum 600,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 616. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  2. ↑ "Cornershop". One-Hit Wonders at the BBC. 17 April 2015. BBC Four.
  3. ↑ "Cornershop". Users.globalnet.co.uk. 1998-12-28. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  4. ↑ Scholtes, Peter (2007-08-22), "Seen Your Video", City Pages, archived from the original on 2009-02-16
  5. ↑ "150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years". NME. 2012-05-02. Retrieved 2012-07-14.
  6. ↑ "Staff Lists: The Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s: 150-101 | Features". Pitchfork. 2010-08-31. Retrieved 2015-08-05.
  7. ↑ "The 50 best remixes ever". Nme.Com. Retrieved 2015-08-05.
  8. ↑ "Staff Lists: A Feature About Nothing: The 1990s in Lists | Features". Pitchfork. 2010-09-07. Retrieved 2015-08-05.
  9. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved May 3, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Cornershop: Brimful of Asha" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  12. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  13. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to Know". Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original (enter search parameter Cornershop into Search by Artist box, then select Go) on July 21, 2011. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  14. ↑ "Hits of the World". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 110 (18): 62. May 2, 1998. ISSN 0006-2510.
  15. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  16. ↑ "Charts.nz – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  17. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha". VG-lista. Retrieved May 3, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  19. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha". Singles Top 100. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  20. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  21. ↑ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
  22. ↑ "Cornershop Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  23. ↑ "British single certifications – Cornershop – Brimful of Asha". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved September 9, 2012. Select singles in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Enter Brimful of Asha in the search field and then press Enter.
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