Fun Lovin' Criminals

Friends Huey Morgan, Brian Leiser and Steve Borgovini formed Fun Loving Criminals in 1993. During this time both Leiser and Morgan worked at a NYC club and whenever bands failed to show up Fun Lovin’ Criminals would step up and strut their stuff. In one particular serendipitous moment a representative of EMI saw the band performed and subsequently singed them to their roster. Fun Lovin’ Criminals’ debut album “Come Find Yourself” was released in mid-1996. The album however found a lot more favour with European audiences than U.S, especially in the UK where their album peaked at No. 7 on the UK Albums Chart. It was a tongue-in-cheek record that made fun of Italian-American mafia circles and wannabe gangsters, and drew influence from the genres of funk, blues, soul, and hip-hop.

Following the release, the band supported U2 on their North American “popmart” tour and embarked on an extensive tour of their own. The studio album “100% Colombian” arrived in August 1998 led by the smash hit singles “Korean Bodega” and the Barry White tribute “Love Unlimited”. The record once again proved more popular in Europe than the U.S. and after the release drummer Borgovini departed the group replaced by Mackie Jayson. A collection of B-sides “Mimosa” appeared in 1999 featuring lounge covers of existing songs following by their third studio album “Loco” released in 2001. Against the wishes of the band EMI released the best-of compilation “Bag of Hits” in 2002, the record reached No. 11 on the UK Albums Chart, however Fun Loving Criminals subsequently left EMI.

With a move to Sanctuary Records the band released their fourth full-length album “Welcome to Poppy’s” in 2003. Despite earning positive reviews the album failed to have the commercial viability of it predecessors, though still managed to peak at No. 20 in the UK. In 2005 the studio album “Livin’ in the City” was issued by Sanctuary, followed by “Classic Fantastic” in April 2010.