"Clown Prince" is a song by Australian hip-hop band, the Hilltop Hoods. It was released in January 2006 as the lead single from their fourth studio album, The Hard Road.

"Clown Prince"
Single by Hilltop Hoods
from the album The Hard Road
Released20 January 2006
RecordedX Bred Production Studios
GenreAustralian hip hop
Length3:54
LabelObese Records
Songwriter(s)Don Argott, Barry Francis, Matthew Lambert, Daniel Smith
Producer(s)DJ Debris
Hilltop Hoods singles chronology
"The Nosebleed Section"
(2003)
"Clown Prince"
(2006)
"The Hard Road"
(2006)

"Clown Price" peaked at #30 in the ARIA charts, becoming the first Hilltop Hoods song to appear on the ARIA Singles Chart.[1]

The song also charted at #23 on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2006 list.[2]

Sampling

edit

The main bassline used for "Clown Prince" is sampled from "Laying Pipe" by Pornosonic.[3] It was previously used in a 70's pornographic film, featuring Ron Jeremy.[4]

You'd have to ask DJ Debris how that happened. I think it did come from his personal collection. I'm really putting him in it, aren't I? The film was called Laying Pipe; it's about a plumber. Some kind of theme movie, I'm told. I haven't seen it, but I've heard the audio. It's pretty funny.

— Daniel Smith (Pressure)[3]

It also contains vocal samples of The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Things Done Changed" and A Tribe Called Quest's "Excursions". A remix of the song featuring the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra was also released on the Hilltop Hoods' 2007 remix album The Hard Road: Restrung.

Music video

edit

The music video for the song solely features animation.[5]

CD single track listing

edit

All tracks are written by Matthew Lambert (Suffa), Daniel Smith (Pressure), Barry Francis (DJ Debris) and Don Argott[6][7]

Clown Prince
No.TitleLength
1."Clown Prince"3:54
2."Clown Prince" (Radio Edit)3:53
3."Clown Prince" (Instrumental)3:52
4."Clown Prince" (Trials Remix) (vocal)3:36
5."Clown Prince" (Trials Remix) (radio edit)3:32
6."Clown Prince" (Trials Remix) (instrumental)3:33

Personnel

edit
  • Artwork (Graphic Design) - Benjamin Funnell
  • Artwork (Illustration) - John Engelhardt
  • Mastered - Neville Clark

Charts

edit

Weekly chart

edit
Chart (2006) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[8] 30

Year-end chart

edit
Chart (2006) Rank
Australian Artists (ARIA)[9] 46

Certifications

edit
Certifications for "Clown Prince"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[10] Gold 35,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

edit
Region Date Label Format Catalogue
Australia 20 January 2006 Obese CD OBR 041
12" vinyl OBR 041-2

References

edit
  1. ^ "Hilltop Hoods - Clown Prince". Australian Charts.com. Retrieved 25 May 2009.
  2. ^ "hottest 100 2006". triple j. ABC. 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  3. ^ a b Coleman, Tim (21 July 2006). "Gold in them thar hills". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 July 2009.
  4. ^ "Don Argott a/k/a "Pornosonic" Receives First Gold Award Plaque". Bernard M. Resnick - Attorney at Law. 21 February 2006. Retrieved 25 May 2009.
  5. ^ "Hilltop Hoods - Clown Prince". NovaFM. dmgRadio Australia. 2012. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  6. ^ ""Clown Prince" at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original on 17 May 2007. Retrieved 2009-05-25.
  7. ^ "Hilltop Hoods - Clown Prince". Discogs. Retrieved 25 May 2009.
  8. ^ "Hilltop Hoods – CLOWN PRINCE". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 28 August 2022.
  9. ^ "ARIA Top 50 Australian Singles for 2006". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 28 August 2022.
  10. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2024 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
edit