"Scooby Snacks" is a song by American band Fun Lovin' Criminals from their debut album, Come Find Yourself (1996). The song was written by the band and contains several sampled quotes from Quentin Tarantino films, so Tarantino is also credited as a writer. Most of the song is rapped, with the exception of the chorus, which is sung. The "Scooby Snacks" in the song is a reference to diazepam, also known as Valium.[1]
"Scooby Snacks" is the band's biggest hit single to date, reaching the top 40 in Australia, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. In the United Kingdom, the song originally peaked at number 22 in August 1996, but after being reissued with a cover of the 10cc song "I'm Not in Love", it reached a new peak of number 12 on the UK Singles Chart in June 1997. In 1996, it was voted number 14 on the list of the Hottest 100 songs of that year by listeners of Australia's Triple J radio station.[2]
Background
Instrumentalist Brian Leiser would practice sounds and samples in his Brooklyn apartment with movies playing in the background. He sampled the tremolo guitar sound from the 1984 song "Movement of Fear" by Tones on Tail, and was putting the song together while Pulp Fiction played on his TV, inspiring him to put its quotes in his song.[3]
Leiser was working at a club called The Limelight, where he met bandmate Huey Morgan. The owner of the Limelight had another club called The Tunnel, known for its brawls at Sunday night events. In an effort to calm down clubgoers, one of the security guards would hand them valium capsules as they entered, calling them "Scooby snacks". Leiser said, "That’s where I got the idea for the chorus from: what if this dude and some of his meathead friends were robbing banks, all high on these scooby snacks?"[3]
"Scooby Snacks" reached the top 40 in Australia, Iceland, the Netherlands and on the US BillboardModern Rock Tracks chart.[6][7][8] It reached the top 20 in New Zealand, peaking at number 18.[9] The song initially peaked number 22 on the UK Singles Chart but was re-released as a double A-side with their cover of 10cc's "I'm Not in Love" on 23 June 1997,[10] reaching a new peak of number 12 the following week.[11] This version also reached number 27 in Ireland.[12] In July 2022, the song was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales and streams exceeding 200,000 units.[13]
^Scooby Snacks (UK CD2 liner notes). Fun Lovin' Criminals. Silver Spotlight Records, Chrysalis Records. 1996. cdchss 5034, 7243 8 83116 2 5.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Scooby Snacks (UK limited 7-inch picture disc sleeve). Fun Lovin' Criminals. Silver Spotlight Records, Chrysalis Records. 1996. CHS 5034, 7243 8 83116 7 0.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Scooby Snacks (European CD single liner notes). Fun Lovin' Criminals. Silver Spotlight Records, EMI Records. 1996. 7243 8 82857 2 8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Scooby Snacks (Australian CD single liner notes). Fun Lovin' Criminals. Silver Spotlight Records, EMI Records. 1996. 7243 8 82857 2 8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Scooby Snacks (UK CD1 liner notes). Fun Lovin' Criminals. Silver Spotlight Records, Chrysalis Records. 1997. CDCHS 5060, 7243 8 84189 2 8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Scooby Snacks (UK CD2 liner notes). Fun Lovin' Criminals. Silver Spotlight Records, Chrysalis Records. 1997. CDCHSS 5060, 7243 8 84188 2 9.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Scooby Snacks (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Fun Lovin' Criminals. Silver Spotlight Records, Chrysalis Records. 1997. CHS 5060, 7234 8 84188 7 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
