#Jilted30: Voodoo People · 30th Anniversary Ⅱ

On 1 March 1995 the maxi-single Voodoo People was released in the USA on Mute Records, featuring an extended tracklist and an alternative cover. To mark this date, we will take a closer look at how it differs from the UK release, uncover the story behind its artwork, and, for the first time, provide a detailed account of the filming and editing process of the ‘Voodoo People’ music video, which had premiered six months earlier. To present the full picture, the All Souvenirs team spoke with producer Russell Curtis, editor Mark Reynolds, and designer Alison Fielding — alongside director Walter Stern, they brought to life the visuals that have captivated fans for over 30 years. We were also fortunate to get a few words from Walter himself!

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After the release of Music for the Jilted Generation, The Prodigy’s popularity began to extend beyond the UK, and in the US, their releases were handled by Mute Records. In the spring of 1995, Mute released the American version of the ‘Voodoo People’ single, which featured an alternative cover.

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Nevertheless, in the autumn of 1994, a photograph featuring the hat was still used as promo for the upcoming XL Recordings single and was later selected as the main cover for the American release on Mute.

The photographs were taken by Stuart Haygarth, who had previously created the iconic cover image for ‘Music for the Jilted Generation’. Stuart told the All Souvenirs team that he remembers the shoot for ‘Voodoo People’ but couldn’t recall any details of the process. Most likely, it was just one of many freelance assignments he was working on at the time.

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Six months before the release of the US maxi-single, an alternative version of the ‘Voodoo People’ video was created, set to The Chemical Brothers’ remix. This version differed significantly from the original and was broadcast on MTV and possibly other channels. Notably, no shortened version of the remix was made for this video — the full 5:56-minute version was used instead. However, a year later, in 1996, an official 4:59-minute edit of the remix was released on the compilation ‘Special Brew’.

The special video for The Chemical Brothers remix is not the only alternate version of the ‘Voodoo People’ video. Another edit exists, set to the original track. This version also features numerous unique scenes and shots that do not appear in other edits. There is a chance that this was the very first rough cut, produced as a promo for the upcoming single so that it could start gaining traction even before the final edit was completed.

Music Video

Overall, ‘Voodoo People’ perfectly combined elements that had previously seemed unthinkable in The Prodigy’s music. The track opened with a powerful guitar riff, directly sampled from Nirvana!

Liam Howlett for Martin James’ ‘We Eat Rhythm’: ‘I’d always ignored anything that was in any way rock because it just meant leather jackets and greasy hair to me. Then I heard ‘Nevermind’ by Nirvana and it just blew me away.’

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Select Magazine: ‘After days of watching himself get thrown off cliffs, bounced down gorges and generally buggered about, it is Keith’s Big Moment. He will be zipped up inside the suitcase and must cut himself out with a Stanley knife before the oncoming jeep — driven with Ayrton Senna-like abandon by Maxim — flattens it. One take. No reshoot. And, ladies and gentlemen, Keith is doing his own stunts. ‘What’s my motivation?’ — ‘Your motivation is not to get run over by that fucking jeep. Now get in.’

Initially, the director planned for the formidable Baron Samedi to be played by Maxim throughout the video, but the charismatic Leeroy ended up fitting the role perfectly. Thornhill, who usually preferred to stay out of the spotlight, was surprised himself at how naturally he embodied the character during filming.

Leeroy Thornhill in his ‘Wildfire’ book: ‘Walter Stern and his team did another great job with the video and we were all happy with it. They hung Keith upside down by his feet from a tree and cut the rope before he was ready so he landed on his face; they had us running through plantations with snakes and spiders in; I was hanging on to the roof of a moving car – health and safety in full effect.’

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As for Mark, he owed his work with The Prodigy entirely to Walter. The two met at Bournemouth Film School, collaborated on several projects, and became good friends.

In upcoming articles, we will continue to explore the track-by-track history of ‘Jilted Generation’ and share even more rare details about the making of other The Prodigy videos.

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Headmasters: SPLIT
Additional thanks to: Sixshot, Alison Fielding, Russell Curtis, Mark Reynolds, Walter Stern

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