U Don't Know Me (Basement Jaxx song)

In March 2005, Basement Jaxx released their first greatest hits album The Singles, which included two new songs, "U Don't Know Me" and "Oh My Gosh".[3] Members of the duo—Simon Ratcliffe and Felix Buxton—and The Bellrays' lead singer Lisa Kekaula wrote "U Don't Know Me".[4] Kekaula, who appeared on their 2004 single "Good Luck", also contributed the song's main vocal.[1][4] In an interview with Billboard in February 2005, Buxton revealed that their record label XL was going to release the two new tracks as their next singles.[5] Ultimately, "U Don't Know Me" was the second single from the album and was released on 13 June 2005.[6]

According to Daniel Montesinos-Donaghy of Thump, "U Don't Know Me" is a rock song that features beatboxing, drums, xylophones, a keyboard solo and backing vocalists that "offer more joyful 'woo's than you would expect".[1] Its production also contains "heavy" electronic pressing, in the words of musicOMH's Charlotte Lyon.[7] Lyrically, Montesinos described the song as "another kiss-off" track from the group that is similar to "Good Luck".[1] Vula Malinga, Daniel Pearce and Shaun Escoffery (credited as Sean Escoffery) are three of the four performers who provided backing vocals for the track.[4]

Writing for the Seattle Weekly, Michaelangelo Matos said "U Don't Know Me" sounds like an outtake from the duo's last album, Kish Kash (2003).[8] In a more negative tone, Charlotte Lyon from musicOMH called the song the "weakest" of The Singles. She said: "The heavy electronic pressing gives it a strong likeability, but unlike the rest of the tracks, you’ve heard it somewhere before."[7] Thump's Daniel Montesinos-Donaghy also gave a mixed review. He felt the song was "nowhere near as euphoric" as Basement Jaxx and Kekaula's previous collaboration, "Good Luck", and that the track was only their rock songwriting "exercise". He added: "Of course, a Basement Jaxx version of a rock song is different from anything you'll catch playing in your local dive bar." Despite feeling the verses were "underwritten", Montesinos still praised the chorus and its many "embellishments" for being "sassy fun".[1] In contrast to other reviewers, Evan Sawdey of the webzine PopMatters called the track "stellar".[9]

"U Don't Know Me" debuted and peaked at number 26 on the UK Singles Chart of 25 June 2005.[10] In other territories, the song charted at number 12 in Finland and number 56 in Australia.[11][12]

The music video for "U Don't Know Me" features a look-alike of Queen Elizabeth II (pictured)

Mat Kirkby, who directed the music videos for "Good Luck" and "Oh My Gosh", directed the video for "U Don't Know Me".[13] It uses the "JaxxHouz" version of the song,[14][15] and features a Queen Elizabeth II look-alike drinking, eating kebab, fighting with bouncers, fighting with a woman in an alley, and fleeing police during a night out in Soho, London.[16][17] In an interview with Canadian music magazine The Record, Buxton said:

Because the song is called "U Don't Know Me," [Kirkby] thought it would be quite interesting for it to be about the Queen and to have her on a night off, sort of just going out, just leaving her bodyguards behind … so [it's about] do we really know the Queen, the people in the media, do we really know them?[18]

A scene from the video which shows the look-alike groping a lapdancer, led MTV in the United Kingdom to broadcast it only after the 7:00 pm watershed to adhere to Ofcom regulations.[16][17] Kirkby, who later edited a less offensive alternative version of the video, did not understand their decision on banning the scene. He pointed out: "They seemed happy with her drinking and being surrounded by drug dealers."[17] However, a spokeswoman for MTV told the BBC that the clip was, indeed, a "great video", and they were planning on giving it heavy rotation in evening schedules.[16] Buxton told The Record: "MTV wasn't allowed to play it in the daytime in the UK at the beginning but yeah, people seem to enjoy it. It's not malicious, it's more a bit of fun."[18] The clip was nominated for Best Video at the 2005 Antville Music Video Awards.[19]

In other media, "U Don't Know Me" was included on "Hold My Hand", an episode from the fifth season of Six Feet Under, which aired on 20 June 2005.[20] Later, on 14 November that year, it appeared on "Nailed", an episode from the fourth season of CSI: Miami.[21] The song is also part of the setlist for Basement Jaxx's 2006 live tour promoting The Singles.[22]

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of the CD single and The Singles.[4][28]

Recording and management

• Mastered by Geoff Pesche at The Townhouse, London
• Published by Universal Music/Mele Kekaula Music (BMI)/Songs of Windswept
• All rights on behalf of Mele Kekaula Music administrated by Songs of Windswept
• Lisa Kekaula appears courtesy of The Bellrays

Personnel