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Music

Adamski's "Killer" Gave a Young Seal His First Big Break

Despite the BBC's ban on acid house, the duo's first big single quickly reached number-one in the UK charts.

Every week, Time Travel conjures the ghosts of techno-futures past with selections from the dustiest corners of the WWW.

Adamski ft. Seal - "Killer"

It was 1989—the Second Summer of Love. Acid house had been banned from BBC Radio 1, the concerned public was in a panic over recreational pharmaceuticals, and British ravers were literally holding protests to protect their right to party.

A then-unknown singer named Seal was clubbing his way around the British island, sleeping on couches and floors, financially unstable and singing in blues bands. 22-year-old DJ and producer Adamski had been playing out here and there on the rave scene and had a minor hit with his track "N-R-G."

New Year's Eve of that year they decided to work together, and three months later the duo were in Adamski's London flat recording lyrics to his ominous instrumental titled "The Killer."

"So you want to be free / to live your life the way you want to be." Seal's transcendent lyrics struck a chord with the new generation. Even despite the Thatcherite acid house ban on public radio, the song was simply unstoppable and quickly reached number-one in the UK charts. It stayed there for an entire month, cementing Adamski and Seal in the mainstream pop consciousness.