Born in the late '60s, Adamski (born Adam Tinley) appeared to have reached the perfect age for recording twenty years later, square in the middle of Britain's acid house boom. In fact, he had made his chart debut a decade earlier with the adolescent punk band the Stupid Babies. (The group, which also included his five-year-old brother Dominic on vocals, hit number three on the indie charts with Baby Sitters and even recorded a radio session for John Peel.) Also a member of the post-punk hip-hop band Diskord Datkord during the mid-'80s, Tinley became interested in house music by the end of the decade. After meeting Chicagoan Jimi Polo, Adamski was introduced to many major figures in house, including Marshall Jefferson and Adonis. He learned the basics of the sequencer from Polo as well, and began playing live at warehouse parties and raves around London.

He signed with MCA by the end of the decade and debuted with N-R-G, a number 12 hit in the U.K. (He was later forced to turn over some royalties due to a dispute with lawyers, who contended that the track hoisted a TV commercial melody.) His subsequent single, Killer, wisely forestalled the (recognizable) samples and hit number one -- though thanks may also be due to its vocalist, Seal. His debut album Liveandirect made a bit of an impression, with mixes of both N-R-G and Killer to recommend itself, and his late-'90 single The Space Jungle hit the Top Ten as well. As was far from surprising with the British rave movement, however, Adamski disappeared from the charts after 1992, when his third album Naughty was released. Six years later, he resurfaced on ZTT with Adamski's Thing. ~ John Bush, Rovi