House of Pain

Taking a stance as a gang of hard drinking Irish-American bad boy rappers, House of Pain shot to fame with the huge international hit Jump Around in 1992. Strutting with hip hop attitude whilst still having enough edge to appeal to hard rock fans, the single sampled Prince, Johnny Cash and soul stars Bob & Earl to reach Number 3 in the US, Number 8 in the UK. Part of a loose collective of musicians known as Soul Assassins (which also included Cypress Hill), the group's debut album House Of Pain (1992) brought big commercial success but they struggled for credibility and could never shake off the tag of "one-hit wonders". The albums Same As It Ever Was (1994) and Truth Crushed To Earth Shall Rise Again (1996) followed but the band split soon after with Everlast turning to Islam to escape the industry. DJ Lethal went on to join nu metal superstars Limp Bizkit, whilst Everlast finally received critical acclaim for the solo album Whitey Ford Sings The Blues (1998).