Phats & Small - Turn Around

1999

Phats & Small - Turn Around (1999) Director: Caswell Coggins Era: Late-90s UK Dance Boom (1999) - Peak era of Brighton-scene big beat and UK garage crossover, defined by cheeky on-location street production and sample-driven euphoria preceding Y2K cultural anxiety High. A confirmed-director, chart-topping debut single that functions as a precise cultural timestamp for the Brighton dance scene and late-90s UK disco-house moment. The video's location realism, fast editorial rhythm, and warm filmic palette make it an ideal primary source for researchers studying British music video production conventions of 1999, and for archivists mapping the visual language of the era's club-to-pop crossover. Context: Released in March 1999 at the apex of the UK's late-90s dance music explosion, 'Turn Around' arrived when Brighton had become a globally recognised hub of big beat and electronic production. The video's Brighton-and-Hove street locations situate the track squarely within the city's cultural identity. The song's disco-house construction, sampling Toney Lee's 'Reach Up' and Change's 'The Glow of Love', reflects the era's wholesale raid on 1970s, 80s Black American dance music, a defining gesture of UK late-90s club culture. MTV Dance later ranked the track number 38 in 'The 100 Biggest 90s Dance Anthems of All Time', cementing its canonical status. Director notes: Credited as Film Director on the official VHS promo release of 'Turn Around', with Rachel Harker serving as Film Producer, as documented on Discogs (release ID r15675399). The video was shot on location across Brighton and Hove, UK, consistent with the duo's local roots. The production employed a fast-cut, location-realist approach aligned with Coggins' documentary-influenced background.