Editing Fun Lovin' Criminals (section)

=== Formation and first albums: 1993–1999 ===
The band was formed in 1993 by [[Huey Morgan]], [[Brian Leiser|Brian "Fast" Leiser]], and Steve Borgovini after Leiser, who was already friends with Borgovini, met Morgan at the club where they both worked.<ref name="The Great Rock Discography">{{Cite book|first=Martin C.|last=Strong|year=2000|title=The Great Rock Discography|edition=5th|publisher=Mojo Books|location=Edinburgh|pages=365–6|isbn=1-84195-017-3}}</ref> They began playing together and would provide entertainment for the club when a booked act failed to show up. It was during one of these stand-in gigs that they caught the attention of [[EMI]], who offered them a record deal.

''[[Come Find Yourself]]'', the band's first album, was released in the summer of 1996 by [[Chrysalis Records]] and followed their single "The Grave and the Constant" (UK No. 72), which had been released a month earlier, into the UK charts. The album also featured the UK Top 40 hits "[[Scooby Snacks (song)|Scooby Snacks]]" (UK No. 22), "The Fun Lovin' Criminal" (UK No. 26), and "King of New York" (UK No. 28). The latter's subject matter touched on the imprisonment of [[Italian-American]] [[Made man|mafioso]] [[John Gotti]], the wannabe gangsters emulating his style, and his fans and followers in his community who maintained his innocence. The biggest hit, "[[Scooby Snacks (song)|Scooby Snacks]]", features samples from films by [[Quentin Tarantino]] and a guitar sample from [[Tones on Tail]]'s song "Movement of Fear", interspersed with rap verses and a sung, anthemic chorus. ''Come Find Yourself'' had a slow rise on the [[UK Albums Chart]], eventually peaking at No. 7 and spending well over a year on the chart, but it failed to make an impact in the US, despite the band appearing as musical guests on MTV's ''[[The Jenny McCarthy Show (1997 TV series)|The Jenny McCarthy Show]]''. The success of the album prompted the re-release of "Scooby Snacks" as a single, alongside a cover of the [[10cc]] classic "[[I'm Not in Love]]", which this time reached UK No. 12.<ref name="The Great Rock Discography" />

''[[100% Colombian]]'', released in August 1998 by [[Virgin Records]],<ref name="The Great Rock Discography" /> featured a far grittier sound, tempered by three upbeat songs and several downtempo tracks, including "Love Unlimited", a tribute to [[Barry White]]. "[[Korean Bodega]]", one of the aforementioned upbeat songs, was the biggest hit from the album, reaching No. 15, their second-highest charting single to date, after the re-release of "Scooby Snacks".<ref name="The Great Rock Discography" />

In June 1999, the band performed at the [[Glastonbury Festival]] on the Pyramid Stage. Their December 1999 album, [[Mimosa (album)|''Mimosa'']], released by [[EMI]], was a compilation album consisting mostly of laid-back [[Lounge music|lounge]]-style covers and different versions of earlier released tracks. While it made reasonable sales, the album was their weakest-selling to date and remained so for several years. It was around this time, in 1999, that Steve Borgovini left the band. He was replaced by Maxwell "Mackie" Jayson. A permanent replacement was found in 2003 in the form of Mark Reid (a.k.a. [[Frank Benbini]]) from [[Leicester]], United Kingdom, who had previously worked with the band as Jayson's technician.