Intro — Alan Braxe & Fred Falke
Two friends from military service, a vocal snippet from The Jets and a bassline played by hand: how “Intro” became one of the defining French filter house records.
- Debut single of Alan Braxe and Fred Falke, released in 2000 on Braxe’s label Vulture Music.
- Built on vocals sampled from The Jets’ “Crush on You” and a bassline played by Falke.
- Peaked at No. 35 in the UK; used in the Paris 2024 Olympic opening ceremony; reissued for its 25th anniversary in March 2026.
“Intro” by Alan Braxe & Fred Falke rests on two things: a few words sung by The Jets and a bassline that Falke played himself. Released in 2000 on Braxe’s label Vulture Music, it was the duo’s first single. A quarter of a century later, it was chosen for the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Military service and a shop in Toulouse
Braxe and Falke met in early 1996, during their year of military service. Braxe was a Paris synth enthusiast who had started on clarinet and cello, DJed in Paris from the late 1980s and produced with a mixer, a compressor and an E-mu SP-1200. Falke, born in 1973, was a session musician from the South of France who had started as a bass player.
In 1997 Braxe released “Vertigo” on Roulé, Thomas Bangalter’s label, and the next year he was one third of Stardust, the trio behind “Music Sounds Better With You”. In 1999 he founded Vulture, and the same year he ran into Falke again in a second-hand music shop in Toulouse. They decided to work together. Braxe described himself as more into sampling and machines; Falke had the stronger background in keyboards and bass.
How “Intro” was made
The vocal hook comes from “Crush on You”, a US top three hit for The Jets in the 1980s. The bassline, the part most listeners remember, is Falke playing rather than programming. Around those two elements the duo kept things simple, in the filtered, disco-rooted style that Paris producers had made their own.
The track came out in 2000 on the Running 12-inch on Vulture, alongside “Most Wanted”.
Charts and critics
“Intro” peaked at No. 35 on the UK Singles Chart and spent ten weeks on the UK Dance Singles Chart. It was later collected on The Upper Cuts (2005), a compilation of Braxe’s productions credited to Alan Braxe, Fred Falke & Friends, reissued in 2023.
Critics placed it high. The Guardian included it in its 20 greatest French touch tracks, Mixmag in its best basslines of all time, and Resident Advisor in its top 100 tracks of the 2000s, calling it “French filter house of the highest order”. Braxe and Falke kept working together until 2008, with singles such as “Palladium” (2002), “Love Lost” (2003) and “Rubicon” (2004).
A second life
In 2024 “Intro” soundtracked a key moment of the Paris Olympic opening ceremony, and Justice paid tribute to Braxe with “Dear Alan” on Hyperdrama. For its 25th anniversary, Smugglers Way released a remastered EP on 20 March 2026 with the track’s first official remixes: a dub version with a newly recorded bassline by Falke and a raw “Hotel Room Edit” by Braxe.
In a set, “Intro” works early in the night as a warm opener or later as a breather at peak time. Keep digging with the story of Fred Falke.
FAQ
What does Intro by Alan Braxe & Fred Falke sample?
The vocals of “Crush on You”, a US top three hit for The Jets in the 1980s.
Who plays the bassline on Intro?
Fred Falke plays it himself. He was a bass player and session musician before he started producing.
When was Intro released?
In 2000, on Alan Braxe’s label Vulture Music, as the duo’s debut single. It was later collected on The Upper Cuts (2005).
