Synopsis

Thievery Corporation's video turns "The Richest Man in Babylon" into a stark, socially conscious montage. Images of suffering, exploitation, and the destructive effects of power appear alongside performances by Jamaican vocalists Notch and Sleepy Wonder. The relaxed dub and electronic groove contrasts with the troubling subject matter, creating an uneasy tension between the clip's smooth atmosphere and its condemnation of a kingdom built on inequality. Rather than follow a conventional narrative, the video works as a visual protest piece centered on Babylon as a symbol of corruption and oppression.

Factoids & Trivia

• The official video was produced in 2002 for the title track of Thievery Corporation's third studio album, which was released by ESL Music that same year.

• Notch and Sleepy Wonder appear in the video and provide the song's Jamaican dancehall vocals. The official release presentation describes their contribution as a socially conscious performance.

• The song began as a sparse recording built around guitar, bass, and vocals before Thievery Corporation reshaped it into a more soulful Jamaican dancehall track.

• The underlying beat came from an old hip-hop record found at a Baltimore store. Brazilian percussionist Roberto Berimbau added live bongos, while sampled shaker and tambourine sounds were combined with live trumpet, trombone, and saxophone.

• The track was recorded with approximately 32 separate tracks, an unusually layered production for a song whose video relies on a relatively direct, montage-based presentation.

• The album's enhanced CD edition included an interactive video clip of "The Richest Man in Babylon," giving the song a multimedia component beyond its later online circulation.

• The production credits for the official video list Rachel Coursey as producer, Caz Daddy as editor, Gary Grieg as director of photography, and Monkeyboy Studios for post-production.