Jamiroquai, one of my all-time favorite bands is a British-based acid jazz/funk band entered the music scene in the early '90s and I just happened upon their video for Space Cowboy late one night while watching videos (on the Jukebox Network). It played one time and all I remember was this wiry, little guy hopping around all over. The video left an impression on me and for some weeks and even months later, I'd think about it but it never came on again. It would be several years later before the video Virtual Insanity started playing om MTV, I finally got to find out who that funny guy with the Stevie Wonder sound was and I took the risk and bought the CD. I was instantly captivated by their sound and have been a loyal fan ever since. So with no further ado, here is my list of the top Jamiroquai songs in heavy rotation, in no particular order, but categorized by the album it appears:
Canned Heat
Made famous by the movie Napoleon Dynamite. Quintessential get-up-and-dance tune, I defy anyone to listen to this and not start bopping their head to the beat. Never but feel good vibes here.
Best lyrics:
Nothing left for me to do but dance
Soul Education
Deep bass strums starts this one out, then dips into his regular beat. The strings come in during the chorus as Jay sings about breaking the rules in school and stepping out and into a new life education.
Best lyrics:
Got my life information
Upon the breeze that's blowing through my hair
Got a pocket full of rainbows
Oh and a sky to put them in so blue
So let the music come and save you.
I found a God that I can pray to
Deep inside my soul, hey.
Emergency on Planet Earth
The somewhat laid back but still uptempo beat of this has a ready-to-go-out-for a-good-time feel. Perfectly accented by a "bop bop" of the drums and horns, this oldie but goodie lets you know the best is yet to come.
Dynamite
My favorite parts are the subtle "bah bah bahs" I hear in the background while the chorus is going. That and the repeated "dynamite" chorus going on and on. Just another feel good.
Best lines:
Baby I'm not expensive
But tonight you're taking me
Star Child
This one starts off with some heavy, funk bass that might turn some off but the payoff is in the chorus which switches to a sweet croon about a "superman" coming to save the day. Fave section, at 3:25, after the bridge, when Jay relaxes the vocal a bit. Love the feeling!
Best lyrics:
Somewhere in the world tonight
There's a fire blazing bright
Keeping warm the superman
Sent to us to save the land
Somewhere in the world today
A hungry one will kneel to pray
Wishing all the while to see Starchild
Little L
Hip shaker, yes, like many of their songs. A perfect blend of thumping bass with guitar accents and effortless strings. And hand claps!
Loveblind
Theme of this song: the sound of being completely, butt crazy, sickeningly in love but in the cutest way. Jay Kay sings like a guy that has just in that moment fallen so deep for some lucky chick that one could imagine him dancing down the street, hands clasped together on his chest, proclaiming it to the world.
Best lyrics:
Baby, you got me hanging off the streetlights
You got me singing with the bluebirds
In the sky above
I think I'm in love...
Step to me, angel eyes
You got the shake and I got the fries
All black leather like a disco bitch
Five feet nine with your ruby lips
Love Foolosophy
Another finger snapper and hip rocker (aren't they all really?). Here is another one about being a fool in love. BONUS is how freaking sexy Jay Kay looks dancing in that white suit at about 2:51 of the video.
Best part, accented by guitar riffs:
Another finger snapper and hip rocker (aren't they all really?). Here is another one about being a fool in love. BONUS is how freaking sexy Jay Kay looks dancing in that white suit at about 2:51 of the video.
Best part, accented by guitar riffs:
And this love (riff riff),
Fool (riff riff), osophy is killing
Previous illusions that (I'm in love fool)I had in my mind about you
Main Vein
Best part of this song is at 3:45, when Jay Kay begins to ad lib and the background vocals sang by Beverley Knight come in. I end up singing the backgrounds parts instead of the main vocal.
Space Cowboy
Chill. Funky. Bass. Loungy. Like the lyrics, this song embodies "inter-planetary good vibe zones".
So Good to Feel Real
Ahhhhhh, the hidden track that is so hot you wish it was a regular track (at least I do). Only 2 mins long, and its like a jam-tease. It jumps right in at about 4:13, after track 10 and sounds like what it must be like to be able to peek in on the band during an impromptu session of just playing good music. And just when ya warming up, they fade out. Such a tease!
Half the Man
One of the few midtempo songs on this list, this song has an innocent, almost playful sound that sings of a pure, sweet love. This is perfect fall-in-love song.
Best lyric:
Best part of this song is at 3:45, when Jay Kay begins to ad lib and the background vocals sang by Beverley Knight come in. I end up singing the backgrounds parts instead of the main vocal.
Space Cowboy
Chill. Funky. Bass. Loungy. Like the lyrics, this song embodies "inter-planetary good vibe zones".
So Good to Feel Real
Ahhhhhh, the hidden track that is so hot you wish it was a regular track (at least I do). Only 2 mins long, and its like a jam-tease. It jumps right in at about 4:13, after track 10 and sounds like what it must be like to be able to peek in on the band during an impromptu session of just playing good music. And just when ya warming up, they fade out. Such a tease!
Half the Man
One of the few midtempo songs on this list, this song has an innocent, almost playful sound that sings of a pure, sweet love. This is perfect fall-in-love song.
Best lyric:
Yesterday I was
half the man I'd used to be
Maybe that's because
you're the other half of me...
Every bird will sing the melody of our love tune
Morning Glory
Straying from their usual high tempo, dance/funk sound, this one sounds like, well, lovemaking, in its purest, most natural form. Seriously. Listening to this song is picturing a love scene between two people completely consumed, absorbed and wrapped up in each other. Til the break of dawn.
She's a Fast Persuader
Starts out smooth and mellow before dropping into an uptempo beat. Crazy, cool bass throughout with a chorus that dips down into a slow, almost spacey sound.
Best lyrics:
Get on down and work me babe
On your knees, once again
She's a fast persuader,
outta space
Escalator to elation any place
Girl's got crazy rhythm
She's coming from a stranger place
All wrapped up in musicWith a star gaze on her face
White Knuckle Ride
Midtempo, this is a classic neck-bopping tune. Has a disco feel that's all soul.
Best lyric : Its not to so easy to control
Blow Your Mind
The definition of chill. This is a kickback, perfect for a glass of wine after a long, hard day.
Virtual Insanity
Soon as that recognizable piano riff comes on, in comes Jay's soulful crooning and most people's minds go directly to the memorable 1997 video of Jay Kay gliding on the floors in a near empty, industrial looking room. But it was the verses of mothers choosing their infants' colors, living underground and the "sickly ties that earthly man has made" that voice a message even more worth listening to.
Do You Know Where You're Coming From
There is something very coy and slick about Jay Kay's smooth, slow-paced singing over this very fast-paced techno dance beat that is kinda hypnotizing. This is my very favorite song from this album. Its a perfect combo of smooth, easy singing, mixed with a rapid-fast beat.
Use the Force
Playful and fun, this one is a great tune for brushing the dirt off your shoulders, and shaking off any negative vibes.
Best lyrics:
Best lyric : Its not to so easy to control
Blow Your Mind
The definition of chill. This is a kickback, perfect for a glass of wine after a long, hard day.
Virtual Insanity
Soon as that recognizable piano riff comes on, in comes Jay's soulful crooning and most people's minds go directly to the memorable 1997 video of Jay Kay gliding on the floors in a near empty, industrial looking room. But it was the verses of mothers choosing their infants' colors, living underground and the "sickly ties that earthly man has made" that voice a message even more worth listening to.
Do You Know Where You're Coming From
There is something very coy and slick about Jay Kay's smooth, slow-paced singing over this very fast-paced techno dance beat that is kinda hypnotizing. This is my very favorite song from this album. Its a perfect combo of smooth, easy singing, mixed with a rapid-fast beat.
Use the Force
Playful and fun, this one is a great tune for brushing the dirt off your shoulders, and shaking off any negative vibes.
Best lyrics:
I must believe, I'm a rocketman, I'm a superstar, I can be anyone
Spend a Lifetime
The 2nd ballad on this list, this love song starts out like the classic romance song then the strings come in and emanate emotion as Jay Kay sings of a "tender touch" and living "eternally together". Simply beautiful!!
Check out some of these songs (not all are listed) on my Spotify playlist: Jamiroquai
I don't know many of these songs. To spotify I got!
ReplyDeleteWill check it out
ReplyDelete