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Jamiroquai

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Jamiroquai

Jamiroquai is a Grammy Award-winning English acid jazz/funk/soul band. Jamiroquai was initially the most prominent component in the early-1990s London-based acid jazz movement, alongside groups such as Incognito, the Brand New Heavies, Galliano, and Corduroy. Subsequent albums have explored other musical directions such as, but not limited to, pop, rock and electronica. Jamiroquai has sold well over one million records in the United States alone.

Formation and history

The band name is a portmanteau of Jam session and "iroquai", based on the Iroquois, a Native American tribe.[1] The lineup of the band has changed several times, but the core members of the band are lead singer and songwriter Jason "Jay" Kay and drummer Derrick McKenzie (1994). Kay was the impetus behind the formation of Jamiroquai, deciding to form the band after an unsuccessful audition to become the singer of the Brand New Heavies. Their style has been described as an update of funk and soul music[citation needed].

Recordings

Jamiroquai's first single, "When You Gonna Learn", was released in 1992 on the Acid Jazz label. Following its success, Kay signed an eight-album record deal with Sony BMG Music Entertainment. The first Sony album, Emergency on Planet Earth was released in 1993. It was followed in 1994 by The Return of the Space Cowboy. The single "Space Cowboy" gained notice on the charts and in club rotation.

While Jamiroquai was growing in popularity in the UK and Western Europe, they remained relatively unknown to U.S and other international audiences. The band's international breakthrough came with the third album, Travelling Without Moving in 1996, which yielded two big hits, "Virtual Insanity" and "Cosmic Girl". The success of "Virtual Insanity" was due in part to its innovative video, which featured Kay's dance moves and some gravity-defying images. At the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards, the creative videoclip for "Virtual Insanity" won four awards, including Best Video, Best Special Effects, Best Cinematography, and Breakthrough Video.

The acid jazz flavours and ethnic influences of the first three albums continued with the release of Synkronized in 1999. Jay Kay's interest in funk and disco music were shifting the band's directions towards such. By their fifth album, A Funk Odyssey (2001), they had evolved so drastically, that some critics and listeners would remark they lost the 'Jamiroquai sound'. With the departure of more and more original band members, including Wallis Buchanan and his didgeridoo, Jamiroquai had become a very different band than that of 1992. In spite of the changes, the fifth album's first single, "Little L", reached #1 in many charts worldwide.

Their sixth album, titled Dynamite was released on June 20, 2005. It reached #3 on the UK charts. The first single, "Feels Just Like It Should" was released early in June, the second, "Seven Days in Sunny June" released on August 15th, 2005, followed by the third, "(Don't) Give Hate A Chance" on November 7, 2005.

Jamiroquai released a greatest hits collection, High Times: Singles 1992-2006 in November 2006. The release of this album marked the end of Kay’s eight-album contract with Sony. The album reached the number 1 spot in the UK album chart after its first week of release. The album featured two new tracks, "Runaway" and "Radio". On September 18, 2006, "Runaway" was given its first play by UK radio stations. It was released as a single on October 30, 2006.

In March 2006, Jamiroquai announced their switch to Columbia Records. Future releases will appear under the Columbia imprint.[2]

In March 2007, the Daily Mail stated that Jay Kay planned to retire so that he could raise a family. In an interview, the 37-year-old Kay said that the only thing that mattered now was "having kids and finding a good woman." [3] In response to the Daily Mirror article Jay Kay wrote a statement on the official Jamiroquai site:

As usual they got it wrong for a cheap headline! All I said was that we’re taking a bit of time out to get the studio refurbished and we’ll be back making music in a few months time. There’s no way I’m quitting the music business - now I am out of my long contract with SonyBMG we have so many options open to us we’re just going to take our time and get it right - it's just getting interesting!

[4]

Kay and Sony BMG

Kay expressed dissatisfaction with his longtime record label Sony Music. In a November 2006 interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, he commented that "These days it's 18% music and it's bloody 82% marketing bullshit [...] Next time I do an album, I'm gonna put it up on the internet for five fucking dollars."

He also remarked that the Jamiroquai "greatest hits" album was released purely out of contractual obligation: "2006, they're out of the fucking picture." [5]

These comments, and other recent comments in an interview with The Sun ("There are other things I want to do with my life [...] I want peace and quiet and to meet a nice girl and have some little pitter-patterers and chill out."[6]) fueled rumours that the Dynamite tour of 2005/2006 would be cancelled.

Recent projects and post-Sony period

After leaving Sony, the band began work on their seventh project, and several collaborations and side-projects. In a very short mid-2007 interview with Jamirotalk, drummer Derrick McKenzie expressed his satisfaction with leaving Sony as the beginning of a period in which the band will have more creative control over their own work, together with plenty of room for experimentation and lack of pressure from a record company.

On October 16, 2007, the band Nude Continuum announced a collaboration with McKenzie on their site. The collaboration has, according to the article, spawned a remix and several guest appearances of McKenzie on several Nude Continuum songs and vice versa.

On 19 November 2007, the band's percussionist, Solá Akingbolá released an album called "Routes to Roots". The album is focused strongly on the Yoruba people's music. In an interview with David Rowe, owner of [Funkin.com], Akingbolá said:

This album came out of the question - "Where are the Yoruba Drummers in the global fraternity of Drummers?" The cultural influence of the Yorubas in the diaspora runs very deep. The sound, the groove, the swing in my playing is rooted in the style of traditional Yoruba drummers I grew up listening to as a boy. My dream has always been to play along side these amazing players. This album is a dream come true and an honour. The ground work led me to places in my cultural tradition that were full of surprises and inspired more questions than answers. Philosophical, Historical, Religious and Musical. I hope this album will seduce young drummers in Yorubaland and the diaspora to delve deeper into their pre-Islamic/Christian musical history. The music of the Yorubas is in the language, the language is inseparable from the drums. No other groove can reach my heart, hands and feet like this one. If I can transfer a fraction of that to the listeners, I'll be a happy man.

On January 11, 2008, Jason himself posted a news item in which he thanked everyone who wished him the best for his birthday, and announced that the writing process for the new album has just begun. Only a day earlier, drummer Derrick McKenzie posted an article on his MySpace weblog that the recording process for the same record has also begun.

On January 15, 2008, the band confirmed that the recording process has begun. According to the news item, eleven tracks have already been written for the new album, with more to come. As of now, none of the tracks' names are known. [1]

On February 13, 2008, the band announced from their website [2] that it will perform at the World Stage of the Rock in Rio - Madrid festival, being held in Arganda del Rey, Madrid with others artists who have yet to be announced.

On February 25, 2008, Russian Audi motorcar website Jamiroquai will be performing on Thursday 28 February at the Khodynka Arena in Moscow, Russia at the launch of the new Audi A4 car.

Other projects and performances

Appearances in other media

Discography

Main article: Jamiroquai discography

Band members

Current Members

  • Jason Kay - Vocals (1992 - present)
  • Rob Harris - Guitar (2001 - present)
  • Derrick McKenzie - Drums (1993 - present)
  • Paul Turner - Bass (2004 - present)
  • Sola Akingbola - Percussion (1996 - present)
  • Matt Johnson - Keyboards (2002 - present)
  • Lorraine McIntosh - Backing Vocals
  • Hazel Fernandez - Backing Vocals
  • Sam Smith - Backing Vocals

Former members

Guest appearances

  • Andrew Levy - Bass (1992)
  • Simon Bartholomew - Guitar (1992)
  • Kofi Kari Kari - Percussion (1992)
  • Vanessa Simon - Backing Vocals
  • Martin Shaw - Trumpet
  • Beverley Knight - Vocals (2001)
  • Beverlei Brown - Backing Vocals (2006)

Samples

When you Gonna Learn (Canté Hondo mix) (1992)
Sample of the "Canté Hondo mix" of the same song
Problems playing this file? See media help.

See also

References

  1. ^ Greg Prato. "Jamiroquai Biography on Yahoo! Music". Yahoo! Inc. Retrieved 2007-10-04. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  2. ^ "Jamiroquai Switch to Columbia Records". Official Jamiroquai website. 2006-03-17. Retrieved 2006-08-31.
  3. ^ "Jamiroquai's Jay Kay calling it quits". MP3.com. 2006-03-17. Retrieved 2006-08-31. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ "Jay Kay calls it a day - Oh no he doesn't!". Jamiroquai - The Funkin Site. 2007-02-28. Retrieved 2007-03-13. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ "Mad hatter". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2005-11-25. Retrieved 2005-11-29. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "Jay Kay to hang up hat?". Jamiroquai - The Funkin Site. 2005-11-25. Retrieved 2005-11-29. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ Jamiroquai | News | Laureus Sports Awards performance photos - 22 May 2006, 23:28 (BST)
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