Go Jamming With Jamiroquai -- 06.18.2006
British band Jamiroquai is sure to heat up Kyiv with their jazzy disco hits and energetic performance
Back in 1996 there was a music program broadcast on the ICTV channel. It’s now long gone and quite forgotten (I’m not even sure who hosted it or even what it was called) but I certainly remember one video I saw there, featuring a skinny guy in a giant hat doing some extraordinary dance moves while sliding up and down the moving floor of a room. But it wasn’t all visual: there was also a cool song in a style I couldn’t quite place. It was, of course, “Virtual Insanity,” and the skinny guy was Jay Kay – the front man of the British band Jamiroquai. Back then my musical tastes weren’t quite as refined as they are now, but I immediately took notice of him. Soon after, I bought my first Jamiroquai album – “Synkronized” – and, as I write these lines almost six years later, I’m about to see Jay Kay and his band play live in my hometown.
The story of Jamiroquai started back in 1992 when Jay Kay failed in his attempt to become a part of the Brand New Heavies and decided to put together his own band. The name is a combination of the Native American Iroquois tribe with the word “jam” added to it (he considered this blend of tribal wisdom and music to be the best way to reflect the philosophy of the songs he wanted to make). And soon Kay demonstrated this philosophy with the single “When You Gonna Learn?” released in 1993. It became such a success that Sony BMG took the risk of signing an eight-album record deal with them and, as it turned out, the gamble was worth it. Their first album from the band, “Emergency on Planet Earth,” full of flowing jazz instrumentals, soulful grooves and social themes, became Jamiroquai’s first step on the road to world stardom.
The second on Jamirqouai’s plate, “The Return of the Space Cowboy,” was more psychedelic and funky, but the real international breakthrough came for the band with the release of their third record, “Traveling Without Moving,” which featured two big hits – the aforementioned “Virtual Insanity” as well as “Cosmic Girl.” The album established a strong hold on the American market, which is often not so accessible to European musicians. And the video for “Virtual Insanity,” which had once captivated my attention, won four MTV Video Music Awards: Best Video, Best Special Effects, Best Cinematography and Breakthrough Video. The following year, the “Deeper Underground” single appeared on the soundtrack to the “Godzilla” movie and topped charts in the UK.
In 1999, Jay Kay took a few steps back from his trademark acid jazz and recorded “Synkronized,” a melodious album with a strong disco bent, as well as “A Funk Odyssey,” released in 2001, which was much more electronic. Finally, Jamiroquai’s latest record to date, aptly named “Dynamite,” was released in June 2005 and had a real impact, reaching #3 on the UK charts, with similar success around the world. It was indeed Jamiroquai’s most diverse work and included aspects from all five previous albums accumulated over the band’s 13-year history. All the songs on the album, including hot disco tracks like “Don’t Give Hate a Chance” and “Loveblind,” laid-back funk such as “Feels Just Like It Should” and ultimate summer jazz jams like “Seven Days in Sunny June,” prove that Jay Kay is far from resting on his laurels and that the band may have a lot more surprises in store for us, continuing to take its unique place in the world music scene.
Last year Jay Kay had expressed resentment over his long-term contract with Sony, saying it didn’t allow him enough creative freedom. In fact, some of what he said fueled rumors that Kay would retire following the Dynamite tour, but we certainly hope he won’t give up that easily. The “Space Cowboy,” as Jay Kay is often called, should just keep on returning, because life would be a lot duller without him.
But more importantly, Jamiroquai is coming to Kyiv for a concert organized by Prosto Radio, and all this just two weeks after the amazing show by the Black Eyed Peas. Local audiences barely have enough time to cool down. After all, Jamiroquai is famous for their electrifying live acts and their concerts are always eagerly anticipated. And, for Ukraine, whose music fans don’t often get to see stars of Jamiroquai’s caliber, the upcoming concert may well be the biggest music event of the last few years. I’ll even let myself say this marks the beginning of a new era in entertainment here, and that in a year or two we might even see Madonna onstage in our fair city. I mean, after all this, why not?