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Jamiroquai

{{short description|English acid jazz band}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}

{{Use British English|date=March 2020}}

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Jamiroquai

| image = Jamiroquai 2018 Coachella18W1-121 (27188172187).jpg

| landscape = yes

| alt = The band Jamiroquai performing on stage at Coachella 2018. At center is vocalist Jay Kay wearing a colorful Native-American shirt with frills around the waist and a white LED head-dress. Also present are a guitarist, a bassist, a drummer and two female backing vocalists. The band is engulfed in roughly waist-level stage fog colored purple by stage lighting.

| caption = Jamiroquai performing at the Coachella Music Festival in 2018

| origin = London, England

| genre = {{hlist|Funk|acid jazz|soul|disco|house|R&B}}

| years_active = 1992–present

| label = {{hlist|Acid Jazz|S2 Records|Work|Epic|Mercury|Virgin EMI}}

| associated_acts =

| website = {{url|jamiroquai.com}}

| current_members =

| past_members = * Nick Van Gelder

}}

Jamiroquai ({{IPAc-en|audio=Jamiroquai.ogg|dʒ|ə|ˈ|m|ɪr|ə|k|w|aɪ}} {{respell|jə|MIRR|ə|kwy}}) are an English acid jazz and funk band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in their early releases and later drew from rock, disco, electronic and Latin music genres. Lyrically, the group have addressed social and environmental justice. Kay has remained the only constant member through several line-up changes.

The band made their debut under Acid Jazz Records but subsequently found mainstream success under Sony. While under this label, three of their albums have charted at number one in the UK, including Emergency on Planet Earth (1993), Synkronized (1999), A Funk Odyssey (2001), and the band's single, "Deeper Underground" (1998).

{{As of|2017}}, Jamiroquai had sold more than 26{{nbsp}}million albums worldwide. Their third album, Travelling Without Moving (1996), received a Guinness World Record as the best-selling funk album in history. The music video for its second single, "Virtual Insanity", also contributed to the band's success. The song was named Video of the Year at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards and earned the band a Grammy Award in 1998.

History

=1992–1995: Formation, ''Emergency on Planet Earth'' and ''The Return of the Space Cowboy''=

Jay Kay was sending songs to record companies, including a hip-hop single released in 1986 under the label StreetSounds.{{cite AV media|title=Emergency on Planet Earth|author=Kay, Jay|others=Jamiroquai|publisher=Sony Music Entertainment|year=2013|id=88691967852|type=liner notes}}{{sfn|Larkin|2011|page=1986}} During this time, Kay was influenced by Native American and First Nation peoples and their philosophies; this led to the creation of "When You Gonna Learn", a song covering social issues. After he had it recorded, Kay fought with his producer, who took out half of the lyrics and produced the song based on what was charting at the time. With the track restored to his preference, the experience helped Kay realise he "wanted a proper live band with a proper live sound". The band would be named "Jamiroquai", a portmanteau of the words "jam" and the name of a Native American confederacy, the Iroquois.{{cite news |last=Selsman |first=Jill |title=New Again: Jamiroquai |url=https://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/new-again-jamiroquai |url-status=live |work=Interview |date=June 1993 |access-date=22 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080200/https://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/new-again-jamiroquai |archive-date=15 December 2020 |language=en-US}} He was signed to Acid Jazz Records in 1991 after he sent a demo tape of himself covering a song by the Brand New Heavies.{{cite news |last=Gates |first=Kenny |title=Major labels are all about politics. I'm not interested in that. |url=https://www.pias.com/blog/major-labels-politics-im-not-interested/ |publisher=PIAS Group |date=16 June 2017 |access-date=13 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170821003951/https://www.pias.com/blog/major-labels-politics-im-not-interested/ |archive-date=21 August 2017 |language=en-US}}{{cite news|title=The history of Acid Jazz |language=en-GB|publisher=Acid Jazz Records|url=http://www.acidjazz.co.uk/about/#toggle-id-1/|url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080224/https://www.acidjazz.co.uk/about/#toggle-id-1/|archive-date=15 December 2020}} Kay gradually gathered band members, including Wallis Buchanan, who played the didgeridoo. Kay's manager scouted keyboardist Toby Smith, who joined the group as Kay's songwriting partner. In 1992, Jamiroquai began their career by performing in the British club scene.{{cite web|last=Scheerer|first=Mark|date=11 August 1998|title=1998 Grammy Awards – Jamiroquai making it big with retro '70s sound|url=http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/9708/11/jamiroquoi/index.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080202/http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/9708/11/jamiroquoi/index.html|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=15 June 2018|publisher=CNN}} They released "When You Gonna Learn" as their debut single, charting outside the UK Top 50 on its initial release.{{sfn|Thompson|2001|page=309}} In the following year, Stuart Zender became the band's bassist by audition.{{cite news|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1430495/bassist-stuart-zender-leaves-jamiroquai/|title=Bassist Stuart Zender Leaves Jamiroquai|date=5 October 1998|publisher=MTV News|access-date=27 May 2018|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080234/http://www.mtv.com/news/1430495/bassist-stuart-zender-leaves-jamiroquai/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web |title=Biography |url=http://www.zendermusic.com/biography |url-status=live |publisher=Zendermusic.com |access-date=15 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080150/http://www.zendermusic.com/biography |archive-date=15 December 2020}}

After the success of "When You Gonna Learn", the band were offered major-label contracts. Kay signed a one-million-dollar, eight-album record deal with Sony Soho2.{{sfn|Thompson|2001|page=309}}{{cite web |last=Dawes |first=Christopher |title=Jamiroquai Hat's Entertainment! |url=http://www.pushstuff.co.uk/mmfeatures/jamiroquai200393.html |url-status=live |website=Melody Maker |date=20 March 1993 |access-date=22 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080200/http://www.pushstuff.co.uk/mmfeatures/jamiroquai200393.html |archive-date=15 December 2020}}{{cite news |last=Markwell |first=Lisa |author-link=Lisa Markwell |title=Interview: Jay Kay – In at the deep end |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/interview-jay-kay-in-at-the-deep-end-1095094.html |url-status=live |work=The Independent |date=22 May 1999 |access-date=21 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080219/https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/interview-jay-kay-in-at-the-deep-end-1095094.html |archive-date=15 December 2020 |language=en-GB}} He was the only member under contract, but he would share his royalties with his band members in accordance to their contributions as musicians. Their label for US releases would be under the Work Group.{{cite web |last=Williams|first=Paul|date=19 June 1999|title=Jamiroquai look to top 7m sales with new Sony album |url=http://www.proquest.com/docview/232257264|website=Music Week|id={{ProQuest|232257264}}}}{{efn|1=Emergency on Planet Earth was released under Columbia records.|group=nb}} The band released their debut album, Emergency on Planet Earth, where it entered the UK albums chart at number 1.{{Cite web|last=O'Donnell|first=David|date=2008|title=Review of Jamiroquai – Emergency on Planet Earth|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/n5mq/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080152/https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/n5mq/|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=21 January 2018|publisher=BBC Music}} Kevin L. Carter of The Philadelphia Inquirer commented that the album "is full of upbeat, multi-hued pop tunes based heavily in acid jazz, '70s fusion, funk and soul, reggae and world music".{{cite news|last=Carter|first=Kevin|date=21 September 1993|title=Ron Carter Continues To Combine Jazz with Classical's Lyricism|work=The Philadelphia Inquirer|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1839669371|url-status=live|access-date=24 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225101/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1839669371/fulltext/96A07C096C6B4E50PQ|archive-date=2 April 2021|id={{ProQuest|1839669371}}}} With it, the band continued to build their acid-jazz sound in the following years. The album's ecologically charged concept gave Kay press coverage,{{cite magazine|last=Odell|first=Michael|date=March 1997|title=Son Of Soul|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FCwEAAAAMBAJ&q=jamiroquai&pg=PA101|magazine=Vibe|pages=101–102|access-date=|via=Google Books|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220429084243/https://books.google.com/books?id=FCwEAAAAMBAJ&q=jamiroquai&pg=PA101#v=onepage&q&f=false|archive-date=29 April 2022}} although Mark Jenkins of The Washington Post found the record's sloganeering "as crude as the music is slick".{{cite news|last=Jenkins|first=Mark|date=29 October 1993|title=Jamiroquai's Soul Minus Soul|newspaper=The Washington Post|pages=22}}

File:Jamiroquai in concert.jpg in 1995]]

The band's original drummer, Nick van Gelder, was replaced in 1993 by Derrick McKenzie, who recorded with the group in one take for his audition.

{{cite AV media|title=The Return of the Space Cowboy|author=Kay, Jay|others=Jamiroquai|publisher=Sony Music Entertainment|year=2013|id=88691967862|type=liner notes}} They issued their second album, The Return of the Space Cowboy, in 1994, and it ranked at number 2 in the UK chart.{{cite web|last=Easlea|first=Daryl|date=2011|title=Review of Jamiroquai – The Return of the Space Cowboy|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/3xhf/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080230/https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/3xhf/|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=15 September 2019|publisher=BBC Music|language=en-GB}} During its recording, Kay was in a creative block, worsened by his increasing drug use at the time, which resulted in its complex songwriting.{{cite magazine|last=Gladstone|first=Eric|date=May 1995|title=Jamiroquai|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LC0EAAAAMBAJ&q=jamiroquai&pg=PA3|magazine=CMJ New Music Monthly|pages=16|access-date=|via=Google Books}} However, the record was said to have "capture[ed] this first phase of Jamiroquai at their very best", according to Daryl Easlea of BBC Music. Josef Woodard from Entertainment Weekly wrote that its "syncopated grooves and horn-lined riffs" were "played by humans, not samplers".{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/1995/03/10/return-space-cowboy/|title=Return of the Space Cowboy|last=Woodard|first=Josef|date=10 March 1995|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=13 October 2018|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080238/https://ew.com/article/1995/03/10/return-space-cowboy/|url-status=live}}

=1996–2000: ''Travelling Without Moving'', peak of fame and ''Synkronized''=

Released in 1996, Travelling Without Moving reached number 24 in the Billboard 200{{cite magazine|date=9 February 2017|title=Dance Chart Upstarts: Jamiroquai, Louis the Child & Pavlova|url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/billboard-dance-chart-upstarts-jamiroquai-louis-child-pavlova-233325954.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080232/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/billboard-dance-chart-upstarts-jamiroquai-louis-child-pavlova-233325954.html|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=1 October 2019|magazine=Billboard}} and number 2 in the UK albums chart.{{Cite web|title=Jamiroquai {{!}} Full Official Chart History|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/28264/jamiroquai/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080202/https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/28264/jamiroquai/|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=17 January 2018|publisher=Official Charts Company}} With more than 8 million copies sold worldwide,{{cite magazine|last=Flick|first=Larry|date=25 August 2001|title=Epic's Jamiroquai Steps Into '2001'|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_hMEAAAAMBAJ&q=jamiroquai&pg=PA82|magazine=Billboard|pages=1. 82|access-date=}} it has been listed in the Guinness World Records as the best-selling funk album in history since 2001.{{sfn|Footman|Young|2001|page=163}}{{cite web|title=Best-selling album of funk music|url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/74163-best-selling-album-of-funk-music|access-date=4 July 2021|website=Guinness World Records}} The album's lead single, "Virtual Insanity", gained popularity for its music video, which was heavily played on MTV.{{sfn|Prouty|2011|page=481}} Containing symphonic and jungle elements, Kay aimed for a more accessible sound.{{cite AV media|title=Travelling Without Moving |last=Kay |first=Jay|others=Jamiroquai|publisher=Sony Music Entertainment|year=2013|id=88691967912|type=liner notes}} Ted Kessler of NME saw Travelling Without Moving as an improvement from previous albums,{{cite journal|last=Kessler|first=Ted|date=14 September 1996|title=Jamiroquai – Travelling Without Moving|url=http://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews/19980101000880reviews.html|url-status=dead|journal=NME|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001011192348/http://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews/19980101000880reviews.html|archive-date=11 October 2000|access-date=11 April 2019}} while critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine commented that it did not have "uniform consistenc[ies]" in comparison.{{cite web |author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas|title=Travelling Without Moving – Jamiroquai|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/travelling-without-moving-mw0000086408|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080229/https://www.allmusic.com/album/travelling-without-moving-mw0000086408|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=28 February 2018|publisher=AllMusic}}

While the group were preparing their fourth album, Synkronized (1999), Zender left Jamiroquai due to internal conflicts with Kay. While Zender had not been involved in the album's songwriting, the group chose to scrap his recorded tracks to avoid lawsuits, and Nick Fyffe was recruited for new sessions.{{cite journal |last=Mehle |first=Michael |date=9 July 1999|title=Musical Two Rock Festivals Herald The Sounds Of Summer Mayhem Jamiroquai|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-67486971.html/|journal=Rocky Mountain News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121120328/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-67486971.html/|archive-date=21 November 2018}} This resulted in what was thought to be both a "tighter, more angry collection of songs" for Synkronized, and a change of musical direction from "creating propulsive collections of looooong{{sic}} tunes, speaking out against injustice". Some of the album's tracks, including "Canned Heat", display a hi-NRG and house style, while slower tempos on others were said to "ease the pressure for [Kay's] more romantic musings".{{cite magazine|title=Jamiroquai Synkronized|url=http://exclaim.ca/music/article/jamiroquai-synkronized|last=Bidaye|first=Prasad|date=1 August 1999 |website=Exclaim!|access-date=3 May 2020|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080237/http://exclaim.ca/music/article/jamiroquai-synkronized|url-status=live}} The album reached number 1 in the UK albums chart and number 28 in the US Billboard 200.{{cite news |last=Kaufman |first=Gil |title=Jamiroquai Drops 'Automaton' Video, Album Due March 31 |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/7669848/jamiroquai-drops-automaton-video-album-due-march-31 |url-status=live |magazine=Billboard |date=27 January 2017 |access-date=27 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080157/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/7669848/jamiroquai-drops-automaton-video-album-due-march-31 |archive-date=15 December 2020}} A year prior to Synkronized, "Deeper Underground" was released as a single for the Godzilla soundtrack and reached number one in the UK singles chart.

=2001–2009: ''A Funk Odyssey'', ''Dynamite'' and subsequent activities=

File:JamiroquaiAtChicago.jpg in Chicago, 2005|alt=A band performing on stage; a male singer wearing a head-dress, along with a guitarist, a drummer, a bassist and three female vocalists]]

The group issued their follow-up, A Funk Odyssey, a disco record exploring Latin music influences, in 2001.{{cite news|url=https://consequenceofsound.net/2009/07/guilty-pleasure-jamiroquai-a-funk-odyssey/|title=Guilty Pleasure: Jamiroquai – A Funk Odyssey|last=Young|first=Alex|date=2 July 2009|work=Consequence|access-date=19 June 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080233/https://consequenceofsound.net/2009/07/guilty-pleasure-jamiroquai-a-funk-odyssey/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.popmatters.com/jamiroquai-2001-2495949079.html|title=Jamiroquai: 2001: A Funk Odyssey|last=Koba|first=Kirsten|date=10 September 2001|work=PopMatters|access-date=27 April 2018|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080238/https://www.popmatters.com/jamiroquai-2001-2495949079.html|url-status=live}} It introduced guitarist Rob Harris, whose playing in the album "melts seductively into a mix that occasionally incorporates lavish orchestration", according to Jim Abbot of Orlando Sentinel.{{cite news|last=Abbot|first=Jim|date=28 September 2001|title='Odyssey' Focuses on the Beat, A Mix of Sonic Treats: [Metro Edition]|work=Orlando Sentinel|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/279656188/DCF3CB5B2DAB4F90PQ/|url-status=live|via=ProQuest|access-date=24 February 2021|archive-date=2 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225101/https://www.proquest.com/docview/279656188/DCF3CB5B2DAB4F90PQ}} Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani claimed: "Like its predecessors, Odyssey mixes self-samplage with Jamiroquai's now-signature robo-funk."{{cite web|last=Cinquemani|first=Sal|date=31 August 2001|title=Review: Jamiroquai, A Funk Odyssey|url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/jamiroquai-a-funk-odyssey/|url-status=live|access-date=27 November 2018|website=Slant Magazine|language=en-US|archive-date=2 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225102/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/jamiroquai-a-funk-odyssey/}} The album topped the chart in the UK. In the US, under Epic Records, it reached number 44 in the US Billboard 200.{{cite magazine|last=Zellner|first=Xander|date=12 April 2017|title=Jamiroquai Jumps Onto Dance/Electronic Albums Charts With 'Automaton'|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/7759637/jamiroquai-automaton-album-charts-calvin-harris-cheat-codes-demi-lovato|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080201/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/7759637/jamiroquai-automaton-album-charts-calvin-harris-cheat-codes-demi-lovato|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=19 September 2019|magazine=Billboard}} It was the last album to feature Smith, who left the band in the following year to spend more time with his family.{{cite news|date=29 April 2017|title=Toby Grafftey-Smith, co-founder of Jamiroquai – obituary|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2017/04/29/toby-grafftey-smith-co-founder-jamiroquai-obituary/|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|access-date=22 January 2018|newspaper=The Telegraph|archive-date=25 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180925065303/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2017/04/29/toby-grafftey-smith-co-founder-jamiroquai-obituary/}}

Their sixth album, Dynamite, was released in 2005 and reached number 3 in the UK;{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4624761.stm|title=Rapper crushes Frog in chart race|date=26 June 2005|work=BBC News|access-date=15 September 2019|language=en-GB|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080305/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4624761.stm|url-status=live}} in the same year, Paul Turner replaced Fyffe as the band's new bassist.{{Cite magazine|last=McIver|first=Joel |date=6 August 2018 |title=Jamiroquai's Paul Turner: "You need to be able to head-nod or foot-stomp while you're playing, or you're not in the pocket" |url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/jamiroquais-paul-turner-you-need-to-be-able-to-head-nod-or-foot-stomp-while-youre-playing-or-youre-not-in-the-pocket |access-date=12 April 2024 |magazine=Bass Guitar|language=en}}{{cite magazine|last1=Jisi |first1=Chris |title=Jamiroquai's 'Something About You'|volume=29|issue=5|magazine=Bass Player|page=58|date=May 2018}} Rashod D. Ollison of The Baltimore Sun said the album "boasts a harder digital edge ... With heavier beats, manipulated guitar lines and odd digital textures, Dynamite is less organic than Jamiroquai's other efforts".{{cite web|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2005-09-22-0509210317-story.html|title=Explosive new disco from Jamiroquai|last=Ollison|first=Rashod D.|date=22 September 2005|website=The Baltimore Sun|language=en-US|access-date=28 December 2019|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080305/https://www.baltimoresun.com/|url-status=live}} Its tracks "Feels Just Like It Should" and "Love Blind" were characterised as "[having] a fatter, dirtier sound than usual".{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-jamiroquai-226074.html|title=Album: Jamiroquai Dynamite, SONY BMG|last=Gill|first=Andy|date=17 June 2005|work=The Independent|access-date=20 October 2018|language=en-GB|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080243/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-jamiroquai-226074.html|url-status=live}} In 2006, Kay's contract with Sony ended,{{cite news|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/952790/jamiroquai-goes-back-to-basics-on-rock-dust-light-star|title=Jamiroquai Goes Back to Basics on 'Rock Dust Light Star'|last=McLean|first=Craig|date=23 October 2010|magazine=Billboard|access-date=24 June 2018|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080312/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/952790/jamiroquai-goes-back-to-basics-on-rock-dust-light-star|url-status=live}} which led to the issue of the band's greatest hits collection, High Times: Singles 1992–2006. It charted at number one in the UK after its first week of release. The following year, Jamiroquai performed at the Gig in the Sky, a concert held on a private Boeing 757 in association with Sony Ericsson.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/jamiroquai-6-1347873|title=Jamiroquai attempts record breaking gig|date=19 January 2007|magazine=NME|access-date=13 April 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080258/https://www.nme.com/news/music/jamiroquai-6-1347873|url-status=live}} The band thus currently hold the Guinness World Record for "fastest concert", performed on the aircraft whilst travelling at 1,017 km/h (632 mph).{{cite news|title=Fastest concert|language=en-GB|work=Guinness World Records|url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/fastest-concert-recording|url-status=live|access-date=13 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080314/https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/fastest-concert|archive-date=15 December 2020}}

=2010–2019: ''Rock Dust Light Star'' and ''Automaton''=

Rock Dust Light Star was released in 2010 under Mercury Records, where it charted at number 7 in the UK. Kay considered the album as "a real band record" that "capture[s] the flow of our live performances".{{cite web|last=Newton|first=Penny|date=26 October 2010|title=Jamiroquai Coming To Oz!|url=http://www.mtv.com.au/news/89b3e42f-jamiroquai-coming-to-oz-mtv-classic|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120306030330/http://www.mtv.com.au/news/89b3e42f-jamiroquai-coming-to-oz-mtv-classic|archive-date=6 March 2012 |website=|publisher=MTV}} Critics have seen this as a return to their organic funk and soul style,{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Huw|date=1 November 2010|title=Review: Jamiroquai, Rock Dust Light Star |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/jamiroquai-rock-dust-light-star/|url-status=live|access-date=5 April 2021 |website=Slant Magazine|archive-date=2 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225422/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/jamiroquai-rock-dust-light-star/}}{{cite web |last=Freed |first=Nick |date=16 December 2010|title=Album Review: Jamiroquai – Rock Dust Light Star|url=https://consequenceofsound.net/2010/12/album-review-jamiroquai-rock-dust-light-star/|url-status=live|access-date=5 April 2021|website=Consequence|language=en-US|archive-date=1 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201001717/https://consequenceofsound.net/2010/12/album-review-jamiroquai-rock-dust-light-star/}} as it forgoes "the electro textures that followed the band into the new millennium", according to Luke Winkie of MusicOMH.{{cite web |last=Winkie |first=Luke |title=Jamiroquai – Rock Dust Light Star {{!}} Album Reviews |url=https://www.musicomh.com/reviews/albums/jamiroquai-rock-dust-light-star |website=MusicOMH |access-date=2 March 2021 |date=1 November 2010 |archive-date=24 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224190957/http://www.musicomh.com/reviews/albums/jamiroquai-rock-dust-light-star |url-status=live}} It also has a sound Thomas H. Green of The Telegraph described as "Californian Seventies funk rock".{{cite news|last=Green|first=Thomas H.|date=29 October 2010|title=Jamiroquai: Rock Dust Light Star, CD review|language=en-GB|work=The Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/cdreviews/8097099/Jamiroquai-Rock-Dust-Light-Star-CD-review.html|url-status=live|url-access=subscription|access-date=4 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080337/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/cdreviews/8097099/Jamiroquai-Rock-Dust-Light-Star-CD-review.html|archive-date=15 December 2020}}

File:Jamiroquai Automaton Performance 2017 (cropped).jpg in London, 2017. Left to right: Johnson, Harris, Williams, Kay and Akingbola.]]

Jamiroquai released their 2017 album, Automaton, through Virgin EMI. It was their eighth studio album and the first in seven years, reaching number 4 in the UK. It was produced by Kay and band keyboardist Matt Johnson, and it "carefully balance[s] their signature sound with... EDM, soul and trap sounds", according to Ryan Patrick of Exclaim!.{{cite web|last=Patrick|first=Ryan B.|date=29 March 2017|title=Jamiroquai Automaton|url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/jamiroquai-automaton|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190126231554/http://exclaim.ca/music/article/jamiroquai-automaton|archive-date=26 January 2019|access-date=30 March 2017|website=Exclaim!|language=en-CA}} Craig Jenkins of Vulture writes: "Arrangements that used to spill out over horn, flute, didgeridoo, and string accompaniments now lean closer to French house".{{cite web|last=Jenkins|first=Craig|date=31 March 2017|title=Jamiroquai and Nelly Furtado Navigate New Pop Waters|url=https://www.vulture.com/2017/03/album-review-nelly-furtado-and-jamiroquai.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111193730/http://www.vulture.com/2017/03/album-review-nelly-furtado-and-jamiroquai.html|archive-date=11 November 2020|access-date=20 February 2021|website=Vulture|language=en-US}} By 2018, the group's line-up consisted of Kay, Harris, McKenzie, Johnson, Turner, percussionist Sola Akingbola, Nate Williams on guitar and keyboards and Howard Whiddett with Ableton Live.{{cite news |last=Siclier |first=Sylvain|date=9 July 2018|title=Jamiroquai, formidable machine funk, à Arras|language=fr|work=Le Monde |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/musiques/article/2018/07/09/jamiroquai-formidable-machine-funk-a-arras_5328232_1654986.html |url-status=live|access-date=22 February 2021|archive-date=9 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109013237/https://www.lemonde.fr/musiques/article/2018/07/09/jamiroquai-formidable-machine-funk-a-arras_5328232_1654986.html}}{{cite web |title=Meet our talented new band members @natewilliams on keys & guitars and @howard.whiddett our ableton live whiz, welcome aboard chaps! :) #JamiroquaiLive2017|url=http://jamiroquai.com/news;news/id/231 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220728093446/https://www.jamiroquai.com/news;news/id/231|archive-date=28 July 2022|via=Jamiroquai.com |access-date=28 July 2022}}

= 2021–present: ''The Heels of Steel Tour'' and upcoming ninth studio album =

Kay announced on the back notes of their 2021 re-released single, "Everybody's Going To The Moon", that the band were working on a new album.{{cite AV media|title=Everybody's Going To The Moon|author=Kay, Jay|work=Jamiroquai|publisher=Sony Music|year=2021|id=19439875091|type=liner notes}} On 19 March 2024, Kay announced that recording sessions for the new album were underway.{{cite news |title=Jamiroquai Are Making A Comeback After 7 Years |url=https://www.98fm.com/music/jamiroquai-are-making-a-comeback-after-7-years-1710118 |access-date=9 April 2024 |work=98FM |date=26 March 2024}} On 18 November 2024, Jamiroquai announced their upcoming UK and Europe 2025 tour, The Heels of Steel Tour, which is set to commence 6 November running through 12 December 2025. It will be their first live tour since 2019.{{Cite web |title=Jamiroquai announce huge UK and European tour for 2025 |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/jamiroquai-announce-uk-european-tour-2025-buy-tickets-3813603 |website=NME|date=18 November 2024 }}

Artistry

= Musical style and influences =

{{Listen|filename=Didjtal Vibrations.ogg

|title="Didjital Vibrations"

|description=Sample of "Didjital Vibrations" from the 1996 album Travelling Without Moving. This instrumental track uses ambient didgeridoo sounds.{{cite journal|title=Travelling Without Moving|journal=The Observer|author-link=Neil Spencer|url=http://www.proquest.com/docview/250394270/3F56696ABA104E4APQ/|via=ProQuest|first=Niel|last=Spencer|date=8 September 1996|access-date=2 April 2021|archive-date=2 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225122/https://www.proquest.com/docview/250394270/3F56696ABA104E4APQ|url-status=live}}{{cite journal|title=Travelling Without Moving|journal=The Times|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/318632707|first=David|last=Sinclair|date=6 September 1996|access-date=2 April 2021|archive-date=2 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225102/https://www.proquest.com/docview/318632707/2958EE1580114F32PQ/15|id={{ProQuest|318632707}}|url-status=live}}|format=Ogg|}}

Jamiroquai's music is generally termed acid jazz,{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1997/07/22/group-honored-with-most-music-video-nominations/|title=Group Honored With Most Music Video Nominations|date=22 July 1997|work=Chicago Tribune|access-date=27 February 2016|archive-date=6 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306010917/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1997-07-22/news/9707230303_1_nine-inch-nails-mtv-video-music-awards-virtual-insanity|url-status=live}} funk,{{cite journal|last=Walters|first=Barry|date=August 1999|title=Jamiroquai: Synkronized|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nQRXCTo-FtUC&pg=PA154|journal=Spin|volume=15|issue=8|pages=154, 156}} jazz-funk,{{Cite web|last=Farsides|first=Tony|date=21 May 1999|title=Cover story: Keep it under your hat Jamiroquai's lead singer isn't just a scruffy herbert. Jay Kay tells Tony Farsides about musical credibility, Ferraris and Denise van Outen|url=http://www.proquest.com/docview/245378188/E62A53A00EEA405BPQ/|access-date=14 September 2021|website=The Guardian|via=ProQuest}} disco,{{cite news|url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/jamiroquai-automaton|title=Jamiroquai: Automaton {{!}} Album Review|last=Goller|first=Josh|date=30 March 2017|work=Slant Magazine|access-date=8 February 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080326/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/jamiroquai-automaton/|url-status=live}} soul, house,{{cite web|date=31 March 2017|title=Album Review: Jamiroquai – Automaton|url=https://consequenceofsound.net/2017/03/album-review-jamiroquai-automaton/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080320/https://consequenceofsound.net/2017/03/album-review-jamiroquai-automaton/|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=8 January 2019|website=Consequence}} and R&B. Their sound has been described by J. D. Considine as having an "anything-goes attitude, an approach that leaves the band open to anything".{{cite web|last=Considine|first=J.D.|author-link=J. D. Considine|date=20 August 1993|title=Taylor polishes his golden oldies to a new, high finish|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1993-08-20-1993232004-story.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200214031614/https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1993-08-20-1993232004-story.html|archive-date=14 February 2020|access-date=18 September 2019|website=The Baltimore Sun|language=en-US}} Tom Moon wrote that the band "embrac[es] old-school funk, Philly-soul strings, the crisp keyboard sounds of the '70s and even hints of jazz fusion", blending these with "agitated, aggressive dance rhythms to create an easygoing feel that looks both backward and forward".{{cite news|last=Moon|first=Tom|author-link=Tom Moon|date=29 May 1997|title=Jamiroquai's Sunny Song has a Serious Message: The Group Warns of a High-Tech 'Virtual Insanity.'|work=The Philadelphia Inquirer|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1841833235/E737482ED91B4B5EPQ|url-status=live|via=ProQuest|access-date=23 February 2021|archive-date=2 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225123/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1841833235/E737482ED91B4B5EPQ}} Ben Sisario facetiously commented that Jay Kay and Toby Smith as songwriters, "studied Innervisions-era [Stevie] Wonder carefully, and just about everything the group has recorded sounds like it could in fact have been played by [Wonder] himself."{{sfn|Sisario|2004|page=420}}

Kay is the primary songwriter of Jamiroquai. When composing, he sings melodies and beats for band members to transcribe to their instrumentation. The band relies on analog sounds, such as running keyboards through vintage effects pedals "to get the warmth and the clarity of those instruments". Parry Gettelman of the Orlando Sentinel described Kay's vocals as "not identifiably male or female, black or white".{{cite web|last=Gettelman|first=Parry|date=7 March 1997|title=Jamiroquai: [Metro Edition]|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/278907100/6EC341C877574C68PQ/|url-status=live|access-date=22 February 2021|website=Orlando Sentinel|via=ProQuest|archive-date=2 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402225102/https://www.proquest.com/docview/278907100/6EC341C877574C68PQ}} Other writers said Toby Smith's keyboard arrangements were "psychedelic and soulful", and compared Stuart Zender's bass playing to the work of Marcus Miller.{{cite web|last=Schröder|first=Marlon|date=31 March 2017|title=Jamiroquai: Balzrufe unter der Discokugel|url=https://www.zeit.de/zustimmung?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zeit.de%2Fkultur%2Fmusik%2F2017-03%2Fjamiroquai-automaton-album|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080358/https://www.zeit.de/zustimmung?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zeit.de%2Fkultur%2Fmusik%2F2017-03%2Fjamiroquai-automaton-album|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=17 May 2020|website=Die Zeit|language=de}} Wallis Buchanan on didgeridoo was met with either praise or annoyance from critics.{{sfn|Sisario|2004|page=420}}{{cite news|last=Powers|first=Ann|author-link=Ann Powers|date=13 September 2001|title=Pop Review; Dance Music Pumped Full of Helium|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/13/arts/pop-review-dance-music-pumped-full-of-helium.html|access-date=25 November 2018|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080343/https://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/13/arts/pop-review-dance-music-pumped-full-of-helium.html|url-status=live}}

Kay was influenced by Roy Ayers, Herbie Hancock, Lou Donaldson, Grant Green, Sly Stone, Gil Scott-Heron, and hip-hop and its culture.{{cite web|last=Coker|first=Cheo Hodari|author-link=Cheo Hodari Coker|date=10 May 1997|title=An Englishman With Soul – and Stateside Album Goals|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-05-10-ca-57530-story.html|url-access=limited|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151209173557/http://articles.latimes.com/1997-05-10/entertainment/ca-57530_1_soul-music|archive-date=9 December 2015|access-date=13 September 2019|website=Los Angeles Times}}{{sfn|Larkin|2011|page=1985}} He was introduced to much of these influences by British club DJs within the rare groove scene in the 1980s. "I'd been into Stevie and all that... Then I got into the JBs, Maceo Parker and the Meters... I decided around that time to try to make music built around those loose, open grooves." A 2003 compilation titled Late Night Tales: Jamiroquai under Azuli Records, also contains a selection of some of the band's late 1970s R&B, disco and quiet storm influences.{{cite web|last=Bush|first=John|title=LateNightTales – Jamiroquai|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/latenighttales-mw0000376626|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080322/https://www.allmusic.com/album/latenighttales-mw0000376626|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=18 January 2018|publisher=AllMusic}} Kay and the group have been compared to Stevie Wonder, with some critics accusing the band of copying black artists.{{Cite web|last=Hillburn|first=Robert|date=7 December 1997|title=Don't Stop the Insanity|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-07-ca-61465-story.html|url-access=limited|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080329/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-07-ca-61465-story.html|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=3 May 2020|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US}}{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/1999/06/11/synkronized-2/ |title=Synkronized |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=11 June 1999 |access-date=5 December 2020 |last=Browne |first=David |author-link=David Browne (journalist) |archive-date=15 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080330/https://ew.com/article/1999/06/11/synkronized-2/ |url-status=live}} In response, Kay said "we never tried to hide our influences". The band references them as Kay maintained Jamiroquai's own sound: "it's about the style of music you aim for, not the exact sound. If you just sample Barry White or Sly Stone, that's one thing; to get their spirit is different."

= Lyrics =

{{Quote box

| quoted = true

| quote = "'Virtual Insanity'... was a very prescient song I wrote and things like Dolly the Sheep happened right after. I think the ideas in that song are maybe even more relevant today than they were back then."

| source = —Kay speaking about the track in regard to the group's social topics, 2013

| align = left

| width = 328px

}}

Jamiroquai's lyrics have touched on socially charged themes. With Emergency on Planet Earth (1993), it revolves around environmental awareness and speaks out against war. The Return of the Space Cowboy (1994) contains themes of homelessness, Native American rights, youth protests, and slavery.

{{cite web|last=Bush|first=John|title=The Return of the Space Cowboy|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-return-of-the-space-cowboy-mw0000125947|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080341/https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-return-of-the-space-cowboy-mw0000125947|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=20 January 2018|publisher=AllMusic}} "Virtual Insanity" from Travelling Without Moving (1996) is about the prevalence of technology and the replication and simulation of life. The lyrics of Automaton (2017) allude to dystopian films and compromised relationships within a digital landscape.{{cite web|last=Driver|first=Richard|date=20 April 2017|title=Jamiroquai: Automaton|url=https://www.popmatters.com/jamiroquai-automaton-2495394322.html|access-date=14 June 2020|website=PopMatters|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080355/https://www.popmatters.com/jamiroquai-automaton-2495394322.html|url-status=live}}

However, critics wrote that the band had focused more on "boy–girl seductions" and "having fun" rather than social justice,{{cite journal|last=Kellogg|first=Carolyn|date=March 1997|title=Travelling Without Moving|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ai0EAAAAMBAJ&q=jamiroquai&pg=PT20|journal=CMJ New Music Monthly|pages=32|via=Google Books|access-date=18 January 2018}} and that Kay's interest in sports cars contradicts his earlier beliefs.{{sfn|Larkin|2011|page=1986}}{{cite web|date=1 November 1997|title=Stoned Groove: Jamiroquai's Jay Kay|url=http://www.papermag.com/stoned-groove-jamiroquais-jay-kay-1425142910.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180118122730/https://www.papermag.com/stoned-groove-jamiroquais-jay-kay-1425142910.html|archive-date=18 January 2018|access-date=6 September 2018|website=Paper}} Kay was reluctant to release Travelling Without Moving (1996), as it adopted a motorcar concept,{{efn|1=The album cover is an homage to the Ferrari logo with the band's "Buffalo Man" logo.|group=nb}} but he added: "just because I love to drive a fast car, that doesn't mean I believe in [destroying the environment.]"{{cite journal|last=Poulton|first=Sonia|date=1996|title=Getting personal with Jamiroquai's Jay Kay|url=https://archive.org/stream/muzik017_october_1996#page/n107/mode/2up/search/jamiroquai|journal=Muzik|volume=17|pages=108|via=Wayback Machine}} He also stated in separate interviews he was tired of being "[a] troubadour of social conscious[ness]", and "after a while you realise that people won't boogie and dance to [politics]."{{clear left}}

= Stage and visuals =

File:Jamiroquai Lovebox 2006 (197956097) (cropped).jpg

While critics said the group tended towards 1970s funk and soul archetypes in their performances, Kay's presence received praise, with critics noting his strong vocals and energetic dance moves on stage.{{cite web|last=Ali|first=Lorraine|author-link=Lorraine Ali|date=3 June 1995|title=Pop Music Review : Jamiroquai Adds Funk to Lively Jazz-Lite|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-06-03-ca-8924-story.html|access-date=7 January 2020|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|archive-date=1 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801230544/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-06-03-ca-8924-story.html|url-status=live}}{{cite magazine|last=Clay|first=Jennifer|date=21 November 1997|title=Jamiroquai|url=https://variety.com/1997/music/reviews/jamiroquai-1200451805/|access-date=26 April 2020|website=Variety|archive-date=28 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180828024034/https://variety.com/1997/music/reviews/jamiroquai-1200451805/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last=Hollingsworth|first=Chauncey|date=12 September 1995|title=Jamiroquai Rolls Hip-hop, Horns into A Soulful Sound|work=Chicago Tribune|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1995/09/12/jamiroquai-rolls-hip-hop-horns-into-a-soulful-sound/|access-date=17 July 2018|archive-date=17 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180717100221/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-09-12/news/9509120006_1_jay-kay-space-cowboy-acid-jazz|url-status=live}} Robert Hilburn said Kay "establish[es] a rapport with the audience" and has a "disarming sense of humor".{{cite web |last=Hillburn |first=Robert|date=21 November 1997|title=Irresistibly Fresh Jamiroquai Is a Wonder|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-nov-21-ca-56003-story.html|access-date=13 September 2019|website=Los Angeles Times|archive-date=1 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801230440/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-nov-21-ca-56003-story.html|url-status=live}} Helen Brown of The Telegraph was more critical, writing of a 2011 concert that there was no "deeply personal emotion" in its set list or in Kay's vocals, and "much of the material is exhilarating in the moment, forgettable thereafter".{{cite web|last=Brown|first=Helen|date=18 April 2011|title=Jamiroquai, O2 Arena, review|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/live-music-reviews/8458320/Jamiroquai-O2-Arena-review.html|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|access-date=22 February 2021|website=The Telegraph|language=en-GB|archive-date=24 April 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110424113619/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/live-music-reviews/8458320/Jamiroquai-O2-Arena-review.html}}

With their visual style being described as "sci-fi and futuristic",{{cite web |last=Williams |first=Harrison |title=Jamiroquai shares sci-fi inspired teaser video for first album in seven years |url=https://mixmag.net/read/jamiroquai-shares-sci-fi-inspired-teaser-video-for-first-album-in-seven-years-news/|url-status=live |website=Mixmag |date=17 January 2017 |access-date=6 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080340/https://mixmag.net/read/jamiroquai-shares-sci-fi-inspired-teaser-video-for-first-album-in-seven-years-news |archive-date=15 December 2020}} Jamiroquai's music video of "Virtual Insanity" made them "icons of the music-video format", according to Spencer Kornhaber from The Atlantic.{{cite news |last=Kornhaber |first=Spencer |title=Escape to the Future With Missy Elliott and Jamiroquai's New Videos |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/01/missy-elliott-im-better-jamiroquai-automaton-videos/514736/|url-status=live|date=27 January 2017|work=The Atlantic|access-date=11 May 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080406/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/01/missy-elliott-im-better-jamiroquai-automaton-videos/514736/}} It was directed by Jonathan Glazer, and depicted Kay "perform[ing] in a room where the floors, walls and furniture all moved simultaneously."{{cite web|last=Scheerer|first=Mark|date=5 September 1997|title=Beck, Jamiroquai big winners at MTV Music Awards – September 5, 1997|url=https://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/9709/05/mtv.music.awards/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080341/http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/9709/05/mtv.music.awards/|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=20 January 2018|publisher=CNN}}

Kay has worn elaborate headgear, some he designed himself.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1997/02/05/jamiroquai-wonders-never-cease/0aba1126-62cf-4a3b-9eb4-eaf6a1cab7ad/|title=Jamiroquai: Wonders Never Cease|last=Bass|first=Holly|date=5 February 1997|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=28 May 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080412/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1997/02/05/jamiroquai-wonders-never-cease/0aba1126-62cf-4a3b-9eb4-eaf6a1cab7ad/|url-status=live}} He said that the headgear give him a spiritual power described by the Iroquois as "orenda". The illuminating helmet that appears in the music video for "Automaton" was designed by Moritz Waldemeyer for Kay to control its lights and movements and to portray him as an endangered species.{{cite news|url=https://www.dezeen.com/2017/03/22/moritz-waldemeyer-design-3d-printed-light-up-headgear-jamiroquai-frontman/|title=Moritz Waldemeyer creates 3D-printed light-up helmet for Jamiroquai frontman|last=Morby|first=Alice|date=22 March 2017|work=Dezeen|access-date=7 August 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080359/https://www.dezeen.com/2017/03/22/moritz-waldemeyer-design-3d-printed-light-up-headgear-jamiroquai-frontman/|url-status=live}} Kay has also worn Native American head-dresses, in which he was accused of culturally appropriating sacred regalia of the First Nations.{{cite web|date=9 June 2012|title=13 Rock Stars Who've Worn Native Headdresses (and Probably Shouldn't Have)|url=https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/13-rock-stars-whove-worn-native-headdresses-and-probably-shouldnt-have|access-date=8 December 2022|website=Indian Country Today}}{{cite web | url=https://www.abc.net.au/listen/doublej/music-reads/features/jamiroquai-harvest-rock-review-2023/103036550 | title=Jamiroquai came to Australia for one night only – here's what happened | website=Australian Broadcasting Corporation | date=29 October 2023 }}

Legacy

{{Quote box

| quoted = true

| quote = "Miraculously, Jamiroquai managed to survive the acid-jazz crash of the early 90's, when kids traded mellow sounds like the Brand New Heavies, Young Disciples and Guru for the bed-of-nails wails of Nirvana, Soundgarden and Pearl Jam."

| source = —Paper, 1997

| align = left

| width = 328px

}}

As a prominent component of the London-based funk and acid-jazz movement of the 1990s,{{sfn|Larkin|2011|page=1985}} writer Kenneth Prouty said: "few acid jazz groups have reached the level of visibility in the pop music mainstream as London-born Jamiroquai".{{sfn|Prouty|2011|page=481}} The success of the 1996 single "Virtual Insanity" led to the climax of "1970s soul and funk that early acid jazz artists had initiated".{{sfn|Prouty|2011|page=481}} The band were also credited for popularising the didgeridoo.{{cite news|last=Normand|first=Jean-Michel|date=5 May 2001|title=Le didgeridoo, l'instrument qui fait vibrer la corde ethnique|language=fr|work=Le Monde|url=https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/2001/05/05/le-didgeridoo-l-instrument-qui-fait-vibrer-la-corde-ethnique_4173477_1819218.html|url-status=live|access-date=29 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080357/https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/2001/05/05/le-didgeridoo-l-instrument-qui-fait-vibrer-la-corde-ethnique_4173477_1819218.html|archive-date=15 December 2020}} Artists who mention the group as an influence include Chance the Rapper,{{cite web|last=Perry|first=Kevin EG|date=13 August 2013|title=Radar Band of the Week – Chance The Rapper|url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-radar/radar-band-of-the-week-chance-the-rapper-22731|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080347/https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-radar/radar-band-of-the-week-chance-the-rapper-22731|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=13 September 2019|website=NME}} SZA,{{cite web |last=Ahmed |first=Insanul |title=Who Is SZA? |url=https://www.complex.com/music/2013/09/who-is-sza/influences |url-status=live |website=Complex |date=8 September 2013 |access-date=11 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080411/https://www.complex.com/music/2013/09/who-is-sza/influences |archive-date=15 December 2020}} Kamaal Williams,{{cite web |last=Weiner |first=Natalie |date=25 May 2018|title=Kamaal Williams And 'The Return' Of Acid Jazz|url=https://www.vinylmeplease.com/magazine/kamaal-williams-and-return-acid-jazz/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080355/https://magazine.vinylmeplease.com/magazine/kamaal-williams-and-return-acid-jazz/|archive-date=15 December 2020|access-date=17 September 2019|website=Vinyl Me Please}} the Internet,{{cite news |last=Wise |first=Louis |date=29 July 2018|title=Interview: the Internet on Jamiroquai, politics and activism |url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/music/article/interview-the-internet-on-jamiroquai-politics-and-activism-5gs3nd8r2|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604023518/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/interview-the-internet-on-jamiroquai-politics-and-activism-5gs3nd8r2|archive-date=4 June 2020|access-date=4 June 2020|website=The Times}} Calvin Harris,{{cite web|date=12 May 2016|title=Calvin Harris: "@keevs_89 Jamiroquai and Fatboy Slim"|url=https://twitter.com/calvinharris/status/730888434164727813|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160616225109/https://twitter.com/calvinharris/status/730888434164727813|archive-date=16 June 2016|access-date=21 July 2018|via=Twitter}} and Tyler, the Creator.{{cite news|date=25 September 2012|title=Tyler, The Creator on Twitter|language=en-GB|url=https://twitter.com/tylerthecreator/status/250751895067570176?lang=en-gb|url-status=live|access-date=27 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080418/https://twitter.com/tylerthecreator/status/250751895067570176?lang=en-gb|archive-date=15 December 2020|via=Twitter}} According to Johnny Sharp of BBC Music, Kay "[became] one of those artists whose music seems somehow fashion-proof, because it's never been in or out of it."{{cite web |last1=Sharp |first1=Johnny |title=Middle England's favourite funkateer delivers the goods again.|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/9b28/ |publisher=BBC Music |access-date=16 March 2025}} Ian Gittins of The Guardian said that the group "have long been shunned by music's tastemakers for a perceived naffness, and have shown their utter disregard for this critical snobbery by getting bigger and bigger".{{Cite news|last=Gittins|first=Ian|date=17 April 2011|title=Jamiroquai – review|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/apr/17/jamiroquai-review|url-status=live|access-date=2 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080343/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/apr/17/jamiroquai-review|archive-date=15 December 2020|issn=}} Sisario gave a negative review of the band's discography in The Rolling Stone Album Guide in 2004, finding much of their material to be identical.{{sfn|Sisario|2004|page=420}}

Jamiroquai were the third-best-selling UK act of the 1990s,{{sfn|Larkin|2011|page=1987}} after the Spice Girls and Oasis. As of April 2017, they have sold more than 26 million albums worldwide. Despite becoming one of the most popular bands in the UK with high-charting albums, the band did not find as much success in the United States.{{cite web |last=Azfar |first=Rakin |title=Jamiroquai: Automaton Review |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/03/jamiroquai-automaton-review.html |url-status=live |website=Paste Magazine |date=30 March 2017 |access-date=30 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080345/https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/jamiroquai-automaton-review/|archive-date=15 December 2020}}{{cite web |last=Adams |first=Cameron |via=ProQuest|title=Virtual insanity of my career |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/358758889/2466B47FDF1048EEPQ/ |website=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=13 November 2021 |date=17 January 2002}} The band's studio albums became less frequently released. Kay said in 2013: "I will only put out an album now when I am inspired to do so".{{cite news|last=Ephraim|first=Adrian|date=4 October 2013|title=Jamiroquai's perpetual insanity|work=Mail & Guardian|url=https://mg.co.za/article/2013-10-04-00-jamiroquais-perpetual-insanity|access-date=1 June 2018|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080354/https://mg.co.za/article/2013-10-04-00-jamiroquais-perpetual-insanity/|url-status=live}}

Awards and nominations

{{Main|List of awards and nominations received by Jamiroquai}}

Jamiroquai have received 15 Brit Award nominations.{{cite web |title=Jamiroquai |url=http://www.brits.co.uk:80/artist/jamiroquai |publisher=Brit Awards |via=Wayback Machine |access-date=17 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127082330/http://www.brits.co.uk/artist/jamiroquai |archive-date=27 January 2012 |date=23 January 2010 |url-status=live}} In 1999, the band won an Ivor Novello Award for an Outstanding Song Collection.{{cite news|url=http://theivors.com/archive/1990-1999/the-ivors-1999/|title=The Ivors|date=1999|publisher=Ivor Novello Awards|access-date=21 January 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=15 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160415092849/http://theivors.com/archive/1990-1999/the-ivors-1999/|url-status=live}} Front-man Kay was given a BMI Presidents Award "in recognition of his profound influence on songwriting within the music industry."{{cite news|date=12 September 2017|title=BMI to Honor Jamiroquai Frontman & Songwriter Jay Kay With President's Award at BMI London Awards|publisher=Broadcast Music, Inc.|url=https://www.bmi.com/news/entry/bmi-to-honor-jamiroquai-frontman-songwriter-jay-kay-at-london-awards|url-status=live|access-date=21 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080414/https://www.bmi.com/news/entry/bmi-to-honor-jamiroquai-frontman-songwriter-jay-kay-at-london-awards|archive-date=15 December 2020}} Jamiroquai received a nomination for Best Pop Album at the 1998 Grammy Awards and won Best Performance by a Duo Or Group for "Virtual Insanity".{{cite web |last=Considine |first=J.D. |title=Odd Spins; Grammys: Upsets are sprinkled through the Grammy Awards, but Dylan and other veterans get their due.: [Final Edition] |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/407010278 |website=The Baltimore Sun |date=26 February 1998 |access-date=18 November 2021|id={{ProQuest|407010278}} }} The band were also nominated for Best Short Form Music Video for "Feels Just Like It Should" at the 2005 Grammy Awards.{{cite news|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/jamiroquai|title=Jamiroquai|publisher=The Grammys|access-date=19 March 2018|archive-date=6 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206155303/https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/jamiroquai|url-status=live}} For their "Virtual Insanity" music video, Jamiroquai had ten nominations at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards and four wins: Best Visual Effects, Best Cinematography, Best Breakthrough Video and Video of the Year.{{cite web |last1=Considine |first1=J.D. |title=Jamiroquai tops night of MTV madness; Awards: The pop music spectacular presents a mix of the brilliant, the provocative and the tasteless.: [Final Edition] |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/406995918/352366D769664C83PQ/ |website=The Baltimore Sun |access-date=6 April 2023 |date=5 September 1997}}

Members

Current members

  • Jay Kay – lead vocals (1992–present)
  • Derrick McKenzie – drums (1994–present)
  • Sola Akingbola – percussion (1994–present)
  • Rob Harris – guitar (1999–present)
  • Matt Johnson – keyboards (2002–present){{cite web |last1=Waring |first1=Charles |title=Keyboard Warrior – Soul and Jazz and Funk |url=https://www.soulandjazzandfunk.com/interviews/keyboard-warrior/ |website=Soul & Jazz & Funk |access-date=17 January 2025}}
  • Paul Turner – bass (2005–present)
  • Howard Whiddett – Ableton Live (2017–present)
  • Nate Williams – guitar, keyboards (2017–present)

Former members

  • Nick Van Gelder – drums (1992–1994)
  • Stuart Zender – bass (1992–1998)
  • Wallis Buchanan – didgeridoo (1992–2000){{cite web |last1=Fossum |first1=Melissa |title=Do You Guys Remember Jamiroquai? |url=https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/music/do-you-guys-remember-jamiroquai-6605647 |website=Phoenix New Times |accessdate=11 January 2020 |date=26 April 2012 |archive-date=11 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111094257/https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/music/do-you-guys-remember-jamiroquai-6605647 |url-status=live }}
  • Toby Smith – keyboards (1992–2002; died 2017)
  • Simon Katz – guitar (1995–2000){{cite web |last=Wiltz |first=Teresa |title=Jamiroquai Takes Mellow Brick Road |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1997-02-01-9702010145-story.html |website=Chicago Tribune |access-date=6 April 2019 |date=1 February 1997 |archive-date=15 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215080429/https://www.chicagotribune.com/ |url-status=live}}
  • Nick Fyffe – bass (1998–2003){{cn|date=April 2025}}

Timeline

{{#tag:timeline|

ImageSize = width:840 height:auto barincrement:22

PlotArea = left:100 bottom:90 top:10 right:20

Alignbars = justify

DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy

Period = from:01/01/1992 till:12/30/2025

TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy

Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:3

ScaleMajor = increment:3 start:1992

ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1992

Colors =

id:vox value:red legend:Vocals

id:guitar value:green legend:Guitars

id:bass value:blue legend:Bass

id:keys value:purple legend:Keyboards

id:drums value:orange legend:Drums

id:perc value:claret legend:Percussion

id:didg value:tan2 legend:Didgeridoo

id:ableton value:lavender legend:Ableton

id:studio value:black legend:Studio_release

LineData =

layer:back

at:06/14/1993 color:studio

at:10/17/1994 color:studio

at:08/28/1996 color:studio

at:06/08/1999 color:studio

at:09/03/2001 color:studio

at:06/15/2005 color:studio

at:11/01/2010 color:studio

at:03/31/2017 color:studio

BarData =

bar:Jay text:"Jay Kay"

bar:Simon text:"Simon Katz"

bar:Rob text:"Rob Harris"

bar:Nate text:"Nate Williams"

bar:Toby text:"Toby Smith"

bar:Matt text:"Matt Johnson"

bar:Stuart text:"Stuart Zender"

bar:Nick text:"Nick Fyffe"

bar:Paul text:"Paul Turner"

bar:Nick2 text:"Nick Van Gelder"

bar:Derrick text:"Derrick McKenzie"

bar:Sola text:"Sola Akingbola"

bar:Wallis text:"Wallis Buchanan"

bar:Howard text:"Howard Whiddett"

PlotData=

width:13

bar:Jay from:start till:end color:vox

bar:Simon from:06/01/1995 till:12/30/2000 color:guitar

bar:Rob from:06/01/1999 till:end color:guitar

bar:Rob from:06/01/2003 till:06/01/2005 color:bass width:3

bar:Nate from:06/01/2017 till:end color:guitar

bar:Nate from:06/01/2017 till:end color:keys width:3

bar:Toby from:start till:04/29/2002 color:keys

bar:Matt from:06/01/2002 till:end color:keys

bar:Stuart from:start till:11/30/1998 color:bass

bar:Nick from:11/30/1998 till:06/01/2003 color:bass

bar:Paul from:06/01/2005 till:end color:bass

bar:Nick2 from:start till:11/30/1994 color:drums

bar:Derrick from:11/30/1994 till:end color:drums

bar:Sola from:06/01/1994 till:end color:perc

bar:Wallis from:start till:06/01/2000 color:didg

bar:Howard from:06/01/2017 till:end color:ableton

}}

Discography

{{See also|Jamiroquai discography}}

{{div col}}

{{div col end}}

Notes

{{notelist}}

References

{{reflist}}

= Sources =

  • {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kud_g_0I6_AC&q=Jamiroquai|title=Guinness World Records 2001|first1=Tim|last1=Footman|last2=Young|first2=Mark C.|date=1 May 2001|publisher=Bantam Books|others=Guinness (Firm)|isbn=0553583751|pages=163|oclc=46867195|via=Google Books}}
  • {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_NNmFiUnSmUC&q=jamiroquai+funk+movement&pg=RA2-PA1986|author-link=Colin Larkin|title=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music|last=Larkin|first=Colin|year= 2011|publisher=Omnibus Press|isbn=978-0857125958|via=Google Books}}
  • {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nVxgs_E57_EC&q=jamiroquai&pg=PA875|title=Encyclopedia of African American Music|last=Prouty|first=Kenneth|date=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0313341991|via=Google Books}}
  • {{cite book|last=Sisario|first=Ben|title=The Rolling Stone Album Guide|publisher=Simon & Schuster|year=2004|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t9eocwUfoSoC&q=jamiroquai|via=Google Books|isbn=0743201698|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-first=Nathan|edition=4th|chapter=Jamiroquai|author-link=Ben Sisario|editor2-last=Hoard|editor2-first=Christian}}
  • {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RIEjkWXZdrMC&q=jamiroquai+emergency+on+planet+earth&pg=PA309|title=Funk|author-link=Dave Thompson (author)|last=Thompson|first=Dave|date=2001|publisher=Hal Leonard Corporation|isbn=978-0879306298|via=Google Books}}

External links

{{Commons category|Jamiroquai}}

  • {{official website}}
  • {{Allmusic}}
  • {{Discogs artist}}
  • {{imdb name}}
  • {{MusicBrainz artist}}

{{Jamiroquai|state=expanded}}

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