Customer Reviews

Funk Odyssey

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(35)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

The first three Jamiroquai albums are great/groundbreaking and Stu Zender's bass playing had a lot to do with their misical richness. "Synchronized" was a pretty good album (it took some time to grow on me admittedly) but "A Funk Odyssey" is even better. Yes, it's very different from earlier disks, but it is very funky head bopping music. The first two tracks ("Feel So Good" and "Little L") are especially good. I also really like the last track "Picture of My Life" (and it would be awesome if "Feel So Good to be Real" was released as a full track). I got a better appreciation for this album after watching the Jamiroquai: Live in Verona DVD - check it out if you haven't already (I got mine on Ebay). This is good music - give it a chance and embrace Jamiroquai's new direction.

I have been a fan of Jamiroquai since I first heard "Return of the Space Cowboy". Back in the day, Jay Kay and Co were actually a funk band; and a damn good one as well. Over the course of Travelling Without Moving and Synkronized, we saw the band rise to superstardom (and Grammy nominations) only to fall apart with the departure of brilliant bassist Zender.

Popularity and band politics aside, the music that Jamiroquai have been making has changed greatly since "Emergency on Planet Earth". Back in the day, Jay Kay was compared to Stevie Wonder since the songs had a social consciousness about them and the sounded like they could very well be lost songs from an "Innervisions" era Stevie. As time progressed, they have given up their acid jazz roots (ie have become less funk-soul) and have embraced disco beats. I can hear voices crying out in the wilderness the words on everyone's lips;

SELLOUTS!!!

But that is where you would be wrong. What is happening to the band is more interesting than simply selling out. Instead of staying the same they are changing, but they are changing in a way that befits their retro-styling; the are evolving like a band during the 1970s ala Earth, Wind and Fire.

First, the begin as an experimental funk band (even utilising a didgeridoo) on their first album, master this style on Space Cowboy, reach the pinnacle of this style with "Virtual Insanity" and then within a blink of an eye the transition begins as the begin the disco vibes with "Cosmic Girl", continue it throughout Synkronized (especially "Canned Heat") and eventually find this new style fully developed on Funk Odyssey. The sound has changed from circa 1972 Stevie to circa 1979 Michael Jackson ("Off The Wall" era).

In fact, a comparison of "Off The Wall" with "Funk Odyssey" finds some similarities. "You Give Me Something" could be a long lost cousin of MJ's title track "Off The Wall". "Workin' Day and Night" could be very well related to "Little L". Black Crow is the most early Jamiroquai of the new material and on Jackson's album he features a Stevie Wonder song.

So, the point of Jamiroquai's change should not be commercial success (though it has happened). The thing to watch is just how the sound has evolved as a band DID during the 1970s. In 100 years or more, people may look back at the development of the band and assume that they must have been a 70s band since they began as a legitimate funk band and slowly became a popular disco group. This gets my thumbs up (for the record, I prefer Return of the Space Cowboy but I am open to change).

I have heard that Jamiroqai fell out of favor with Synkronized because if favored more of their disco funk influence... And we all know of (well, we DON'T, which is my whole point) the US's odd angst and harsh feelings towards any genre that even reminds it of DISCO! I agree that Synkronized was not their best effort; but my question is HOW CAN EVERYTHING BE GREAT? Dance music is good only on Friday and/or Saturday nights, according to the American mainstream... Now here is this darn UK act that seduced us into liking them with "Travelling Without Moving" (Collective thinking) and they BETRAY us by releasing a DANCE album??? Well, FIRST; it's Jamiroquai... Not dance. Although it is dancable. It is Jamiroquai. Pre-Dertermined labels be damned. It is what it is. NOTHING else. And so what if it's funky and fun? Does everything have to be serious, sordid, morbid, and Rock??? "A Funk Odyssey" rocks... Pure and simple. They are consistent and quality. Jam... Jam... Jam on Jamiroquai.

Jamiroquai's 2001 album A FUNK ODYSSEY is their first album in a few years. It received mixed reviews as you can see evidenced here on Amazon, but if you truly listen it and give it a chance, I think you'll come to enjoy it. Yes it's not like TRAVELING WITHOUT MOTION or RETURN OF THE SPACE COWBOY, but those albums are distinct in their own way and this one has set its own standard. The album opens with "Feel So Good", a throw back to retro 70's, filled with funk and bass and soulful vocals. This is layed out all over the tracks, namely "You Give Me Something", an addictive soulful dance number that will stick in your head for days at a time. One reviewer compared the sound on this album to Michael Jackson's solo debut OFF THE WALL, and its definately a fair comparison. There is also elements of Stevie Wonder that are obvious here. "Corner of the Earth" has a unique eastern vibe to it, kind of acoustic in a sense. "Little L" and "Love Foolosophy" have that disco flavor that fans of Jamiroquai will love. Other highlights include "Picture of My Life", "Black Crow", "Stop Don't Panic" and the hidden bonus track "So Good To Feel Real". Give A FUNK ODYSSEY a chance, it's just the evolution of Jamiroquai that is evident if you take note of how they've evolved from each album. Don't miss this one.

Well, I just got around to buying this CD, and though I normally would listen to this kind of funky stuff (being a hip hop fan) I decided to take a listen to Jay Kay and his band's pop/funk fusion known as Jamiroquai.

Let's break it down track by track:

1. Feels so good -> This song is really the epitome of Jamiroquai. Great catchy beats, as well as outstanding vocals make this song a blast to listen to as you're screaming down the interstate at 150 miles per hour. Ask me how I know (o; This song also has hints of Monifah's "Touch It".

2. Little L -> Again, a true funky beat song. An excellent song to shake what your momma gave you to. My dad walked into my room as I was listening to this, and he asked me to let him borrow this CD. I really dig the porn-groovish background guitar as well as the well rhythm.. This song has "emotional content" (in the words of Bruce Lee) and that's what makes it good.

3. You Give Me Something -> Another rump-shakin song. Wow, this Jamiroquai guy is really good. This song reminds me of those old school funk songs, and I know Stevie Wonder would be proud of Jamiroquai. This song has another really catchy beat, and the repetition of "You Give me Something, oooh" in a sort of Michael Jackson-ish fashion brings a little bit of a pop element into a mostly funky song. The instrumentation and rhythm on this track is excellent as well.

4. Corner of the Earth -> This is where Jamiroquai takes a different direction. Moving away from the funk of the previous songs, this is more of a ballad, with Jay Kay pouring his heart and soul to you. I like how Jamiroquai takes a rather minimalist approach to the instrumentation and lets the vocals take the lead. Very impressive.

5. Love Foolsophy -> Back to the funk of the first three songs, this one is another good tune. The funky guitars, and good bass line combined with the catchy and easy to memorize vocals makes for a very good (albeit a little shallow) pop song, but that can be excused, because this is a song that makes you feel good, not to get you to think about social issues.

6. Stop Don't Panic -> More of a rockish tune, again with excellent vocals and rhythms. Again, they're showing how they're not all bubble gum funk, and can actually produce some music. Around the 2:30 mark is where the porno-music influence really shows itself. Listen to this track and you'll know what I'm talking about :p

7. Black Crow -> This is more of a poem, with very good imagery and a nice slow beat. This is a good song to sit down and think about the world to. I wonder what the black crows that were in NYC this morning were thinking. "You see everything and know nothing at all" is a great quote line.

8. Main Vein -> Now we're talking. I really like this song, and it's one of the best ones I've heard in a while. You can tell tell Jay Kay is angry at a woman for breaking his heart. I like the good synthesizer effectcs coupled with a good beat and bass line. Good times.

9. Twenty Zero One -> Excellent techno/rock track. A few funk elements could be heard in the guitars, and I really like how they distorted his voice to give it sort of a "futuristic" element. This really shows their musical skills.

10. Picture of my Life -> Another slow rock ballad. Jay Kay's good vocals and the instrumentations really give a somber mood to this song, and it's not something a depressed man would write. Again, this album is sort of an emotional rollercoaster and it's sort of a reflection on how Jay Kay thinks. There's a little surprise in this track, but I'm not going to give it away.

11. Do It Like We Used to Do -> Fast paced funk. Definetly good stuff. I can't speak enough good words about this album without you guys getting bored to death.

Bottom line: This CD is worth it.

When your 2 most soulful, meaningful and coherent CD's are your first 2, your future may be in doubt. Jay Kay and Co., still recovering from the loss of their original bassist, have not completely found their groove since "Travelling Without Moving." It is apparent from this LP. There are some great tracks on this LP, like "Little L," "Corner of the Earth," and "Main Vein." The pacing of the LP is really good, and it's very listenable. But there is really no "bottom," or "soul" to this record, which was the reason the J's best records, "Return of the Space Cowboy" and "Emergency on Planet Earth," were outstanding. There is no song like "Stillness in Time" or "When You Gonna Learn" on this album. That's a shame.

"2001: A Funk Odyssey" isn't as funky or as meaningful as J's other albums were. I hope Jamiroquai gets it together again, but for the time being, I'll give them passing grades for an otherwise enjoyable record.

A few years ago Jay Kay and Jamiroquai seemed to have the world at their feet.Travelling Without Moving had seen him gain worldwide success,high profile relationship theme tune to a summer blockbuster-everything seemed perfect.Then they went and released the very patchy album Sykronised and it seemed to set them back a great deal.Well thankfully this new album sees them returning to form in a big way.The sound maybe very distinctly Jamiroquai,but it's as good a collection of songs since that 3rd album.There are a few changes to previous efforts-notably less ballads,more funk and no didgeridoo instrumentals.

The best intergalactic funk band emerge with the song "Feel So Good"-it's Cosmic Girl but more spacey and a lot more funky.The intergalactic list of planets make this song almost sound like the Rah Bands 'Clouds Across The Moon'-without all the cheesy sentiment.The first single "Little L" sees them mixing funky rhythms with disco violins and a chorus to die for.The daft Punk,Herbie Hancock influence is running right across this c.d.Nowhere is this more obvious then on song 3-gentle vocoded background vocals mixed with a certain acid-jazz feel- oh and this song also has an amazing string section attatched to it also.
Three songs in and each one is a potential single-oh and this song also has an amazing string section attatched to it also.The 4th song is the closest this gets too being a slow and tender number.A massively orchestrated grandiose opening is soon taken over by the lilt of Spanish guitar and backing female vocals you'd associate with a 60's Andy Williams song from the French Riviera.Funk returns big time with glorious guitars and more Chic violins on song 5-it's the first real 'album' track.The next song has the harshest sounds on this album-it's actually a really stonking dance song-deep bass synths and an overall sound that is quite similar to their song 'Deeper Underground'.I have to say it's one of my favourite songs on the c.d.-maybe cos it just sounds so different to all the other songs."Black Crow" is another slow song.Once again he uses Spanish guitar,Riviera backing vocals and the usual amount of the environments in deep trouble lyrical references.Again it's a song that's very catchy,very mellow and another nice change in sound and pace.Song 8-"Main Vein" is almost mid 70's disco you'd associate with Ross Royce.The guitar is total Huggy Bear and it's got those strings again.

The next song sounds like he may have got assistance from Bassment Jaxx-full of techno effects.This song sounds like Jamiroquai have gone for hard house.This is one of the aspects on this Jamiroquai album I really have enjoyed-the variety of sounds and songs are incredible-quite unlike many of their previous albums.The final song is the longest on the c.d. and unfortunately for me it's also the weakest song on the album.This c.d. sees Jay Kay back with a bang-I hope his time and opportunity to be really big has not passed.This album deserves great success.

It's sad to see a band go astray. Jamiroquai have lost their magic touch. It's a one-man-band with a lead singer who's mind isn't set to making music anymore.
The whole album is sooooo predictable: All the songs have the same Top 40 structure: verse - chorus - verse - chorus - solo - verse (2X). Where's the originality??
I gave two stars because Jay still is a competent songwriter >>> Little l is a good disco song.
But this album is nowhere near EOPE or ROTSC.

This is not a bad CD...Songs like Love Foolosophy, Little L, & Main Vein had me up & dancin'. But any Jamiroquai fan will notice that[junk]. First, it lacks substance. Corner of the Earth is one exception & is, in my opinion, the best song on the CD. The string arrangements are nice & the song is very humbling. Then there's the poorer attempts - Black Crow & 2001. Black Crow isn't too bad, but I can't help but feel cheated b/c of some of the corniness & cliche-ness. 2001...good concept, good lyrics...but Jay sounds like he inhaled 50 helium balloons. Just b/c something sounds like a good idea doesn't mean it is. The rest of the CD isn't all bad, but it's corny at times, egotistical at times, thin & monotone. It gets boring at points & seems too colorless. What happened to the rest of the band?? It seems Jay thought he could do it all by himself. That's what a big ego will go though. It seems as if he was going for another mtv hit. His voice doesn't even have that same passion to it. I hope they get it together for the next CD...

Yeah, this album could have been way better. "Little L", "You Give Me Something", and "Love Foolosophy" are some of the hottest dance grooves out there. A few of the other songs are likable, but for the most part are boring and stagnent. If you want a better Jamiroquai album, check out _Travelling Without Moving_ or _Return of the Space Cowboy_.