Customer Reviews

Return of the Space Cowboy

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

While there new work may seem to have more in common with albums like Michael Jackson's Off The Wall, there was a time when Jamiroquai was more closely related to Stevie Wonder and Sly and The Family Stone with their ever-retro funk.

This was Jamiroquai as they were originally concieved as; a band. Today, it would be a fairly reasonable mistake to believe that Jay Kay was Jamiroquai.

This album includes long, funky jams where Jay Kay's Stevie Wonder-ish vocals (though I must admit it is not THAT close to get confused) and socially conscious lyrics bring us back to the glory days of R & B music (circa 1972). The album is a whole lot more raw than, say "Synkronized" and it really shows how crucial Stuart Zender's basslines were to the group's sound. This album features a lot more interplay between the band members than any other album (except perhaps "Emergency On Planet Earth").

What is striking is that the album is so retro that even the sound quality is muddled and flat! This was obviously the vision they had for the group. This album is like early Earth, Wind and Fire and "Funk Odyssey" is like their Disco influenced later 70s work. basically, this is Jamiroquai when funk was still young and raw; before disco smoothed everything out. This album's harder sound is probably less appealing to a mass audience than the highly produced style they have now, but for fans of acid jazz or funk, this is the album for you.

There are so many reviews here that I don't feel one can add much more to the opinion of musicality on this project. However, I will say this - every bassist needs this album. It should be one of 10 absolutely necessary albums that every electric bass player should own. Bassist Stuart Zender joined this band as a young teenager, but it's no surprise that he was immediately praised by already famous bassists in the industry through every magazine! The groove, feel, and maturity on this album is really amazing (especially for such a young player) so explore it. Learn from it.

After 1994, acid jazz started to lose mass popularity and soon sank down like a Titanic to the bottom of the sea. But if there was just one band that made an effort to develop the genre, it was Jamiroquai with their second album Return Of The Space Cowboy. They took the influences from vintage funk, jazz, soul and latin music that made most of their debut, Emergency On Planet Earth, and took them to another level of musical language. Open-minded and passionate musicians, they didn't limit themselves to any boundaries of the genre. Unlike Emergency, this album doesn't sound like anything you've heard before. My personal favourite, "Stilness In Time" is a breezy latin number, with a catchy chorus that you will probably sing all day long after listening to it in the morning. On "Half The Man" the band tried to experiment with unusial sounds, blending weird synthesizer, panoramic Rhodes piano, organ, acoustic guitar, latin percussion and Jay's blues-inflected vocals. Manifest Destiny is a beautiful slow-tempo number with the main melody played on a bass guitar. "The Kids" is a thrash-funk, which features some first-rate turntable workout, while "Morning Glory" is a meditative jazzy number with a long trumpet solo, which reminds of Miles Davis. The infamous didgeridoo turns up on just one track, the dark instrumental "Journey To Arnhemland." The first single and now classic "Space Cowboy" (a song about getting high with the help of marijuana) serves as a perfect conclusion of the album, leaving an unconquerable desire to listen to it one more time.
Long story short, this is a unique album made with a perfect taste and impressive technical performance. The album's only drawback is weak production, but still the music is the best they've ever done. If you think that Jamiroquai are just a disco-funk band, try this and you'll find out they are (or were) much more interesting and innovative.

"Return of the Space Cowboy" is an album with integrity and power as Jamiroquai, fronted by Jay Kay, delivers their most instrumental and musically interesting album. This album is quite different from his more recent disco-albums, as it is kind of darker and a bit less mainstream. It may sound a bit boring the first time you hear it, but after a while it sinks into your mind, and you find that it's a killer. This album is more focused on the band behind Jay Kay, with Stuart Zender and Derrick McKenzie as a toally awesome rhythm-section. As a bonus, this album contains Jamiroquais best song until now; Mr.Moon. Buy it now, or I'll feel sorry for you.

What can I say about this album to make you buy it? This is the best of Jamiroquai's 5 albums, by far. From the ever so cool title track, to the funky Light Years, this album will complete your music collection.

My favorite tunes? Try Stillness in Time, Manifest Destiny or Mr. Moon, but they're all great. To top it all off, this is when Jamiroquai still put messages in their music. Stillness in Time is about being happy and content with your life. Manifest Destiny is about that exactly. Space Cowboy is about their favorite mind altering past-time.

Whenever I have a doubt of what CD to put into my record player, this is my default CD because no matter what mood I am in, or where I am, this CD always seems to ground me and put me in a state of mind that I would always love to be in. This is the ultimate Jamiroquai CD, a good starting point for those who are curious about this revolutionary British band.

This album is so good!
It's a shame it was virtually slept upon here in the states!
But back in 1994, while over in the U.K., I went to see
the Brand New Heavies featuring N'dea Davenport
(another fave of mine from that era!)and a freind
told me that if I loved them, I was sure to love this almost new group at the time..Jamiroquai.

Well, we went to catch them in concert as well and WOW!
I was hooked by their sound, style and Jay-Kay's vocalizations.
Now I don't agree or understand about the comparisons that
some make between Jay and Stevie Wonder, because they
sound nothing alike, but I guess because the Jamiroquai
sound was so retro with the heavy fender rhodes, clavinet,
arp, moog & oberheim synths, etc. (circa 1970's)
that some had to make the comparison
to categorize what they were hearing!---
This album is the first Jamiroquai album that
I bought and it's great from start to finish!
"Space Cowboy", "Stillness In Time", "Half The Man",
"Manifest Destiny" "Journey To Arnhemland" & "Morning Glory"
all still stand the test of time!
Stuart Zender is an absolutely incredible bassist!
It's like the late Bernard Edwards of CHIC, Verdine White of E,W&F
and Larry Graham of Sly & The Family Stone / Graham Central Station
morphed and merged into the body of a young white kid!
Then, I went back and bought their debut
"Emergency On Planet Earth", which I also love, and then
of course, there is "Traveling Without Moving" which gave
them their crossover hit "Virtual Insanity" and finally got
them love here in the states outside the small but
loyal ultra-hip fan base they have here!
If you buy either 3 of the aforementioned albums,
you can't go wrong!

**ADDENDUM** I wish they would re-master and tweek this album though,
because the mix and sound quality was kind of sub-standard to my ear at that time and though I loved the songs,
I always felt that way in the back of my mind.

OK, I bought Traveling Without Moving because I liked "Virtual Insanity". Then I bought A Funk Odyssey because I liked Traveling Without Moving. After reading some reviews saying this was a good album...I decided to buy it even though I'd only heard "Space Cowboy". Well....this album is definitely diferent from the previous 2 albums I mentioned, but it is much more what I consider real music, and not pop(even though there are some VERY good songs on those other albms, i.e "Virtual Insanity", "High Times", "Corner of the Earth", and many more). The best song on this album is "Space Cowboy". I think it has a really catchy chorus and great lyrics. I like the live version of "Light Years", but I think the regular version sounds kind of weird. Even though this sounds kind of corny, "Just Another Story" has some of the most insightful lyrics I've ever heard, and is probably my second favorite song on the album. I also REALLY like the song "Half the Man". All of the other songs on here are great, but these are my personal favorites. If you want some older music that still sounds fresh, BUY THIS ALBUM!

'Return of the Space Cowboy' is my favourite album of all time. Jamiroquai's second album is its best. It leaves off where their first album, 'Emergency on Planet Earth', ends. It has even more ingenious touches than its precedessor. Not two songs sound alike. This is Jamiroquai's most instrumental album. Make way for the wa-wa guitars, cheesy synk sounds, da-da-da backing vocals, funky keyboards, downbeat horns, 'dodgy didger's' Wallis's trademark didgeridoo, heart-wrenching lyrics, Stuart Zender's world-famous base (pity he's left the band) and of course the oh-so flexible, sometimes furious but never dull voice of front man Jay Kay.
The title song is the most mainstream-orientated of the bunch, and although it is pretty good, on the long run it gets blown away by masterpieces like 'Just another story' and 'Scam'. Especially the former represents the very summit of the abilities of Jay Kay & co. It's Jamiroquai's 'Bohemian Rhapsody'. It spans 8+ minutes and starts as an easy, meagre, even raw, intro to the album, but grows out to Jay Kay's biggest outcry against society in an almost rude fashion. He tackles gangs, guns and drug abuse in a flamboyant way:

'Thinking you're a glory boy
fronting that stupid toy
But you just don't get that it's yourself you will destroy.'

Thirsty for more? Then this album's a must-have (no really). The one most worth having of all the Jam's work. Much more versatile than the relatively monotone 'A Funk Odyssey' for example. This is my uninhabited island-CD, know what I'm sayin'?

Jay Kay said that this album was actually made in a hurry, meeting the risen demand after the release of "Emergency on Planet Earth". If that is so, then Jamiroquai should have put out more hurried albums, because this one is simply superb! When it came out, I practically became addicted to the wonderful compositions, funky arrangements and Zender's pumping yet fluid bass lines. Jay Kay has some of his best vocal performances on this album, ranging from sweet ("Half the Man") to raged ("Scam"). Alas, the sound quality has suffered somewhat in the haste; sometimes you get the idea that you're listening to a demo. But what the heck... it's great music!

It's a shame that the later Jamiroquai-albums never quite got that edge of this one, since nowadays the band often gets stuck in tired neo-disco... especially since the excellent bass player Zender left the band.

While many might compare him to Stevie Wonder, lead singer Jay Kay and his British funk band, Jamiroquai, have broken new grounds when it comes to funk and soul. On this sophomore effort, the Jay Kay and his band truly blast the minds of listeners with all they got. Unlike their debut album, "Emergency on Planet Earth," this album truly established that Jamiroquai had inherited the throne of funk. His vocals are soothing, relaxing, and stirring and his band truly represent British soul music at its' best.

While the entire album is great, I truly enjoyed listening to two tracks specifically. The first, "Return of the Space Cowboy," is a jazzy, soulful song that has many numerous reference of canabis use. If you have never heard Jay Kay sing, this track will be your best way in getting to know his sound.

The second track, "Mr. Moon," is as funky as "Return of the Space Cowboy." The song's catchy beat will keep you humming it for a while, whether commuting to work or working out.

Along with George Michael, Jay Kay is one of Britain's most talented singers. As more and more singers from the other side of the "pond" discover the sound of soul, Great Britain will probably give the U.S. a run for their money. Please check out Jamiroquai's later albums, "Travelling Without Moving," and "Synkronized". They will provide all listeners with the same style of funk found on this album.