Sam Sparro

Sam Sparro

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 24, 2008)
• Original Release Date: June 24, 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Universal Republic
• ASIN: B001AJ9BIW
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #33,239 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. S.A.M.S.P.A.R.R.O.

2. Too Many Questions

3. Black & Gold

4. 21st Century Life

5. Sick

6. Waiting for Time

7. Recycle It!

8. Cottonmouth

9. Hot Mess

10. Pocket

11. Cut Me Loose

12. Sally

13. Clingwrap

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.co.uk

Australian-born soul starlet Sam Sparro has been making ears prick up of late. His savvy blend of soul, funk and modern electronica nods to 70s and 80s legends like Stevie Wonder and Hall &s; Oates, but Sparro brings a sassy style and modern production ethic that renders his music 21st Century fresh. Armed with a smooth, mercurial voice, Sparro sashays slickly through disco, funk and soul, moving waists with the punchy electro-funk of "Too Many Questions", "Black & Gold" and "Cut Me Loose", soaring soul like "Hot Mess" and darker material like "Pocket’ and the synth-laden "Sick" (which comes over all Calvin Harris, admittedly minus the kitsch, ironic appeal). "Clingwrap" is pop-lite Prince, and there’s the occasional slower track like "Waiting For Time" and "Cottonmouth", but mostly this is an upbeat collection for good time people. His Daft Punk-meets-Jamiroquai single "Black & Gold" has already earned him deserved comparisons to contemporary blue-eyed soul boys like Jamie Lidell; Sam Sparro is assured enough to make him a star.--Danny McKenna

Product Description

"Like Marvin Gaye hangin' with LCD Soundsystem " - The Observer

See all Editorial Reviews

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A truly 21st century funk., June 24, 2008

By	starschaser (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

His debut single, "Black & Gold", a monster track, has the makings of a year-defining dancefloor killer, its syncopating sequencers, sinuous vocals and unbanishable melody recalling the force and effectiveness of "Killer" by Adamski and Seal.
It's unquestionably the single of the year and is sounding more amazing as the weather improves. Its durability is its genius.
The rest of the album doesn't disappoint either. Imagine a truly 21st century funk. A place where Daft Punk meets Prince, a place that references mid-eighties US soul such as the SOS Band and Cameo, along with a bit of post-modernist slap-bass.
Having already made a considerable impression on radio playlists with this album's heads-up single"Black & Gold", the twenty-something nu-soul songwriter Sam Sparro finds himself in an enviable position from which to hawk this, his debut album. Whereas the similarly funk-popping Jamie Lidell is likely to find cracking the supermarket crowd tough going with his new Jim collection, seeing he's had chances to impress the mainstream in the past and never truly capitalised on these opportunities, Sparro (born Sam Falson) has no previous, no skeletons to drag from the closet for context here.
Sparro's bright, brassy soundbeds are the work of someone who has grown up with house and 1980s synth-pop and, to this, he adds a voice that has no business belonging to a white Californian.
The influence of Bill Withers and Gil Scott-Heron asserts itself in his supple vocals, to the point where "Sick" - in which his voice is pared down to an echo - comes as a welcome contrast.
On "Hot Mess", his falsetto out-Princes Prince, though it has been years since Prince wrote such caustic, concise funk.
Sparro could soon be one high-flying bird.
Given some of the exhibitionist flair for colourful songwriting on display here, it's a pity our protagonist couldn't have arrived at a slightly more imaginative album title.
Here's Sam Sparro: an Aussie-American-Brit with an ear for a tune, a big distinctive voice, a face for the magazine stands, a whole heap of charisma and, hell, a cute name too. What could possibly go wrong?

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sparkling examples of unashamedly funk-infused soulful pop !, June 24, 2008

By	India - See all my reviews

Aussie-born Sparro has been honing his sound on an LA indie label for three years now, while music's been part of his life for all of his 25 years. When your great-grandfather's a music professor, your grandfather's a respected jazz musician who performed with Sinatra and your father's a gospel singer, that's the way things tend to go.
His family's four-generation musical heritage notwithstanding, Sparro's debut album draws almost exclusively from the dance music of the last 30 years: a generous helping of electro, a big, heaped plateful of disco, a soupcon of house and lashings of tasty funk on the side.
Sparro's take on these sounds is much like the man himself - strong and sinewy, but packed with sparkle.
Though "Black and Gold" - a slice of disco existentialism with a killer, superglue melody - is the undoubted highlight, there's plenty to enjoy here, most notably the winning Prince pastiche "Hot Mess'"and the fun, flashy next single "21st Century Life".
"Cut Me Loose', meanwhile, is the sort of glitter-drenched party anthem that the Scissor Sisters would sell their gold lamé trousers for.
Despite the disappointment of some lyrical misfires especially on "Pocket", "Cottonmouth" and "Clingwrap", elsewhere Sparro is thought-provoking and serious, rallying against famine and inequality on "21st Century Life", going all existential on us on "Black and Gold" and "Too Many Questions", and slipping in a fairly self-explanatory funk trifle called "Recycle It!" half-way through.
Its handful of teeth-grinding moments notwithstanding, "Sam Sparro" is a frequently impressive debut containing a smattering of future floor-fillers. He's got the voice, the sound and, more often that not, the songs; once he's reined in that "silly" side, this Sparro could really soar.
At around an hour there's a bit of a gap before a pace-dropping untitled bit of lovely mellow soul), Sam Sparro's debut shows a big, important-sounding voice and a broad range of inventiveness and flavours, and becomes more indispensable with every listen, and there's plenty to suggest a seriously golden future.
So, if it's some healthy funk you're wanting in your pop bumps, listen no further than this summery assortment of candy-coloured crowd pleasers.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ray Of Light, January 9, 2009

By	Lamar Gray (ohio) - See all my reviews

Wow! Sam Sparro has to be one of the best things that has happened to music in a long time! I learned of him and his album, "Sam Sparro" through one of my friend's blog. She raved about how great this album was, and she was not lying! I went to YouTube where I was able to hear his songs, and I fell in love with them all. Sam is definitely a breath of fresh air in this congested R&B climate. Sam doesn't just stop at R&B, he is dance, electronica, funk, pop, and soul. His influences range from everyone from Stevie Wonder to Faith Evans. When you hear his music(particularly the more soulful numbers), you will automatically think Prince. It just goes to show that Prince's own influence is still very much alive today. As far as the album is concerned each and every track stands out. There is a lot of variety here. The album was inspired much by the 80s as well. My favorite songs are "Sally", "Cottonmouth", "21st Century Life", and "Cut Me Loose". I strongly recommend this album!!!!!