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The best of the English acid jazz band Sep 04, 2009
The greatest hits collection of Jamiroquai is an essential, must-have collection of the best of the hippest funk/jazz band of the 90s.
Every song that made Jamiroquai cool in the early 90s is here for people's listening enjoyment. Its coolest songs from its first album, "Emergency on Planet Earth," appropriately kick the album to a fresh start. Hits such as "Too Young to Die" sound so funky that anyone will want to dance to them. However, the hottest track in this period was the title track, "Emergency on Planet Earth." Everything, from Stuart Zender's riff-laden bass guitar, to the disco drums of Nick Van Gelder, sounds like a saucy Stevie Wonder track if it collided with the hard-hitting staccato drums of a Michael Jackson song.
Probably the spotlight of "High Times: Singles," however, is the music video version of the song "Space Cowboy," first debuted on their second album, "The Return of the Space Cowboy." This is easily considered the zaniest version of the song, with some radical breaks in which Stuart Zender bust out a crazy bass riff and drummer Gelder rips up the track infectious break-beats. Among other things, Kay's vocals sound much more crystal-clear and exciting than the original "Return of the Space Cowboy" version.
Unfortunately, this greatest hits albums leaves out many of the other countless hits from "The Return of the Space Cowboy." Listeners will throw a tantrum over the exclusion of one of their best songs, "Light Years." Worse still, the greatest hits collection chops out all the cool solo parts in "Virtual Insanity" and "High Times." Fans will especially miss the killer guitar solo and keyboard solo in "High Times."
Thankfully, the record makes up for its flaws by including possibly their greatest single of all time, "Deeper Underground." This single was only found on the "Godzilla" motion picture soundtrack, but it became a big hit, exploding on the pop radio waves. Although it didn't have as big an impact as Rage Against the Machine's single from the same album, it was definitely the one of Jamiroquai's best.
Also, "High Times" does a good job in weeding out the best songs from the band's fourth, fifth and sixth albums. This period is considered by some as a low period in the band's career. Sadly, drummer Gelder left the band due to issues with Jay Kay. The awesome didgeridoo player, Wallis Buchanan, also left the group. Thankfully, their vibe remained unshaken, with probably their most memorable hit, "Canned Heat." Other songs, such as "Love Foolosophy" and "Feels Just Like It Should," continue the band's streak for hot dance floor hits.
Although the band's tone has turned much more electronic and experimental in its newest albums, each album is a unique metamorphosis of Jamiroquai's sound. In a nutshell, "High Times" is one of the best greatest hits collections for a 90s group. It sums up all the great peaks in creativity for one of the funkiest bands during the grunge rock era.
Got what I wanted! Jun 19, 2009
I am very happy with this CD it's what a really wanted and got what I paid for.
Very good disc Apr 12, 2009
Off cours I knew Jamiroquai, but I really rediscovered them with this cd. There are so many great songs on this cd. Sometimes it sounds even like Stevie Wonder in his great days!
Great compilation Feb 21, 2009
To be fair, Jamiroquai got too many songs that can be put into a "greatest hits" type of release. However this stuff really worth your money since it contain at least 19 tracks! All their biggest hits are here, cosmic girl, virtual insanity, space cowboy, deeper underground and their later hits seven days of sunny june.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll!! Apr 24, 2008
Man, I've been a fan of Jamiroquai since the first album, technically because I heard the first single from the second album first. Then, while at The Fugees concert waiting for Goodie Mob to start the show back in 1995 in Boulder, the theater was playing, "Emergency..." over the sound system. I was like who the hell is this singing?! It reminded me of some stuff old heads used to play when I was younger. Cool vibe to it, but couldn't pronounce the name. Well, the classics didn't stop there, evidentially, because High Times is one of the BEST best of collections made! I bought it because of the more edgy single version of "Space Cowboy" and it's the unedited version! After my first listen, I went back and pick one CD I didn't like very much and realized I didn't give "Funk Oddessy" hardly a chance. I can't get "Love Foolosophy" outta my head and it was on that album. I'm givin' another chance. The last two songs on here are the new joints and maybe a glimpse of what's to come from Jason and the band. This is an excellent collection of singles and I hope to hear more from them soon.
BTW, if you've ever heard of Vaughn Mason (mostly known for a cut called "Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll,") try listening back at that cut from back in the day and tell me Jay Kay don't sound a lot more like Vaughn than Stevie Wonder. It would make more sense, too, because that was a funky disco jam. It's okay to compare Jay with the legendary Stevie, that makes him great, also. Just listen to the song and leave me a comment or two.
A quick recommendation for you to listen to if you haven't heard 'em yet. Check out a '70's band called Real Thing, also from London. These guys, I believe, may be one of Jamiroquai's biggest influences. I listened to the best of album yesterday and was impressed. Didn't know much about them until now, but the second CD in this anthology is really good! Pick it up, you won't be upset. Children of the Ghetto: The Pye Anthology
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