Emergency On Planet Earth

nice grooves, vocals, gets a little same-y from track to track

This album had some fun songs but nothing I would go back too.

Bueno como musica de fondo

Groovy

surprisingly fun hehe

So I just learned I like Jamiroquai.

"...the album was an infectious, funk mezze of trumpets, saxophones, didgeridoos and flutes, spawning the hit singles Too Young To Die and Blow Your Mind which both entered the UK Top 10 in 1993." BBC Music

This guy sings like Stevie Wonder

Jamiroquai es un grupo británico de funk y acid jazz que incluye matices de música disco y sonoridades de electrónica. Fue formado en 1992 por su líder, el cantante Jason "Jay" Kay, junto a Toby Smith, Stuart Zender, Nick Van Gelder y Wallis Buchanan.

A little weird but I was vibing nonetheless.

Funky

Thought I didn't like them, but maybe I do...

Decent. Prefee their other albums.

Interesting funk/pop groove. With horns and didgeridoos.

Some great sounds here, occasionally a bit jammy and could do without the didgeridoo. Excellent bass and moog!

Jaunty

enjoyed this, wouldn't really listen regularly though

loong good funk

6/10. Pretty okay, I guess.

Funky, mucho funky y ritmos discotequeros. Voz muy identificable. Canciones con estilo y ritmo. Sin determinadas sorpresas. Punto intermedio en muchos aspectos

Good to hear again

Gostei, mas não me vejo ouvindo com frequência. Melhores: When You Gonna Learn?; Hooked Up; Blow Your Mind; Didgin' Out. Piores: Too Young to Die; Revolution 1993.

Els singles de Jamiroquai solien entrar bé, sobretot al llarg dels 90. I el personatge en sí sempre m'ha fet gràcia. Recuperar el seu primer disc m'ha portat bons records d'aquella època, i trobo que musicalment el grup va aportar una fusió interessant de diferents estils. Sense segurament voler inventar res, van crear un segell propi, reconeixible, i amb el plus de la veu i lideratge d'un cantant de gran carisma.

Lot of filler

Fun, funky album but all runs together. Really nice, not amazing. 3.2

I like it, don't love it. It's unique and there's a pretty good vibe but wouldn't make my regular rotation.

Not my genre but there is something infectious about it. I like this but am probably just going to stick with Virtual Insanity. 3.5.

I was kinda surprised to see this on the list, but wikipedia tells me Jamiroquai were actually a whole lot more popular in the nineties than I thought, and have influenced a whole bunch of people, so ok, fair enough! It's funk and soul done competently enough, but it feels uncomfortably appropriative, and the way it tries to lay on a message is pretty cringe. I've no plans to revisit this, but probably won't object to it coming up on shuffle... Fave track - "Revolution 1993", I guess?

everyones mum and dad loved jamiroquai

fantastic album to groove to, listened to it at work, and kept me moving all day. was fantastic!

Talk about a group I have not thought about since I was a kid. This is actually a solid funk/soul album. Didn't love anything but it was all solid and an easy listen. "Whatever It Is, I Just Can't Stop" is probably the highlight for me.

Very funky. I was interested in hearing more from this band - my first exposure to them was when my sister downloaded one of their songs when I was in middle school. I found their sound exciting. I asked her about it yesterday and she said she probably heard it in the movie Center Stage, which I never saw but is apparently about dancers. On this listen, for some reason I couldn't shake the perception that the singer was emulating Stevie Wonder, and that bothered me. A reference point that occurred to me, but didn't bother me, was KC and the Sunshine Band - another band I heard for the first time in middle school. Waffling between 3 and 4 on this one.

parece música de loja de roupa que quer ser descolada mas é divertidim

Is this the best pick of this band? I feel like they tightened up the sound and toned down the hippie vibe in favor of a little deeper orchestration as time went on. Still I have no problem with this at all.

It's not bad, not my style normally. Live I would prob like a lot more. Funky but nothing that was like "WOW THIS SLAPS". It's like... accessible Jazzy.

Fun! Funky!

Space funky album

I thought I'd hate this or love this but it's actually quite calm isn't it. Some nice tunes wouldn't be adverse to putting it on again. Such Kyle vibes it's crazy

Some funky goodness

Didn't age as well as I thought it would...chaotic.

2.75/5. It was fine. Nothing special, kind of dragged on.

Somewhat dated music I used to like a lot but now not so much. Still fairly good.

This was a bummer. I like JK, he seems like a cool dude, and I also really like virtual insanity, that’s a great song! The problem is that it’s all just the same thing over and over again. I like his sound but he need alittle more variety for me personally. Cause a whole album of this just gets so old so fast. I just need something different, cause everyone it’s the same vocal delivery, and same little adlibs (honestly you can very clearly see he is influenced by MJ’s vocal delivery). And the biggest plus is I really love the instrumentals and the production. It’s very “of its time” but it also hasn’t aged poorly. It’s just too much of the same vibe and sound over and over again. I also don’t feel bad about having a critical review of his work cause have you seen this guys fucking garage?!? It looks like a hot wheels collection, this dude has got all the coolest toys so I’m positive he doesn’t give a shit about me not really liking his albums as a whole. This dude totally puts out great hits, just not albums…. The best songs on this album are “blow your mind” and “music of the mind”. (I also could’ve used like 7 more songs like “music of the mind” that song is great!)

Some decent beats, but ultimately not into this.

Another one that goes on too long and sounds the same .

I've never liked jamiroqui and this does not change my mind

For whatever reason, I thought this was good at the time, listening to it back pretty boring

No private session used on Spotify. I had mixed fillings about having this album show up, I like a couple Jamiroquai songs for their upbeat funk but his style seemed repetitive and limited. This album was a bit of a challenge as the songs all seamed similar with nothing standing out. I listened to it twice and was getting a little annoyed with the second time through. Novelty of hearing a didgeridoo but even that got old after a while.

I remember this being popular among a certain crowd back in the day, and everyone comparing it to Stevie Wonder. I wasn't really familiar enough with his work back then to get it, but in retrospect yeah, this is an homage at best, bordering on pastiche.

The Dream Theater of funk. Soulless.

Started off ok but got boring fast. Still better than Mariah Carey’s bullshit though.

Temu Stevie Wonder.

The 90s produced a lot of faded photocopies of older sounds, especially in the UK. In guitar music Britpop was the 60s and 70s, in funk and soul we had this lot and the Brand New Heavies trying to resurrect 70s sounds. I'd rather have the Brand New Heavies cos at least you don't have to listen to Jay Kay and ponder his many non musical crimes. Being an ungentlemanly ex of Winona Ryder, repeatedly endangering the lives of people using the A9 by driving like a knob, storming the US Capitol building, etc

Not original...they just sound like they're trying to imitate Stevie Wonder.

listened at the gym. its groovy and i the spacey weee ooo sounds and the basslines, when it's got a y2k futurism. wouldnt say it suffers from sameyness since i think the whole point is the exact mood it has. sort or suspect this is on here as an expression of the britishness of the list, as likely there is some black artist who influenced this (or even one that didnt) that could have been chosen in place of this.

No está mal, su relevancia es que es el debut, si bien tiene discos que me gustan más.

I wish there was an instrumental version of this. Would make a great soundtrack album to a lost 70s NYC cops & robbers movie. Loses a star for the straight Stevie Wonder vocal theft.

Nothing really stands out except for Revolution 1993. Great collection of musicians. I don't mind derivative sounds, and it feels like at least something was added with the inclusion of didgeridoo and modern production values and such, but the entire falls flat in the songwriting. I don't find the hooks remarkable, and the lyrics are quite bland, aiming at social consciousness but only scratching the surface.

Very funk / jazz. Not for me at all Some of the tracks went on for ever and never really went anywhere. Feels like he was just singing over the music rather than in time with it, felt like more of an improv jam than a planned album. 2/5

Very forgettable… meh

One of the old managers at the "hip" restaurant I used to work at, he would put on Jamiroquai for the background soundtrack whenever he was stuck on what to listen to. This band gives me PTSD from those days, but that's not exactly fair to the band to judge them on that. I did find the singer's vocals to be more impressive than I could really make out - very Stevie Wonder at times, which was a pleasant surprise - and I did like that some of the lyrics were socially minded, something I couldn't make out in the kitchen. That said, this kind of long-jam dance music just isn't really my thing, but I'll give 'em props for what they're doing.

Crap

Second rate Stevie Wonder

"Emergency On Planet Earth" is an inoffensive listen but not really to my taste. It's super slick, Jazzy and soulful but as a consequence lacks any edge or bite. It isn't dreadful but I didn't like this at the time of its release and I still don't. Two stars. 326/1001 178/326 albums reviewed were new to me.

Impressive that this manages to be both not very good and boring at the same time. Feels like they aspire to be pretentious but lack the talent to reach that. They lose one because a guy from Suffolk names his band by combining 'jam' and 'Iroquois', but gain one back because Didgin' Out, which should be an absolute abomination was pretty good

Stevie Wonder + Rolf Harris. This lot were fairly hated 30-something years ago for repackaging SW's music and adding a didgeridoo in order to tie itself to the eco-revival movement of the early-90s and more authentic bands. It was toss back in the day; it's good unoriginal music nowadays.

If you would have told the teenager who INSTANTLY changed the channel when Virtual Insanity came on that he'd be one day ON PURPOSE listening to an entire album from that band, he never would have believed you. Yet, here we are. From its opening notes, I'm reminded of Stevie Wonder. Reminded? That's maybe a bit too kind. It's not Stevie Wonder-style flair; it's Stevie Wonder sung by a white British guy. It's not just derivative, but like personality theft? I like Stevie Wonder, but I'm not sure how I feel about this. I think I'm bailing out here at track 6. I might come back to it this weekend. I might not

It's a fun album to play in the background, but I am not too sure I will muster sufficient interest to listen to it wholeheartedly.

i know a lot of people who like funk and disco but i don't know anyone who listens to jamiroquai.

It was fine

Good jazz no my too much my vibe tho

None of these are virtual insanity 🤨

Don’t know about appreciation or appropriation - culture is fluid and dynamic after all, but the resemblance to classic period Stevie W ain’t exactly subtle. It seems very retro pastiche, to the point of massive imitation. And it’s not like it’s been anglicised in any way what so ever, to at least give it their own spin and sound. Do think he is just a fan and that’s where he was coming from and not cold for the cash. But Honestly can’t listen to it with an open ear, without thinking it just sounds like someone trying to be Stevie Wonder 20 years later with the then modern sound production. Don’t think that level of coping is valid for a must hear album. Sure you can be influenced, everyone is in some way to develop what they do, of course you can but there is a line. So if it was just listen to this as an album it’s ok, but as a representative in the history of popular music since ‘54 ( from a British editor) ie the list of must hear albums got to mark it’s derivative ass down, 2 Star

most of them were pretty good, really good electronic elements, but the more vocal ones were not my cup of tea

Elevator music

Oh, good. Looking forward to this. Not sure I heard it in the day… if I did, it’s been awhile. Oh no. I learned something. I can’t do funk without soul. Man, the musicianship is undeniable. But something was wrong. I just wasn’t enjoying myself. Then I looked up other reviews and the album. And yeah. I give 3 stars to the band and maybe -1 stars for Jay Kay?The best track by far was music of mind where he doesn’t appear as a vocalist. Boolean rating: no. I could definitely have died without hearing this.

Nah. I didn’t enjoy listening to a guy from Lancashire pretending to be Stevie Wonder. It’s all a bit too performative and “try hard” for my taste.

Nope. Can’t be doing with it. Pretentious guff.

It really does sound like Stevie Wonder with 90s production for a club. The songs don’t progress anywhere and the lyrics seem half assed yet trying to tackle serious issues at the same time. Rating: 1.8

Apart from the two well known tracks I found the rest of the album pretty mid.

Not always awful, but an overall feeling of nausea throughout.

Great in the day, however I always felt JK was the more commercial side of the excellent Acid Jazz scene from that decade. Nowadays, it's just something Jeremy Vine plays on Radio 2

This really dragged on for an eternity...

I don't know, it was alright. Didn't do much for me.

65

It’s not even the album with the hits! It’s okay…I can’t do a whole album of new funk…but appreciate the musicianship

its more a 2.5 but it was alright. Logo dope as hell tho.

Starts ok but once we get to Hooked Up it all goes a bit shit. Whatever it is it just won’t stop or something. Music for people who listen to The Lighthouse Family. 2. Didn’t mind the Didging Out close.

“Now that’s what I call a singles band” Starts strongly, fades badly, never recovers. More a collection of jams than a coherent album of fully finished songs. I was looking forward to listening to this, as in theory it’s in my sweet spot, but ultimately it left me disappointed.

Something has always made me recoil from Jamiroquai's brand of acid jazz and funk, and I'm still not quite sure what. There's clearly talent, and it's all obviously heavily indebted to the great Stevie Wonder, but it's like there's something cynical or slickly commercial or soulless at work. Couldn't face the extended version - an hour of this was more than enough.

Kyllä mää ymmärrän että tällainen onko jazzahtava tyyli voi vedota. Ei ole mun juttu kuitenkaan

The vocalist is pretty unbearable and I find it hard to understand why such an album is on this list, when significantly better ones in this ”genre” have been released a couple of decades earlier.

So this album answers the age old question: what if you gave Stevie Wonder a didgeridoo Something about this album annoyed me. It almost seems inauthentic to me. Good grooves, funky, but lacking any hooks

Just because it has a message doesn't mean the musics good.

Quite samey, good singles but nothing more.

Meh! Some fun and funky songs on here but overall it just feels dated to me, and even kind of cheesy at times. None of the songs stood out for me, and just not a sound I enjoy.

Too much do do doo ing

After 2 songs akt heel get

I like Too Young To Die, but I'm not a fan of the lengthy jazz burblings, excessive didgeridoo and the too on-the-nose environmental preaching. Plus, it's hard to ignore what an insufferable d0bag Jay Kay is. Can't be more than a 2 from me.

Overall: a fun, socially aware funk ride.

Something held over from the 80's that sounds like a knockoff 90's version of Stevie Wonder. Not for me.

An hour too long

The songs are good and I enjoyed them but they all kind of blend together for me. Maybe that isn't a bad thing, maybe it would be good to put on as background for some other activity. There is a lot of nice funk sounding elements that I really enjoy. Not an album that I would put on to listen to but something good for background music.

2.5

Funky stuff, but not my thing. 2.5 stars

He terminado el disco con resaca, y llevo sin beber alcohol desde el domingo. Cupo de guitarras wah-wah cubierto esta semana.

música perfecta para anuncios de los 90. Podía ser mucho peor, teniendo en cuenta que para hacer funk siendo así de blanco tendría que tomar muchas más drogas y estar mucho más cachondo

Xornada laboral de dez horas, contando cunha pausiña breve para comer. Chegas á casa de volta, recolles todo un pouco, picas algo, fas un chisco de deporte, dúchaste e pos roupa cómoda. Todo ben e a tempo de ter un anaquiño de lecer e desconexión antes de cear e te deitar. Necesario para conservar un mínimo de cordura. Enchufas os cascos, abres o reprodutor de música, ves varios discos novos apetecibles pendentes de escoitar e lembras que falta botarlle unha ollada ao do reto diario este dos 1.001 discos. E resulta ser que hoxe toca... Jamiroquai. Un paisano branco con chisteira que disque fai acid jazz. Ao que viches en directo unha vez nun festival aleatorio e foi bochornoso (e aínda por riba estabas cubríndoo de prensa e non puideches contar o verdadeiramente horrible que foi ). Pensas que igual o espectáculo envellecera mal e que había algo que rescatar nos primeiros discos. Unha canción. Unha liña de baixo. Un detalliño ao que se aferrar. Daslle ao play a este Emergency on Planet Earth confiando en que, dalgún xeito, o puto día remonte e termine con algo digno de ser lembrado no futuro. Cincuenta e cinco minutos despois, só estás máis preto de ter que te erguer mañá para seguir alimentando a roda do capital sen teres experimentado un só momento de felicidade nun día máis desta fútil existencia (#14 dos 1.001 discos que escoitar antes de morrer: 1,5/5)

overall this is fine and good but makes me want to listen to Kamasi Washington and Sly Stone more than anything

Pop and instrumental sounds for a lighthearted experience and nothing moving.

Very much sounds like a debut album, can tell they are finding their feet. Jamiroquai are undeniably catchy but I feel their good songs hide the annoying things about them, and this album doesn't really have any hits. Just about listenable id say but wouldn't go back.

Jason, do you like Stevie Wonder?

Jazz is usually not my thing, and this fits perfectly in the jazz lane that I can’t stand.

Overrated

not my music

No idea who this is, but okay go off. Album cover is ugly. Album loooooongggg and there is live music on it. In my humble opinion, no fucking need. Hate when artists do this. I heard no bad song; its all vibe based. Much feels well-made, but there is something missing, like idk, a soul???? HOLD ON, this is a white man??????????? I dont know how to feel about this.

I might be going too easy on this album but after hearing like 30 90s electronica albums, this is the first one that doesn’t make me want to rip my hair out. It’s a low bar, but I feel like at least one of them on this list deserves a 3.

Uninspiring. Humdrum. Some very repetitive age somewhat tedious beats.

I only know "Canned Heat" and "Virtual Insanity" by Jamiroquai, and I'm super bummed that neither one of those songs is on this album. Dance music like this can be really hit-or-miss with me, so I'm not really sure how I'm going to feel about this album when all is said and done. Worst case scenario though, even if I hate this album, I'll be listening to "Canned Heat" and "Virtual Insanity" on my drive home this evening. Here's to my last album of 1993! Oof, it was tough for me to get through this whole album. I enjoyed the general funkiness to the sound of the album, but I didn't think this album had many catchy hooks to it, and for a dance album, it really didn't have much energy to it. The first song hooked me in with its rich sound, but the album didn't really deviate much from the sound of that first song, and I found it to be pretty repetitive. It didn't help that a few of these songs were over six minutes in length either. I kept hoping that these songs would go somewhere melodically, but none of them really did anything other than just build a musical foundation that kept repeating. I didn't think this album was bad per se, but the songs just didn't hold my attention. One bright spot though was "Revolution 1993", which I thought was really good. I loved the precision of the fast-paced rhythm, the call-and-response vocals, the fuzzed out guitar, and the strings. It's weird that one of the longest songs on a boring album would be the best of the bunch, but here we are. Now to fire up some "Canned Heat" to purge my memory of this one.

I had next to no idea what kind of music Jamiroquai makes, but this was passable

Yes, I've also heard Stevie Wonder. 2.5/5

Best Track - "When You Gonna Learn"

My ignorant youth never thought of the Jamiroquai attempt to be Stevie Wonder. Nor how the lyrics were easily parodied by Flight of the Conchords. Nor how they just decided to appropriate a Native American nation. Lose points for all of the above. And the fact that this album is a bit lame. Jamiroquai did some catchy tunes over their first 3 albums - there's not many on here (Too Young to Die the only decent one), and the rest of the tracks aren't up to much. Your time is better spent listening to Stevie Wonder and Flight of the Conchords while reading about the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy.

This album demonstrates the very wide gap between Stevie Wonder and those who are killing themselves trying to sound like Stevie Wonder.

Dull

Jamiroquai, you are very much a shit band with good musicians, and for some reason people love you. But I don‘t! Fuck you!

Hvordan kan Party-music være så fucking boring?

Trying to sound like Stevie wonder. I’m a fan of Stevie wonder, but not this. Just weird and not great. 2/5

Fun & funky, but not exceptionally creative, except for adding the dijeridoo, which is nice. The comparison to Stevie Wonder’s sound is apt, but this is a poor imitation. It’s very listenable, but not that impressive. It’s jazz pop; a fun band you might see at your lical jazz club. A 2 (it could be a 3, but I really don’t want to listen to the whole album again).

9/1089. This isn't even the album with their hit. The singer's voice is so unique and interesting that it almost gets stale. Horns throughout every song isn't usually my thing and this album is no different. Need the "insanity" song to reach a 3*.

It's a mystery worthy of the Twilight Zone: who the hell was buying all those millions of Jamiroquai albums? Genuine multi-platinum cut-through pop star status; for some really quite odd acid jazz/lite funk. Bizarre! Not saying the music is bad as such (though in some ways it is, to my ear at least), just that it seems a rather niche genre to go stratospheric.

It was okay, some real foot tappers, but the long songs definitely felt long. Did Revolution 1993 need to be 10 minutes? I don't think so. Also, I didn't expect a didgeridoo to make an appearance.

Good background music, not sure if would listen to the whole thing again voluntarily, though.

At first, I was excited to see this album pop up because I like the song “Virtual Insanity”. So, I was curious to hear what John Kay wrote before that. I can not take a whole album of John Kay’s vocals. He gets annoying after a while. The music was good though.

Not really my vibe

This is some funkier, whiter Stevie Wonder and I like it better than his entries on the list thus far. Some smooth Jazz/Motown sound but a bit too much of the same and some too long song on this album. I was "Didgen Out" to the didgeridoo though and wanted more. Jay Kay is from London and not Australia? Credit for bringing the 70s sound to the 90s and creating an "acid jazz" genre but I'm not totally didgen it...2.2 stars.

Meh. Partially listened to. It was long

stivi vander za siromašne koji postane prenaporan nakon prve pjesme. dao bih možda i tri jer glazba načelno nije loša, al traje predugo; predzadnja pjesma posebno bezvezna i razvučena

The first song was good, but the Stevie Wonder impression got stale quick.

It's not for me.

Meeeahhh….lots of the same

Jamiroquai. The man with the funny hats and cool music video who don’t have any really good songs. Funky and danceable but unmemorable. Creds for the Revolution song

102/1001 Jamiroquai - Emergency on Planet Earth Heard before? ❎ Revisit? ❎ Entirely derivative of a Stevie Wonder album and let's not get started on the Native American stuff. Production on this is at least good. Either way, I'd rather spend my time with a a Wonder record.

var chill det, men helt ok

Pretty good sound

I couldn't get through this album. I stopped at "Blow Your Mind" which has 15 million listens on Spotify. I stopped around the part where he started scatting along with the horn. It was just... this kind of music is absolutely grating to me. Funk, light jazz, the singer's voice.. everything about it rubs me the wrong way. Not my thing at all.

Dont really see the point of this Jamiroquai album being on here, as he’s later find his sound on albums like Traveling Without Moving, or my favorite, Funk Odyssey. What’s on here was probably pretty surprising for its time, like, who is this white boy that sounds strikingly like Stevie Wonder? But beyond the novelty, everything’s only just alright. I enjoyed the messaging on “If I Like It, I Do It”. The instrumental passage on the end of “Music Of The Mind” was stellar. My favorite groove was easily “Blow Your Mind”, which had a Chic-esque bassline. It’s clear this guy was very studied right out of the gate and had a great sense of how to make funk/disco music. But again, he has much more memorable work to be heard on later albums. So for that I give this albums placing on this list a 2/5

Not good.

2.5 All I really knew about Jamiroquai going into this is that the main guy wears funny hats and that everyone in the ‘90s went absolute apeshit over their Virtual Insanity music video for whatever reason. With just that knowledge, I guess I thought they were more of an R&B or hip hop group or something in that vein, but they’re really more of a jazz-funk fusion - or “acid jazz” I believe as the kids call it. As someone who enjoys funk but not jazz quite as much, perhaps that explains my middle-of-the-road rating here, but ultimately, something about this just felt kinda soulless to me. Don’t get me wrong, the production is great, and the songwriting certainly isn’t bad (I guess there’s even quite a bit of social commentary to be found should you dive into the lyrics), but at the same time, this mostly just felt like a commercial ‘90s record. There’s nothing to be found here that I would call bad, but for funk music, nothing really got me into a groove either. If you take a look at some of the artists that were supposedly influences on these guys - like Herbie Hancock and Sly Stone - I can’t help but feel this music feels just a bit more inauthentic in comparison. Though, to my knowledge, I can’t say any of those guys ever used a didgeridoo in their music, so Jamiroquai have that going for them. I do respect frontman Jay Kay’s activism and believe him to be authentic as a person and performer, but I just never felt sold on this album. I certainly could have felt a lot more bored than I did given how long some of the tracks are, but for the most part, this was kind of a non-presence. No high points, no low points - just sort of background music for my day. Though another fun fact for you all - want to know where they got their name from? Because I was curious. It’s a combination of “Jam” and “Iroquois” - but spelled and pronounced differently for whatever reason.

I think this is what "cool" older guys would play to impress younger women

Famous for a great music video (for a song not on this album) and for wearing a stupid hat, this has a retro disco funk sound updated with 90s electronica style. It's a fun enough album - the live horns, jazzy basslines and swirly organs on the instrumentals especially - but his voice is grating (like someone doing a Stevie Wonder impression).

Boring. A lot of it sounded the same. I know a couple Jamiroquai songs, but they weren’t on this album.

As a teenager I remember buying this album on a whim to push my boundaries and to try something new... well fast forward 2 decades and seems I am at it again. Should have invested my money in google instead of this album or something but anyway I am not in the mood for high energy funk on repeat.  It eats my soul and any that remains in this music.  It's not bad in isolated bursts which maybe is what caught me in its funky web all those years ago but eventually the rot sets in with me.  Love the didgeridoo on "Didgin' Out" though nice touch.  Just as an album despite its many musical talents and merits is a miss.

Fine but a bit aimless as an album and I was desperate for it to end

Wasn't sure what to expect from this as I can't say I've ever gone out of my way to listen to much Jamiroquai. It was better than I expected but a bit too long by the end of disc 1 (I didn't bother with disc 2)

Phenomenal album.

British acid-jazz time travelers piloting a mothership powered by Stevie Wonder's clavinet and Lenny Kravitz's thrift-store funk. Jay Kay's eco-preachy lyrics and hat game can't quite distract from the déjà groove—these jams stretch like yoga class with no cool-down. Still, when they hit, they hit: "When You Gonna Learn" opens like a post-Stevie PSA with real hooks and real horns, and "Hooked Up" rides a bassline and cowbell combo so righteous you almost forget it's not 1975. Think of it as proto-Bruno with longer solos and less cheek.

Pleasant enough muzak but I couldn't really tell one song from another. There's 'the fast one' and 'the slow one', but apart from that it's just generic.

Modern funk, not groundbreaking for me but will done if you like that shirt of thing.

2 Stars (5/15)

I wasn’t feeling this. I never listened to Jamiroquai and thought it was a person before today. Now I know.

Overall a solid record, but very same-y.

Well, yesterday I got Stevie Wonder, and I guess today I got Stevie Wonder 2000. Kind of? Really hoping tomorrow doesn’t bring something to make this a groovy trifecta.

Super funky….and jazzy maybe good fit long drives or background or maybe like when you need to be hype but not for the gym. Idk if this is my specific vibe but I do respect it, reminds me of jazz artist Myah showed me….. cool layering of audios very enjoyable listen. It is really boring me just listening to it but def good for multi tasking ……

1. When You Gonna Learn 2. Didgin' Out 3. Emergency On Planet Earth

Vahvan tunnelman kokonaisuushan tämä on, vetovoimaa. On sekä rento jammailu että tiukka soitto (ja sanoma tietty). Vapaaehtoisesti en silti kuuntelisi.

All the songs felt like B- versions of virtual insanity. I just don’t think the social conscious stuff lands with the poppy “acid jazz” style of music.

It's honestly quite amazing how much this sounds like Stevie Wonder.

Strong Stevie Wonder inspiration infused with Disco. Nice idea, but dispute those two things being great, this one didn't do it for me. Great bass though.

This is better than normal jazz, but I still don't vibe with it.

Very close to a 3, because there's a couple bangers. Revolution 1993 is so good. But I also found the album all together kind of annoying. I reserve the right to change this rating in the future.

Was literally okay and tooooo long

I’d rather listen to Stevie Wonder.

This is an easy band to goof on, and always has been. This was a lot, it's very long and goes very hard with the funk. A lot to take on a slow Saturday morning. I cannot deny the funk though, it grooves for sure. Totally get why people like this.

It wasn’t terrible, but I didn’t need two parts for sure because everything pretty much all sounded the same.

The walking contradiction that is Jay Kay, absolutely cribbing on natives and black mans music despite being whiter than milk, and playing lyrical themes against corporate greed and pro environmentalism.... but then he made a shit ton of money and blew it on gas guzzling super cars.

Good vibes for a good mood only album. Bad thing is after a while everything is starting to sound the same.

Ok. Favourite track is Blow Your Mind 2/5

Just never understood the Jamiroquai thing.

I enjoyed the funky basslines. I disliked pretty much everything else.

Pas sûr. Ça m'énerve un peu un album qu'on dirait la même toune une heure, même si c'est un jam iroquois. Voir Exodus de Bob Marley. Le space cowboy est nice, ça donne une étoile de plus que mérité.

Not my thing...

In a nutshell: enter space cowboy. Monumental in exposing acid jazz to the masses. Okay as a debut. Personally I would have put Travelling Without Moving in the book instead as it refined Jamiroquai's style. Overall: 4/10

Cool funk/jazz sound, but isn't really my speed.

This is the moment I knew for sure that the author of the 1001 albums list is English.

I might just not be in the mood for it, but I find this album a bit annoying. All very samey and just goes on and on. Case in point: 'If I Like It, I Do it' - 4:52 of the same riff and inane words. Maybe on a different occasion it works better. 'Music of the Mind' is a good jazz piece, if you feel like jazz.

Didn't know Jamiroquai was acid jazz....or whatever this is. 2.5 stars - rounding down because it doesn't have "Virtual Insanity".

I once saw Jamiroquai at a festival, having never listened to them before. They were awesome, although I was incredibly drunk. That is probably why they were so good, as this album was not so enjoyable.

Absolutely not. I do not own a hat big enough, or have participated in hacking a sack enough to listen to this.

It goes on and on and becomes tedious. There are some neat parts, probably best tucked away on a random playlist.

It took me a hot minute to realize what I was listening to. Is it like white guy Stevie Wonder?? I'm okay with white people incorporating funk into their stuff but this feels like a Stevie Wonder rip off. There are elements in the instrumentals that I like for sure but the album and Jamiroquai as a concept is not something that gets me stoked.

It was ok. Standout song: Too young to die

Wannabe Stevie Wonder cardboard music, found little to stimulate, I’m sure the musicianship is first rate but there is no innovation.

go fuck yourself

who enjoys this shite?

A chilling and pleasant listen! There is his unique sound but I'm missing the big hits on this album. Not easy for me to decide between two and three stars. Favourite: "Blow My Mind" 2,5

This all has the "easy going" vibe, but it feels a bit forced and fake. Got a bit boring after the first couple of tracks

There is no rational explanation as to why I hate Jamiroquai as much as I do. On a surface level this is funky and fresh and full of energy, but the end result is just elevator music. Nothing interesting happens, and the lyrics are supremely "meh".

It's pretty fun 6/10

I generally like jazz but found this tiresome, it went on way too long, and the band sounds rather pretentious.

After the brilliance of Television comes Jamiroquai. I think that if you have never heard Stevie Wonder in your life. Which is sad. Then you would think this is amazing. But I adore Stevie and this is far too derivative to even appreciate that they are okay songs in their own right.

”We’ve got Stevie Wonder at home”

It’s fine. Put it on when you host your blandest friends for NoName burgers and chips.

If your Stevie Wonder records are all scratched up and you need to get the party going, I guess this will do. Much like if you're making some pasta sauce and don't have any tomatoes, you can substitute with ketchup.

I’m sorry he sounds whiny like I wasn’t listening to the lyrics, but I’m sure he isn’t singing anything necessarily sad? Wait the album is called emergency on planet earth…is this about global warming?!!? Anyways, I am rating a 2 for now but may reconsider later on

I didn’t like this. Musically it may be good but it’s not for me.

Jamiroquai seem to get a bad rep but I've never really had an issue with their sound. This was more jazzy than I expected based on the songs I know and it was okay but it dragged on a bit and once again I have to question why this list seems to favour albums with multiple songs that are at least 6 minutes in length. Get in the bin

очень надоедливо............................ и гениальное решение обрывать каждую песню в конце, спасибо за развитие тревожности из примечательного только when you gonna learn

Background music. Not bad not good

custom_rating:4

It was not my favorite. Every song had me waiting for the lyrics "just dance" which I think is a Jamiroquai song, but I am not sure. I don't think it was on this album, but again not positive. Overall it was fun for maybe a song and then a bit of a slog.

2.5

Prefiro ouvir tudo aquilo que ele tá tentando imitar

As a crap tribute to Jay Kay, I'm listening to this while playing Gran Turismo - perfect match. Groovy, spacey, good fun and covered in tasty playing. That said - it's a whole lot of the same thing, and it's a bit of a laugh to hear the man who'd go on to be one of the world's foremast supercar collectors calling for a revolution. Favourite tracks: When You Gonna Learn, Music Of The Mind, Emergency On Planet Earth

Should you ever need a reminder of reasons to hate the 90s. Alternatively: what if the Persona soundtracks were uninspired shite which never. Fucking. Stopped.

I approached this expecting nothing, as usually happens when I find an album that was huge during my youth (let's talk prejudices, hehe). That said, at least I found a funky sounding, fun album to listen to. I don't think I'll listen to it again, as I'd rather go to the sources of black music, but I can understand why this was big. Recommended for 90s nostalgics and eurofans.

This mashup of jazz, blues, hiphop, funk soul and rock is just that - a mash with little to offer.

Not a big fan of this kind of acid jazz music.

Just a person wishing they are Stevie Wonder when they really aren't. The musicians otherwise are very good, it is the singer that ruins it for me.

Didn't think much of it. Bland. Really not my taste.

5/10

the bulk of the jamiroquai catalogue is pretty middle of the road (respectful) and when something stands out it really stands out, but this isn't their strongest work. not much of it stands out above the rest.

I know the band and more than a handful of songs but I don't agree with putting this or any other album by them on the Must Hear Before I Die playlist. I like the funkiness but it gets less appetizing by the end of the hour and nothing really stands out to me. I didn't really enjoy any of it. It's entertaining to a degree, mostly too jazzy for me, but no US hits, no staying power, no watercooler talk about this album or band. It does have a TON of listens from top to bottom, the least listened to track has 1.5M and the most listened to ("When You Gonna Learn") is over 23M. 2 stars for me.

I honestly didn't know Jamiroquai was a band. I had assumed it was just a DJ/Producer creating everything. Huh. Still doesn't help this album. The production is way to slick and all the songs suffered from being amalgamations of every Soul/Funk/R&B song ever written. It really sounds like they just grabbed their favorite bits and pieces - some strings here, 70 bass lines there, etc - to create every song. It didn't work for me. I love soul/funk and jazz, but I won't be back to this one.

OK at times but also grating at others. Its probably a 2.5.

Goes on a bit. Got on my nerves after a while. 2.5

For some reason I just expected this to be bad (I don't know why) but it was better than I expected. A few good tracks that were enjoyable, but overall nothing really special. I would probably give it a 2.5/5 if possible.

Listening Without Caring

Music for shopping

Just not my thing

Not my bag

Yeah, it’s all a bit derivative. All artists borrow but this feels more like theft. Lyrics are socially conscious but not remotely subtle or clever in how they talk about the issues, it’s all very preachy. The music itself is pretty good. The band are tight with some great bass lines but it’s just let down by the vocal and lyrical content. In Jamiroquai’s defence, Virtual Insanity & Deeper Underground are great songs. They’re just not on this album.

Not my thing, but there's lots of funky beats here.

Voice is fine, and music is decent, but the songs get really repetitive. Best song: When You Gonna Learn?

Kind of 90s disco, not doing it for me

Didn’t do much for me

didn’t feel special

I expected to like this more, given how much I like Jamiroquoi's more popular singles. But I found the vocals way too derivative of Stevie Wonder; it almost sounds like a cover band. I think the band is quite talented musically (I was actually a bit surprised that this is a band, not just 1 guy with session musicians), and it's pretty telling that my favourite song was the instrumental "Music of the Mind". "Blow Your Mind" is pretty good too, but about halfway through the 10 min "Revolution 1993", I completely lost interest.

Too much jazz for me but there are a couple of songs that raiseit from 1 star. 2 stars or D- for me.

I liked the lyrical side of it, but musically this album was a real drag. It was boring, repetitive, and all the bloat really dragged it down. It didn't help that I don't really like jazz; even the more modern version of it. 2 stars

I didn't think the Love Boat theme could serve as a template for an entire album. I guess I should never underestimate the inventiveness of true artists.

🎧Not for me

It's fine, but not for me

Really dull noodly jazz funk wannabbees. Really overstays its welcome.

Essentially a worse Stevie. Enjoyed some songs but nothing I’d really listen to again. Not as good as virtual insanity.

All the songs sound the same

3 songs in 2-3

Funky pop soul acid jazzy dance music. Plenty of energy here. The rhythm section stands out and makes the album listenable through incessant grooves. The bassist, in particular, writes nimble and funky lines without getting too complex or wanky, leading to memorable bass parts that keep my foot tapping and loop in my head. You can hear the bass influences of Larry Graham, Bootsy, and Jameson. There’s brass, woodwinds, strings, and probably more! There’s conscious lyrics! There’s a white Englishman who might have some soul! But I really didn’t care for most of that other stuff, just the bass. Would prefer to hear this as an instrumental group.

An ok album

And the award of Most-Black-Woman-Sounding-White-Guy goes to… *checks ”singer of Jamiroquai”*… Jason Kay! Anyhow, this starts out strong enough but becomes rather wearisome in its incessantly pop and nondescriptly fluffy politics. Lots of lyrics that don’t actually mean much, e.g. empty calls for revolution, or laughable revelations, like the fact that White getting two while Black gets five years apparently took the singer a while to ”suss out”, etc.

Not ver Interesting in my opinion. Nothing really made an impact.

Ok

Decent background music but this 2 disc album is way too lengthy. I think there's probably an hour and 15 minutes of fat that could have been trimmed off. Because for the moments that I was really digging, there was twice as much time where I was just waiting for it to move on.

If you are planning on putting out a 90s acid jazz revord and are concerned ut may havebtoo much didgeridoo on it, compare it to Emergency On Planet Earth. If your album has even half of the amount of didgeridoo on it as this record, then there is too much didgeridoo. It's fine. It's forgettable.

From the get go, it's obvious that there's a heavy Marvin Gaye influence/homage. "Have you heard the news today" "Mountain high and river deep" "When we gonna stop it going on" I agree with the messages in the messages in the album, but the problem is that Jamiroquai lacks the depth and gravitas of Marvin Gaye or Steve Wonder when talking about these things. You really believe Marvin Gaye when he's talking about sociopolitcal issues in the world, you can hear how it affects him on a profound emotional level. With Jamiroquai that is almost totally lost. Maybe it's unfair to compare them to two of the greatest artists ever, but they invite those comparisons by sounding like them without sounding particularly fresh themselves. The question is what is Jamiroquai bringing to the table? Well they groove, everything is well performed and executed. It's music that I'd enjoy if I walked into a party or if it was in the vaguely in the back round. That may sound like an insult but it isn't exactly, I'd rather here Jamiroquai than most of the music playing at most bars/restaurants/clubs. But it is music to really bop your heard too? Or music to meditate to on the issues facing the earth? Certainly not. The lyrics are often vague and feel like commodified versions of the radical things they are perhaps hoping to express. The music is decent, but it's trying hard to be things that it is not

A very 70’s vibe Not a fan And way too many songs! I didn’t finish the whole album

Not bad at all, but not the genre of music I immediately enjoy/appreciate

Emergency on Planet Earth I’ve never listened to a Jamiroquai album. Back in the 90s I really hated them, even though I’d never really listened to their music. I think my 15 year old mind found it difficult to cope with anything that wasn’t white men with guitars playing rock music. Nowadays I do like Space Cowboy, Cosmic Girl, Virtual Insanity, Deeper Underground and Canned Heat whenever I hear them, but I have never felt compelled to try an album. If you are going to give them a try I suppose you would start with the first album. But then you’d listen to it and think that’s a mistake. If you take each musical element in isolation they are all good; skilled bass playing, great drumming and drum patterns, excellent string and horn arrangements. Keys and guitars also good. The didgeridoo is a bit of an affectation but it’s fine. The arrangements are also very nicely layered. But then when you put them together it so much of it becomes the worst kind of Brand New Heavies style acid jazz - boring, tuneless, insipid, dull, tedious, uninspiring. The only one that manages to escape into being a kind of fun danceable tune is Whatever it is, I Just Can’t Stop. And then the lyrics are godawful immature self important nonsense. Cringe, as the kids would say. Clearly they have a lot of love for the music that inspired them, but in trying to recreate those sounds and instrumentation it comes across as a boring, ersatz, empty, hollow facsimile of 70s soul and jazz. I think I might prefer the next couple of albums as they seem to lose some of the acid jazz styles and lean more into soul and disco. But I’m unlikely to actually bother. And I shan’t be listening to this again.
 ⭐⭐️

Jamiroquai has a very unique sound and this album is all him. Good jams for in the background. But all the songs kind of blended into one another.

It was doing my head in by the end, plus he's a prick

I can tell this is *supposed* to be fun, but it just doesn’t quite get there for me.

Used to enjoy Jamiroquai when I was a kid in the 90’s, but I also enjoyed the Godzilla film they did the hit song for, looking back now, both were a bit shit.

I don't really know what to make of the album and rating to give it. It does have a nice funk groove and interesting arrangements with a variety of sounds/instruments. However, others have pointed out how much this sounds like an attempt to recreate a Stevie Wonder recording right down to the vocals.

Wish I liked this album more, I know I like some Jamiroquai songs Best Song: Revolution 1993 Worst Song: N/A

Sorry. I can't stand this pseudo jazzy, pseudo funky, jittery, hasty, ADHSy style no longer than 15 minutes maximum, before I got tendencies to kill someone. If there's music in hell, this album certainly is on heavy rotation.

Konfuser Avid Jazz.

2.5/5. Quality depleted as it went on.

Funky and jazzy Rock.

1. gonna learn - 1 2. too young to die - 1.5 3. hooked up - 1 4. if like it , i do it - 1 5. muzic of the mind - 1.5 6. emergency - 1 7. juzt cant ztop - 1 8. blouu your mind - 2 9. 1993 - 1.5 10. didgin out - 0

I feel like I should like this more than I do. It has lots of elements of other music I love, but something isn't clicking for me. The length of these songs doesn't help. Highlights: If I Like It I Do It, Whatever It Is I Just Can't Stop

I don’t know why I didn’t like this more. It felt repetitive and kinda tacky. And I love funk. Bummer.

I did try but it felt like. Load of nonsense at the time and unfortunately that hasn’t changed for me.

When I began high school in the mid-late 90s one thing that struck me was all the Jamiroquia graffiti everywhere. That mascot was ubiquitous. As, unfortunately, was their music. I guess it was different to a lot of the slurry around at the time. It was just different slurry, though.

In all honesty I would genuinely rather listen to Maroon 5. It's like they took the blueprint from Jamiroquai and realized that all anybody cares about are the melodies and pop hooks, and just got rid of all the stuff that wasn't quite Stevie, wasn't quite funk, and wasn't quite jazz. Case in point: I actually liked that one song that was all jazz and no vocals.

The album peaks in the beginning. The first few tracks are very solid and a great energy. The whole album has a great vibe and is very well produced and performed. But the songs all felt the same and blended together by the middle, and at the end it all but lost it's luster. Felt like I was chewing Fruit Stripe gum - first chunk of time with it was really good, but eventually it just left me feeling "whatever" as it went on.

The lead singer of Jamiroquai was involved in a fight at a screening of Episode II-Attack of the Clones. One can only imagine he was wearing his ridiculous Native American headdress at the time. “Hey down in front! Take off that giant hat-I’m trying to watch Dexter Jettster talk to Kit Fisto.”

Dreadful. Extra point for wearing a funny hat.

2 stars

This just sounds so sterile. There are plenty of cool instrumental moments but they just don't feel genuine. I can't imagine anyone hearing this and actually being moved to dance. Also lyrically this is terrible.

The music itself is fine, but it feels like a pretty pale imitation of other work in the genre…………… some of the lyrics made it very clear that they’re English guys trying to write about freeing themselves from oppression, it just doesn’t really work.

Trash, white

Lad wearing a silly hat tries to be Stevie Wonder. What's so influential and important about this album that it needs to be in the book?

La verdad es que prefiero el Travelling Without Moving

Poor man's Stevie Wonder, but let's be honest, there are worse artists out there to bite. Two copy cats out of five. 🐱🐱

Honestly kinda boring

Is quite groovy, does sound like typical pop music tho.

Eentonig, irritante stem

I like it mostly, especially to start. But it really starts to just feel frantic after a while. I think I like the songs individually, just a one-tempo album to listen through.

Crap soul acid pants

At the centre of the Venn diagram Jazzy / Insufferable / Catchy Songs I didn’t like, that I don’t want to listen to again, but or inexplicably stuck in my head anyway

Idk, just wasn't really for me. It was cool music, but it kinda meandered too much and wasn't really ever all that engaging to begin with. Not a great fit. No standouts since I listened to this last week and honestly couldn't recall a single song.

This was generated for me almost 2 weeks ago but I'm only just getting to it now because this one feels like a chore to get through

WAS NOT A FAN Cheesy change the world lyrics.

not a fan.

I enjoy Jamiroquai's radio songs and at first I was enjoying this album. Then every song just kind of started blending together and sounding the same to me. Towards the end I started to realize that on a well built sound system, one that accentuated the deep low base and separated the clean crisp highs, a lot of these songs would have been a different experience. Halfqay through the album I got pretty stoned and the music itself began to resonate with me better but I still found the similarity drowning itself out. Requiring these kinds of enhancements for me to enjoy the music more is why I'm giving this such a low score.

Once you’ve heard the first song on the album you’ve heard the whole album

Stevie Wonder ripoff. 20 years too late bozo!

It’s Stevie wonder for white folk.

Decent funk

2 .5