Jamiroquai Artistfacts

1992-
Jay KayLead vocals1992-
Toby SmithKeyboards1992-2002
DJ D-ZireWheels of steel1992-2001
Stuart ZenderBass1992-1998
Sola AkingbolaPercussion1994-
Derrick McKenzieDrums1994-
Simon KatzGuitar1995-2000
Martin ShawTrumpet, flugelhorn1995-2000
Adrian RavellSaxophone, flute1995-1997
Rob HarrisGuitar2000-
Matt JohnsonKeyboards2002-
Paul TurnerBass2005-
James RussellSaxophone, flute2010-
Jim CorrySaxophone2010-
Malcolm StrachanTrumpet2010-
Lead singer Jay Kay is known for his outlandish hats - from feathered headdresses to top hats that rival the Cat in the Hat's - but he insists it's not a gimmick. "It's not just for an image," he told The Melody Maker. "I've worn hats like this since I was a kid. I've had all that, 'Look, it's Davy Crockett!' bollocks for as long as I can remember."

He continued: "The hat also has a spiritual significance. The Native Americans call it 'Orenda,' which is a kind of vibe power. If an audience at a gig isn't really going for it, I'll tug the hat down and come on all militant. I'll come on like a buffalo."
Jay Kay's mom is jazz singer Karen Kay. Jay says his earliest memories are of flying to Las Vegas and back for his mom's gigs.
Kay also credits his on-the-road travels with his mom for inspiring his insatiable lust for sports cars (Ferraris, in particular). "I was brought up in the back of a car," he told Esquire. "Actually, I think I was made in one. From an early age I knew what every car on the road was."
Kay was born an identical twin near Blackburn, England, in 1969, but his brother only survived for six weeks. The singer would always feel the loss. "It's weird feeling a connection with something that is now dead, but was connected to you," he told The Face magazine.
Original bass player Stuart Zender is known for playing a Warwick Streamer. The first bass he bought when he left home at 17 was from the Germany-based manufacturer, which nearly blew through his savings. Before that, he played a Music Man Stingray.
Jamiroquai's symbol is the Buffalo Man, a silhouetted figure wearing a buffalo hat, who may or not be Jason Kay. The character appears on most of the band's releases.
The comparison between Kay's voice and Stevie Wonder's has been both a blessing and a curse for the singer, who has been simultaneously praised by critics for his talent and torn apart for being a rip-off artist. Kay laughed, or sang, in the face of his detractors by actually performing with Wonder at a 2010 concert in London's Hyde Park.
The funk/acid jazz band first attracted Sony's attention with their 1992 debut single, "When You Gonna Learn." After signing with the record label, they seemed to blow up overnight upon the release of the anti-war song "Too Young to Die." But the road to success was considerably longer. "I was homeless," Jay Kay told Esquire. "I slept under stairs, in parks, on benches...I delivered pizzas, and worked in a toy warehouse where the only thing I could do to entertain myself was to jump on the dollies that pissed themselves. People see the house, the cars and they forget all that s--t."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

More Songfacts:

Dancing QueenABBA

ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson conceived "Dancing Queen" as a dance song with the working title "Boogaloo," drawing inspiration from the 1974 George McCrae disco hit "Rock Your Baby." Their manager Stig Anderson came up with the title "Dancing Queen."

Right RoundFlo Rida

An unknown Kesha (known then as Ke$ha) sang on Flo-Rida's #1 hit "Right Round," but refused to appear in the video because she wanted to make a name for herself.