The Return of the Space Cowboy

The Return of the Space Cowboy
Studio album by Jamiroquai
Released	17 October 1994 (1994-10-17) (UK) 9 May 1995 (1995-05-09) (US)
Genre	Acid jazz, Funk
Length	71:57
Label	Sony Soho Square (UK) Work (US)
Producer	Mike Nielsen / Al Stone
Professional reviews
Allmusic link Rolling Stone link
Jamiroquai chronology
Emergency on Planet Earth (1993) The Return of the Space Cowboy (1994) Travelling Without Moving (1996)

The Return of the Space Cowboy is the second album by the band Jamiroquai. Released in 1994, it is usually classified under the acid-jazz and funk genre.

Album information

This album has become somewhat uncommon in the United States but remains a classic in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. Many consider it to be the best and most refined example of the unique Jamiroquai sound.

Bassist Stuart Zender does not appear on the album version of the song "Space Cowboy", but does appear on the single version, and the "Stoned Again Mix". Zender's explanation of the events which led to his non-appearance on the title track refer to a situation that occurred during the last stages of the album recording. Jay Kay informed Zender that he wanted to record a new version of the title track (the single version had already been recorded and released). However Zender had scheduled some time off to patch up his relationship with model Milla Jovovich. Kay gave his blessing to take the time off, but when Zender returned he found that Kay had recruited a session bassist, known only as "Mr X", to play on the song. Mr X is credited on the liner notes.

Track 10, "Morning Glory", was originally to be named a single, but the release was cancelled for unknown reasons. The only trace of the cancelled release lies in the US-only promo release of the single, which is a rare one nowadays. The release itself is the 'holy grail' of collecting for many fans, since two more tracks aside from the album version appear on the promo, all of the same length. The tracklisting of the promo itself is:

1. Morning Glory - 6:24
2. Morning Glory (Edit) - 6:24
3. Morning Glory (Instrumental) - 6:24

Reception

Professional reviews:

Rolling Stone (23 March 1995, p.125) - 3.5 Stars (out of 5) - "Jason Kay is a wonderfully nimble singer with a Stevie Wonder jones, and Jamiroquai parlay jazzy soul pop so tight it crackles....Nowadays, when most funk comes out of cans, Jamiroquai's live spark glows."

Entertainment Weekly (10 March 1995, p.68) - "No idle nostalgia broker, Jamiroquai is a funk-making machine with a bright future in the past." - Rating: B+

Q (February 2002, p.122) - 3 stars out of 5 - "An ebullient follow-up to his storming debut."

The Source (April 1995, p.84) - "The Return of the Space Cowboy is a mixture of acid jazz-like keyboards with an overlay of bright horns and hard basslines....This group may still be light years ahead of the hip-hop world."

Musician (June 1995, p.76) - "...sounds like a bastard spawn of Stevie Wonder and Mandrill with its vintage keyboards, jazz harmonies and fondness for rambling, jam-oriented arrangements..."

Track listing

1. "Just Another Story" – 8:48
2. "Stillness in Time" – 4:15
3. "Half the Man" – 4:48
4. "Light Years" – 5:53
5. "Manifest Destiny" – 6:19
6. "The Kids" – 5:08
7. "Mr. Moon" – 5:28
8. "Scam" – 7:00
9. "Journey to Arnhemland" (Instrumental) – 5:19
10. "Morning Glory" – 6:21
11. "Space Cowboy"– 6:25

The U.S. release switches the positions of "Just Another Story" and "Space Cowboy", and adds a live version of "Light Years" at the end of the album.

The Mexican release (first release) has an extra bonus track entitled Space Cowboy (Classic Radio mix) which is the famous mix made by David Morales.

The Japanese release has an extra Space Cowboy (Stoned Again Mix) after the normal Space Cowboy.

Old versions of songs

Some of the songs from the album were performed long before the album's release, more precisely, during the Emergency on Planet Earth tour. Those songs are:

• Do That Dance (This live song had several different versions of it. The most notable were the ones played at Club Citta, on 10 X 1993, in Tokyo, Japan, the version played in Florence in 1993, and the version from the live silver bootleg "Songs for Manitu")
• Life Goes On (Later merged together with "Do That Dance" to create "Scam")
• The Kids (The song was titled "The Kids Got Funky Soul" during the EOPE tour. It was possibly an outtake from the band's debut album)
• Let Me Believe (Old version of "Manifest Destiny". There's only one known recording of the song, and it's on an early silver bootleg called "Songs for Manitu")

Later Samples

• "Morning Glory"
  • "Izzy Izzy Ahh" by Missy Elliott from the album Supa Dupa Fly
• "Manifest Destiny"
  • "Who Do U Believe" by Tupac from the album Better Dayz