Scam (Jamiroquai song)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Scam" | ||
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| Song by Jamiroquai | ||
| from the album The Return of the Space Cowboy | ||
| Released | 1994 | |
| Genre | Funk / Disco / Acid Jazz | |
| Length | 7:00 | |
| Label | Sony BMG | |
| Writer(s) | Jason Kay | |
| Composer(s) | Toby Smith | |
| Producer(s) | Jason Kay, Toby Smith | |
| The Return of the Space Cowboy tracklist | ||
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1. Just Another Story B-side(s): Space Clav (B-side to "Half the Man") |
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Scam is a song by the british band Jamiroquai. The song appeared on the band's second album, The Return of the Space Cowboy. It is most often cited by fans as one of the most powerful protest songs by the band. Live performances of the song during the The Return of the Space Cowboy tour usually began with a lenghty trumpet solo, and have placed the song at the end of a long chain of songs segued into one another (Most oftenly in the "Blow Your Mind - Light Years - Who the Funk do you Think you are? - Emergency on Planet Earth - Scam order). During the following tours, the song was mostly standalone. A "Smooth remix" of the song was planned for a cancelled remix album called "Interpretations From Beyond", that was scheduled to be released after Travelling Without Moving.
[edit] Composition & production
The song was created by merging two live-only Jamiroquai songs from the "Emergency on Planet Earth" era, Do That Dance and Life Goes on into one. Many elements were taken from both of the songs, such as the horn/trumpet line from the chorus of Life Goes on, and some chord progressions from Do That Dance. It is notable to say that the album version of the song took heavy damage in terms of sound fidelity, as it was reduced to an "early radio"-like quality.
[edit] Theme
The song, being a protest one, centers on fraud, the ones who commit it and the ones who are its victims. The song's protagonist tells a story of how he has to "Scam - that's the way to stay alive", because he himself was a victim of a one, as heard in a verse ("See, I had to lose my car, job, wife, dog, and home,/debts and threats on the telephone"). However, it also tells how politicians also lie to their people, giving false promises, and abusing their own powers. The song is oftenly cited as one of the most powerful protest songs written by the band.
| Jamiroquai |
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| Members: Jason Kay | Rob Harris | Paul Turner | Matt Johnson | Derrick McKenzie | Sola Akingbola | Lorraine McIntosh | Hazel Fernandez | Sam Smith |
| Former members: Gavin Dodds | Simon Katz | Nick Fyffe | Stuart Zender | Simon Carter | Toby Smith | Nick Van Gelder | Darren Galea (DJ D-Zire) | Winston Rollins | Adrian Revell | Wallis Buchanan | Beverley Knight |
| See also: Band logos | Chillington studio | Iroquois | Gig in the Sky |
| Discography |
| Studio albums |
| Emergency on Planet Earth (1993) | The Return of the Space Cowboy (1994/1995) | Jazzmatazz, Vol. 2: The New Reality (Guest appearance) (1995) | Travelling without Moving (1996/1997) | Synkronized (1999) | A Funk Odyssey (2001) | Dynamite (2005) |
| Compilation albums |
| Jay's Selection (1996) | In Store Jam (promo, 1997) | Late Night Tales: Jamiroquai (2003/2005) | High Times: Singles 1992-2006 (2006) |
| Box sets |
| L'Intégrale des Maxi-Singles (1994) | The Single Box (1997) | The Singles Collection (1997) | Deeper Underground (1998) | 1999 Remixes (1999) | ULBC (Fanmade) (??) |
| Unofficial live recordings (ROIOs) |
| If I Like it, I do it (1993) | BBC 528 (1993) | Stockholm '93 (1993) | Club Citta '93 (1993) | Songs for Manitú (1993) | Firenze [sic] 1993 (1993) | Funky Paradise (1994) | JAZZiroquai (1995) | ... |
| DVDs |
| Live In Verona (2002/2003) | High Times: Singles 1992-2006 (2006) |
| Singles |
| When You Gonna Learn | Too Young to Die | Blow Your Mind | Emergency on Planet Earth | Space Cowboy | Half the Man | Stillness in Time | Light Years | The Kids | Do U Know Where You're Coming From? (Guest appearance) | Virtual Insanity | Cosmic Girl | Alright | High Times | Deeper Underground | Canned Heat | Black Capricorn Day | Supersonic | King for a Day | I'm in the Mood for Love (Guest appearance) | Little L | You Give Me Something | Love Foolosophy | Corner of the Earth | Main Vein | Feels Just Like It Should | Seven Days in Sunny June | (Don't) Give Hate a Chance | Runaway |
| Promotion-only / Cancelled / White label singles |
| Revolution 1993 | If I Like It I Do It | Morning Glory | Everyday | Travelling Without Moving | Hollywood Swingin' | Soul Education | An Online Odyssey | Feel So Good | Do It Like We Used To Do | Bad Girls | Dynamite | Starchild | Electric Mistress | Time Won't Wait | Emergency on Planet Earth & Blow Your Mind remixes | Talullah (Shelter mixes) | Multiquai |
