Synkronized is the fourth studio album

Studio album

A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

 released by Acid Jazz band Jamiroquai

Jamiroquai

Jamiroquai is a British jazz funk and acid jazz band formed in 1992. Jamiroquai were initially the most prominent component in the early-1990s London-based acid jazz movement, alongside groups such as Incognito, the James Taylor Quartet, and the Brand New Heavies. Other Acid Jazz artists such as...

. Released in 1999, the album contains funk

Funk

Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...

, disco

Disco

Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...

, and acid jazz

Acid jazz

Acid jazz is a musical genre that combines elements of jazz, funk and hip-hop, particularly looped beats. It developed in the UK over the 1980s and 1990s and could be seen as tacking the sound of jazz-funk onto electronic dance: jazz-funk musicians such as Roy Ayers, Donald Byrd and Grant Green are...

 elements. It is also known for being the last Jamiroquai album featuring the band's more traditional line-up and sound.

Album information

"Where Do We Go From Here?" was described as the point of change within the group's sound, using rocks with a leap-frogging blues piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 and tangy bongoes. The final song on the album "King For A Day", is a regal rock-operatic excursion embellished with fully orchestrated piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 and strings, with lyrics relating to Stuart Zender

Stuart Zender

Stuart Patrick Jude Zender is an English bassist, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for being the original bass player for Jamiroquai.-Early life:...

, the band's bass player for their first three albums, who left the band during the making of Synkronized. It is noticeable that there is no bass guitar or bass synth sound within the song. Recording sessions for the album began with Zender installed on bass, but he left partway through the recording in mid-1998, and rather than credit Zender for the tracks he had played on, Jay Kay decided to scrap all the tracks and start again. Clips of two of these tracks were shown on MTV

MTV

MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 and have been bootlegged, although not in their full form. The clips display a much more Latin

Latin American music

Latin American music, found within Central and South America, is a series of musical styles and genres that mixes influences from Spanish, African and indigenous sources, that has recently become very famous in the US.-Argentina:...

 and fusion

Jazz fusion

Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...

 sound than the songs that made it on the final album tracklisting. An outtake from Synkronized, "Snooze You Lose", was later released on the mini-album "An Online Odyssey

An Online Odyssey

"An Online Odyssey" is a promotional only album released by British Acid Jazz group Jamiroquai. The album was released in the United Kingdom in the Summer of 2001, to promote the launch of "A Funk Odyssey", as well as the band's new website. Around 10,000 copies of the album were pressed, with most...

". The bass on the album is played on a synth bass by new recruit Nick Fyffe, in a style that is basically an imitation of the departed Zender. Didgeridoo player Wallis Buchanan made his last appearance on the song "Supersonic".

Reception

Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

gave the album 3 out of five stars, claiming "Synkronized is fifty minutes of sleek, sexy fun, a party album delivered with something like conviction. It's not exactly irresistible, but, really, what's the point of resisting it?" Spin

Spin (magazine)

Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...

gave the album the same rating, claiming "...redirects the band's British tendency toward smoothed-out old black jams....soaring strings, gyrating congas, hell-bent wah-wah's, and an undeniably live rhythm section that'll hustle your muscles and make you freak to the beat..." Entertainment Weekly

Entertainment Weekly

Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...

claimed "Imagine if [Stevie] Wonder had made a disco album in 1977!....Synkronized is a hat trick done with the sharpest chapeau in the store." College Music Journal

College Music Journal

College Music Journal, commonly known as CMJ, is a music events/publishing company which hosts an annual festival in New York City, the CMJ Music Marathon, as well as a weekly magazine of and for the music industry and college radio stations in the United States and Canada. It publishes top 30...

claimed "This incessantly upbeat expedition travels into the regions of Travolta-era disco...feverish funk...and instrumental iridescence...keeping your ears tuned to their funktastic audio adventures." Mojo

Mojo (magazine)

MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...

claimed "Synkronized proves Jamiroquai...are capable of knocking up fluid and thrilling grooves at the drop of an enormous hat....Jay's voice is wonderful throughout, delivering his admittedly toe-curling lyrics with...conviction." Q

Q (magazine)

Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...

magazine claimed the album was one of the "50 Best Albums of 1999".

Track listing

1. "Canned Heat
   Canned Heat (song)
   "Canned Heat" is the second single from British funk band Jamiroquai's fourth studio album, Synkronized, released in 1999. The song was their second #1 on the U.S. Dance Chart and peaked at #4 on the UK Singles Chart. The music video was directed by Jonas Åkerlund...
   
   " – 5:31 (Kay)
2. "Planet Home" – 4:44 (Kay, Smith)
3. "Black Capricorn Day" – 5:41 (Kay)
4. "Soul Education" – 4:15 (Kay, Smith)
5. "Falling" – 3:45 (Kay, Smith)
6. "Destitute Illusions" – 5:40 (Kay, Smith, McKenzie)
7. "Supersonic
   Supersonic (Jamiroquai song)
   "Supersonic" is the third single from British funk band Jamiroquai's fourth studio album, Synkronized. The song was written by Jason Kay. The word "supersonic" is repeated a total number of 127 times throughout the song. The track was their third #1 on the U.S. Dance Chart and peaked at #3 on the...
   
   " – 5:15 (Kay)
8. "Butterfly" – 4:28 (Kay, Smith)
9. "Where Do We Go From Here?" – 5:13 (Kay)
10. "King for a Day
    King for a Day (Jamiroquai song)
    "King For A Day" is the fourth and final single from British Acid Jazz band Jamiroquai's fourth studio album, Synkronized. The song was written by Jay Kay. The song is a "tribute" to bassist Stuart Zender, who left the band shortly before Synkronized was completed...
    
    " – 3:40 (Kay, Smith)

• UK Bonus Track

11. "Deeper Underground

Deeper Underground

"Deeper Underground" is the first single from British Acid Jazz band Jamiroquai's fourth studio album, Synkronized, despite the track only appearing as a hidden track on the release. It was included on the soundtrack of the American film Godzilla, and was released as the lead single from it...

" – 4:46

• Japanese Bonus Track

11. "Getinfunky" – 5:35

• Australian Bonus Disc

1. "Deeper Underground" - 4:46
2. "Getinfunky" - 5:35
3. "Wolf In Sheep's Clothing" – 4:00

Charts

Chart (1999)	Peak position
Australian ARIA Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...	1
UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...	1