Jazzie's Groove

Album: Club Classics Vol. One (1989)
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Songfacts®:

  • "Jazzie" is Jazzie B (born Beresford Romeo), the leader of Soul II Soul. In this song, he's essentially answering the standard interview questions, starting with "What is Soul II Soul?" The answer: "We're a sound system. An amalgamation of good dance music."

    To clarify, "sound system" is a British term for a team of mobile DJs that provide the music at various functions. Soul II Soul expanded to make their own recordings, combining different flavors of dance music into distinctive grooves.
  • Jazzie B delivers the vocals in spoken word (he's not a singer). The music is a pastiche of samples, with the main horn riff coming from the 1973 song "Soul Travelin' Pt. I" by Gary Byrd.
  • This song was released as a single in America, where Soul II Soul's previous singles, "Keep on Movin'" and "Back To Life (However Do You Want Me)," both topped the R&B and Dance charts. "Jazzie's Groove" rose to #6 R&B and #3 Dance.
  • Jazzie B wrote and produced this song with Nellee Hooper, his main collaborator on Soul II Soul's debut album, the boldly titled Club Classics Vol. One.
  • This is one of Jazzie B's favorite songs to perform live. Soul II Soul played it at the 1990 Soul Train Awards, where the group won three trophies.
  • The song closes with Jazzie B answering the cliché final interview question: "What's the future of Soul II Soul." The answer serves as his mission statement:

    A happy face
    A thumping bass
    For a loving race

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