"White Knuckle Ride"
Single by Jamiroquai
from the album Rock Dust Light Star
Released31 October 2010
Recorded2005–2007
StudioJam (London)
Genre
Length
  • 3:35 (album version)
  • 3:26 (radio edit)
LabelMercury
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Jay Kay
Jamiroquai singles chronology
"Runaway"
(2006) 		"White Knuckle Ride"
(2010) 		"Blue Skies"
(2010)

"White Knuckle Ride" is the first single from British alternative group Jamiroquai's studio album Rock Dust Light Star.[1] The single was released via Digital Download on 31 October 2010, with a Limited Edition Vinyl release due to appear on 1 January 2011.[2] The song was written by band frontman Jay Kay and Matt Johnson and produced by Kay. It is the band's first record to be released under Mercury Records.[1][3]

The band's official website originally announced that the single would be released on 11 October.[1] The band describe "White Knuckle Ride" as "a hi-octane retrospective on Jay's career experiences – a cautionary tale equally applicable to anyone's life in these pressure cooker times."[3] It appears that the Jamiroquai logo typeface has been stretched vertically for this release. The video for the single was made available on the group's YouTube account on 25 September.[4] The single charted at No.39 in the UK Singles Chart and as of 2021, remains their last UK Top 40 hit.

Music video

The music video showed Jay Kay pursuing a Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 along a winding desert road from a helicopter. After several unsuccessful attempts at losing its pursuer – including driving in wide circuits to raise a cloud of dust to blind Kay, and taking a detour down a tree-lined dirt road – the driver comes to a halt under a viaduct and escapes on foot. Kay arrives to find the car abandoned with no sign of the driver, whose face is never shown. The helicopter is a Robinson R44 Raven 2 owned by Jay Kay,[5] who is a qualified private helicopter pilot, however a stunt pilot was used for some scenes.[6]

The video was filmed on the Tabernas Desert, in Almeria, Spain and was directed by Howard Greenhalgh.

Track listing

Digital Download
  1. "White Knuckle Ride" – 3:35

Remixes

Live performances

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2010–2012) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[7] 96
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[8] 37
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[9] 41
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[10] 34
France (SNEP) Download Chart[11] 24
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[12] 16
Germany (Official German Charts)[13] 49
Italy (FIMI)[14] 1
Japan (Japan Hot 100)[15] 11
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[16] 25
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[17] 15
Scotland (OCC)[18] 43
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[19] 20
UK Singles (OCC)[20] 39
US Hot Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[21] 7

Year-end charts

Chart (2010) Position
Italy (FIMI)[22] 65
Japanese Top 100[23] 76

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Italy (FIMI)[24] Gold 15,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ a b c "The new single by Jamiroquai is 'White Knuckle Ride'". Jamiroquai.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  2. ^ "Music CDs, DVDs, Games & More". hmv.com. 15 December 2005. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
  3. ^ a b "Jamiroquai's New Album Is Called 'Rock Dust Light Star'". Jamiroquai.co.uk. Archived from the original on 18 September 2010. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  4. ^ "Kanaal van Jamiroquaivideo". YouTube. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
  5. ^ "CAA G-INFO Listing for G-JKAY". Caa.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  6. ^ "Making of video". Youtube.com. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  7. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 143.
  8. ^ "Jamiroquai – White Knuckle Ride" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  9. ^ "Jamiroquai – White Knuckle Ride" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  10. ^ "Robbie Williams – White Knuckle Ride" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  11. ^ "Classement des ventes de titres téléchargés en France du 15 novembre au 21 novembre 2010" (in French). Chartsinfrance.net. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
  12. ^ "Jamiroquai: White Knuckle Ride" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Jamiroquai – White Knuckle Ride" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  14. ^ "Jamiroquai – White Knuckle Ride". Top Digital Download. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  15. ^ "Jamiroquai Chart History (Japan Hot 100)". Billboard.
  16. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 38, 2010" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  17. ^ "Jamiroquai – White Knuckle Ride" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  18. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  19. ^ "Jamiroquai – White Knuckle Ride". Swiss Singles Chart.
  20. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  21. ^ "Jamiroquai - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Archived from the original on 7 November 2015.
  22. ^ "FIMI – Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana – Ricerche e dati di mercato". Fimi.it. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
  23. ^ "レコード協会調べ 2009年12月16日～2010年12月14日「着うたフル(R)」 2010年有料音楽配信「年間チャート」（通称：レコ協チャート）" [Record Association Analysis: 16 December 2009 – 14 December 2010 Full-length Cellphone Download 2010 paid digital sales "Yearly Chart" (Abbreviated: RIAJ Chart)] (PDF). RIAJ. 20 December 2010. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
  24. ^ "Italian single certifications – Jamiroquai – White Knuckle Ride" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 2 January 2012. Select "Tutti gli anni" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "White Knuckle Ride" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
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