7 Times A Song’s Album Version Wasn’t The Best One
3. Jamiroquai - Canned Heat
Superior version: 7” edit
And breathe…
From one of the only individuals on the planet that I will admit has a better hat than me, Canned Heat is just an absolute joy to which to listen, nearly inspiring the rhythm-less meatbag I am to consider maybe possibly dancing… but then I think better of it and just watch the dance scene from Napoleon Dynamite.
Disaster averted.
This, like the Northern Kings entry, is a matter of “less is more.” The original album version of this song clocks in at 5 minutes and 31 seconds which, generally speaking, is far longer than it needs to be.
The version on the CD single clocks in at a much more tolerable 3 minutes and 48 seconds. That is nearly two minutes worth of extended sequences and extra passages over which you should shed no tears knowing it hit the cutting room floor.
The single edit is concise and still includes all of the bigger spots of the song but with less funky fluff between them.