"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 2024, remains their last UK Top 40 hit.
Music video
The music video shows Jay Kay piloting a helicopter in pursuit of a Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 along a winding desert road. After several unsuccessful attempts at losing the helicopter – 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]