Junior Jack Explained
| Junior Jack |
| Background: | non_vocal_instrumentalist |
| Birth Name: | Vito Lucente |
| Alias: | Room 5, Wamblee, Nu Rican Kidz |
| Birth Date: | 1971 8, df=yes
Rutigliano, Apulia, Italy |
| Genre: | House, French house, nu-disco |
| Occupation: | DJ, record producer |
| Years Active: | 1990 - present |
| Associated Acts: | Benny B, Kid Creme |
Vito Lucente (pronounced as /it/; born 31 August 1971), known by his stage name Junior Jack, is an Italian house music producer and DJ based in Belgium.
Biography
In the early years, Vito Lucente produced several acid house and Eurodance projects, mostly in collaboration with Eric Imhauser. However, his more famous project was as producer of the synthpop/rap group Benny B, with vocalist Amid Gharbaoui, DJ Daddy K and dancer Serge "Perfect" Nuet. Lucente left the band after the second album, and he did not produce their last single.
Career
Vito Lucente resided in Belgium in his teen years. In 1995, he abandoned Eurodance and adopted the name "Mr. Jack" (which would later morph into Junior Jack), dabbling in house music. He entered the UK top 40 with the singles "My Feeling", "Thrill Me (Such a Thrill)", "E Samba", "Dare Me (Stupidisco)" and "Da Hype", the latter featuring vocals by Robert Smith from the Cure and uses samples from "I'm So Hot for You" by Bobby Orlando. His album Trust It was released to critical acclaim. "My Feeling" and "Stupidisco" were built around vocal samples from, respectively, "Saturday Love" by Alexander O'Neal and Cherrelle, and "Dare Me" by the Pointer Sisters. His latest single was a remake of "Dare Me (Stupidisco)", with vocals from Shena, which reached #20 in the UK Singles Chart on 25 February 2007
Lucente has also worked with disco artist Oliver Cheatham under the name Room 5, reaching number-one on the UK Singles Chart with the 2003 single "Make Luv"[1] (which used samples from Cheatham's song "Get Down Saturday Night"). "Make Luv" ended up being certified platinum by BPI in 2022.[2]
As a remixer, he has reworked tracks for artists such as Whitney Houston, Moby, Bob Sinclar and Utada. He has worked extensively in this area with partner Kid Creme.
Discography
Albums
- 1990 L'Album, as Benny B
- 1992 Perfect, Daddy K Et Moi, as Benny B
- 1992 Walakota, as Wamblee
- 2003 Music & You, as Room 5
- 2004 Trust It, as Junior Jack
Singles
Junior Jack
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|
| BEL | AUS
[3] | DEN | FIN | FRA | ITA
[4] | NED | UK
| US
Dance
[5] |
|---|
| 1999 | "My Feeling" | 40 | — | — | — | 71 | — | — | 31 | 9 | Singles only |
| 2000 | "U Look Fantastic" (vs. Richard Grey) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2002 | "Thrill Me" (with Erick Morillo and Terra Deva) | 46 | 78 | — | — | — | — | — | 29 | — | Trust It |
| 2003 | "E Samba" | 25 | — | 16 | — | — | 28 | 27 | 34 | — |
| "Da Hype" (with Robert Smith) | 19 | 53 | 17 | — | 87 | 18 | 52 | 25 | 1 |
| 2004 | "Stupidisco" | 14 | 46 | — | — | — | — | 25 | 26 | 1 |
| 2006 | "See You Dancin'" | 47 | — | — | 8 | — | 44 | — | — | — | Singles only |
| "Dare Me (Stupidisco)" | — | — | — | 14 | — | — | — | 20 | — |
| 2007 | "Rocktron / Life" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |
Room 5
- 2001 "Make Luv" (with Oliver Cheatham)
- 2003 "Make Luv" (re-release) (with Oliver Cheatham) #1 UK,[1] #34 AUS
- 2003 "Music & You" (with Oliver Cheatham) #38 UK[1]
- 2003 "Think About U"
- 2004 "U Got Me"
- 2005 "Make Luv (The 2005 Mixes)" (with Oliver Cheatham)
Mr Jack
- 1995 "Only House Muzik"
- 1996 "Wiggly World"
- 1997 "The Wiggly World 2 (Jack Is the One)" (with Brenda Edwards)
- 1997 "I Know" (with Olivier Gosseries)
- 1998 "Back from Hawaii EP" (with Olivier Gosseries)
- 1999 "Start!" (with Olivier Gosseries)
- 1999 "Only House Muzik - Remixes '99"
- 1999 "Voodoo Curse" (with Olivier Gosseries)
Benny B
All are collaborations with Amid Gharbaoui, Daddy K and Richard Quyssens
Latino Brothers productions
All are collaborations with Terry Logist
- 1990 "Move It!", as One Shot
- 1993 "Don't Miss the Party", as One Shot
- 1993 "The Musik", as Latino Brothers
- 1994 "Can You See It", as Kaf'e
- 1994 "I'm in Love", as Fresh Mould
- 1995 "Come with Me", as Latino Brothers
- 1996 "Back in Town EP", as Kaf'e
- 1996 "Fantasy", as Kaf'e
- 1998 "Can You See It '98", as Kaf'e
- 2004 "Carnaval", as Latino Brothers
Hugh K.
All are collaborations with Hugh Kanza and Eric Imhauser
- 1992 "Georgia On My Mind"
- 1993 "Shine On"
- 1994 "One More Time"
- 1995 "Shine On (Unreleased Dubs)"
- 1996 "Higher"
Other aliases
- 1990 "Cocco Di Mamma", as Don Vito
- 1990 "Mais Vous Etes Sottes", as Suzy D (with Richard Quyssens, François Gery and Alain Deproost)
- 1991 "No Name", as F&V (with Frank Sels)
- 1991 "Anitouni", as Wamblee (with Francesco Palmeri)
- 1991 "Wa Na Pi", as Warble (with Francesco Palmeri)
- 1992 "I'm Sorry (Désolé Madame)", as R.I.P. (with Richard Quyssens and Eric Imhauser)
- 1992 "Atomico", as Redline (with Eric Imhauser)
- 1992 "It's Time to Sleep", as Nitrogena (with Eric Imhauser)
- 1993 "Jumping", as Redline (with Eric Imhauser)
- 1993 "Get to You", as Logic Dream (with F. Spindler)
- 1994 "4 U/Just Deep", as Deep Walker
- 1994 "Strange Day", as Marocco
- 1994 "People", as Family Groove
- 1995 "Fuori uno", album released by EMI, as DON VITO, with the single "Grazie a chi".
- 2001 "We Loved", as E-People (with Frank de Gryse and C. Robert Walker)
- 2001 "Tool #1", as Private Tools (with Kid Creme)
- 2002 "Chasing", as Maphia Ltd. (with Kid Creme)
- 2003 "Hidden Sun/Good Times", as Soho
- 2003 "Excuse Me!", as Nu Rican Kidz
- 2003 "Hold Me Up", as Glory (with Frank de Gryse and Jocelyn Brown)
- 2005 "Tool #2", as Private Tools (with Kid Creme)
Production for other artists
- 1993 Bart Herman - "Metropool" (with Eric Imhauser)
- 1994 Bart Herman - "Waterman" (with Eric Imhauser)
- 1994 Daddy K - "Voulez-Vous Coucher Avec Moi?" (with Eric Imhauser)
- 1997 Traisey Elana Williams - "Feel the Fire" (with Frank Degrees)
- 1998 Shelly Dee - "Party"
- 1999 Jerome Prister - "Lovin' Right Now" (with Conga Squad)
- 2001 Dajae - "Everyday of My Life" (with Felix Da Housecat)
See also
Notes and References
- Book: Roberts, David. 2006. British Hit Singles & Albums. 19th. Guinness World Records Limited . London. 1-904994-10-5. 469.
- United Kingdom. single. Room 5 ft Oliver Cheatham. Make Luv. 4133-1329-1. 18 March 2022.
- Peaks in Australia:
- Web site: Hit Parade Italia - Indice per Interprete: J. July 6, 2012. Hit Parade Italia.
- Web site: Dance Club Songs Chart. Billboard.com. 25 August 2020.
