In the wake of the run up to the release of his debut artist album, entitled ‘Circadian,’ on Bristol’s Tectonic label, it’s a little hard to wade through the c-grade pirate puns that have besieged coverage of Jack Sparrow’s heavy brace of dubstep music. Hailing from Leeds, Sparrow has to date released singles on Senseless, Tectonic and the closely affiliated ‘Earwax label but his debut long player – being launched in Room Three on the 17th September ahead of its October release - hints at a lot more than the tough, tribal sound he’s displayed to date – touching on the house tempo as well as jungle alongside his 140 bpm tempoed productions.

Ahead of the release party – which features Tectonic boss Pinch alongside Sparrow, Heny G, Cyrus and Exodus from Leeds – we asked him to put together a collection of YouTube videos that best sum him up, with only one express request: “make it not about dubstep;” something he seemed to revel in.

In his own words the following represent: “a week of records all over the floor and about 150 cups of tea, on the plus side some good memories were re-visited. Anyway you could call these tunes my desert island discs and they are the tunes I have grown to love since I was born. Spanning from 1972 -2005…”

Curtis Mayfield - Pusherman (1972)



"Curtis Mayfield has his own little spot in my collection with this track and 'Move On Up' and 'Gimme Your Love;' all of which are solid soul gems. I am a massive fan of Al Green, George Benson, Jonas Brothers, Stevie Wonder and the Commodores too. 'Pusherman' was also featured in a wicked film called 'Superfly' - check it out."

The Police - Walking On The Moon (1979)



"This track really reminds me of growing up with my sister; 'The Police' and artists like Tim Buckley, Jeff Buckley, The Beatles and Iggy Pop will always get a regular spin at my house. There is a wicked MTV unplugged version of 'Walking on the Moon' flying around. Grab it on sight. It is amazing."

The Cure - Close To Me (1985)



"Other than being really, really strange, Robert Smith provided a wicked vocal on this track from the mid 80's. It reminds me of holidays when I was young, my Mum's old hi-fi stack system, and Dennis the Menace wallpaper."

A Guy Called Gerald- Voodoo Ray (1988)



"Manchester at its best I would say… I never went to The Hacienda, I was too young, but I have friends who did and said how unique it was. This track was one of the earliest house productions I heard along with Mr Fingers 'Can you Feel It'. I have such a lot of acid house and techno through to minimal and lounge. This one beat is one I always seem to come back to though. I have it on tape ….and CD fortunately."

2 Bad Mice - Bombscare (1994 or earlier)



"Being a massive fan of old school is hard, people always show you something you haven't heard even after all these years, but this one track for me sums it up. Days of Krome and Time (suburban base) and the Kaos Theory compilations as well as Fantasia with Shitmatt and LTJ Bukem; I loved it all and still do, kind of wish I’d been born a little earlier."

Gangstarr - Mass Appeal (1994)



"It’s such a shame to have lost Guru this year; his music is timeless, he’s one of the best rappers of the last 20 years. Hip hop is a massive part of my life. I like anything from Cypress Hill, J Dilla, Illa J, Madlib, Slum Village,Nas, 2pac, DJ Vadim, Carlos Nino, through to Flying Lotus. My fave label is Stones Throw."

Seba & Lo-Tek - So Long (1996)



"Beautiful track from Seba and Lo Tek; I first heard this on Progression Sessions mixed by LTJ Bukem in ‘96. After watching a documentary on BBC 2 about Good Looking Records, I was hooked on the liquid drum &bass/jungle thing that was happening. While most of the kids at school were listening to Eternal and Spice Girls, I was listening to thi., I was a bit of a loner.

I was going to put Photek but apparently I go on about him far too much, Modus Operandi. Nuff said."

St.Germain - Rose Rouge (????)



"'Tourist' from St Germain is one of my fave albums. It is very diverse and offers up some incredible textures and rhythms. Its in my chilled section along with Osunlade, I:Cube, Maurizio and Cinematic Orchestra. Quite recently I have been getting into Brazilian music and the whole Yoruba Soul compilations... the percussion is nuts."

Radiohead - Pyramid Song (2001)



"Always moving forward and experimenting, Radiohead have continued to offer up some amazing songs and albums. ‘Amnesiac’ pushes a lot of boundaries, such a great album and produced a string of classic videos. I can listen to that album on repeat for days, still."

Leftfield - A Final Hit (re- issue greatest hits 2005)



"A massive influence on my own music, last but not least is Leftfield. Every single thing they have done I have loved, they have written some incredible albums and done some outstanding live shows."

‘Circadian’ is out October 4th on Tectonic, the album launch party is in Room Three on Friday 17th September.