The album features guest appearances by Frank Ocean, Migos, Schoolboy Q, PartyNextDoor, DRAM, Young Thug, Pharrell Williams, Ariana Grande, Future, Khalid, Travis Scott, Snoop Dogg, John Legend, Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, Big Sean, Kehlani, Lil Yachty, and Jessie Reyez, as well as prominent writing contributions from Starrah.

[14] Neil Z. Yeung from AllMusic gave a positive review, stating "Calvin Harris managed to find a way to distill the sounds of summer into a near-perfect spirit on his fifth effort, Funk Wav Bounces Vol.

1, assembling an all-star roster of performers for an economic ten-track burst that doesn't overstay its welcome".

He summed up the review by saying "Funk Wav Bounces impresses not just with the marquee names, but with how effortless, communal and fun Harris makes it all feel".

Full of island affectations, soft-rock gloss, and chintzy good-life strings, it is, at last, the sort of fun you don’t have to feel bad about the next day".

[20] In a mixed review, The Guardian's Alexis Petridis stated: "Harris seems unsure whether an 80s boogie revival is the future of either dance music or mainstream pop, however.

"[2] Jon O'Brien of Prefix Magazine said, "Ultimately, Harris appears to have simply swapped one formula for another, and if there's to be a Funk Wav Bounces Vol.

[23] In his review, Josh Goller of Slant Magazine states, "By showing little interest in challenging the clichés of men fixated on conquest and status symbols and women focused on "feels", Harris undermines what could have been an inspired creative reinvention".

[22] In a negative review, Andy Gill of The Independent said, "It's a typical contacts-book R&B exercise, with an impressive cast of guests (including Frank, Pharrell, Snoop, Nicki, Katy, Ariana and others) on a fairly underwhelming series of grooves".

1 debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart with 19,000 copies sold in its first week, including 7,000 from streams.