OP is correct. Unfortunately Maze is a brand now and Frankie helped cultivate it. He needs that loot, but its time for the boot. They need to do a national search for someone who can mimic him very well, you'd be surprised what u find. Black hats and tees are ubiquitious. A fake grey beard and folks won't be none the wiser.

datdude said:

OP is correct. Unfortunately Maze is a brand now and Frankie helped cultivate it. He needs that loot, but its time for the boot. They need to do a national search for someone who can mimic him very well, you'd be surprised what u find. Black hats and tees are ubiquitious. A fake grey beard and folks won't be none the wiser.

Real fans would never pay to see a Frankie Beverly "imposter" if Frankie must leave the band,then the band should be defunct...finished.....out of business.The other guys can go form their own group,but they can't call it Maze.

LOL, ok maybe not an "imposter" but a new singer who is soulful. bands that have lost their lead singers have continued SOMEWHAT successfully. the thing to consider is will the band accept anyone besides Frankie and will the fans. I think its a possibility, IF the singer is really good!

datdude said:

OP is correct. Unfortunately Maze is a brand now and Frankie helped cultivate it. He needs that loot, but its time for the boot. They need to do a national search for someone who can mimic him very well, you'd be surprised what u find. Black hats and tees are ubiquitious. A fake grey beard and folks won't be none the wiser.

Tony Toni Tone did that mess when Raphael Saadiq left the group and they used his look-a-like cousin as the front man as if fans wouldn't notice. It doesn't work and IMO is very deceptive.

I consider myself very fortunate to be "old enough" to see my favorite bands/artists when they were just breaking or at their peak. I started going to concerts at around 15/16, and I'm glad I did.

Didn't cost that much money and these bands were on fire during the late 70's / early 80's.

I refuse to go to these old school retro concerts...I don't want to be reminded that were all aging or taint that concert memory of yesterday.

datdude said:

LOL, ok maybe not an "imposter" but a new singer who is soulful. bands that have lost their lead singers have continued SOMEWHAT successfully. the thing to consider is will the band accept anyone besides Frankie and will the fans. I think its a possibility, IF the singer is really good!

Simple. No. Trust me Maze fans will not see any band called Maze without Frankie and the current band knows that. The organizational structure of Maze is not like other bands. Frankie wrote every single song and hired all of the musicians in the band today. As a matter of fact Maze went through several lineups (Fact: Over 15 people have been in Maze) in the 70's ,80's, 90's and 00's but the casual fans don't knows that because all they know is Frankie.

Fans could have stopped attending Maze shows a long time ago. His voice has been deteriorating for the past 15 years, but they still continue to show up in the thousands despite knowing this.

[Edited 8/21/13 10:24am]

OlSchool said:

Fury said:

There is brand loyalty but not so much that people will pay $200 for to hear him struggle with his songs.

$200 for a ticket to see Maze? I had no idea their tickets cost that much. They're not like The Eagles, Paul McCartney, or Barbra Striesand where lots of people will pay that.

MickyDolenz said:

Fury said:

There is brand loyalty but not so much that people will pay $200 for to hear him struggle with his songs.

$200 for a ticket to see Maze? I had no idea their tickets cost that much. They're not like The Eagles, Paul McCartney, or Barbra Striesand where lots of people will pay that.

U are right.............cause I wouldn't go see any of them 4 free.

Graycap23 said:

MickyDolenz said:

$200 for a ticket to see Maze? I had no idea their tickets cost that much. They're not like The Eagles, Paul McCartney, or Barbra Striesand where lots of people will pay that.

U are right.............cause I wouldn't go see any of them 4 free.

Many other people pay and more in the case of Barbra, because their tours and others like the Rolling Stones, U2, & Bon Jovi are usually the highest grossing. Then there's the scalper market, where people will pay over a thousand dollars to see an act.

MickyDolenz said:

Graycap23 said:

U are right.............cause I wouldn't go see any of them 4 free.

Many other people pay and more in the case of Barbra, because their tours and others like the Rolling Stones, U2, & Bon Jovi are usually the highest grossing. Then there's the scalper market, where people will pay over a thousand dollars to see an act.

I dig it.

MickyDolenz said:

Fury said:

There is brand loyalty but not so much that people will pay $200 for to hear him struggle with his songs.

$200 for a ticket to see Maze? I had no idea their tickets cost that much. They're not like The Eagles, Paul McCartney, or Barbra Striesand where lots of people will pay that.

Maze by themselves run about $30-80 or so. The current tour they are on run up to $200.

I didnt know Frankie/Maze had this big of a fanbase. Thats pretty cool. There music is amazing

I was gonna go to that show. How was "The Time"?

Motherfucka I count the DAYYYYYSSS

[Edited 8/21/13 15:34pm]

3rdeyedude said:

Fury said:

3rdeyedude said:

I was gonna go to that show. How was "The Time"?

They were good, not great. Their song selection was a little off, they didn't even sing jungle love but instead did a medley of slow songs that nobody knew other than the few Org-ish types in the crowd. The crowd was semi-responsive with the biggest applause was for the bird. Don't know if the time and maze really went together in the same bill, honestly.

Morris Day did a show opening for The O' Jays earlier this year in Wesbury, NY. I wasn't there but from the videos I've seen, the crowd wasn't really into it until "The Bird" either. It looked like only a few people were dancing during the "Pandemonium/Chocolate" medley. Morris even made a little comment about it. They did manage to do "Jungle Love" though. I think The Time is more suitable performing with funkier bands and groups like George Clinton and P-Funk or someone like that.

G3000 said:

I consider myself very fortunate to be "old enough" to see my favorite bands/artists when they were just breaking or at their peak. I started going to concerts at around 15/16, and I'm glad I did.

Didn't cost that much money and these bands were on fire during the late 70's / early 80's.

I refuse to go to these old school retro concerts...I don't want to be reminded that were all aging or taint that concert memory of yesterday.

I feel your sentiment. I was lucky enough to see so many legends in their prime, and those who have passed on.

On the other hand, I still catch the shows. Some of the old school artists on their worst days sound better than some of the newcomers on their best days.

OlSchool said:

Fury said:

3rdeyedude said: They were good, not great. Their song selection was a little off, they didn't even sing jungle love but instead did a medley of slow songs that nobody knew other than the few Org-ish types in the crowd. The crowd was semi-responsive with the biggest applause was for the bird. Don't know if the time and maze really went together in the same bill, honestly.

Morris Day did a show opening for The O' Jays earlier this year in Wesbury, NY. I wasn't there but from the videos I've seen, the crowd wasn't really into it until "The Bird" either. It looked like only a few people were dancing during the "Pandemonium/Chocolate" medley. Morris even made a little comment about it. They did manage to do "Jungle Love" though. I think The Time is more suitable performing with funkier bands and groups like George Clinton and P-Funk or someone like that.

I saw Morris and The Time. They turned it out! There was a skit from Condensate, but no songs from Condensate. Yeah, they had the place doing The Bird, and it was a big crowd.

[Edited 8/25/13 14:26pm]

SoulAlive said:

They're performing in my area this Saturday!

They're coming my way too, but I'm passing on this one, and going to some other old school shows.

I'm mad at myself for missing the Funk Fest.

[Edited 8/22/13 12:24pm]

kibbles said:

Fury said: kitbradley said: Frankie is way past his prime. I've never been a fan of the group but I did see or hear them performing on something recently and Frankie's voice was in tatters. I thought he may have just been having a bad day with her voice or something but it sounds like the voice is just pretty much gone. [Edited 8/20/13 10:59am] probably the BET awards...they dont get much airtime anywhere else omg, my cousins were telling me about frankie AND smokey this past weekend. they were saying how both of their voices are completely shot, and while it's sad, they should just retire gracefully. i haven't seen either perform in a while, so i didn't know. i think bob dylan should hang it up as well. granted, his nasally twang was always out there, but now his voice is completely unrecognizable!

[Edited 8/20/13 13:10pm]

[Edited 8/20/13 13:11pm]

You mean Smokey Robinson? Last time I heard him was last year and his voice was in peak condition. Totally unchanged.

MadamGoodnight said:

Awwww....LOVE ME some Frankie B., but sadly, it's time to retire and bask in the memory of all the Gold albums and #1 singles, the Heritage Award and the years of love from the fans! God, I was in high school when "Southern Girl" was blarin' on Boston's A.M. radio station, W.I.L.D.! Seems like just yesterday! Love you Frankie! U gotta rest now, Pops.

SoulAlive said:

MadamGoodnight said:

They're coming my way too, but I'm passing on this one, and going to some other old school shows.

I'm mad at myself for missing the Funk Fest.

[Edited 8/22/13 12:24pm]

I would go to this show,but I'm going to Reno this weekend

Ok, have fun in Reno. I just missed out on Slave, ConFunkShun, P Funk, Lakeside, Jo Jo from the Mary Jane Girls. Ah, I have to catch this one next year.

midnightmover said:

MickyDolenz said:

Fury said:

There is brand loyalty but not so much that people will pay $200 for to hear him struggle with his songs.

$200 for a ticket to see Maze? I had no idea their tickets cost that much. They're not like The Eagles, Paul McCartney, or Barbra Striesand where lots of people will pay that.

Maybe Maze just isn't your cup of tea like these other acts you mentioned aren't mine. How would you know whether they are worth it to some or not? They are the Black Grateful Dead now. Maze hasn't released a new album since 1993 and they still have a huge following. Every fan of r&b young and old respect Maze. I suppose The Monkees are still a big draw these days and worth 200 dollars a ticket.

phunkdaddy said:

MickyDolenz said:

$200 for a ticket to see Maze? I had no idea their tickets cost that much. They're not like The Eagles, Paul McCartney, or Barbra Striesand where lots of people will pay that.

Maybe Maze just isn't your cup of tea like these other acts you mentioned aren't mine. How would you know whether they are worth it to some or not? They are the Black Grateful Dead now. Maze hasn't released a new album since 1993 and they still have a huge following. Every fan of r&b young and old respect Maze. I suppose The Monkees are still a big draw these days and worth 200 dollars a ticket.

I didn't say anything about whether Maze was worth $200, nor if I like them or not. Nor did I say anything about if Paul McCartney or The Eagles are worth that price, and didn't say anything about The Monkees at all. I simply said their concert tickets cost that, and oldies R&B acts generally don't cost that much. You can look it up if you want. A poster answered my question and said it was a package tour and told me what their solo tickets usually cost, without giving a hostile reply. You're always reading something that is not there. If I didn't like them, I wouldn't have clicked at the thread. I don't look at threads about acts that don't interest me.

[Edited 8/22/13 20:22pm]

mjscarousal said:

I didnt know Frankie/Maze had this big of a fanbase. Thats pretty cool. There music is amazing

yeah, Maze is all time

Maze used to be the headline act for allot of summer music festivals

the Budweiser Superfest of the mid 80s was off teh charts....

MickyDolenz said:

phunkdaddy said:

Maybe Maze just isn't your cup of tea like these other acts you mentioned aren't mine. How would you know whether they are worth it to some or not? They are the Black Grateful Dead now. Maze hasn't released a new album since 1993 and they still have a huge following. Every fan of r&b young and old respect Maze. I suppose The Monkees are still a big draw these days and worth 200 dollars a ticket.

I didn't say anything about whether Maze was worth $200, nor if I like them or not. Nor did I say anything about if Paul McCartney or The Eagles are worth that price, and didn't say anything about The Monkees at all. I simply said their concert tickets cost that, and oldies R&B acts generally don't cost that much. You can look it up if you want. A poster answered my question and said it was a package tour and told me what their solo tickets usually cost, without giving a hostile reply. You're always reading something that is not there. If I didn't like them, I wouldn't have clicked at the thread. I don't look at threads about acts that don't interest me.

[Edited 8/22/13 20:22pm]

Well without a big fuss you basically whether consciously or unconsciously minimized Maze in comparison to the pop acts you listed. You have done this before when the topic of black acts come up. You usually say they don't sell this or don't sell that in comparison to pop acts. Let's not sugar coat it. It's pretty much common knowledge that most black acts don't reach the base that the majority of pop acts do. You think the population have a lot to do with that? I was just letting you know that Maze isn't your run of the mill r&b act. These guys have been selling out shows for years. I don't have to look up the price of R&B acts ticket prices. I already know. Sometimes it depends on the venue. The Ojays and Gladys Knight played at a theatre for the performing arts in my city back in May and tickets were 150 dollars. You could have gotten them cheaper through Groupon for a limited period but 150 dollars was the going price. Of course r&b acts like Cameo and ConFunkshun couldn't pull this off but artists like Stevie, EWF, Chaka Khan can get that easily if they were doing a performance a venue for the performing arts.

well i've notice his vocals haven't been up to par as well but, I heard that he was sick at one time(thinking maybe throat cancer or something to that degree)..but he is getting up in age as well so that usually happens..i mean even other singers sound great but not like they once did..Patti still can sing her butt off, but sometimes it doesnt sound good, Aretha as well, Dionne, George Clinton and others but we still appreciate and love them