Video.

Video caption:


Have you ever been in a room where you can feel a palpable, collective swooning? Welcome to a Maxwell Tiny Desk. The crooner’s sensual falsetto and rooted baritone have seduced audiences since his debut album dropped in 1996. One of the leading voices in the resurgence of soul music during the late ’90s, Maxwell’s albums are full of tender songs recounting love, life and heartbreak that have resonated with generations of fans looking for ways to be vulnerable.

Clad in soothing neutrals, Maxwell charmingly admitted his nervousness at being at the Desk, stating that “This is where real music can’t lie. You cannot lie here.” The audience was there with encouragement — singing along, screaming in pure glee and adding the party vibe when needed. His set here featured “Sumthin' Sumthin'” complete with a funky bass solo from Darrell "Free" Freeman. “Lifetime” features impressive work from Travis Sayles on the keys and Shedrick “Shed” Mitchell on the Hammond B3 organ, an instrument I’m admittedly partial to. Maxwell presented his latest single during this set, a cover of the Al Green classic “Simply Beautiful,” breathing life into the song and paying homage to the soul singer. To end his set, Maxwell performed the song that launched his career, “Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder).” Percussionist Charles Haynes gave us a little D.C. go-go flavor as everyone partied.

SET LIST

“Sumthin' Sumthin'”

“Bad Habits”

“Lifetime”

“Pretty Wings”

“Simply Beautiful”

“Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder)”

Cool show. I"ve seen him live and even with the long breaks between albums he has managed to amass quite a catalog.

whodknee said:

Cool show. I"ve seen him live and even with the long breaks between albums he has managed to amass quite a catalog.

His catalog, for me, isn't that big, but it's good quality.

I've given up on my "excited for a new Maxwell album" self. I don't have faith that blacksummer'sNIGHT will ever come out. He's teased it since 2018.

I've been listening to this dude the better part of 27 years, and in that span he's released 5 studio albums and 1 live album. Plus maybe a half-dozen soundtrack, appearances or non-album songs combined.

I kinda feel like NIGHT will be his last record ever, should it ever see the light of day. My God, BSN has been in the ether for 15 years.

TrivialPursuit said:

whodknee said:

Cool show. I"ve seen him live and even with the long breaks between albums he has managed to amass quite a catalog.

His catalog, for me, isn't that big, but it's good quality.

I've given up on my "excited for a new Maxwell album" self. I don't have faith that blacksummer'sNIGHT will ever come out. He's teased it since 2018.

I've been listening to this dude the better part of 27 years, and in that span he's released 5 studio albums and 1 live album. Plus maybe a half-dozen soundtrack, appearances or non-album songs combined.

I kinda feel like NIGHT will be his last record ever, should it ever see the light of day. My God, BSN has been in the ether for 15 years.

True. I didn't mean to indicate he has a large catalog. I shouldn't have said "amass" I suppose. I meant he has a good number of quality songs despite not releasing much music.

Loved this...