Dazz Band
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The Dazz Band was a funk music band based in Cleveland, Ohio that enjoyed brief popularity in the United States in the early 1980s. The name of the band is a concatenation of "Danceable Jazz". The group's hits included the songs "Let it Whip" and "Joystick".
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[edit] History
The Dazz Band grew out of fusion group Telefunk, which comprised Bobby Harris, Isaac "Ike" Wiley, Jr., his brother Michael Wiley, Michael Calhoun, and Kenny Pettus. Telefunk eventually became Kinsman Dazz, named after the street in Cleveland where Harris had grown up. The group changed its name before the unrelated song 'Dazz' became an R&B hit for Brick in 1976.
Kinsman Dazz was signed to 20th Century Records by Joe Lewis. The group went to Los Angeles to record for producer Marvin Gaye. Owing to illness, Gaye had to back out of the duties. Harris requested and got Philip Bailey, the vocalist of Earth, Wind & Fire, to produce the group's first album, Kinsman Dazz. Bailey would co-produce the second album, Dazz, and had a major input into the group's vocal arrangements.
The Kinsman Dazz became the Dazz Band in 1980. Separately, the 20th Century Records label was closed, and the Dazz Band was signed to Motown. The group expanded from the original quartet — Harris, Pettus, and the Wiley brothers — with newcomers Kevin Frederick, Steve Cox, Eric Fearman, Pierre DeMudd, Sennie "Skip" Martin, Jerry Bell and Terry Stanton.
Dazz's first album for Motown was Invitation to Love, a self-produced set. The group's next album, Let The Music Play, featured the minor hit single "Knock! Knock!". The group's breakthrough came with Keep It Live (1982) containing the hit "Let It Whip" which reached #5 on the R&B charts and won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and was also redone by Boyz ll Men in 2004 . They would go on to score R&B hits with 'Swoop (I'm Yours)', 'Joystick', 'Let It All Blow', and 'Party Right Here'.
After Keep It Live, Dazz Band recorded On the One, Joystick, Jukebox and Hot Spot, all for Motown. The band was known for its live performances, often proving more popular than the headlining act. In, 1985 Fearman and Frederick left the group, and were replaced by Marlon McClain and Keith Harrison. In 1986, Dazz Band recorded Wild & Free under the Geffen label, and moved to RCA Records. In October 2004 Let It Whip appeared in popular videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, playing on Funk radio station Bounce FM.
[edit] Members
- Steve Cox - keyboards
- Pierre DeMudd - trumpet/falsetto vocals
- Eric Fearman - guitar
- Kevin Frederick - keyboards
- Bobby Harris - sax, clarinet, background vocals
- Keith Harrison - keyboards
- Skip Martin - lead vocals/trumpet
- Marlon McClain - guitar
- Kenny Pettus - percussionist/vocalist
- Isaac Wiley, Jr. - drums
- Michael Wiley - bass
- Jerry Bell - lead vocals
- Terry Stanton - lead vocals
[edit] Discography
- 1980 - Invitation to Love (Motown)
- 1981 - Let the Music Play (Motown)
- 1982 - Keep it Live (Motown)
- 1982 - On the One (Motown)
- 1983 - Joystick (Motown)
- 1984 - Jukebox (Motown)
- 1985 - Hot Spot (Motown))
- 1986 - Wild & Free (Geffen)
- 1988 - Rock the Room (RCA)
- 1995 - Under the Streetlights (LKY)
- 1997 - Double Exposure (Intersound)
- 1998 - Here We Go Again (Intersound)
- 2001 - Time Traveler (Eagle Music Group)
[edit] Singles
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Album | ||
| US Hot 100 | US R&B | US Dance | |||
| 1982 | "Let It Whip" | #5 | #1 | - | Keep It Live |
| 1984 | "Let It All Blow" | #84 | #9 | #3 | Jukebox |
| 1984 | "Joystick" | #61 | #9 | - | Joystick |
| 1985 | "Hot Spot" | - | #21 | #33 | Hot Spot |
| 1985 | "Heartbeat" | - | #12 | - | Wild & Free |
| 1986 | "Wild and Free" | - | #44 | - | Wild & Free |
| 1986 | "L.O.V.E. M.I.A" | - | #48 | - | Wild & Free |
| 1988 | "Single Girls" | - | #19 | #38 | Rock The Room |
| 1988 | "Open Sesame" | - | #83 | - | Rock The Room |
| 1988 | "Anticipation" | - | #38 | - | Rock The Room |
| 1998 | "Girl Got Body" | - | #81 | - | Here We Go Again |
[edit] Albums
| Year | Title | Peak Chart positions | |
| US Billboard 200 | US R&B | ||
| 1984 | Jukebox | - | #18 |
| 1984 | Joystick | #73 | #12 |
| 1985 | Hot Spot | - | #24 |
| 1986 | Wild and Free | - | #37 |
| 1988 | Rock The Room | - | #91 |
| 1996 | Under The Streetlights | - | #42 |
| 1998 | Here We Go Again | - | #99 |
