■ 02 February 2012 | 5:09 PM
CRATE-DIG DUSTY: "Inspiration," Maze featuring Frankie Beverly
When Maze released its third album, 1979’s Inspiration, the band had become one of pop’s best-kept secrets.
Two previous releases, the 1977 self-titled debut and 1978’s Golden Time of Day, had sold gold. But the R&B band, anchored by the heart-venting vocals and down-to-earth songwriting of Frankie Beverly, remained largely unknown to folks outside discerning soul circles. More than 30 years later, that is still case.
The qualities that make Maze amazing – Frankie’s leather-and-cashmere voice, the band’s fluid, impassioned musicianship and the conversational songs of love and faith – coalesced on Inspiration.
Unlike some of their flashier peers in 1979, Maze and Frankie eschewed the heavy use of synthesizers and other studio trickery. The band used little to no “sweetening” with horns and strings. The air-tight rhythm section, augmented by subtle synthesized bass and keyboards, gave Inspiration a “live” feel. Before signing to Capitol Records, a deal the illustrious Marvin Gaye helped make happen, Maze and Frankie had worked out its kinks on the road in small clubs.
Their first two albums, though charming, felt underdeveloped in spots. With Inspiration, Maze reached a creative peak. Frankie’s vocal on the opening track, “Lovely Inspiration,” is so invigorating, the arrangement so vibrant that the song becomes a sunbeam. “Feel that You’re Feelin’” is a sassy mid-tempo jam and the album’s lone hit single. Maze could always lock a mellow groove, and this one is a gem.
Frankie has long written from a wise perspective. His philosophical songs, like the strutting “Timin’,” carry straight-no-chaser lyrics, always delivered with warmth. Some things you just can’t rush, the song conveys. After you’ve done all you can do with an open heart and clear intentions, the fruits of your efforts will come – just a matter of “timin’.”
Frankie also has a sense of humor about love gone sour. “Welcome Home,” a lyrical tale about a lover’s return after she discovered the grass on the other side was Astroturf, is perhaps the funkiest joint in Maze’s deep catalog. As Frankie belts, “When you left me, you hurt me so badly,” you feel his smile as his old lady gets her comeuppance.
“Ain’t It Strange” is another standout, a floating, jazz-kissed number sparkling with an electric keyboard solo. The call-and-response between Frankie and the band simmers with Baptist fervor.
Inspiration repeated the success of its predecessors, selling gold and peaking at No. 5 on the R&B chart. The album managed to hit No. 33 on the pop side – a promising showing. But Maze and Frankie still received no love at pop radio, which had long segregated itself by 1979.
Without pop recognition or even Grammy nominations, Maze and Frankie sold out arenas around the world. They still pack venues with tried-and-true songs pledging devotion and extolling “happy feelings.” Inspiration captures a particularly radiant period in the band’s development.
The light still shines.
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