Along with a number of very welcome
Maze album reissues, in 2004
The Right Stuff compiled what is no doubt the definitive single-disc collection of the
Frankie Beverly-led band, titled simply yet accurately
Greatest Hits. The 18-track compilation rounds up the four-minute single edits of such hits as
"Southern Girl," "Joy and Pain," "Before I Let Go," "Never Let You Down," and
"Back in Stride," among numerous others. Because many of these songs in their original states clock around seven or so minutes apiece, these single edits are preferable for a compilation such as this. This way you get as many hits as possible on the disc, and if you indeed like what you hear, you can always go and pick up the individual
Maze albums, which are classics in their own right and mighty rewarding listens for lovers of late-'70s
funk and early- to mid-'80s
urban music.
The Right Stuff, a division of
Capitol Records, also went out of its way to license a few
Maze songs owned by
Warner Bros.:
"Can't Get Over You" (1989),
"Silky Soul" (1989), and
"The Morning After" (1993). These latter-day recordings weren't quite as successful as the sort of songs
Maze had been recording during the early '80s, but they're nonetheless great songs and an important part of the band's long-running career. All of this amounts to a well-rounded portrait of
Maze, even including two live songs: the audience-singalong version of
"Joy and Pain" from
Live in New Orleans (1981) and a version of the band's signature
"Happy Feelin's." You can't ask for a better single-disc introduction to
Maze than
Greatest Hits. If this disc doesn't turn you on to the band, nothing will. ~ Jason Birchmeier
