Mother's Finest

Mother's Finest

Mother's Finest

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Mother's Finest

Mother's Finest is a pioneering American funk rock band founded in Atlanta, Georgia by the vocal duo of Joyce "Baby Jean" Kennedy and Glenn "Doc" Murdock in 1970 when the pair met up with guitarist Gary "Moses Mo" Moore and bassist Jerry "Wyzard" Seay. Their music is a blend of funky rhythms, heavy rock guitars and expressive soul/R&B-style vocals.

The group charted with the singles "Fire" (#93 Pop Singles), "Baby Love" (#79 Black Singles, No. 58 Pop Singles), "Don't Wanna Come Back" (#54 Black Singles), "Love Changes" (#26 Black Singles), and "Piece Of The Rock" in the mid to late 1970s.

History

Mother's Finest issued their debut album Mother's Finest in 1972 on RCA; a second album for RCA remained unreleased until it surfaced as bonus tracks on the 2010 Wounded Bird re-issue of Mother's Finest. The group signed a new contract with Epic Records and released their sophomore effort, also titled Mother's Finest, in 1976, stirring up controversy with the ironic "Niggizz Can't Sang Rock'n'Roll." Riding a wave of success, the band's next three albums, Another Mother Further (1977), Mother Factor (1978) and Mothers Finest Live (1979), all went gold,[1] helped along by heavy touring opening for the likes of Ted Nugent, Black Sabbath, The Who, Aerosmith and AC/DC.[2]

In 1978, the band set out for Europe and took part in the Rockpalast concert series at the Grugahalle in Essen, produced by Germany's WDR television and broadcast to various countries. With only one concert Mother's Finest put themselves on the map all over Europe where the band has cultivated a dedicated following to this day. The legendary 1978 show was finally released on CD and DVD in 2012 as Mother's Finest - Live At Rockpalast 1978 & 2003, also including the band's 2003 "Rockpalast" appearance at Satzvey Castle.

After four albums for Epic/CBS in the 70's, the band signed with Atlantic Records for their heaviest album to date, 1981's Iron Age.[3] That same year Joyce Kennedy guested with Molly Hatchet on the song "Respect Me In the Morning" from the Take No Prisoners album. Mother's Finest went on hiatus after 1983's One Mother to Another, with vocalist Joyce Kennedy pursuing a solo career, releasing the soul/R&B-styled Looking For Love album on A&M Records in 1984. She scored a Billboard Top 40 hit with "The First Time I Made Love", a duet with Jeffrey Osborne. Drummer Barry Borden, who had joined Molly Hatchet on the No Guts...No Glory album, teamed up with guitarist Moses Mo in the band Illusion, resulting in a pair of albums, Illusion (1985) and I Like It Loud (1986), on Geffen Records. Borden would later join The Outlaws for a pair of albums and has been a member of The Marshall Tucker Band since the late 1990s.

Meanwhile, bassist Jerry Seay toured with Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks behind her 1983 album, The Wild Heart, including an appearance on Saturday Night Live. Eventually, he and brother/drummer Harold Seay, who had replaced Barry Borden on One Mother to Another, joined Rick Medlocke in a revamped Blackfoot line-up and appeared on 1987's Rick Medlocke and Blackfoot album.[4]

Mother's Finest reformed for 1989's Looks Could Kill on Capitol/EMI Records, with only drummer Barry Borden missing from the classic line-up. He was replaced by Joyce Kennedy and Glenn Murdock's son, Dion Derek. In 1990, the band released their second live album, Subluxation, on RCA/BMG, albeit only in Europe. It was the first album to feature guitarist John "Red Devil" Hayes, formerly of Atlanta's PG-13, hired in place of the departing Moses Mo.[5]

The band moved over to Scotti Bros. for 1992's Black Radio Won't Play This Record, a heavy funk metal album, which was recorded with the help of former Sound Barrier member Tracey "Spacey T" Singleton on guitar. The band continued to tour heavily, especially in Europe, but did not release another studio CD until 2004's Meta-Funk'n-Physical, an experimental, hip hop- and electronic beats-oriented effort.

In 1999, Wyzard, Moses Mo, and long-time Mother's Finest touring keyboardist Pascal Kravetz joined multi-national band Carl Carlton & The Songdogs, releasing a handful of albums along the way. In 2002, Moses Mo issued his solo album, Cartoon You, which features contributions from Glenn Murdock, Joyce Kennedy and Wyzard, along with several other members of the extended Mother's Finest family, Kerry Denton, Harold Seay, Johnnetta Johnson and Pascal Kravetz. In 2008, Wyzard released his solo album, Primal Incantation, featuring brother Harold Seay on drums.[6]

Beginning in 2004, Joyce Kennedy was seen on the international Daughters Of Soul tour along with Sandra St. Victor, Nona Hendryx, Lalah Hathaway (daughter of Donny Hathaway), Indira Khan (daughter of Chaka Khan), and Simone (daughter of Nina Simone).[7] Nona Hendryx would cover Mother's Finest's "Truth'll Set You Free" off Another Mother Further with her group Labelle on their 2008 album Back to Now.

In 2010, fellow Georgia rockers Jackyl, feat. Darryl McDaniels from Run-D.M.C., paid homage to Mother's Finest with a cover of "Like A Negro" from Black Radio Won't Play This Record and also shot a video.[1]. Jackyl frontman Jesse James Dupree had previously been in PG-13 with John Hayes in the late 1980s; Dupree, Hayes, Dion Derek and Jerry Seay also played together under the name Dent. The band recorded an album for Sony Music which was ultimately shelved by the label and remains unreleased to this day.[8]

On September 16, 2011 Mother's Finest was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame.[9]

In July 2013, Mother's Finest launched a Kickstarter campaign in order to raise funds for a new studio album.[10][11]

Members

Original line-up

  • Joyce "Baby Jean" Kennedy - vocals and percussion
  • Glenn "Doc" Murdock vocals and percussion
  • Jerry "Wyzard" Seay bass
  • Gary "Moses Mo" Moore guitar
  • Mike Keck keyboards
  • Donny Vosburgh - drums

Classic line-up

  • Joyce "Baby Jean" Kennedy - vocals
  • Glenn "Doc" Murdock vocals
  • Jerry "Wyzard" Seay bass
  • Gary "Moses Mo" Moore guitar
  • Mike Keck keyboards
  • Barry "B.B. Queen" Borden drums

1993 world tour line-up

  • Joyce "Baby Jean" Kennedy vocals
  • Glenn "Doc" Murdock vocals
  • Jerry "Wyzard" Seay bass
  • John "Red Devil" Hayes guitar
  • Dion Derek drums
  • Ace Baker keyboards

2004 line-up

  • Joyce "Baby Jean" Kennedy vocals
  • Glenn "Doc" Murdock vocals
  • Jerry "Wyzard" Seay bass
  • Gary "Moses Mo" Moore guitar
  • John "Red Devil" Hayes guitar
  • Kerry "Lovingood" Denton drums
  • Johnnetta "JJ" Johnson percussion & backing vocals

2013 line-up

  • Joyce "Baby Jean" Kennedy vocals
  • Glenn "Doc" Murdock vocals
  • Jerry "Wyzard" Seay bass
  • Gary "Moses Mo" Moore guitar
  • John "Red Devil" Hayes guitar
  • Dion Derek drums

Discography

Albums

  • Mother's Finest (1972), RCA
  • Mother's Finest (1976), Epic
  • Another Mother Further (1977), Epic
  • Mother Factor (1978), Epic
  • Live (1979), Epic
  • Iron Age (1981), Atlantic
  • One Mother to Another (1983), Epic
  • Looks Could Kill (1989), Capitol
  • Subluxation (1990), RCA live album
  • Black Radio Won't Play This Record (1992), Scotti Bros.
  • Baby Love (1998), Kiosk
  • Meta-Funk'n Physical (2003), UTR Music
  • Right Here, Right Now: Live at Villa Berg (2005), MTM Music
  • MF 4D (2011), U*ME/US*We - live album
  • Mother's Finest - Live At Rockpalast 1978 & 2003 (2012), MIG

Compilations

  • Rock Your Soul (1996), Sony Special Products
  • The Very Best of Mother's Finest: Not Yer Mother's Funk (1997), Razor & Tie
  • Definitive Collection (1998), Sony International
  • Burning Love: Best (2000), Cedar

DVD

  • Mother's Finest - Live At Rockpalast 1978 & 2003 (2012), MIG

Gallery

References

  1. Charmain Z. Brackett (March 13, 2012). Mother's Finest finds longevity by keeping feet on the ground. The Augusta Chronicle.
  2. David Carr (August 13, 2008). Bass Player Wyzard, Waxes Philisophical About the History of Mother's Finest. Yahoo Voices.
  3. Jill Jones (July 17, 1981). Mother's Finest Album 'Iron Age' Signifies Rededication To Hard Rock. Herald-Journal.
  4. Mike Burgess (April 11, 2013). Interview with Moses Mo and Wyzard (Mother's Finest). Metal Express Radio.
  5. Kim Thore (August 21, 2008). John Hayes - Leaving his mark across stages everywhere!. All Access Magazine.
  6. Jeff O'Kelley (November 25, 2009). Wyzard's Primal Incantation: An album for funk rock enthusiasts. Creative Loafing Tampa.
  7. Bill Buckley (Issue 1063). The Daughters Of Soul: It's A Family Affair. Blues & Soul.
  8. Aaron Small (May 29, 2010). Jackyl - Double Time In The Fast Lane. Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles.
  9. Davia L. Mosley (September 13, 2011). Rock, funk & soul: Mothers Finest to be inducted in Georgia Music Hall of Fame. The Marietta Daily Journal.
  10. James Stafford (July 30, 2013). Mothers Finest Launches Kickstarter Campaign. Why It Matters.
  11. Melissa Ruggieri (August 19, 2013). Mother's Finest turns to Kickstarter for first album in 10 years. Access Atlanta.

External links

  • Mother's Finest website
  • Mother's Finest Facebook page
  • Mother's Finest at All Music Guide
This page was last modified 21.12.2013 23:15:46

This article uses material from the article Mother's Finest from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and it is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.