We put the band back together

The Original 7ven

Throughout the years, I have seen my share of bands break up for various reasons. Some bands face creative differences, others cannot continue to perform together because of personal disagreements.  The music business is tough enough for one person and amplified when you add three or more personalities into the mix. Imagine this scenario: You are part of a very successful R & B group and you face all types of problems on and off stage. The band breaks up and individual members go on to have extremely successful musical careers. Then, after a few reunion shows, you and your band mates decide to get back together. Such is a brief synopsis of how the band “The Time”, with all the original members, actually got back together.  There are millions of fans of the Time who must be as happy as or happier than I was to hear the news of their reformation. The Time was always one of my favorite groups with their deep talent and incredibly unique and funky sound. I always felt the Time was the perfect band to follow the funk outfits of the 70’s and early 80’s. However, when individual members of the group began to break off from the band, even more success was waiting in the wings. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis together form one of the most prolific production teams of all time. Keyboardist Monte Moir and guitarist Jesse Johnson also are very successful solo and studio musicians. In addition, of course Morris Day is still Morris Day with Jellybean Johnson and Jerome Benton rounding out the original seven group members. Nevertheless, one problem still exists and I will use a quote from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet to help in my description. “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” For legal reasons the group cannot use the name “Time” anymore. Now they have adopted the name “The Original 7ven” as more of a descriptive title. As for all of us fans, I do not believe we will have a problem identifying the group or the sound. I do believe “The Original 7ven” is going to be a musical force in the years ahead. Look and listen to the video of their new song “Trendin”.

2 thoughts on “We put the band back together

  1. Well that's something that bands do throughout the years, they come together then they part. The Original 7ven's new cd is very good. I think its' really amazing that after all those years they kept in touch, I think. They've also included each other in one another's projects over the years too (check out the dvd that comes with the cd). Their story is one of perseverance as a group and for some of the individual members.

We would love to hear your opinion