Faze-O was a late 1970s

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic iden ...

based in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

and produced by Clarence Satchell of the

Ohio Players Ohio Players are an American funk band, most popular in the 1970s. They are best known for their songs "Fire" and " Love Rollercoaster", and for their erotic album covers that featured nude or nearly nude women. Many of the women were models f ...

, for whom it was the front band during many live performances. Their 1977 song "Riding High" has been sampled by hip hop artists.

History

The roots of the band lie in the predecessor group, Faze 3, a trio that included bassist Tyrone "Flye" Crum. Additional members gradually joined or replaced earlier members, eventually augmenting the group to a five-piece band that evolved into Faze-O. In addition to bassist Crum, the original members of the group that officially took the name "Faze-O" were Ralph "Love" Aikens (guitar/vocals), Roger Parker (drums), Robert "Bip" Neal (lead vocals/percussion), and Keith Harrison (lead vocals/keyboards). This self-contained unit began writing songs as a group, with individual members contributing various elements, and honing arrangements that suited the feel/style of one member or another.The Funk group "FAZE-O" reunion interview w/TheFunkCenter. (8 January 2016)
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YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

. Retrieved 13 May 2024. By 1977, the band had completed recording their debut album, with contributions and production from members of the Ohio Players, releasing '' Riding High'' that year. This album's title track, featuring Harrison's tenor lead vocals complemented by Neal's bass vocal parts, became an immediate hit, reaching the top 10 on the

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

. The group went on to release two subsequent albums- '' Good Thang'' and '' Breakin' the Funk'' in 1978 and 1979, respectively, with the title tracks for both albums being released as singles. However, further success proved elusive. By the dawn of the 1980s, the band had effectively dissolved, with several members moving on to other groups. Harrison joined the group

Heatwave A heat wave or heatwave, sometimes described as extreme heat, is a period of abnormally hot weather generally considered to be at least ''five consecutive days''. A heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the area and ...

in the studio for their 1980 ''

Candles A candle is an ignitable candle wick, wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a Aroma compound, fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. ...

'' album (becoming an official bandmember soon thereafter), before going on to a long stint with the

Dazz Band Dazz Band is an American R&B/funk band most popular in the early 1980s. Emerging from Cleveland, Ohio, the group's biggest hit songs include " Let It Whip" (1982), " Joystick" (1983), and "Let It All Blow" (1984). The name of the band is a por ...

, beginning with their 1983 ''On the One'' album. He continues as a current member of Dazz Band, as of 2024. Meanwhile, Parker became a member of

Slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

in time for their '' Show Time'' album before splintering from the group with Slave frontman/fellow drummer

Steve Arrington Steven Ralph Arrington (born March 5, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, drummer, record producer, engineer and minister, who grew up in Dayton, Ohio. Biography Arrington played in various local bands before joining and touring with The M ...

for the latter's "Steve Arrington's Hall of Fame" project.Obituary for Roger Parker @ H.H. Roberts Mortuary, Inc.
Retrieved 15 May 2024. Since their dissolution, the band has reunited in various incarnations to perform. In 2011, the group performed in a line-up featuring original members Keith Harrison, Robert "Bip" Neal, and Ralph Aikens at Island Park in Dayton, Ohio. All five original members reunited on December 17, 2015 at DATV Studios in Dayton to discuss their music and reminisce about their time as a band, as part of a series of interviews conducted by local

deejay A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music festivals), mobile DJ ...

Stan "The Man" Brooks to commemorate the opening of Dayton's Funk Music Hall of Fame and Exhibition Center. Original vocalist/percussionist Robert "Bip" Neal, Jr. died on April 13, 2021.Faze-O - Post (13 April 2021).
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. Retrieved 15 May 2024. Original drummer Roger Parker died on March 5, 2023.

Band members

*Keith "Chop Chop" Harrison - Arp, Clavinet, Composer, Fender Rhodes, Keyboards, Mini Moog, Percussion, Piano, Piano (Electric), Lead and Backing Vocals *Ralph "Love" Aikens, Jr. - Guitar, Talk Box, Lead and Backing Vocals *Tyrone "Flye" Crum - Bass, Backing Vocals *Robert "Bip" Neal, Jr. - Percussion, Lead and Backing Vocals *Roger "Dodger" Parker - Drums, Percussion

History

Band members

Discography

References

External links