Maxayn -

Maxayn was an American soul-funk/psych band that released the 1972–74 Capricorn albums Maxayn, Mindful, and Bail Out for Fun!. Namesake vocalist Maxayn Lewis, guitarist Marlo Henderson, and bassist/keyboardist Andre Lewis played together beforehand in the Columbia one-off High Voltage. Lewis adopted the moniker Mandré for three electro-funk albums on Motown during the late 1970s.

Members: Maxayn Lewis (vocals), Andre Lewis (bass, keyboards, vocals), Emilio Thomas (drums), Marlo Henderson (guitar), Hank Redd (guitar)

Background

Maxayn formed around the musical partnership of keyboardist Andre Lewis and his wife, Paulette Parker (aka Maxayn Lewis).

Paulette Parker was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and grew up in Greenwood as the first child of Emzie and Lorene Parker. At Latimer Conservatory, she studied piano and music theory. Her secondary work included French horn and flute, with some cello. As a fifth grader, Parker formed The Continentals, an all-female singing group. She enrolled at Oklahoma State University, then returned to Tulsa and sang with Karl Day in the club act Night and Day.

Bandleader Ernie Fields gave Parker’s number to Ike and Tina Turner, and Parker joined the Ikettes after a 1967 Tulsa audition. The Ike & Tina Turner Revue took her through a European tour and a heavy domestic schedule. She then joined a blues-festival tour that opened for Bobby “Blue” Bland. In 1969, Parker cut two singles for the Houston-based Duke label: “(Gimme Back) My Love” (b/w “Should I Let Him Go”) and “Driving Wheel” (b/w “I Pity the Fool”).

Lewis was born Michael Andre Lewis in Omaha, Nebraska, and led the Mike Lewis Quartet by age fifteen. He later led Andre Lewis and the New Breed, a band with reedist Hank Redd. Lewis then joined the Buddy Miles Express for the 1970 album Them Changes, which also featured guitarist Marlo Henderson.

In 1971, as Parker fielded a solo production offer by Donny Hathaway, she met Lewis and Henderson, who proposed they form a band. The new group linked with songwriter-producer Luther Dixon, who gave them rehearsal time at 233 Grand Avenue, a Tudor mansion in Boston. Lewis married Parker, who adopted the stage name Maxayn Lewis.

In early 1972, Maxayn signed with Capricorn Records, an Atlantic-distributed label established by Allman Brothers manager Phil Walden.

Maxayn

Maxayn released their self-titled debut album in 1972 on Capricorn.

The album features six originals and two Rolling Stones covers, performed by the core quartet of vocalist-keyboardist Maxayn Lewis, keyboardist-bassist Andre Lewis, drummer Emry Thomas, and guitarist Marlo Henderson.

“Trying for Days” opens with a protest text, a forceful Maxayn Lewis lead, and band punctuation around the refrain. “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” places Lewis high in the mix over heavier group pressure.

“Gimme Shelter” pushes the lead into sharper calls and darker band weight. “Let Me Be Your Friend” slows the sequence through drawn-out phrasing and softer support. “Beloved” extends that ballad side with a close lead and measured backing parts. “Doing Nothing, Nothing Doing” returns the set to tighter rhythm figures and group response.

A1. “Trying for Days” (3:32) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
A2. “Song” (3:52) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
A3. “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” (5:32) – Jagger–Richards
A4. “Jam for Jack” (4:32) – Andre Lewis, Emry Thomas, Hank Redd, Marlo Henderson, Maxayn Lewis, and Stemsy Hunter

B1. “Gimme Shelter” (4:00) – Jagger–Richards
B2. “Let Me Be Your Friend” (4:50) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
B3. “Doing Nothing, Nothing Doing” (6:24) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
B4. “Beloved” (4:28) – Marlo Henderson

Andre Lewis and Jack Adams produced Maxayn. The group recorded the album primarily at Record Plant in New York, with additional recording at Criteria Studios in Miami. The sessions involved eight auxiliary players: reedist-guitarists Hank Redd and Stemsy Hunter, bassists Bill Rich and Hoshal Wright, drummers Fred Allen and Jimmy Maher, and trumpeters Mike Fugate and Tom Hall.

Maxayn appeared in a gatefold sleeve with a front-cover silhouette of Maxayn Lewis against a sunset-toned background. The back cover shows Maxayn Lewis with Andre Lewis, Marlo Henderson, and Emry Thomas at a San Diego beach.

Capricorn lifted “Gimme Shelter” as a July 1972 single (b/w “Song”). “Let Me Be Your Friend” followed in October 1972 (b/w “Trying for Days”).

Mindful

Maxayn released their second album, Mindful, in 1973 on Capricorn.

Mindful retains the core quartet from the debut and adds backing singers P.P. Arnold, Elaine Arnold, Claudia Lennear, Clydie King, Venetta Fields, Lalomie Washburn, and Tony Maiden. The album includes the Curtis Mayfield cover “Check Out Your Mind.”

“Moan to the Music” rides chugging rhythm and ensemble replies. “Good Things” extends the group-chant side with added voices and a firmer refrain. “Tellin’ You” cuts a sassy lead against blues-guitar bite and compact snap. “The Answer,” “Check Out Your Mind,” and “I Want to Rest My Mind” form a continuous suite with sectional changes across the album’s center. “Travelin’” closes with Brazilian motion and a lighter rhythmic tilt.

A1. “Moan to the Music” (3:47) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
A2. “Love Is Near” (5:20) – Becky Rife
A3. “Good Things” (2:33) – Emry Thomas and Marlo Henderson
A4. “Stone Crazy” (4:59) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
A5. “Tellin’ You” (3:33) – Andre Lewis, Maxayn Lewis, and Zelda Samuels

B1. “Feelin’” (3:53) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
B2. “The Answer” (4:55) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
B3. “Check Out Your Mind” (3:21) – Mayfield
B4. “I Want to Rest My Mind” (5:00) – Charles “Bags” Costello, Lavon Stanley, Marlo Henderson, and Maxayn Lewis
B5. “Travelin’” (3:22) – Emry Thomas, Marlo Henderson, and Maxayn Lewis

Andre Lewis and Jack Adams produced Mindful. Jack Adams engineered the album, with most songs recorded at Record Plant in Los Angeles, “Tellin’ You” and “Feelin’” recorded at Paramount Recorders, and “Love Is Near” recorded at Abbey Sound Studio.

Mindful features a cover illustration that depicts the group as open-headed mugs.

Capricorn lifted “Check Out Your Mind” as a March 1973 single (b/w “Good Things”), which reached No. 35 on the Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles chart. “Feelin’” followed as a second single (b/w “Travelin’”).

Mindful reached No. 43 on the Billboard Best Selling Soul LP’s chart.

Bail Out for Fun!

Maxayn released their third album, Bail Out for Fun!, in 1974 on Capricorn.

Bail replaces Henderson with reedist-guitarist Hank Redd, a prior auxiliary and longtime Andre associate. The eight-song program includes four outside compositions, a new version of “Trying for Days,” and three further songs tied to Andre Lewis, Maxayn Lewis, or Marlo Henderson.

“Bail Out” hits with raw pressure, low-end weight, and a lean band strike. “Life Is What You Make It” rides a sleeker rhythm setting and compact lead phrasing. “Cried My Last Tear” slows the set into ballad form. “Moonfunk” leans into Moog blur and electronic smear. “Fun” jumps into brighter release after the darker electronic stretch. “Trying for Days” returns in a longer jam arrangement with the protest refrain stretched across group interplay. “Everything Begins with You” closes inside a pared-down band frame.

A1. “Bail Out” (4:15) – D.J. Rogers
A2. “Life Is What You Make It” (4:13) – Buddy Miles
A3. “Cried My Last Tear” (4:40) – Randy Richards
A4. “Moonfunk” (4:35) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis

B1. “Fun” (3:10) – Ricky Holley
B2. “You Don’t Have to Be Lonely” (3:50) – Andre Lewis, Carl Rogel, and Marlo Henderson
B3. “Trying for Days” (6:45) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis
B4. “Everything Begins with You” (3:40) – Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis

Andre Lewis and Maxayn Lewis produced and arranged Bail Out for Fun! at New London Studios in Homewood, Alabama. Rick Matos engineered the album, Mario Medious served as executive producer, and Hank Redd and Emilio Thomas assisted production.

Bail Out for Fun! features front-cover photography by Ginny Winn and back-cover photography by Sidney Smith. The front cover shows Maxayn Lewis in a white wig beneath the Maxayn logo.

Capricorn lifted “Bail Out” as a March 1974 single backed with “Everything Begins with You.”

“You Don’t Have to Be Lonely” followed in 1974 backed with “Moon Funk,” which later reappeared with the sides reversed.

Discography: