Boyz II Men
From Motownphilly To Vegas
If the truth be told, Wanya Morris (age 41), Nathan Morris
(No relation to Wanya, age 43) and Shawn Stockman (age 41),
who make up the popular R&B trio “Boyz II Men,” went
from being boys to becoming men a long time ago. Their group
name is now a brand, and no longer what they were developing
into over 20 years ago. After a career that has garnered
four Grammys, over 60 million albums sold and two Billboard
Hot 100 #1 singles with, “End Of The Road” (13 weeks) and
“I’ll Make Love To You” (14 weeks), Boyz II Men find
themselves headlining at The Mirage Hotel & Casino in
Las Vegas, appearing at the Terry Fator Theater.
I caught the show on a recent trip to sin city, and there’s
good news and bad news. Here’s the good news first. The
“Boyz” still have great chops. Nathan, Wanya and Shawn’s
voices are as crisp and mellifluous as they ever were, and
sing their 20 year old songs seemingly without much
effort.
Backed by a four-piece rhythm section, three horns and one
male background singer, the group sang their way through
their history and others’. With only one legitimate up-tempo
hit, “Motownphilly” (which they saved for the last song),
the trio had to supplement their ballad-filled catalogue
with other fast songs, like the Jackson’s “Heartbreak Hotel”
and a medley of Motown hits from Smokey Robinson and The
Miracles, The Temptations and The Four Tops, which was
cleverly disguised as a tribute to their original record
label Motown Records. They reminded their audience that
acapella singing was one of their fortes, when they invited
background singer Marc Nelson down from hiding in the
shadows to do a street-corner harmony section which featured
such gems as “Hard To Say Goodbye,” “In The Still Of The
Night” and The Beatles, “Yesterday.”
Getting the most out of their two biggest hits, the singers
went into the aisles to give out hugs to the many women fans
(and one guy) that lined up during “End Of The Road” and
passed out roses for “I’ll Make Love To You.” Now for the
bad news: I was slightly perplexed as to why there was no
acknowledgement of former original member Michael McCray
(who retired from the group because of an ongoing battle
with scoliosis) during the 90 minutes that the group was on
stage. There were monologues from each of the three singers
at various times during the set, but the only mention of
another member was when Nathan referred to their “fourth
guy.”
My other complaint is that most groups today seem to be fans
of supplementing what you hear live, combined with digital
enhancement, such as additional bass and/or keyboard parts
and reinforced background harmonies. The “Boyz’s” show was
guilty of this practice. There were bass parts being heard
during “Motownphilly” that the bass player or keyboard
player could not be seen playing. In addition, the harmonies
were so lush and perfect that no group, who does any amount
of choreography, could accomplish such a feat.
There were no bad notes amid a perfect blend which, to the
trained ear, is a dead giveaway for what I consider
“cheating.” In my opinion, the live experience should be
entirely “live,” unless you’re willing to announce to your
fans that what they’re hearing through these
state-of-the-art sound systems is being produced by
something more than the group of singers and musicians that
are performing on stage in front of them. At least that way,
you give the ticket-buying public an option whether to lay
down their hard-earned money, leave home and visit a nearby
venue to watch their favorite acts or stay at home and
listen to the mistake-free CD on their own stereo system.
For my money, I’ll take a few bad notes.
O.S.