HOW TO GO
Who: Slave
Where: Gilly’s, 132. S. Jefferson St., Dayton
When: 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 3
Cost: $20 in advance, $25 at the door
More info: 937-228-8414 or www.gillysjazz.com
With the passing of Mark Adams in 2011, the future of legendary Dayton funk band, Slave, was uncertain. A version of the group without any original members was performing sporadically but that changed last year following legal intervention from founding members Danny Webster (lead vocals, guitar) and Floyd Miller (lead vocals, horns, percussion).
Webster and Miller recently discussed their journey to seize control of Slave and the upcoming hometown show at Gilly’s on Saturday, Oct. 3.
Miller: Danny and I have been on a mission to bring back the group since we lost Mark Adams and it's been a hard battle, man. We've been plagued with legal matters that we're working out. There are people out there that think they own the name or think they can make money off what we created. It's time the original members, Danny and myself, come together and put a stop to this because enough is enough."
Webster: "It's about reclaiming what's ours. We never really let it go, we just kind of separated over the years. For somebody to come along and claim our identity is preposterous. I really don't want to give them any airtime. I'm not as concerned about them as I am about letting our hometown know we're still standing. We're still good musicians and we actually meant the stuff we did over the years. We're putting on this show at Gilly's to let people know we're still here."
Slave was active from 1975 to 1996. The group’s self-titled debut was released in 1977 and featured the number R&B hit, “Slide.” Other Top 10 R&B hits included “Just a Touch of Love” and “Watching You.”
Miller: "Everyone has been doing their separate projects so we've grown apart. Now it's time to come back together for the fans because if it wasn't for them, man, we'd be nothing. It's because of them that we continue to do what we do."
Webster: "We did a show in Akron last summer. That was the first time we had gotten together in close to 20 years and there were like 10,000 people there for us and Lakeside. It was fabulous, man. You can find it on YouTube."
Miller: "The reaction we got from the audience sparked us and made us realize it was time to come back together and bring real funk back to the fans, the way it used to be. That's where me and Danny are. We believe in what we did. Slave is still viable and we are still out there."
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