Mazz

Mazz is a Tejano band originally from Brownsville, Texas.[1] Formed in the early to mid-1970s by Joe Lopez and later collaborated with Jimmy Gonzalez, the group emerged as one of the most innovative Tejano crossover bands after adding synthesizer to combine traditional Tex-Mex, Mexican music, and popular Latin rhythms.

In 1978, Mazz released the self-titled album, Mazz, featuring the hit single, "Comprendo Mi Amor". During the following decades, Grupo Mazz became a successful band on the regional Mexican scene, climbing the charts with hits "Laura Ya No Vive Aqui" and "No Te Olvidaré," among other songs. The Legendary Lopez, with his suave voice, and Gonzalez, with his winning songwriting and producing talents, formed separate groups in 1998: Joe Lopez y La Nueva Imagen Mazz and Jimmy Gonzalez y Grupo Mazz. Lopez also teamed up with Selena's brother, on the 2004 album A.B. Quintanilla III Presents Joe Lopez.

Since the separation, both Joe Lopez and Jimmy Gonzalez y el Grupo Mazz have enjoyed plenty of success. The group won Best Tejano Album four times at the Latin Grammy Awards from 2001-2004. The group also won Best Tejano Album at the American Grammy Awards in 2004. In 2006, the two planned a reunion tour and release of a new album, Joe Lopez, Jimmy Gonzalez y Grupo Mazz: The Last Dance Mazz Live Reunion.

The music of The Legendary Joe Lopez, including the songs he recorded when he was the lead singer with Grupo Mazz, continues to get airplay at Tejano stations around the world today along with that of Jimmy Gonzalez y Grupo Mazz.

History

The group's name was taken from a spelling variation of the Spanish word mas (meaning "more") and spelled similar to that of late 70s band Kiss. Original band leaders Joe Lopez and Jimmy Gonzalez formed Mazz in Brownsville, Texas after already being a part of the former band The Bel-Airs. The group was discovered by Texas music promoter Luis Silva and was originally signed under the Cara Records label. In 1978 they released a self-titled album and began promoting the single Comprendo Mi Amor (Understand My Love). Their second album, Mas Mazz came later that same year. There are many variations as to how the group Mazz formed, this is one of them. It is thought that Juan Ignacio Murillo was one of the founders of Mazz. He is seldom given credit publicly except by fellow musicians in a close knit group. The original members or as said here the "first lineup" would leave Mazz and start a new group called The Force.

The band started on shaky ground as they received most response from California for their music rather than in their home state of Texas. Because of this the band began focusing on their now trademark sound of incorporating synthesizer sounds with various Latin music styles popular in the south Texas region such as rancheras, cumbias and ballads. Gonzalez said, "We were actually more successful in California. We did rock, and our sound was more international. People asked us if we were from Mexico." Hard to believe now, but people even said they couldn't dance to Mazz's music. The group realized it would to have to rediscover Tejano music. Their first hit, Laura Ya No Vive Aquí, (Laura Doesn't Live Here Anymore) managed to capture their desired audience as planned. Soon after, their scheduled concert appearances drew more audience numbers and record sales improved. Their first live album, Command Performance, was released in the 1980s. Large numbers of screaming fans can be heard in the background, showing how much the signature Mazz sound had caught on to audiences. Their record sales soon began to rival that of fellow Tejano group Oscar, Leonard & La Mafia, a feature almost unheard of at the time.

Many music awards followed, not only for their high record sales, but also for their contributions to the start of the Tejano music boom. Both Sony Records and EMI Latin later took interest in the band and signed the group to their individual labels. Mazz's albums No Te Olvidare, Para Nuestra Gente, Una Noche Juntos, and Mazz Romanticos Que Nunca have all gone platinum. In the year 2000 Jimmy Gonzalez Y el Grupo Mazz became members of Freddie Records, owned by established Tejano singer Freddie Martinez, which helped promote new and already established Tejano music talents such as Ramón Ayala, Elida Reyna, and Michael Salgado.

Rivalry

Mazz was known to be in a competitive rivalry with fellow Tejano group Oscar, Leonard & La Mafia. The beginning of this rivalry is unknown but it is known that La Mafia and Mazz would insult each other and were known to compete in who had the better live show. La Mafia was praised with stardom in the beginnings of their career standing alone as the Tejano supergroup but when Grupo Mazz changed its sound from Spanish disco to Tejano they were a powerhouse of a group themselves and at the time were the only group fit to compete with La Mafia.

Post-Mazz

In 1998 both lead singers Joe Lopez and Jimmy Gonzalez split the band, deciding to form their own groups. The following year Joe formed Joe Lopez y La Nueva Imagen Mazz while Jimmy formed Jimmy Gonzalez y Grupo Mazz. For legal reasons, Lopez later would have to change the name simply to "La Nueva Imagen" instead of "La Nueva Imagen Mazz". Lopez y La Nueva Imagen issued the album Mazz Fuerte Que Nunca, a mix of danceable cumbias and Tejano tracks, which featured the hit single Atrapado. Jimmy Gonzalez y Grupo Mazz went on to release on 2000 "Quien Iba a Pensar" which won the 2001 Grammy for Tejano Album of the year.

Band members

First lineup (1978-1984):

Second lineup (1984-1997):

References

  1. ↑ Miguel, Guadalupe San (2002). Tejano Proud: Tex-Mex Music in the Twentieth Century. Texas A&M University Press. pp. 106–108. ISBN 9781585441884. Retrieved 29 September 2014.

2. www.grammy.com 3. www.grammylatino.com

External links

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