Spend a night shift with funk and soul group the Commodores at the Mansfield Convention Center Saturday at Benefis Healthcare Foundation’s annual MayFaire fundraiser.
An after-party featuring classic rock and roll band, The Mighty Flick, offers dancing well into the night, plus snacks, a no-host bar and silent auction. Tickets for Mayfaire include admission to both the concert and the after party. The Commodores are known for tunes such as “Brickhouse,” “Easy,” “Nightshift” and “Three Times a Lady.” The band was formed at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in 1967 as the Mystics. They changed their name to the Commodores in 1969. The original lineup consisted of Lionel Richie, William King, Thomas McClary, Milan Williams, Ronald LaPread and Walter “Clyde” Orange, all students at the institute. Motown signed the group in 1972, and they started out as the opening act for the Jackson 5 on their European tour. It was two years before the Commodores ever started recording, but once they did, they became Motown’s best-selling male group of the ’70s and ’80s.
Richie left the group in 1983 to pursue a solo career. The Commodores continued on, hiring James Dean “J.D.” Nicholas, a vocalist for the British band Heat Wave to re-establish a co-vocalist lead with original member Orange. Today, the group consists of Orange, Nicholas and William “Wak” King.