An Intimate Evening with Incognito with Maysa

Overview

Founded by Paul "Tubbs" Williams & Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick in 1979. Those who were around in the late 1970s will remember Light of the World, where Incognito sprung from. L.O.T.W. was a substantially-sized group and as such, certain members wanted to go in different directions. The more commercially-minded members went off and formed Beggar & Co, whilst those wanting to groom a more Jazz-Funk oriented sound formed Incognito. However, there has been a re-connection over the years in L.O.T.W. with various former members, alongside their other commitments.

Incognito has had intermittent success in the UK Singles Chart, with their breakthrough 1990 hit a cover version of the Ronnie Laws tune "Always There", featuring Jocelyn Brown, which made No. 6 in the UK. The group's 1992 single, "Don't you worry 'bout a thing" saw similar success, reaching No. 19 in the UK. They have also been a favorite of various re-mixers, including Masters at Work, David Morales, Roger Sanchez and Jazzanova, and have released several albums consisting almost entirely of remixes.

In 1994, Incognito appeared on the Red Hot Organization's compilation album, Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool. The album, meant to raise awareness and funds in support of the AIDS epidemic in relation to the African American community, was heralded as "Album of the Year" by Time magazine. In 1996, the band contributed "Water to Drink" to the AIDS-benefit album Red Hot + Rio, also produced by the Red Hot Organization.

Maysa Leak is an American jazz singer better known by her mononym Maysa. She is well known by fans of smooth jazz both for her solo work and for her work with the British band Incognito.

It was during an over-the-telephone audition in the early '90s that Maysa become a member of the acclaimed British jazz/funk/R&B band Incognito and in 1992 she relocated to London and recorded Tribes, Vibes & Scribes, featuring the hit single "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing". Since then, Maysa has appeared on over seven Incognito recordings.

Maysa recorded her self-titled debut in 1995, followed by her second album All My Life in 2000, then Out of the Blue (2002), Smooth Sailing (2004), Sweet Classic Soul (2006), and Feel the Fire (2007). In 2008, Metamorphosis peaked at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Contemporary Jazz top 100 chart and No. 13 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. In 2010, A Woman in Love, Maysa's 8th solo CD, debuted at No. 1 on the Contemporary Jazz Charts. Maysa's 9th solo album, Motions of Love, released in November 2011, debuted at No. 1 on Billboard`s Contemporary Jazz Chart and Number 7 on the R&B charts.

In 2009, Maysa won the very first new Soul Train Award named for the brand's new owners, CENTRIC, The Cenric Award: Soul Approved/Underground.

INCOGNITO celebrated its 35th birthday in 2014.