Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band that originated in Los Angeles, California.[5][6] The group was formed in 1994 as Kara's Flowers while its members were still in high school and originally consisted of Adam Levine (lead vocals, guitar), Jesse Carmichael (guitar, backing vocals) Mickey Madden (bass guitar) and Ryan Dusick (drums). The band, which self-released an album called We Like Digging?, was named after a girl the group had a crush on. They signed to Reprise Records and released an album, The Fourth World, in 1997. After a tepid response to the album, the band parted ways with the record label and the members attended college.
In 2001, the band regrouped, with guitarist James Valentine added to the line-up, and pursued a new direction under the name Maroon 5.[7]
At this point, Carmichael switched to playing keyboards, which has
since become his main instrument in the band. After these changes,
Maroon 5 signed with Octone Records and released their debut album, Songs About Jane, in June 2002. The album's lead single "Harder to Breathe", received heavy airplay, which helped the album to debut at number six on the Billboard 200 chart.[8] The band won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2005. For the next few years, they toured extensively worldwide in support of Songs About Jane and produced two live recordings: 2004's 1.22.03.Acoustic and 2005's Live – Friday the 13th.[9] In 2006, Dusick officially left Maroon 5 after suffering from serious wrist and shoulder injuries and was replaced by Matt Flynn. The band then recorded their second album, It Won't Be Soon Before Long and released it in May 2007.[10] The album reached number one on the US Billboard 200 chart and the lead single, "Makes Me Wonder", became the band's first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100.
In September 2010, Maroon 5 released their third studio album Hands All Over, which was re-released in 2011 to include the single "Moves like Jagger". While the original version of the album received mixed reviews, "Moves like Jagger" reached the number one position on the Billboard Hot 100. The band released their fourth album, Overexposed, on June 26, 2012. All four singles of the album were highly successful on the Billboard Hot 100, including second single "One More Night", which reached number one. In 2014, the band signed with Interscope Records and released their fifth studio album, V, with the very-first line-up of six official band members, as keyboardist and backing vocalist PJ Morton became an official member in 2012. The album debuted atop the Billboard 200. Maroon 5 has sold more than 23 million albums and 109 million singles worldwide.[11][12]
Adam Levine has stated: "[E]verything that's written and performed
and put together pretty much comes from us. I just think people would be
surprised to know that we’re a self-contained unit. We’re a band that
does their own thing. There’s no puppet master."[102] However, in an article about the songwriter and producer Benny Blanco,
it is revealed that at least some of the band's songs, such as "Moves
Like Jagger," are the product of efforts by, or collaborations with,
professional songwriters and producers.[103]
In the same article, Adam Levine is quoted as saying: "It's almost as
if [Benny Blanco] has the Midas touch in putting the right people
together at the right time to create a musical moment. He's about the
collaboration. And he's so good at nailing down who does everything
best."[104]
The band has cited Michael Jackson, the Police, Bee Gees, Justin Timberlake, Stevie Wonder, Tonic and Prince as influences.[105] Adam Levine has also cited Stevie Wonder and Billy Joel as influences.[41] Furthermore, guitarist James Valentine said he was influenced by guitarists like Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell and John Scofield, as well as the rock band Queens of the Stone Age.[19]
The band's songs tend to be very guitar-heavy, often accompanied by
piano or synthesizer. The theme in most of their songs is love,
frequently lost love; songs like "This Love", "Makes Me Wonder" and "Misery"
have a very cynical tone, often expressing dissatisfaction with a
relationship, while their more heartfelt and emotional songs such as "She Will Be Loved", "Never Gonna Leave This Bed" express a longing for a romantic relationship. "Makes Me Wonder"
has a secondary theme, in which Levine expresses his disillusionment
and frustration with the state of American politics and the Iraq War.[106]
The band's sound changes from album to album. Songs About Jane consists of songs about Levine's ex-girlfriend Jane. On It Won't Be Soon Before Long, however, the songs are less personal and are more electric with more use of synthesizers, creating a retro feel. Hands All Over
continues the band's lost love theme, along with songs about
infatuation and was re-released in 2011, with the hit single "Moves like
Jagger", an electropop
song which represents a drastic change in the band's sound, with more
of a dance feel to it. "It was one of those songs that was definitely a
risk," Levine said. "It's a bold statement. We've never really released a
song like that. But it's exciting to do something different, do
something new. I'm just glad that everyone likes it."[107] James Valentine called Overexposed "our most 'pop' record ever and we weren’t shy about really going for it."[108]
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