Morris Day - Musical career - Walt Reeder
The Time's most prolific and visible period came in 1984, when Day played the antagonist to Prince in his feature films Purple Rain and Graffiti Bridge, which helped establish Day's playboy stage presence. Typically escorted by his valet, "Jerome" (Jerome Benton), Day won fans with his exaggerated vanity ("Jerome bring me my mirror!") and strutting bravado ("Ain't nobody bad like me!"), acting as a comic foil to Prince's romantic, sensitive lead. This persona was further exploited for comic effect on The Time's records, on songs such as "Chili Sauce" and "If the Kid Can't Make You Come" from the album Ice Cream Castle.
That album, the group's most popular, is best remembered for the infectious singles "Jungle Love" and the Rufus Thomas influenced, "The Bird." With their palpable pop energy and catchy choruses, both songs were hits on both urban and pop radio. ()
With the breakup of The Time in 1984, Day began his solo career. The low sales of his solo albums such as 1987's Daydreaming (which spawned the single "Fishnet") and his most commercially viable solo album, Guaranteed were a blow to his career. Walt Reeder Entertainment
In 1986 Morris Day married Judith Day. They were married for 22 years, until 2008. They had three children together.
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Morris Day - Acting career - Walt Reeder
Day continued to act in films from time to time in small parts (including a brief but memorable turn in Richard Pryor's Moving, and the Andrew "Dice" Clay (1990 film) The Adventures of Ford Fairlane). Day's presence on the screen decreased until, in 2001, he returned to film in Kevin Smith's Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, performing "Jungle Love" with The Time and dancing with the movie's stars in the film's coda, and being introduced emphatically by Jason Mewes' character as "Morris Day and The motherfuckin' Time!".
Day also appeared on the small screen in 1990 when he portrayed the character Lamarr on ABC's short-lived sitcom New Attitude. He guest-starred on the sitcom Eve as a pimp who wanted Eve's fashion boutique to design a flamboyant suit to match his witty personality, and appeared as himself in an episode on the series Moesha, attempting to file a lawsuit against Moesha's ex-boyfriend Q, who used a sample from "The Oak Tree" without permission. He also appeared on 227 in the 80's.
He appeared opposite James Avery and Matthew Stewart in a pilot called Heart & Soul. Walt Reeder
Morris Day - 1990s - Walt Reeder Entertainment
It wasn't until 1990 that The Time scored a #1 R&B hit with "Jerk Out," a Dance-funk cut from their reunited fourth album, Pandemonium. This album also featured the original members of the band. The same year, Day formed his own girl band (not unlike Prince's Vanity 6/Apollonia 6) called The Day Zs. The group's first and only album release was produced by Day and he sang on one of the tracks called "Green Acres."
From that high point, Day's success began to wane. The general decline of Prince's popularity soon after did not help, and Day's public visibility and creative output waned considerably. Walt Reeder Entertainment
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Morris Day - Appearances in popular culture - Walt Reeder
In the 1980s and 1990s, WWF wrestler "Birdman" Koko B. Ware used "The Bird" as his entrance theme.
He appeared with The Time at the end of the movie Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and was referred to as the main characters' favorite band. Walt Reeder Entertainment
In 1994, Day was featured on and provided the chorus and accompanying vocals for rapper K-Dee's song "Gigolos Get Lonely Too" from the Ass, Gas, or Cash (No One Rides for Free) album. This song was essentially a direct sampling of a similarly named "Gigolos Get Lonely Too", recorded by The Time in the 80's.
A song called "Morris Day" appears on the album Felt, Vol. 2: A Tribute to Lisa Bonet by the hip-hop group Felt.
Mentioned in Dirt Nasty's song 1980. Walt Reeder
Morris Day - 2000 to present - Walt Reeder Entertainment
Day came out of his self-imposed retirement because of his fans' support. Day has remained a popular concert draw since the late 1990s, fronting a revamped lineup of The Time, including originals Jellybean Johnson on drums and Monte Moir on keyboards. The band was invited to perform on Prince's direct to video concert film, "Rave Un2 The Year 2000", in December 1999.
Day has also appeared regularly in local television commercials for a Toyota dealership in the Atlanta area.
As of 2007, Day is band leader on the TV One program Baisden After Dark.
He reunited with the original members of The Time after 18 years for a performance with Rihanna at the 50th Grammy Awards show.
Morris Day and The Time performed at the 2008 HR Florida State Conference.
Morris Day is now performing with his new band called The Original 7ven the band includes most of the members of the original band The Time hence the name.Walt Reeder
The new album was released in 2011 and is called Condensate. Walt Reeder Entertainment
