Save Ferris “Reunion Show” Not Actually a Reunion, We Ask the Band to Find Out Why

On Monday, a presale for OC Fair's Pacific Amphitheater series came up advertising a Save Ferris with The English Beat and The Originalites lineup for July 27. For the kids who remember the 1990s, it was a huge deal. Save Ferris was a big, big band  during ska's heyday, almost (but of course not quite like) No Doubt. No one really knows how they broke up, but when the annoucement went up, Facebook was immediately atwitter (hah! see what I did there?) with comments from the kids from the '90s, messaging each other to a) make sure it was the whole band and 2) buy tickets. 

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Tuesday night, the Save Ferris Official Page on Facebook posted this:

ORIGINAL “SAVE FERRIS” BAND MEMBERS DEBUNK ANNOUNCEMENT OF “REUNION SHOW”

Anaheim, CA, April 9, 2013 – To Our Fans: It was brought to our attention that on or about April 8, 2013 Monique Powell, the former singer for the band “Save Ferris,” announced that a Save Ferris “reunion show” would be taking place at the Orange County Fairgrounds on July 27, 2013. We feel it is important that fans of the band Save Ferris know that this is NOT a reunion show and the show will NOT include any original or former Band member other than Monique Powell. We have not authorized Monique Powell to perform under the name Save Ferris and the original and former Band members regret any confusion to our fans that may be caused as a result of any misleading statements or marketing materials disseminated by Ms. Powell or any other parties connected to this concert engagement. From what we can infer by the marketing and advertising materials we have seen thus far, this engagement is simply a Monique Powell performance of Save Ferris material accompanied by various musicians, who are unknown to the Band.

Due to the large number of inquiries we have received about this subject matter, we felt it was appropriate to release this statement to better clarify the participants of this event so that the public and our loyal fans can make an informed decision regarding whether to attend the event.

Although we would like to perform an actual “reunion show” at some point in time featuring the original and former Band members, we would like to take this opportunity now to thank all of the Save Ferris fans who have continued to support our music and the Band over the years. Thank you!

Bill Uechi

Eric Zamora

Brian Mashburn

Brian “Tbone Willy” Williams.

Evan Kilbourne

Oliver Zavala

We caught up with Save Ferris' main songwriter and guitarist Brian Mashburn to elaborate on the statement….

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OC Weekly: What exactly happened and why did you release that statement?
Brian Mashburn: On Monday we found out that Monique Powell scheduled a Save Ferris “Reunion” show without inviting or telling any of the original band members. And because word spreads so quickly on social media these days and pre-sale tickets were going on sale Wednesday, the band wanted to do the responsible thing and inform the public and its fans before they purchased tickets that this wasn't a “reunion” show and didn't involve any band members other than Monique.

It begs the question then, who owns the rights to the Save Ferris name and the songs?

Unfortunately we can not make a statement at this time because the name is a legal issue that the band thought was settled a long time ago and is currently being handled by our attorney so at the moment we would prefer to keep that a private matter between the parties.

The majority of the songs were either written by [me] Brian Mashburn solely, or co-written by Brian Mashburn and Monique Powell. 

Is the band not on good terms? Would there EVER be a reunion? I guess the excitement over the show announcement showed that there's a real interest in seeing a show with all the original members happen.

A proper reunion show would have been the best thing for the fans. It would have been something the band members would have been interested in playing. Unfortunately, Monique Powell scheduled a Save Ferris “Reunion” show without inviting or telling any of the original band members.

We reached out to Monique Powell, and while she was not available to talk, she did post a response on her Facebook page on Wednesday night: 

Apologies for not posting something sooner, I came down with a nasty case of the flu last night…

So the pre-sale tix went up this morning and based on the FB messages I've received, a lot of you took advantage! Thank you so much, this is going to be a great show!

Just to clear up any misinformation that may be out there — while I had hoped this could be a reunion of sorts with all, or some, of my former SF band members, unfortunately that isn't the way it looks to be turning out. Some of my former band mates are currently in a band of their own which they are fully committed to and which I completely respect. While I am certainly disappointed that they won't be joining me, I wish them all the best always.

Ok, so back to the show — i'm getting together a great group of musicians who are my friends and we are going to put on the best show ever! It's been 10 years since I've performed these songs and recently I had major spinal surgery. Because of great doctors and physical therapy, I am feeling like a miracle. I am able to walk and to sing and I have finally recovered and I can't WAIT to put on the best show for you guys…thanks for sticking around and for continuing to support me and my music.

I'll see you all in July at the Fair!

Mo.

Lilledeshan Bose