Slave was an Ohio funk band popular in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Trumpeter Steve Washington, born in New Jersey, attended highly athlethically aclaimmed East Orange High School, and was one of the first users of the "electric trumpet. He and Mark Hicks (Drac) formed the group in Dayton, Ohio in 1975.

 

Trombonist Floyd Miller teamed with Tom Lockett Jr. (tenor & alto sax), Carter Bradley (keyboards), Mark Adams (bass), Mark Hicks (lead and rhythm guitar, background vocals), Danny Webster (rhythm and lead guitar, lead and background vocals), Orion Wilhoite (keyboards) and Tim Dozier (drums). 

Drummer/percussionist Steve Arrington, along with vocalists 

Starleana Young, then Curt Jones and keyboardist Ray Turner came aboard in 1978, with Arrington ultimately becoming lead vocalist. Their first big hit was the single"Slide" in 1977 for Cotillion Records, where they remained until 1984. Their best work was usually based on bass licks and the band's general arrangements emphasis on the rhythm section and soaring lead vocals. Other Top Ten R&B hits were "Just a Touch of Love" in 1979, "Watching You" in 1980, and "Snap Shot" in 1981. They added Charles Carter on sax and brother Sam Carter on keyboards. Young, Washington, Jones and Lockett departed to form Aurra in 1981. Slave added Roger Parker, Delbert Taylor, Jr., and Kevin Johnson as replacements. Arrington himself left in 1982 after the Showtime album. The band continued on, though much less successfully, into the late 1980s.

 

They moved to Atlantic Records for one LP (New Plateau) in 1984, then switched to the Atlanta-based Ichiban Records the following year, releasing Unchained at Last in late 1985. Despite scoring a couple of minor hits on the R&B chart from this album the following year and another minor hit from their 1987 follow-up album, Make Believe, Slave could not recapture the commercial success they had enjoyed in their heyday. Their most recent release was The Funk Strikes Back in 1992.