But his impact on today's superstars - like Usher, Alicia Keys, The Weeknd and Sam Smith - can't be underestimated, thanks to the lasting power of Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite, his 1996 album credited for revolutionising R&B and inventing the genre "neo-soul".
The forced follow-up, 1998's Embrya, didn't fare nearly as well, and the critical backlash that followed its release is something Maxwell has never recovered from.
"It's very stressful to release work you know everyone's going to be criticising against, everything you've ever done before," he says. "You just have to prepare yourself for the possible letdown, or the triumphs."
To that end, he has taken years off to recover from the stresses of recording and touring. One break lasted seven years, and he says he'd never be able to produce the amount of material expected by today's R&B stars.
"I'm just not the kind of guy who releases an album every year.
"I feel bad to not release things like Rihanna does every year, but I'm just not like that. I'm not built to produce," he says.
"It's important to me to enjoy my time as a person in the world as much as it is to enjoy my time as a person who produces music in the world. Dare I say it, it's just how I am."
That means Maxwell's fans have faced agonising waits for new music. His acclaimed 2009 album BLACKsummers'night was originally scheduled for release in 2004, the first of a proposed trilogy that has never materialised.
He says he's nearly finished the second instalment with a 2015 release pencilled in, but says touring commitments may delay it.
Yes, Maxwell admits, he's a perfectionist. That means he finds recording new music that lives up to his back catalogue almost overwhelming.
"It's not really easy for me to work in the studio, I'm usually thinking about all the pressure of it.
I have more pressure to be better every time I do something. It's kind of like what an athlete goes through: if you dunk 500 times this season, you're expected to dunk 600 times the next season. If you only make half that mark, people say you're unsuccessful."
But new music is in the works, and fans might get to hear some of it when Maxwell headlines Auckland's Soulfest on October 26, alongside like-minded souls D'Angelo, Common, Angie Stone and Musiq Soulchild.
"I'm going to play as much as has been known, then feel it out and drop something new," he says. "It's been 20 years of me making music and I've never been to New Zealand ... I want everyone to have a good time." Even if he's not having one himself.
But, near the end of our interview, Maxwell's mood suddenly brightens, and he says something that gives a sense of what he tries to capture through his tunes.
"I love music. It's amazing to me. It makes everything feel like a fairy tale, when you can play that song you like and keep repeating it to the point where you just run it to the ground. It's something that I really enjoy doing.
"Maybe I should just be relaxed about it, and say, 'Whatever you've done, you've done it well. Stop oppressing yourself."
Sounds like good advice. Let's hope Maxwell stops stressing and learns to take it.
Who: Maxwell
Where and when: Soulfest, Western Springs Stadium, Auckland, October 26 with D'Angelo, Common, Mos Def, Anthony Hamilton, Angie Stone & Musiq Soulchild.
Essential listening: Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite (1996), BLACKsummers'night (2009)
- TimeOut
