Becoming one of the "most commercially successful Black bands of the '70s and '80s" was far from an overnight accomplishment for the L.A. by-way-of Chicago soul, jazz, and funk band Earth, Wind & Fire. Years of toiling to distinguish their sound from their contemporaries in the 1970s and '80s eventually gave the world timeless hits like "Shining Star," "September," and "Sing A Song."
EWF will be the subject of a television special airing Sunday, Sept. 21. "A GRAMMY Salute to Earth, Wind & Fire Live: The 21st Night of September" will air from 8-10 p.m. (ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network and stream on Paramount+. Filmed at the Hollywood Bowl with the L.A. Philharmonic, "A GRAMMY Salute to Earth, Wind & Fire Live" will celebrate the group’s cultural impact and timeless sound with hit songs and special guests. Stevie Wonder, the Jonas Brothers, Jon Batiste, and Janelle Monáe are among the artists making special appearances.
Earth, Wind and Fire's enduring legacy began with Maurice White. Before founding the band, Maurice had been a Chess Records session drummer and member of the Ramsey Lewis Trio from 1966 to 1970. His time with Ramsey especially inspired White of the "promise in presenting jazz and gospel with a pop touch." In his essay for EWF’s Rock N Roll Hall of Fame induction, Harry Weinger writes that when White left Chicago for Los Angeles, he and his brothers Fred and Verdine, longed to infuse the influences of the Black consciousness movement with a "mix of the kalimba, Black Power, jazz and a funky bottom." Earth, Wind & Fire signed to Warner Bros in 1970 on the strength of demos made with Verdine on bass and Donny Hathaway on vocals.
EWF's 1971 self-titled debut was a frenetic blend of soul, funk, gospel, and jazz that garnered many comparisons to Blood, Sweat, and Tears, and Chicago. That same year, Earth, Wind & Fire performed the soundtrack to Mario Van Peebles’ film Sweet Sweetback’s Badasssss Song and a second, more free-jazz leaning record titled The Need Of Love. Neither record produced a single that broke the Top 10, and frustrations led to a split with only Verdine and Maurice left to rebuild the band.
But, the regroup led to the inclusion of flutist and saxophonist Ronny Laws, longtime keyboardist Larry Dunn, and the four-octave vocals that would become a staple of the band in Philip Bailey. After a Rockefeller Center performance, Columbia Records President Clive Davis signed the remounted group. The next three records continued to receive critical praise, but EWF were still hunting a breakthrough song (they inched closer with 1974's "Mighty Mighty," which hit No. 4 on the Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart and No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100).
Their star rose further through a collaboration with Ramsey Lewis, who was seeking a new sound and hired the band to play on his jazz-funk album Sun Goddess. The album was a crossover hit peaking at No. 12 on the pop album charts, while the title track featuring Bailey’s vocals charted in R&B, pop, and disco. The momentum set the stage for That’s The Way of the World, technically the group’s second soundtrack, the addition of the third White brother, Fred, on drums, and the beginning of a new sound pioneered by producer Charles Stepney.
With Stepney joining Maurice behind the boards, EWF had the balance and movement to handle its myriad sonic influences. 1975's That’s The Way of the World went triple platinum and Stepney went to work on the live album Gratitude, which includes "Sing A Song," and their seventh studio album Spirit. But, in 1976, Stepney suffered his second heart attack in less than a year and died. Maurice White was forced to finish Spirit without his new producing partner; he dedicated the album to his fallen friend.
By 1977, EWF bounced back with All ‘N All, their eighth studio album. "Serpentine Fire" and "Fantasy" were commercial hits that propelled the album to triple platinum certification and earned the group two GRAMMY Awards. A cover of the Beatles' "Got To Get You Into My Life" further fueled their crossover status, as a mainstream commercial success. All in all, the group has released 23 studio albums and toured the world many times over.
Six golden gramophones and 18 nominations, a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award, two GRAMMY Hall of Fame-inducted recordings, Congressional Horizon Award, Kennedy Center Honors, and numerous other accolades later, Earth, Wind & Fire remain one of the most influential bands of all time.
It’s nearly impossible to select just 10 essential Earth Wind & Fire songs, but these 10 will never disappoint.
"Energy" (The Need Of Love, 1971)
In the early days of experimentation, Earth, Wind & Fire would stretch out with lengthy jams that combined spoken word, free jazz, and R&B. "Energy" might wear its influences nakedly — there’s a great deal of Parliament, Sly & The Family Stone and John Coltrane — but it’s in that freewheeling mess of avant garde and groove that EWF prove their fearlessness and creative intensity.
A song like "Energy" is chaotic and resistant to pop sensibilities, but never strays too far from Verdine White’s infectious groove. There’s an interest in connecting through rhythm that hasn’t become the band’s guiding light yet, but it’s inherent and inescapable as long as Verdine maintains that funky bassline.
"Shining Star"’ (That’s The Way Of The World, 1975)
The vamping in the first eight seconds of "Shining Star" feels like a warning of "here we come" — these are the licks revving up a rebirth — and EWF delivers with a horn blast that hits like the big bang. In fact, Maurice White was stargazing in Colorado and thinking of his bandmates when he got the idea for the song during their three-week recording sessions at Caribou Ranch recording studio.
"Shining Star" didn’t just prove their inner potential. The lead single from That’s The Way Of The World skyrocketed EWF to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Soul Singles charts — the band’s first ever appearance. "Shining Star" earned EWF their first-ever GRAMMY Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance By A Duo, Group Or Chorus and in 2008 it was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall of Fame. The success of the single and the album changed the trajectory of EWF who could now afford to hire their own horn section, which they named the Phenix Horns.
"That’s The Way of the World" (That’s The Way Of The World)
EWF’s mid-tempo to slow jam songwriting has always been instrumental in their success, even if fewer of those tracks reached the charts. Songs like "Beauty" off The Need Of Love and "Keep Your Head To The Sky" off Head To The Sky, used slower tempos to land messages of empowerment and the recognition of Earth as a god-given garden no matter our troubles. From the very beginning Maurice White insisted that his bandmates be devoted vegetarians, also no drinking or drugs, and he was personally interested in astrological studies.
"That’s The Way Of The World" hones in those messages, transmuting them into group vocals that coast in on a cooled out beat of muted horns and finger snaps to declare "That's the way / Of the world / Plant your flower / And you grow a pearl." The album That’s The Way Of The World was already a success, but the eponymous single gave a second wind to its meteoric rise. The album was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall of Fame in 2004.
"Fantasy" (All ‘N All, 1977)
Maurice White’s month-long travels to Argentina and Brazil transformed the EWF sound on All ‘N All, the group’s eighth studio album. Disco might have been dominating the airwaves in 1978, but White remained on his own experiential plane that combined his trademark kalimba with the influence of Afro-Brazilian rhythms and inspiration from watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind. As a result, "Fantasy" has its own space and wavelength.
All ‘N All received three GRAMMY nominations that year, taking home two golden gramophones for Best R&B Vocal Performance By A Duo, Group Or Chorus and the other for "Runnin’" for Best R&B Instrumental Performance, a recognition that is underrated in their catalog. But fans who play their full albums know that an EWF instrumental can often be a spiritual workout that illustrates the magnitude of their musical abilities.
"September" (The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. I, 1978)
The expectation of a "best of" or "greatest hits" record typically amounts to a compilation cash-grab by the record label to appeal to the casual fans who want all their favorite singles in one record. But, The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. I included two new songs, along with a cover of the Beatles’ "Got To Get You Into My Life."
The Best of… compilation was certified 5x platinum, but the true gem was "September," which took on a mysterious life of its own as fans pondered the significance of the "21st night of September." Speaking to NPR in 2014, co-songwriter Allee Willis revealed that it was simply the numerical that fit best to the beat. As for the "ba-dee-ya" nonsense, she tried to convince Maurice White to change it. Finally fed up, she said, "'What the f— does 'ba-dee-ya' mean?", to which White replied, "Who the f— cares?'" Willis took the lesson, as no matter what, never interfere with the groove.
"Boogie Wonderland" feat. The Emotions (I AM, 1979)
Earth, Wind & Fire’s disco hit might have perfectly encapsulated the expectations of the genre, but EWF could always sneak their perspective into an otherwise escapist dance genre.
The straight four-on-the-floor disco rhythm might betray EWF’s identity as progressive pushers, even Maurice White’s trademark kalimba is absent, but it also stands as a testament that even when EWF are less expressionistic in their songwriting, could still become an anthem for the times. In this case, the Studio 54 crowd. While "Boogie Wonderland" didn’t take home the award for Best Disco Recording, the composition earned EWF their second GRAMMY Award for Best R&B Instrumental Performance and their fourth GRAMMY win in total.
The pairing of EWF with the r&b girl-group the Emotions was the result of strong ties between two groups originating from Chicago that both signed to Columbia Records. Maurice White produced several of the Hutchinson sisters’ albums, including their breakout record Flowers alongside Stepney, and won a GRAMMY for Best R&B Performance By A Duo or Group with Vocals with The Emotions for "Best of My Love" in 1977.
"After The Love Is Gone" (I AM)
One of the group’s most recognizable ballads came from a song that languished for years by the songwriter David Foster, who adlibbed the chorus in a pitch meeting to Motown Records executives in 1976. In 1978, Foster showed the song to Maurice White while the group was working on their record I AM. White loved the song.
Clocking in at four minutes, "After The Love Is Gone" builds and builds with Maurice guiding the narrative, and Philip Bailey coming in to elevate the emotional intensity on the chorus with his falsetto. On I AM, the bongos from "Let Your Feelings Show" bleed right into the saxophone outro of "After The Love Is Gone" creating a powerful one-two punch of heartbreak to resolution and celebration of not hiding one’s troubles from the world. "After The Love Is Gone" was nominated for Record Of The Year and won Best R&B Vocal Performance By A Duo, Group Or Chorus. It was EWF’s biggest year at Music's Biggest Night; Maure White was also up for Producer Of The Year, while Foster’s songwriting for "After The Love Has Gone" was nominated in three Categories and won for Best Rhythm & Blues Song.
"Let Me Talk" (Faces,1980)
As many of their contemporaries were embracing synthesizers for a post-disco sound, Earth, Wind & Fire half-embraced the sound du jour on 1980’s Faces. Album opener "Let Me Talk" puts Maurice White’s kalimba back into the forefront of their sound, while Larry Dunn accompanies on both piano and synthesizers across the record.
The single proved that despite the disco escapism of their previous hit, EWF were still a politically outspoken group that would not shy from including social commentary. In this case, they encourage people to unite against corporate greed and inflation in their pop music.
"Let’s Groove" (Raise!, 1981)
On Raise! EWF fully embraced the electronic sound of post-disco funk, as even Verdine White’s bass sounds juiced up with an electro thump. "Let's Groove" is yet another timeless staple that sets the party off from the opening licks, which arrives through the robotic vocoder of "we can boogie down, down up on down."
The GRAMMY-nominated track is unrelenting in its infectiousness, as Verdine’s bass sustains a hypnotic vibration that Philip Bailey’s falsetto glides over. Critics were torn over the single, though "Let’s Groove" remains a permanent fixture in live performances. Another cut off Raise!, "Wanna Be With You," won a GRAMMY in 1983.
"Fall In Love With Me" (Powerlight, 1983)
On Earth, Wind & Fire’s twelfth studio album in twelve years, Powerlight proved there was still plenty of gas in the tank for the White brothers and company. All the quintessential EWF hit-makers are in play: the soaring group vocals, signature Maurice White "bah bah bah" fills, a Verdine bassline that just won’t quit. A hallmark of the group's post-disco era, the Phenix Horns are the only texture on "Fall In Love With Me" that is not electronic.
Album sales might have suggested a loss of momentum, as Powerlight only reaching certified gold in sales, but EWF were still collecting GRAMMY nominations, as "Fall In Love With Me" was up for Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal at the 1984 GRAMMYs.
As a testament to EWF’s legacy that continues to reach subsequent generations, Powerlight has since found a second life in the last decade, as boogie funk DJ communities in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and overseas give this record burn on dancefloors throughout the globe.