Earth, Wind & Fire drew from various streams of black music, synthesizing soul, funk, R&B, pop, gospel and African styles into a polished, precision-tooled approach. During the latter half of the Seventies, they issued a string of albums that changed the face of black popular music, linking thrilling music with uplifting messages of racial pride, African consciousness and spiritual unity. A large and visually resplendent ensemble, its members often wore colorful African robes. The group was known for employing magic tricks (often directed by the late Doug Henning) in their elaborate late-Seventies stage shows. Even so, the anthemic power of “Shining Star,” “Serpentine Fire,” “Getaway” and numerous other crossover hits proved that Earth, Wind & Fire’s music could stand on its own.

The group was founded by Memphis-born Maurice White, a session drummer who joined Chess Records’ studio band from 1963 to 1967. Following a stint with the Ramsey Lewis Trio, he formed Earth, Wind & Fire in Los Angeles in 1969. A definitive nine-man lineup coalesced in the early Seventies around a core of White, who sang and played the African kalimba; his bass-playing brother, Verdine White; and vocalist Philip Bailey. The group’s tight, punchy horn section became a featured attraction, but the musical currents ran deeply. “Our whole vision,” Bailey has commented, “derived from the greats before us: Miles Davis and John Coltrane and all the great singers…. We were jazz musicians at heart playing popular music.” Moreover, they were driven by idealism. “The essence of this band is hope,” White has said.

Earth, Wind & Fire attracted a then-untapped audience of hip, young urban audience of blacks and whites that reacted to the energetic music and charismatic presentation. Their breakthrough album, That’s the Way of the World (1975), yielded “Shining Star,” a Grammy Award-winning #1 hit on both the pop and R&B charts. Earth, Wind & Fire’s conquest of the Seventies continued with an unbroken run of multiplatinum albums: Gratitude (1975), Spirit (1976), All ‘n All (1977), The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 (1978) and I Am (1979).

delete reply sweetpotatoqueen wrote on Jun 5, ’08, edited on Jun 5, ’08 Laurita: I am huge EW&F fan! Let me tell you..their concerts are fabulous all these years later. Although they have aged they seem to just be getting better with time. It’s been a puzzle to me why they haven’t produced any new material over the years…they certainly could have a second surge of popularity much like Carlos Santana and others. Loved the song you choose!

edit delete reply lauritasita wrote on Jun 5, ’08 Thanks for your comment, sweetpopato. I love all the songs here I posted, but one of my very favorites is “That’s the Way of the World”.

delete reply welshdoug wrote on Jun 5, ’08 Not so much a fan of theirs, although they were head and shoulders above othere of their kind. I was more of a Parliament/Funkadelic fan

delete reply instrumentalpavilion wrote on Jun 5, ’08 If Yes were Black, they would have been EWF…! Thanks for the great post.

edit delete reply lauritasita wrote on Jun 6, ’08 As much as I loved the British invasion groups, the roots of many of those groups come from American blues groups. Even The Beatles have roots in Elvis and Chuck Berry. Jim Morrison admired Bo Diddley. I also love those old Motown bands.

delete reply instrumentalpavilion wrote on Jun 6, ’08 Same here.