Earth, Wind and Fire

Earth, Wind & Fire
General information
Genre (s)	Funk , pop , fusion
founding	1969
Website	www.earthwindandfire.com
Founding members
Vocals , drums , kalimba	Maurice White († 2016)
Vibraphone, electric piano, vocals	Wade Flemons
singing	Don Whitehead
singing	Sherry Scott
percussion	Phillard Williams
guitar	Michael Beale
Saxophone, flute	Chester Washington
Trumpet	Leslie Drayton
trombone	Alex Thomas
bass	Verdine White
Current occupation
bass	Verdine White
Singing, congas , drums	Philip Bailey (since 1972)
Drums, vocals, percussion	Ralph Johnson (since 1972)
Percussion, vocals	B. David Whitworth (since 1996)
singing	Kim Johnson (since 2005)
saxophone	Gary Bias (since 1987)
Trumpet, flugelhorn	Bobby Burns (since 2004)
trombone	Reggie Young (since 1987)
former members
singing	Jessica Cleaves (1972)
Saxophone, flute	Ronnie Laws (1972)
Keyboard	Larry Dunn (from 1972)
guitar	Roland Bautista (1972–1973, 1981–1983)
guitar	Al McKay (1973-1981)
Drums	Fred (Freddie) White
Saxophone, flute, percussion	Andrew Woolfolk
guitar	Sheldon Reynolds
Drums	Sonny Emory (1987-1999)
Trumpet, flugelhorn	Ray Brown (1987-2004)
Said, keyboard	Robert Brookins (1999-2003)
Phenix Horns (1974-1981)
trombone	Louis Satterfield
Trumpet, flugelhorn	Michael Harris
Trumpet, flugelhorn	Rhamlee Michael Davis
saxophone	Don Myrick († 1993)
Trumpet	Elmar Brown (1979)

Earth, Wind & Fire is an American soul and funk band that was founded in 1969 in Chicago by jazz drummer Maurice White . In Germany her most successful pieces were September and Boogie Wonderland .

history

Their style is influenced by soul , funk , Motown , African elements ( Kalimba ) and modern pop rhythms that they gathered in the Christian communities around them. In particular, they became known for their brass section - the Phenix Horns . A distinctive feature of their sound is the falsetto singing of their singer Philip Bailey from Denver , who joined the group shortly after the first album was released.

After the first two albums, which had moderate success in the charts , Maurice White formed the band again. But their international success story only began in 1975 after the band released the soundtrack album That's the Way of the World for the film of the same name, in which they played a part. With the hit single Shining Star they were in the top 10 for weeks in many countries. The first big success came in the middle of the disco age with the Grammy albums All'N'All (1977) and I Am (1979). Of these albums, eight songs became top hits and topped the R&B charts: Can't Let Go , After the Love Has Gone , Fantasy , Wait , In the Stone , Boogie Wonderland , Star and You and I . The band had another top hit with the fast dance number September (1978), which was only released as a single and on the greatest hits album . Other big hits like Let's Groove (1981) followed.

The stage shows presented worldwide by Earth, Wind and Fire were particularly notable in the 1980s for their colorful, elaborate costumes and extraordinary choreography . Since 1998 Maurice White has not performed live with the band due to illness. After the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000, he announced that he had Parkinson's disease.

The other band members, above all Verdine White and Philip Bailey, decided to continue the band. Earth, Wind and Fire are still touring the world with great success and continue to record albums. Maurice White continued to be a member of the band until his death in 2016 and appeared on the studio recordings as a singer and producer. Occasionally he was also seen on stage, for example at the Grammy Awards in 2004 and during the Japan tour in the same year.

In November 2011 a new song was released with Guiding Lights (with Larry Dunn on keyboards). In September 2013 - eight years after the last studio album - Now, Then & Forever was released. The single My Promise was released on June 24th.

On the occasion of the Grammy Awards 2020 a tribute concert for Prince took place on January 28, 2020 in the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles under the motto "Let's Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince", with Earth, Wind and Fire the song Adore (1987) sang. The concert aired on U.S. television on April 21, 2020, the fourth anniversary of Prince's death.

Discography

→ Main article : Earth, Wind and Fire / Discography

year	Title music label	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, music label , placements, weeks, awards, notes)						Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	UK	US	R&B
1970	Earth, Wind & Fire Warner Music Group	-	-	-	-	US172 (13 weeks) US	R&B24 (17 weeks) R&B	First published: February 1971
1971	The Need of Love Warner Music Group	-	-	-	-	US89 (13 weeks) US	R&B35 (9 weeks) R&B	First published: November 1971
1972	Last Days and Time Columbia Records	-	-	-	-	US87 (25 weeks) US	R&B15 (31 weeks) R&B	First published: November 1972
1973	Head to the Sky Columbia Records	-	-	-	-	US27 platinum (71 weeks)US	R&B2 (49 weeks) R&B	First published: May 1973
1974	Open Our Eyes Columbia Records	-	-	-	-	US15th platinum (37 weeks)US	R&B1 (38 weeks) R&B	First published: March 25, 1974
1975	That's the way of the World Columbia Records	-	-	-	-	US1 × 3 Triple platinum (55 weeks)US	R&B1 (33 weeks) R&B	First release: March 15, 1975 Soundtrack for the film of the same name, number 486 of the Rolling Stone 500
1976	Spirit Columbia Records	-	-	-	-	US2 × 2 Double platinum (30 weeks)US	R&B2 (28 weeks) R&B	First published: September 1976
1977	All 'n All Columbia Records	-	-	-	UK13 silver (23 weeks)UK	US3 × 3 Triple platinum (47 weeks)US	R&B1 (38 weeks) R&B	First published: November 21, 1977 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals ( 1979 )
1979	I am American Record Company	DE20 (18 weeks) DE	-	-	UK5 platinum (41 weeks)UK	US3 × 2 Double platinum (38 weeks)US	R&B1 (37 weeks) R&B	First published: June 9, 1979
1980	Faces American Record Company	DE46 (5 weeks) DE	-	-	UK10 (6 weeks) UK	US10 gold (21 weeks)US	R&B2 (22 weeks) R&B	First published: October 14, 1980
1981	Raise! American Record Company	DE30 (23 weeks) DE	-	CH- gold CH	UK14th gold (22 weeks)UK	US5 platinum (25 weeks)US	R&B1 (29 weeks) R&B	First published: November 14, 1981
1983	Powerlight Columbia Records	DE13 (13 weeks) DE	-	-	UK22 (6 weeks) UK	US12 gold (21 weeks)US	R&B4 (25 weeks) R&B	First published: February 3, 1983
	Electric Universe Columbia Records	DE37 (3 weeks) DE	-	CH22 (2 weeks) CH	-	US40 (16 weeks) US	R&B8 (21 weeks) R&B	First published: November 4, 1983
1987	Touch the World Columbia Records	DE42 (3 weeks) DE	-	CH25 (2 weeks) CH	-	US33 gold (28 weeks)US	R&B3 (31 weeks) R&B	First published: October 1987
1990	Heritage Columbia Records	DE39 (10 weeks) DE	-	-	-	US70 (11 weeks) US	R&B19 (20 weeks) R&B	First published: January 1990
1993	Millennium Reprise Records	-	-	-	-	US39 (11 weeks) US	R&B8 (24 weeks) R&B	First published: September 14, 1993
1997	In the Name of Love Rhino Records	-	-	-	-	-	R&B50 (11 weeks) R&B	First published: July 24, 1996; as an avatar in Japan
2003	The Promise Kalimba Records	-	-	-	-	US89 (4 weeks) US	R&B19 (9 weeks) R&B	First published: May 20, 2003
2005	Illumination Sanctuary Records	-	-	-	-	US32 (6 weeks) US	R&B8 (19 weeks) R&B	First published: September 20, 2005
2013	Now, Then & Forever Legacy Recordings	DE55 (1 week) DE	AT75 (1 week) AT	CH85 (1 week) CH	UK25th silver (3 weeks)UK	US11 (5 weeks) US	R&B6 (11 weeks) R&B	First published: September 10, 2013
2014	Holiday Legacy Recordings	-	-	-	-	-	R&B26 (10 weeks) R&B	First release: October 21, 2014 Christmas album

gray hatching : no chart data available for this year

literature

• Stambler, Irwin: The Encyclopedia Of Pop, Rock And Soul . 3rd Revised Edition, New York City, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1989, pp. 204-206 - ISBN 0-312-02573-4

Web links

Commons : Earth, Wind and Fire  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Official website
• EW&F in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Individual evidence

Munich Olympic Walk of Stars

1. ↑ New Single ( Memento of the original from November 22, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
2. ↑ youtube.com: Earth, Wind & Fire - My Promise (Audio) (accessed on July 21, 2013)
3. ↑ Chuck Arnold: Grammy salute 'Let's Go Crazy' proves nothing compares 2 Prince. In: nypost.com. April 21, 2020, accessed April 24, 2020 . 
4. ↑ admin: The Best Moments From 'Let's Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute To Prince' [Videos]. In: liveforlivemusic.com. April 21, 2020, accessed April 24, 2020 . 
5. ↑ Chart sources: DE AT CH UK US
6. ^ The Billboard Albums by Joel Whitburn , 6th Edition, Record Research 2006, ISBN 0-89820-166-7 .
7. ^ Joel Whitburn : Top R&B Albums 1965–1998, ISBN 0-89820-134-9 .