Earth, Wind & Fire • Live On Stage

I thought it would be great to kick off the weekend with some live music from the immortal funk band, Earth, Wind & Fire. These men were incredible live, making tight harmonies some artists on the charts right now couldn't hit will all the autotune a producer could afford. This was from the mid to late 1970s. This clip features five great songs, all performed live and damn near perfectly! In the following clip, you will hear the 1973 single "Keep Your Head to the Sky", written by Maurice White; the 1974 single "Devotion", by Phillip Bailey and Maurice White; the 1975 single "Reasons", written by Phillip Bailey, Charles Stepney, and Maurice White; "That's the Way of the World", written by Charles Stepney, Maurice White, and Verdine White; and "Sing a Song", written by Maurice White and Al McKay. Crank the volume and be ready for fullscreen viewing!

You can find several of these song on 'Earth, Wind & Fire: Greatest Hits', available on iTunes and Amazon.To learn more about Earth, Wind & Fire, visit their official website. You can also "like" them on Facebook, and "follow" them on Twitter.

Earth, Wind & Fire • Part 2

Several weeks ago, I had a post about the great band Earth, Wind & Fire, which you can see here. I was planning to run a second post, and the time just escaped me. So, six or so weeks later, here we go with more songs that just make my soul a little lighter, my day a little brighter. If you remember, I can't think of the band without thinking of a high school teacher, Ms. Pinkett, who said they were her favorite band, and called the "the elements." That said, I will start with my memories of the Elements, and I know that dancing to Boogie Wonderland (featuring The Emotions) in 1979 is a good one, to be sure. The song, off the double Platinum-selling album I Am, soared up the charts, and made it to #6 on the US chart, and #4 on the Billboard UK chart.



Now, I remember this song so very well, but, to tell the truth, didn't from the title. But once I hit play on the video, I was up on my feet to dance, and snapping my fingers like I was an original member of the band. Sing a Song is a great song, but the title makes me the of the Carpenters first. By the second bar, I have forgotten that band, and focused all on the Elements. The song was off their 1975 live album Gratitude, which made it to #1 on the album charts. Gratitude sales went through the roof, as the album was certified triple Platinum. The single went to #5 on the Billboard Hot 100.



The band stretched their success into another decade with the 1981 hit, Let's Groove. If this doesn't get you off your butt and dancing, I don't know if anything could. The song was off the Platinum album Raise!. The single made it to #1 on the US R&B chart, #3 on the US Hot 100, and #3 on the UK Pop chart.



If there is a some that really appeals to my sentimental side, it has to be the 1978 hit, Fantasy. That was the year I graduated high school, and moved on to college, and Fantasy was playing everywhere, be it the parties of that summer, to the early dance/parties in my freshman year of college. I was stunned when I saw the song only made it to #32 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #12 on the R&B chart. It is a great song, and really deserved better. It was off the triple-Platinum All 'N All album. With no further delay, here is Earth, Wind & Fire singing Fantasy.



The band continues to tour today, although some of the original members have moved on, while others moved and and returned! To find out more about Earth, Wind & Fire, visit their official website here. You can find their music on iTunes, and on Amazon.

Worth Another Listen • Earth, Wind & Fire

When I hear the music of Earth, Wind & Fire, I immediately transport back to high school and a Social Studies teacher I had a Smyrna High, Ms. Pinkett. You see, Ms. Pinkett had a unique style, at least for this young man in the seventies. Ms. Pinkett was keeping it real, not letting the tradition role of teacher to take over her own personality. She was African American, but not the first African American I had as a teacher. But she was the first that would regularly use "Solid" in the classroom. And the first would would regularly quote 'the elements' in her class. Oh, she wasn't talking about the elements on the periodic table. No, she would quote the words of the songs of the elements, Earth, Wind & Fire. And one of the few Social Studies teachers I remember thirty-some-odd years later.



There are a couple of things I find remarkable about "the Elements." One is that they had many changes in the line up of the band so many times, yet the quality of the sound never changed. The first time I remember hearing Earth, Wind & Fire was in 1975 when they had their #1 hit, Shining Star.



In 1978, they brought another song to the Billboard Top 10, with a style only they could have. They combined Soul music with R&B with a Dance flair that was their own. They had their own take on the Beatles song Got to Get You into My Life, part of the great songbook of Lennon & McCartney. It was part of the Beatles' Revolver album released in 1966, and made it on the charts in 1976, a few years after the Beatles broke up. This version by Earth, Wind & Fire peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100.



The next single released by the band was the iconic September. The song, written by band founder Maurice White as members Al McKay & Allee Willis, was quite popular in the clubs, as well as on Pop radio. Released around Thanksgiving, is certainly could be heard through the holiday season. It made it to #8 on the Billboard US chart, and #3 on the UK Pop chart.



In 1979, they had another string of hits, including what might be a ballad for Earth, Wind & Fire, After the Love Has Gone. The song was written by legendary songwriter/producer David Foster as well as Jay Graydon and Bill Champlin, and produced by founder Maurice White. The song did well at the Grammy Awards, as it was nominated for Record of the Year and won for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. The song also won a Best R & B Song for Foster, Graydon and Champlin as its composers. It made it to #2 on the Billboard Hot Hot in the US, and to #4 on the UK charts.



To find out more about Earth, Wind & Fire, visit their official website here. You can find their music on iTunes here, and on Amazon here. The links will bring you to their Greatest Hits collection, and I know Ms. Pinkett will be thrilled you purchased it. And I hope she is glad I still remember her so fondly.