Earth, Wind & Fire

Earth, Wind & Fire was a legendary American funk band, formed in Chicago in 1969. Bandleader Maurice White[?] began his recording career as a session drummer, working for Chess Records; he soon joined the Ramsey Lewis Trio[?]. He formed a band called The Salty Peppers and signed to Capitol Records, releasing a regionally successful single called "La La Time".

White moved his band to Los Angeles and changed the name to Earth, Wind & Fire. Their self-titled album, Earth, Wind & Fire, was released in 1970 to great critical acclaim, as was The Need of Love[?] (1971); neither were commercially successful. In 1972, White dissolved the line-up (minus himself and brother Verdine[?]), and added Jessica Cleaves[?] (vocals), Ronnie Laws[?] (flute, saxophone), Larry Dunn[?] (keyboard), Ralph Johnson[?] (percussion) and Philip Bailey[?] (vocals, of Friends & Love[?]). The new line-up signed to CBS Records[?] and released Last Days and Time[?] without much success. Laws and Bautista were replaced by Andrew Woolfolk[?] and Al McKay[?] and Johnny Graham[?]. Head to the Sky[?] (1973) was a moderate success, but 1974's Open Our Eyes[?] was a major hit.

Earth, Wind & Fire's breakthrough success, however, was the soundtrack to That's the Way of the World[?]. Though the film was not a success, "Shining Star" became a huge mainstream hit and launched the band's career. After a series of critically and popularly acclaimed albums and singles, Faces[?] (1980) finally showed the group's success beginning to wane. White disbanded the group in 1983 after Electric Universe[?] was released to poor sales and reviews.

A 1987 reunion almost recreated a career, but Earth, Wind & Fire has not achieved mainstream success since the 1970s. They have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.