Earth Wind & Fire - 1971

The Album

Earth Wind and Fire's debut album wasn't
earth shattering or ground breaking.
It came in rather softly and somewhat quietly.

A solid album and one that fans a few years
later would kind of *go back to*, to check for
evidence, or clues of what was yet to come.

And there are plenty of them in this piece of
work. So much of this album is on the upside.

Although this group of people is somewhat
different from EWF in their heyday, Maurice's
vision, and his ideas for his group are all in
place. A rough cut, but definitely in place.

At this time, the group consisted of Maurice on
drums, percussion, kalimba, and vocals; Wade
Flemons on vocal, electric piano and Don
Whitehead on both electric and acoustic
piano and vocals.

Sherry Scott was also a vocalist. Verdine on
bass, with Michael Beal on guitar, Phillard
Williams on percussion and conga, Chester
Washington on reeds, Leslie Drayton on
trumpet, and finally Alex Thomas on trombone.

The album is maybe not great,
but definitely good.

The Songs

"Help Somebody" is the first song.
It has all the wonderful elemental components:
the horns, a nice chorus, and an uplifting message.
The first two songs on this album are along
the style, somewhat, in a small way, of
songs like "Africano", or "Power".

"Moment of Truth" is not bad either.
The vocals bring 'Sly and the Family Stone'
to mind, and it's nice, musically.

"Love is Life" is my favorite *sweet
song* of the album. However, a lot of the
vocals sound like they would be more
appealing in another key and possibly
more *upfront*.

"Fan the Fire" is a song with great
horns, with some of the little riffs or licks
(or whatever you call them) bringing
"Africano" to mind (particularly at the end).

"C'mon Children" although in my
opinion is the weakest track, has good
vocals, with plenty of funk and soul,
and a strong baseline.

"This World Today", is a song where
I can't, in retrospect, help wondering how
fantastic it would sound with Phil (Bailey)
performing the vocals! It's a pleasant,
rolling kind of song.

A bit basic, maybe a little simplistic, (even
the horns are so so) due somewhat to the
fact that they were just starting up, and a
lot due to the times. This song, and the entire
album is reminiscent of the era (the heavy use
of electric guitar, the lyrics dealing
with social issues, etc).

"Bad Tune" is what makes this debut
album complete. After all, it wouldn't be without
Maurice playing the kalimba. It has nice vocal
harmonies, and a spiritual feeling.

The Verdict

This album is a diamond in the rough, but
all the elements are there. I feel this was
a fine starter album, but they could have
left out those annoying interludes.

It's obvious they have not perfected THAT
side of their craft yet! As we know, those
interludes later on would become legitimately
entertaining snippets, instead of annoyances.

by Christina Riccardo

Album Singles

Love is Life - 1971