The Best Of Earth, Wind & Fire Volume 1 [Remaster]

Performer: Earth, Wind & Fire
Engineer: George Calle; Mauro DeSantis; Alan Hewitt; Maurice White; Paul Klingberg
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: Earth, Wind & Fire: Maurice White (vocals, kalimba, drums); Verdine White (vocals, bass, percussion); Philip Bailey (vocals, congas, percussion); Al McKay (guitar, percussion, background vocals); Johnny Graham (guitar, percussion); Andrew Woolfolk (flute, soprano & tenor saxophones); Larry Dunn (piano, organ, synthesizer); Charles Stepney (piano, programming); Ralph Johnson (drums, percussion). Producers: Charles Stepney, Joe Wissert, Maurice White. Reissue producer: Leo Sacks. Includes interviews with Maurice White, Verdine White and Phillip Bailey conducted by Leo Sacks. Digitally remastered by Mark Wilder (Sony Music Studios, New York, New York. Personnel: Maurice White (vocals, drums); Alan Hewitt (keyboards, programming). Audio Mixers: George Calle; Mauro DeSantis; Alan Hewitt; Maurice White; Paul Klingberg. Liner Note Authors: Leo Sacks; Maurice White; Philip Bailey; Verdine White. Recording information: Magnet Vision Studios, Santa Monica, CA; Stereosonic Studios, Hoboken, NJ. Directors: Art Macnow; Richard Salvato. Photographers: David Gahr; Chris Walter; Jim Shea. Arrangers: Earth, Wind & Fire; Maurice White; Charles Stepney. When it was originally released in 1978, The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 was a succinct, ten-track collection of the group's best and biggest singles up to that point. There was one brand-new song, the excellent "September," which soon became a hit in its own right, plus the non-LP Beatles cover "Got to Get You Into My Life," which was recorded for the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band film, makes its first appearance on an EWF album here. EWF's commercial prime hadn't yet ended when this collection appeared; thus, it's missing several crucial latter-day hits, including the slinky funk of "Serpentine Fire," the ballad "After the Love Has Gone," and the disco smashes "Let's Groove" and "Boogie Wonderland." But even if it's an incomplete hits collection, The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 still ranks as a strong encapsulation of EWF the funk innovators. The singles gathered here constitute some of the richest, most sophisticated music the funk movement ever produced; when the absolute cream of the group's catalog is heard in such a concentrated fashion, the effect is dazzling. That's why The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 was remastered and reissued along with the rest of EWF's catalog, even though it's been supplanted by more extensive single-disc (Greatest Hits), double-disc (The Essential Earth, Wind & Fire), and triple-disc (The Eternal Dance) anthologies. 1998's Greatest Hits now stands as the definitive single-disc EWF overview, but for the budget-minded and the disco-phobic, this still makes for an excellent listen. ~ Steve Huey The vocals, drumming, and production of Maurice White. The soaring falsetto of Philip Bailey. The fat, thumping basslines of Verdine White. That fantastic, piercing brass. All these ingredients combine to make Earth, Wind & Fire one of the premier R&B/jazz/funk bands of the 20th century and beyond. Compilation producer Leo Sacks has expertly remastered THE BEST OF to superior sonic quality and added two bonus tracks to boot. "Got to Get You Into My Life" is a jazzy, soulfully swingin' take on the Lennon/McCartney composition. "Fantasy," perhaps the band's finest moment, combines stylistic percussion with inspiring harmonies. "Can't Hide Love" is finely crafted R&B sharpened to a glistening point by a tight horn section. "Love Music" is an uplifting groove that sounds brand new decades later. "Reasons" is a perfect R&B ballad, and Philip Bailey explains in the liner notes that though it's become a wedding song, it's really about a one-night stand. The explosive, funky "Shining Star" exudes spirituality. A bonus "Megamix 2000" (and edit) are included and combine various tunes into a club mix. THE BEST OF is a great overview of these Rock and Roll Hall of Famers.

Earth, Wind & Fire was the brainchild of musical Renaissance man Maurice White, a successful ex-session drummer who recorded with everyone from Chuck Berry to John Coltrane. Essentially an R&B group, Earth, Wind & Fire expanded its sound to include elements of jazz, rock, funk, traditional African, Latin, and just about every other kind of music. The band was noted for its elaborate stage shows and quasi-mystical thematic influence, but avoided slipping into George Clinton-like self-parody by wisely choosing to emphasize its musicianship and sharp writing. It scored hit after hit throughout the 1970s, doing much to define the sound of that decade.

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