Earth Wind & Fire – The Best Of Vol 1
(CBS Records 1978 83284)
Matrix No’s: A4/B4 – UK Pressing
Gatefold Sleeve in Excellent condition
– some wear to edges/corners, tiny name written inside gatefold
Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
(there are some surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality – name on side 1 label)
Earth, Wind & Fire (EWF) is an American band that has spanned the musical genres of R&B, soul, funk, jazz, disco, pop, rock, Latin and African. They are one of the most successful bands of all time. Rolling Stone Magazine described them as “innovative, precise yet sensual, calculated yet galvanizing” and declared that the band “changed the sound of black pop”.
The band was founded in Chicago by Maurice White in 1971, having grown out of a previous band known as The Salty Peppers. Other members have included Philip Bailey, Verdine White, Ralph Johnson, Larry Dunn, Al McKay and Andrew Woolfolk. The band has received 20 Grammy nominations; they won six as a group and two of its members, Maurice White and Bailey, won separate individual awards. Earth, Wind & Fire have 12 American Music Awards nominations and four awards. They have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and sold over 100 million records, making them one of the world’s best-selling bands of all time. Five members of Earth, Wind & Fire were also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame: Maurice White, Philip Bailey, Verdine White, Larry Dunn and Al McKay. The music industry and fans have bestowed Lifetime Achievement honors from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (Rhythm & Soul Heritage Award – 2002), NAACP (Hall of Fame – 1994) and the BET Awards (Lifetime Achievement Award – 2002).
The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 is an album by the band Earth, Wind & Fire issued in 1978 by Columbia Records. The album rose to Nos. 3 & 6 on the Billboard Top Soul Albums and Billboard 200 charts respectively. The album has been certified Quintuple Platinum in the US by the RIAA, as well as Platinum in the UK and Canada, by the BPI and Music Canada, respectively.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Got to Get You Into My Life” (From Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (soundtrack), 1978) | John Lennon, Paul McCartney | 4:03 |
| 2. | “Fantasy” (From All ‘n All, 1977) | Eduardo Del Barrio, Maurice White, Verdine White | 3:46 |
| 3. | “Can’t Hide Love” (From Gratitude, 1975) | Skip Scarborough | 4:10 |
| 4. | “Love Music” (Previously unreleased) | Skip Scarborough | 3:55 |
| 5. | “Getaway” (From Spirit, 1976) | Peter Cor, Bernard “Beloyd” Taylor | 3:46 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | “That’s the Way of the World” (From That’s the Way of the World, 1975) | Charles Stepney, Maurice White, Verdine White | 5:46 |
| 7. | “September” (Previously unreleased) | Al McKay, Allee Willis, Maurice White | 3:36 |
| 8. | “Shining Star” (From That’s the Way of the World, 1975) | Philip Bailey, Larry Dunn, Maurice White | 2:50 |
| 9. | “Reasons” (From That’s the Way of the World, 1975) | Philip Bailey, Charles Stepney, Maurice White | 4:59 |
| 10. | “Sing a Song” (From Gratitude, 1975) | Al McKay, Maurice White | 3:23 |
Personnel
Performance
- Philip Bailey – vocals, congas, percussion
- Rhamlee Michael Davis – trumpet, flugelhorn
- Larry Dunn – Moog synthesizer, piano, organ
- Johnny Graham – guitar, percussion
- Michael Harris – trumpet, flugelhorn
- Alan Hewitt – keyboards (11)
- Ralph Johnson – drums, percussion
- Al McKay – vocals, guitar, percussion
- Don Myrick – additional saxophone
- Louis Satterfield – trombone
- Dick Smith – guitar
- Charles Stepney – piano
- Fred White – drums
- Maurice White – vocals, drums, kalimba
- Verdine White – vocals, bass guitar, percussion
- Andrew Woolfolk – soprano saxophone, flute
Production
- Earth, Wind & Fire – musical arrangements (3, 6, 8-10)
- Philip Bailey – liner notes
- George Calle – producer, recording engineer, audio mixing (12)
- Mauro DeSantis – producer, recording engineer, audio mixing (12)
- Larry Dunn – production assistant (2)
- Howard Fritzson – art direction
- David Gahr – Photography
- Alan Hewitt – music programming, producer, recording engineer, audio mixing (11)
- Paul Klingberg – producer, recording engineer, audio mixing (11)
- Art Macnow – director
- Cameron Marcarelli – assistant engineer (11)
- Al McKay – producer
- Shusei Nagaoka – artwork
- Steve Newman – design
- Joseph M. Palmaccio – mastering
- Leo Sacks – producer (11), reissue producer, liner notes
- Richard Salvato – director
- Jim Shea – photography
- Charles Stepney – producer, musical arrangements (3, 5-6, 8-10), synthesizer programming
- Tom Tom 84 – horn arrangements, string arrangements (2, 4, 7)
- Chris Walter – photography
- Maurice White – producer (1-11), musical arrangements (1), recording engineer, audio mixing (11), liner notes
- Verdine White – production assistant (2), liner notes
- Mark Wilder – audio mastering
- Joseph Wissert – producer
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