Do you remember the 21st day of September? Then you like Earth, Wind & Fire, and if you’re in the know you’re looking forward to the band’s return to its residency on the Strip for seven dates of soul and funk celebration. With Philip Bailey, Ralph Johnson and Verdine White at the helm after more than 50 years of expressing passion and positivity through the power of music, Earth, Wind & Fire remains a formidable force in the live music industry a decade after founder Maurice White left his earthly existence.
Earth, Wind & Fire started out in Maurice White’s dreams. A successful session drummer (his rolling drum fills can be heard on Fontella Bass classic “Rescue Me”), White had an aural blueprint for music that combined the best of rock, pop, soul, jazz and funk. He formed an embryonic version of Earth, Wind & Fire before recruiting his brother Verdine on bass, vocalist Bailey and percussionist Johnson. Many members would come and go, but that core remained intact through the decades.
They toured relentlessly, moving from student unions to A-list music festival California Jam by 1974, but a few elements had to be in place before superstardom. CBS executive Clive Davis took an interest, producer Charles Stepney came on board and Earth, Wind & Fire starred in and had recorded a soundtrack for a film. The band predicted That’s the Way of the World would be a box-office bomb (it was!) and arranged to have the soundtrack released several months before the film. It reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Top 200 two months after its March 1975 release.
That album’s lead track, “Shining Star,” has been the opening song at recent Earth, Wind & Fire concerts, which can be deep dives down memory lane for boomers and danceable discoveries for zoomers. Setlist jams such as “Let’s Groove” and “Boogie Wonderland” were inescapable during the skate rink era of the ’70s and ’80s. “After the Love Has Gone” is pop music’s greatest contribution toward healing from heartbreak, and “September” stirs memories of block parties and barbecues with a lyric that led to the 21st day of that month being unofficially regarded as Earth, Wind & Fire Day by fans.
The Venetian, 8 p.m. Oct. 26, 28-29, Nov. 2 & 4-5, starting at $279, ticketmaster.com
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