Earth Wind - Shining star: braving the elements of earth, wind & fire

PRELUDE

L ooking back and upon reflection, Earth, Wind & Fires premier mission has been to raise people to a higher level of consciousness. Maurice Whiteour founder, visionary, and mentorcalled it the Concept. Hed sit me down, and wed talk about it for hours. He stressed the importance of the Concept. He had drawings, charts, and schematics of the band detailing the Concept.

Always be strong talking about the Concept, he emphasized.

It was 1972 in Los Angeles, the year Motown Records relocated from Detroit to the West Coast. Maurice Whites brainchild musical ensemble had already released two albums on Warner Brothers Records, the self-titled Earth, Wind & Fire and The Need to Love in 1970 and 1971, respectively. They were ambitious, eclectic releases that explored the tenets of soul, jazz, blues, and other facets of American music. Yet when disagreements over direction and leadership clouded the picture, in 1971 Maurice promptly dissolved the Warner lineup. He started over in early 1972, having left Chicago for Southern California. The second time around, he was advised to enlist a group of young, eager players he could guide and who would inject more vitality and energy into the group.

Thats how I came to join Earth, Wind & Fire. I was a twenty-one-year-old country lad, arriving in Los Angeles from Denver with a pregnant wife and a large duffel bagbig enough to hold my conga drums.

Maurice, the tall, slim, and dapper singer, composer, and drummer of EWF, had auditioned and then assembled an ambitious eight-piece group of mostly anxious rookies. I was the third member to join a lineup that included me as a singer-percussionist, Maurices lanky brother, Verdine White, on bass, singer Jessica Cleaves from the slick R&B pop group Friends of Distinction, local Los Angeles drummer Ralph Johnson, horn player Ronnie Laws (younger brother of jazz flautist Hubert Laws), guitarist Roland Bautista, and keyboardist Lorenzo (Larry) Dunn, who had migrated to LA alongside me from Denver.

Spring 1972 had sprung some impressive R&B superstars and megahits: Sly and the Family Stone were at their creative peak with Family Affair. The Staple Singers Ill Take You There was a sexy across-the-board success, and Al Green tore it up with the silky Lets Stay Together. All three became timeless smash crossover hits on both the R&B and Top 40 charts.

Earth, Wind & Fire had just been signed to Columbia Records. Things were happening pretty fast. We had just wowed the label staff at their national convention and were in the process of recording our Columbia debut album, Last Days and Time. Yet when it came time to hit the road and solidify our skills as a working road band in order to spread our musical gospel, we had a ways to go. Maurice had hit many a brick wall getting his band to the performing stage, so to speak. Whenever we had an important gig lined up, particularly on the East Coast, something would go wrong at the last minute, and the tour or the dates would be canceled. There were times when I was on my way to the airport, only to find out at the airline gate that our gigs had fallen through... again. It must have been doubly frustrating for Maurice, our fearless leader, though he didnt let on at the time. Later, I was to realize at first hand what a gargantuan and supremely demanding undertaking it took, year in and year out, to keep a band this large out on the road.

Even though we were newly signed to Columbia, these were the shoestring touring days of EWF. Wed load the band and our gear into station wagons and weave our way around the East Coast. We werent exactly traveling in style, but we were safe; that is, as long as Verdine wasnt driving. We loved Verdines solid bass lines, but he got the prize for being the worst driver in the band. He would jerk the wheel and head straight into oncoming traffic on busy city streets. Maurice had this big old twelve-passenger green van that we drove around LA. It was the only vehicle we drove besides Maurices car. You cant imagine how that poor van looked after Verdine had driven it for a few consecutive days, all the dents where he didnt quite make the corners, the paint on its back and sides a mass of scratches and scrapes.