Earth, Wind & Fire tour the UK in July, Kicks Off July 20

Earth, Wind & Fire is one of the most important, influential, innovative and commercially omnipotent contemporary funk pop music bands of the 20th century. Those three elementary words mean good vibes, sing-a-long hits and boogie dancing.

Earth, Wind & Fire will tour the UK in July 2010 with rare arena dates at Manchester MEN Arena (Tuesday 20th July), Birmingham NIA (Wednesday 21st July), and London O2 Arena (Thursday 22nd July).

In their 35-year plus history, the seven time Grammy Award winning group have sold millions of albums worldwide (including 8 double-platinum albums, 2 platinum albums and 3 gold albums). They've also enjoyed countless hits in both the pop and R&B charts.

Earth, Wind & Fire is one of music's greats and provides a lasting legacy to the contemporary pop/R&B artists of today.

Performing all the hits from Boogie Wonderland, to That's The Way Of The World, After The Love Has Gone, Fantasy and Devotion, the party will really be coming to town this summer with Earth, Wind & Fire's infectious hits and dazzling feel-good dance melodies and rhythmic funk.

Earth Wind & Fire will set the 70s alight with hits including September and Let's Groove.

Time spent apart in the 80s reinvigorated the band and they began recording again. The easy partnership of Philip Bailey and Maurice White was instantly renewed.

The 1994 Millennium album was Grammy-nominated, while 1997's In The Name Of Love was one of their best-received records in over a decade. Countless artists have been influenced by their organic live sound, including Wyclef Jean who has produced tracks for the band's recent releases.

Earth Wind & Fire 2010 UK Tour Dates
Start time for all shows: 7.30pm

National Credit Card Hotline 0844 888 9991
Or book online at www.ticketline.co.uk
Agency & CC Bookings subject to a fee

Date: Tuesday 20th July 2010
Venue: Manchester MEN Arena
Tickets: £50 / £42.50
Venue Box Office & CC: 0844 847 8000 / 0161 832 1111
Website:www.men-arena.com
Venue Address: MEN Arena, Manchester, M3 1AR

Date: Wednesday 21st July 2010
Venue: Birmingham NIA
Tickets: £50 / £42.50
Venue Box Office & CC: 0844 338 8000 / 0121 357 0000
Website:www.theticketfactory.com
Venue Address: National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, B40 1NT

Date: Thursday 22nd July 2010
Venue: London O2 Arena
Tickets: £55 / £45 / £40
Venue Box Office & CC: 0844 856 0202 / 0207 434 2222
Website:www.theo2.co.uk
Venue Address: Peninsula Square, London, SE10 0DX

Earth, Wind & Fire were one of the most musically accomplished, critically acclaimed, and commercially popular funk bands of the '70s. Conceived by drummer, bandleader, songwriter, kalimba player, and occasional vocalist Maurice White, EWF's all-encompassing musical vision utilized funk as its foundation, and incorporated jazz, smooth soul, gospel, pop, rock & roll, psychedelia, blues, folk, African music, and later disco.

Lead singer Philip Bailey gave EWF an extra dimension with his talent for crooning sentimental ballads in addition to funk workouts; behind him, the band could harmonize like a smooth Motown group, work a simmering groove like the J.B.'s, or improvise like a jazz fusion outfit. Plus, their stage shows were often just as elaborate and dynamic as George Clinton's P-Funk empire.

More than just versatility for its own sake, EWF's eclecticism was part of a broader concept informed by a cosmic, mystical spirituality and an uplifting positivity the likes of which hadn't been seen since the early days of Sly & the Family Stone. Tying it all together was the accomplished songwriting of Maurice White, whose intricate, unpredictable arrangements and firm grasp of hooks made EWF one of the tightest bands in funk when they wanted to be.

White founded Earth, Wind & Fire in Chicago in 1969. He had previously honed his chops as a session drummer for Chess Records, where he played on songs by the likes of Fontella Bass, Billy Stewart, and Etta James. In 1967, he'd replaced Red Holt in the popular jazz group the Ramsey Lewis Trio, where he was introduced to the kalimba, an African thumb piano he would use extensively in future projects.

He left Lewis' group in 1969 and formed a songwriting partnership with keyboardist Don Whitehead and singer Wade Flemons. This evolved into a band dubbed the Salty Peppers, who scored a regional hit with "La La Time." When a follow-up flopped, White decided to move to Los Angeles, and took most of the band with him; he also renamed them Earth, Wind & Fire, after the three elements in his astrological charts.

By the time White convinced his brother, bassist Verdine White, to join him on the West Coast in 1970, the lineup also consisted of Whitehead, Flemons, female singer Sherry Scott, guitarist Michael Beal, tenor saxophonist Chet Washington, trombonist Alex Thomas, and percussionist Yackov Ben Israel.

This aggregate signed a new deal with Warner Bros. and issued its self-titled debut album in late 1970. Critics found it intriguing and ambitious, much like the 1971 follow-up, The Need of Love, but neither attracted much commercial attention, despite a growing following on college campuses and a high-profile gig performing the soundtrack to Melvin Van Peebles' seminal black independent film Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song.

Dissatisfied with the results, White dismantled the first version of EWF in 1972, retaining only brother Verdine. He built a new lineup with female vocalist Jessica Cleaves, flute/sax player Ronnie Laws, guitarist Roland Bautista, keyboardist Larry Dunn, and percussionist Ralph Johnson; the most important new addition, however, was singer Philip Bailey, recruited from a Denver R&B band called Friends & Love.

After the group opened for John Sebastian in New York, Clive Davis signed them to CBS, where they debuted in 1972 with Last Days and Time. 1973's Head to the Sky (Cleaves' last album with the group) broadened their cult following, and the 1974 follow-up, Open Our Eyes, was their first genuine hit. It marked their first collaboration with producer, arranger, and songwriting collaborator Charles Stepney, who helped streamline their sound for wider acceptance; it also featured another White brother, Fred, brought in as a second drummer. The single "Mighty Mighty" became EWF's first Top Ten hit on the R&B charts.

In 1975, EWF completed work on another movie soundtrack - a music-biz drama called That's the Way of the World. Not optimistic about the film's commercial prospects, the group rushed out a soundtrack album of the same name (unlike Sweet Sweetback, they composed all the music themselves) in advance.

The film flopped, but the album took off; its lead single, the love-and-encouragement anthem "Shining Star," shot to the top of both the R&B and pop charts, making Earth, Wind & Fire mainstream stars; it later won a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Group. The album also hit number one on both the pop and R&B charts, and went double platinum; its title track went Top Five on the R&B side, and it also contained Bailey's signature ballad in the album cut "Reasons."

White used the new income to develop EWF's live show into a lavish, effects-filled extravaganza, which eventually grew to include stunts designed by magician Doug Henning. The band was also augmented by a regular horn section, the Phoenix Horns, headed by saxophonist Don Myrick.

During the 1976 sessions for EWF's next studio album, Spirit, Charles Stepney died suddenly of a heart attack. Maurice White took over the arranging chores, but the Stepney-produced "Getaway" topped the R&B charts posthumously. Spirit naturally performed well on the charts, topping out at number two. In the meantime, White was taking a hand in producing other acts.

In addition to working with his old boss Ramsey Lewis, he helped kick start the careers of the Emotions and Deniece Williams. 1977's All n' All was another strong effort that charted at number three and spawned the R&B smashes "Fantasy" and the chart-topping "Serpentine Fire"; meanwhile, the Emotions topped the pop charts with the White-helmed smash "Best of My Love."

1979's I Am contained EWF's most explicit nod to disco, a smash collaboration with the Emotions called "Boogie Wonderland" that climbed into the Top Ten. The ballad "After the Love Has Gone" did even better, falling one spot short of the top. Although I Am became EWF's sixth straight multi-platinum album, there were signs that the group's explosion of creativity was beginning to wane. 1980's Faces broke that string, after which guitarist McKay departed.

While 1981's Raise brought them a Top Five hit and R&B chart-topper in "Let's Groove," an overall decline in consistency was becoming apparent. By the time EWF issued its next album, 1983's Powerlight, ARC had folded, and the Phoenix Horns had been cut loose to save money. After the lackluster Electric Universe appeared at the end of the year, White disbanded the group and took a break. Meanwhile, Verdine White became a producer and video director, while Philip Bailey went solo and scored a pop smash with the Phil Collins duet "Easy Lover."

Bailey reunited with the White brothers, plus Andrew Woolfolk, Ralph Johnson, and new guitarist ShelDon Reynolds, in 1987 for the album Touch the World, and scored two R&B smashes in "Thinking of You" and the No.1 "System of Survival."

1990's Heritage was an attempt to contemporize the group's sound, with guest appearances from Sly Stone and MC Hammer. Its failure led to the end of EWF's relationship with Columbia. They returned on Reprise with the more traditional-sounding Millennium in 1993, but were dropped when the record failed to recapture their commercial standing despite a Grammy nomination for "Sunday Morning." Tragedy struck when onetime horn leader Don Myrick was murdered in Los Angeles.

Bailey and the White brothers returned once again in 1997 on the small Pyramid label with In the Name of Love. In 2005 they released their brand new studio album Illumination through Sanctuary Urban, anchored by founding members Maurice White, Philip Bailey, Verdine White.
Earth, Wind & Fire - Official Website
www.earthwindandfire.com/

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