by Earth Wind & Fire List Price:$18.00 Our Price:$9.00 Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Product Details
Media: Audio CD
Release Date: Tuesday, November 17, 1998
Label: Sony
Average Customer Review: 4.5 Based on 56 reviews.
Sales Rank: 76
Tracks
1.
Kalimba Story
2.
Mighty Mighty
3.
Reasons
4.
Saturday Nite
5.
Let's Groove
6.
Boogie Wonderland - (with The Emotions)
7.
After The Love Is Gone
8.
Getaway
9.
Fantasy
10.
Serpentine Fire
11.
Gratitude
12.
Sing A Song
13.
Got To Get You Into My Life
14.
Can't Hide Love
15.
September
16.
That's The Way Of The World
17.
Shining Star
18.
Can't Hide Love
19.
Let's Groove
20.
That's The Way Of The World
Editorial Review
It's the most complete single-disc collection of EWF chart rockers, and Greatest Hits' splendid remastering makes one of the major exponents of '70s funk positivity sound sparkling. From the driving "Shining Star" to the syncopated mastery of "September" and "Boogie Wonderland" to the slow-jam heaven of "After the Love Is Gone," this is a reminder of what made the group so special. --Rickey Wright
Top Customer Reviews
Rating:
5 EWF Greatest Hits Collection Shining Bright To See
Mid-1970s black music seemed dominated either by fun, mindless party jams like "Jungle Boogie" and "Skin Tight," or dour warnings like "Future Shock" and "Living For The City." Stevie Wonder sang his share of life-affirming music but Earth, Wind & Fire, here with a definitive one-disc greatest hits, made such positive strength the heart of their musical identity.Some of the era's most needed, heeded messages ran deep and sweet atop Verdine White's bass grooves (front and center on "Getaway"), brother and leader Maurice's drum and percussion tracks honed over years with Chess Records' rhythm section ("Saturday Nite," "Kalimba Story," 1977's dazzling "Serpentine Fire"), Louis Satterfield's horn section scrambling through jazz-rock mazes every track (becoming a 80s rock stalwart backing Phil Collins), and Phillip Bailey's high, clear falsetto on "After The Love Has Gone," the prom dance standard "Reasons," the soaring chorus of "September," and the elegant "Fantasy" which, with "Serpentine Fire," gave R&B one of its best 1-2 LP opening tracks. (It's restored to album length here, with Larry Dunn's superb keyboard intros, after being edited on two previous best-ofs). Messages like "You're a shining star...shining bright to see what you can truly be," "If you sing a song today, you will make a better way," "Try to resist all the hurt that's all around ya..." moved feet and hearts, misinterpreted by spiritual seekers and hedonists alike in the "Me" decade's last discofied days. The Whites understood disco's falsity: "Morning deals a bad hand to a woman who has made too many bets," Maurice sings on 1979's galloping disco smash "Boogie Wonderland," adding, "You dance and shake the hurt." But by early 1982, needing a hit after a slow-selling double-LP the year before, EWF gave in to the dance grooves and party-down lyrics of "Let's Groove," their last Top 5 hit.Despite a generous 18 tracks (and an excellent geneology of the group by Kevin Goins), longtime fans will miss "In The Stone," "Fall In Love With Me," "Head To The Sky," "Let Me Talk," and others. These are found on 1995's "Eternal Dance" box, the "Elements of Love" ballads collection, or two previous best-ofs. This "Greatest Hits" packs their best-known pop songs into an exceptionally sounding disc (thanks to Mark Wilder's remastering), providing an essential introduction to one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's most surprising, satisfying member groups.
Rating:
5 It's time to jam, so "Let's Groove". . .
. . ."Shining Star" came out the spring I graduated from high school. During choir tours in college, someone always brought along EWF tapes to play on those long bus rides. I have fond memories of singing right along with "Sing a Song." By the time I was in my early 20s, "Boogie Wonderland," "Getaway" and "Let's Groove" were popular in the discos. And I'd forgotten about their superb remake of "Got to Get You Into My Life" which was originally recorded by four guys who answered to the names of John, Paul, George, and Ringo. Twenty-five years after I first heard these great songs, I finally got this collection. Do these songs still sound like funky fun and make me feel 20 all over again? Absolutely. Are they worth keeping for the next generation? You better believe it. One of my colleagues and I are using "Shining Star" as background music for our students to write about their dreams in our college class for undecided students. And my five-year-old daughter asks me to play it as soon as we get in the car to go anywhere. Did I even mention that a cappella meisters Take 6 and contemporary Christian music's Point of Grace included covers of "Sing A Song" on some of their 1990s albums? A positive, healthy message NEVER goes out of style--especially when it's wrapped around some of the most awesome riffs ever dreamed up. The only thing more fun than listening to these guys is catching them on a cable-TV special or better yet, in person. Put the top down, slide this one into your stereo, and enjoy. . .
Rating:
5 la-la-LOVE IT!
So I'm you're average high school student who's in love with Earth, Wind and Fire [kudos to my parentals]. I just have to say that this is by far the best cd I have in my collection. It has the perfect mix of songs to dance to, sing to, get intimate to, and just to feel good to. Thank you Earth, Wind & Fire.
Rating:
5 Electrifying!
When "Let's Groove" was out on the radio in 1981, I fell in love with that song. Being too young in 81 to remember anything else by EWF, I bought this CD in 1999 simply to have that one song in my collection. Little did I know what was in store for me! Songs like "Shining Star", "Way of the World", "Sing a Song", "Serpentine Fire", "Fantasy", and "Boogie Wonderland" are just WOW! All I can say is to get this CD. Get it, play it often, and play it LOUD! It's a recipe for an instant party, even if noone's invited. Just a small word of caution though. In the process of wearing out the CD, you might irritate quite a few neighbors.
Rating:
5 Essential music for any CD collection
The incomparable Earth, Wind & Fire have been going strong for almost 30 years. The recent Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame inductees released this concise overview of their greatest hits in 1998, and it is a 70-minute funkfest! From "Shining Star" (a #1 hit in 1975) to "After the Love Has Gone," all of their classics are here, even if they aren't presented in chronological order. EWF have consistently maintained a sound characterized by a big horn and brass section, incorporating African and Latin rhythms. Their music continues to be played on AM and FM stations because it has a timeless, universal appeal. So go buy this CD, and let the party begin!
Rating:
5 best CD of all time
If I could give this CD more than 5 stars I would. I'm 23 and my mom (43) and grandma (63) were on a road trip listening to the CD. All of us LOVED it. This is the greatest CD of all time.
Rating:
5 Great EWF Compilation!
Like another reviewer has posted, EWF's Greatest Hits is just that...all their hits in one cohesive cd.This set is great for people who are re-discovering EWF like myself - who really only heard their popular hits on the radio, but never bothered to buy a single EWF CD/Album.What is neat about this set when I bought it is that with some of the titles, I never knew... until I heard the song and said..."oh I know this one!... "didn't know they did this song"!It ended up I knew about 12 of the 17 track on here already, which was great!Bottom line: Great funky tunes, R&B classics, as well as nice soulful ballads. That's what EWF is and will always be... a shining star.Get it!
Rating:
5 If I had it my way...
This is the best single disc collection of EWF...everybody knows that. Sound quality is impeccable...I can see that a lot of effort went into the remastering. What I was also impressed with was the sequencing of the song selections. This makes listening to the CD that much more enjoyable. Maurice White, you truly were in a class all by yourself and this collection is indeed your gift to us. I like pretty much all the songs here but if I had to put out a 17-song EWF collection, I would have left out "Can't Hide Love", "Gratitude", "Mighty Mighty", and "Getaway." In their places, I would have included "Love's Holliday", "System of Survival", "Sunday Morning", and "Spend The Night." Anyone disagree? But clearly this is such a minor quibble on my part. The disc really is a gem.
Rating:
4 The bad boyz
Earth,Wind,and Fire is a great band.I just wish that "Head to the sky" was on here. I don't know how in the world he does it,but Phillip Bailey can sing a lot higher than most men who sing tenor.It's true! It's true! He can sing in the Mariah Carey soprano range and beyond. Don't believe me? Listen to the end of "Head to the sky" and "Mighty Mighty" .His voice is so unreal. I don't see how in the world he streches his voice so high.Yes,he has Michael Jackson and Prince laying in the dust. But anyway,this is a great CD.EWF is a funky band! I recommend it.
Rating:
5 Lovin' It!!!
I am in the sixth grade and I LOVE this CD! (In fact, I'm listening to it as I write this!) For school, we had to bring in CDs that people don't listen to now (2004) and I brought in this CD. EVERYONE in the class loved it, including myself and my teacher, who remembered it, and loved it, both when she was a kid and now! She was even singing along to "Let's Groove"! :) Kids asked me what the songs were called, who sings them, etc. and we all love it! It's great music to sing along to and dance to and, as one kid in my class put it, "You can just picture all these guys with afros in bell-bottoms singing it into the microphones! :)" Lately, instead of popping in Black Eyed Peas or Now 15 (which are both great modern-day music CDs...thumbs up to them, too!) in my portable CD player, boom box, or parents' cars, I've been listening to Earth Wind & Fire! I love disco music and, for me, disco never died and never will! If you love disco, too, you HAVE to get this CD and listen to it! Enjoy! :)P.S. I recommend "Shining Star", "September", "Got to Get You Into My Life", "Fantasy", and "Let's Groove" as the Top 5 songs on the CD!
Rating:
5 Lovin' It!!!
I am in the sixth grade and I LOVE this CD! (In fact, I'm listening to it as I write this!) For school, we had to bring in CDs that people don't listen to now (2004) and I brought in this CD. EVERYONE in the class loved it, including myself and my teacher, who remembered it, and loved it, both when she was a kid and now! She was even singing along to "Let's Groove"! :) Kids asked me what the songs were called, who sings them, etc. and we all love it! It's great music to sing along to and dance to and, as one kid in my class put it, "You can just picture all these guys with afros in bell-bottoms singing it into the microphones! :)" Lately, instead of popping in Black Eyed Peas or Now 15 (which are both great modern-day music CDs...thumbs up to them, too!) in my portable CD player, boom box, or parents' cars, I've been listening to Earth Wind & Fire! I love disco music and, for me, disco never died and never will! If you love disco, too, you HAVE to get this CD and listen to it! Enjoy! :)P.S. I recommend "Shining Star", "September", "Got to Get You Into My Life", "Fantasy", and "Let's Groove" as the Top 5 songs on the CD!
Rating:
5 Nostalgia for 70's parties
Way back in the 70's, house parties were all the rage in my circle of friends, and on a Saturday night, everybody would gather at someone's house, invited or not, to party the night away.The dance floor would usually be in the garage, or patio and the music would be in sets of "fast" music, such as disco, funk or calypso/soca, and "slow" music, which of course became the hold-me-tight session. Often, a couple would stay on one spot for the whole session, which was lovingly referred to as "rent-a-tile".The reason for this rambling is to explain why this album is a must have for baby boomers who danced away the 70's and 80's. Earth, Wind & Fire are, after all, the three elements in the astrological charts, and their music symbolizes the spirit of those happy times.The album contains their first two hit songs from the album "Open Our Eyes" which went gold with "Mighty Mighty" and "Kalimba Story", and also their follow up hits "That's the Way of the World", "Shining Star" and "Reasons", which has been widely copied since then. It's also got their hits from 1975's "Gratitude", 1976's "Spirit", and 1977's "All n' All", which produced my all time favorite "Fantasy" and also "Serpentine Fire". Throw in "Boogie Wonderland" and "After the Love is Gone" and 1981's "Let's Groove", and you can understand why this compilation would be a 70's/80's party staple.Since my favorites are "Fantasy", "Reasons", and "After the Love is Gone", you can probably tell that I rented many tiles during the late 70's and early 80's. This album brings back the warm and fuzzies of those days.Amanda Richards, May 28, 2005
