I’m sure he inspired many. I always had a positive feeling listening to their
songs on the radio. Thanks for this one, Marty.
Linda G.
From: ourplace-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ourplace-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Marty Rimpau
Sent: Friday, February 05, 2016 6:18 AM
To: our place list
Subject: [ourplace] maurice white, 74; founder of earth, wind & fire
Maurice White, 74; founder of Earth, Wind & Fire . Phil McCarten/associated
press/file 2004 Mr. White's band's sound was a horn-driven mix of jazz, funk,
gospel, and Big Band music. NEW YORK - Earth, Wind & Fire founder Maurice White,
whose horn-driven band sold more than 90 million albums and made hits like
"September," "Shining Star," and "Boogie Wonderland," died Wednesday at his home
in Los Angeles, his brother Verdine said. Mr. White, who was 74, suffered from
Parkinson's disease and had retreated from the public even as the band he
founded kept performing. "My brother, hero, and best friend Maurice White passed
away peacefully last night in his sleep," Verdine White, also a member of the
band, said Thursday. "While the world has lost another great musician and
legend, our family asks that our privacy is respected as we start what will be a
very difficult and life-changing transition in our lives. T hank you for your
prayers and well wishes. Earth, Wind & Fire, a nine-piece band featuring the two
White brothers, singer Philip Bailey, and a distinctive horn section, were
inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. The band's most successful
period started with the 1975 album "That's The Way of The World" and continued
through the rest of the decade. Other hits included "Serpentine Fire," "That's
the Way of the World," and a cover of the Beatles' "Got to Get You Into My Life.
Mr. White publicly revealed he had Parkinson's at the time of the band's Hall of
Fame induction, but he had shown symptoms of the neurological disease back in
the 1980s. He stopped touring with the band in 1995 because of weariness from
the road combined with his health problems. Mr. White said in an interview in
2000 that he wanted the band's music to inspire instead of just entertain. "That
was the whole objective, to try to inspire young people to believe in themselves
and to follow thro ugh on their ideas," he said. "We've touched so many people
with these songs. A former session drummer, Mr. White founded the band Salty
Peppers in the Chicago area in the late 1960s and had some modest success in the
Midwest. After relocating to Los Angeles and ditching all of the band members
except Verdine, he renamed the outfit Earth, Wind & Fire after the three
elements in his astrological chart. Bailey's bright falsetto defined many of
Earth, Wind & Fire's hits. "We experienced pure magic together," Bailey said
during the band's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, standing next to Mr.
White. The band's early sound was jazzy, but evolved into an exuberant,
horn-driven mix of jazz, funk, gospel, and Big Band music. Their appeal wasn't
just on records but on stage, their concerts a whirl of dancing, fog machines,
multi-colored lights, and glittery costumes. Earth, Wind & Fire performed
everywhere from the Super Bowl to the White House. Maurice White also had a
substanti al side career producing other artists, including Barbra Streisand and
Cher. In the 1970s, he co-wrote and co-produced the Emotions' No. 1 hit "Best of
My Love. Mr. White was born in Memphis in 1941, the son of a doctor and grandson
of a New Orleans piano player. He showed musical gifts at an early age, studying
at the Chicago Conservancy. During the 1960s, he backed Muddy Waters, the
Impressions, and others and worked as a session drummer in Chicago. The band
performed in the movie, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and had hits
with the ballad "After the Love Has Gone," "All 'n' All," "Let's Groove," and
"Fall in Love With Me. The band took a four-year hiatus in the 1980s and then
returned, its primary success then on the road. "We live in a negative society,"
Mr. White told Newsweek at the height of the band's success. "Most people can't
see beauty and love. I see our music as medicine.
