During the 1970s, a new brand of pop music was born – one that was steeped in African and African-American styles – particularly jazz and R&B but appealed to a broader cross-section of the listening public. As founder and leader of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, Maurice White not only embraced but also helped bring about this evolution of pop, which bridged the gap that has often separated the musical tastes of black and white America. It certainly was successful, as EWF combined high-caliber musicianship, wide-ranging musical genre eclecticism, and ’70s multicultural spiritualism.

“I wanted to do something that hadn’t been done before,” Maurice explains. “Although we were basically jazz musicians, we played soul, funk, gospel, blues, jazz, rock and dance music…which somehow ended up becoming pop. We were coming out of a decade of experimentation, mind expansion and cosmic awareness. I wanted our music to convey messages of universal love and harmony without force-feeding listeners’ spiritual content.”

It all started with Earth, Wind & Fire’s auspicious self-titled 1970 debut, one of only two albums the group recorded for Warner Bros. Records. Standouts cuts like “Help Somebody,” “Moment of Truth,” and “Love Is Life” are all fully realized catalog gems chock full of the EWF signatures including the unparalleled harmonies, deep funk backdrops, horn heavy arrangements, and strong sense of community.