After exiting the group Salty Peppers, Maurice White moved to Los Angeles from Chicago and created a new band. A strong believer in mysticism, the Sagittarian sought inspiration from his astrological chart in divining the band-to-be’s name. Three elements caught his attention: earth, fire and air.
“I changed air to wind,” late founder White says in a clip from the HBO Original documentary Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs. That’s the Weight of the World). “And the rest is history,” he continues. “Earth, Wind & Fire is basically the true elements of the universe.”
And what a history it’s been as director-producer Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson relays in the illuminating, two-hour documentary premiering Sunday night (June 7; 9 p.m. ET/PT). In the nearly 60 years since White’s vision took shape, the nine-time Grammy Award-winning and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame-inducted band has achieved global acclaim and legendary status.
Via spirited fusions of jazz, R&B/soul, Afro-funk, pop and disco, the band mined a deep vein of classic gold and platinum hits and fan faves like “September,” “Shining Star,” “Let’s Groove,” “After the Love Is Gone” and “Beijo” (aka Brazilian Rhyme interlude). In fact, Questlove pegged another iconic EWF hit, “That’s the Way of the World,” in crafting the title for his latest Questlove Jawn.
“I love a good pun,” said the Academy Award-winning music historian during a Zoom interview with Billboard following the documentary’s June 3 premiere at the 25th Tribeca Film Festival. “All of my documentaries have a long title continuation that also explains what you have to consider [while watching]. Sly Stone was about the burden of Black genius. With Summer of Soul, the revolution was happening, but it couldn’t be televised. In this particular case, it’s about human beings. We’re all celestial; all light shiners. But oftentimes, we dim our light to blend in and be part of the ecosystem.”
“Maurice White is basically an orphan, given away by his mother to a neighbor,” Questlove continued, “yet he somehow gets a metaphysical belief at the age of seven in Memphis … a calling to say, ‘It’s my job to bring positivity and love into the world.’ But however well-intended the mission, you must learn not to hold within any pain. That’s what I want people to learn from this: Do not dismiss your dreams. But you also have to let things go. And Maurice never let that anger go of being given away. He was crumbling inside because he had a broken heart.”
Through strikingly candid conversations with group members, family, friends and high-profile fans — and access to a cache of treasures including the group’s recordings, outtakes and unreleased live shows plus Maurice’s diaries, affirmations and favorite books — Questlove delivers a riveting look at the hard work and joy behind the band’s ascension. But he leans into the creative tensions and personal issues that arose as well. Viewers will witness the magic tricks and psychedelic/space-age costumes that became hallmarks of EWF’s showmanship. They’ll also learn what EWF smash inspired one of Stevie Wonder’s own classic hits, among other insightful tidbits.
Above all, “Earth, Wind & Fire taught us how to dream,” says Questlove. “As we continue to search for answers in these very tense times, their music always s same conclusion: the answers are inside yourself. It’s the same metaphysical story as The Wizard of Oz. Listening to their songs during the pandemic was my eureka moment; I realized what they were doing: they tricked us into positivity. This is the story of a band that tricks you into eating your vegetables.”
Ahead of the film’s Tribeca premiere and their performance with The Roots that same evening, EWF original members Verdine White, Philip Bailey and Ralph Johnson — the doc’s co-executive producers (Maurice’s son Kahbran “KB” White is a producer) — also sat down for a Zoom interview with Billboard, printed below. Later this summer, the indefatigable Earth, Wind & Fire will launch their “Sing a Song All Night Long” tour with fellow icon Lionel Richie on June 24.
What was your immediate reaction after viewing the documentary?
Bailey: Questlove is really a music historian. Talk to him for five or 10 minutes and you recognize he has an innate gift for knowing a lot of facts about music history. He’d bring stuff up about EWF, and I’ve been there all the time [with the group]. But I’d be like “How’d you know that?” So he was the perfect person to do this because he goes deep below the surface. It’s surreal.
White: He’s an historian and a musician. That combination particularly works well when it comes to the music and the message. He captured our essence and spirits, our manhood and humanity. I’m really proud of it.
Johnson: It’s a job well done.
The documentary also doesn’t shy away from the thorny issues the group — and Maurice — encountered along the way.
Bailey: That’s the way of the world, right? You can’t live life without experiencing the highs and lows, the good and bad, the pretty and ugly. It’s part of what makes us what who we are. And it’s really a testament to the fact that we’re still here, doing music on a very high level some 50+ years later.
Johnson: Philip covered it. The ups and downs all get back to the duality of the universe.
White: When you have a long career, it’s not linear. It moves around; grows as you grow. It has its own rhythm mechanism. [The documentary] shows that we were living our truth.
Maurice White, circa 1973
Urve Kuusik, Sony Music Archives
What is one lesson or affirmation learned from Maurice that you still follow?
Johnson: Three things: commitment, trust and humility. If you believe in something, then you’ve got to commit to it. And you must trust that in the end it’s going to be OK. Then if things get so great for you that your ego goes out of control, then you’ve got to turn on the humility and put yourself back in check.
White: Love for your brothers, particularly Ralph and Philip. The love, the connection, the trust, the bond: that’s what I’ve come away with.
Bailey: When we were first together, practicing and hoping to go out on the road, there were several times when on the way to the airport, we’d literally get a call that it [a gig] was canceled. I’m living with people and primarily eating oatmeal; I got a new baby. Yet every time things would happen, Maurice would always say, “There’s something better for us.” He never complained; never had a defeatist attitude or statement.
How would Maurice feel about the documentary?
Johnson: He’d feel the story has been told the right way.
Bailey: He’d be proud of it. It’s indicative of who we are.
White: Reese would be really proud that the three of us are still together — from almost teenagers to adults.
And what lasting impression do you hope fans will have after seeing the documentary?
Johnson: Vintage fans will be happy. They’ll think the story was told correctly. New fans will be very enlightened because they’ll find out some stuff about this group they just didn’t know.
Bailey: That the documentary makes the music real and gives people a deeper understanding of the music.
White: Vintage fans will remember that this journey was part of their lives too. And newer fans will learn something about being able to have a mission — as Maurice did — of rendering a service to humanity and actually bringing people together. When people mention our name, there’s a smile that comes to their faces.
