493: Earth, Wind and Fire - That's the Way of the World

Year: 1975

1. Shining Star
2. That's the Way of the World
3. Happy Feelin
4. All About Love
5. Yearnin' Learnin
6. Reasons
7. Africano
8. See the Light

RollingStone Says:
Before he got into African thumb piano and otherworldly philosophizing, founder Maurice White was a session drummer at Chess studios (that's him on Fontella Bass' "Rescue Me"). EWF's seventh album is make-out music of the gods; its title track is one of funk's most gorgeous ballads.
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Adam Says:
I'm not a huge fan of "Funk", but I've always had a special place in my heart for Earth, Wind and Fire. they're one of those all time classic groups, the kind that transcends their given genre of music and go on to become universally loved. I'm more familiar with the groups singles then I am their lps, so I was interested to see if their albums were as smooth and well produced. The answer is a resounding "Yes".

The thing that makes this group work so well is that they never pigeonhole themselves, never force themselves to make strictly "Funk" music. Instead they experiment with Jazz. Rock, R&B, Blues, and well...pretty much everything under the Sun. They bring all of these sounds together and make wonderfully cohesive pieces of pop music. My only real knock would be that, at times I feel like the album is kinda just floating along. Not in a bad way, but more like music that you would throw on in the background at a party. Not every song here is going to make you jump to your feet and party, a good chunk of it is more relaxing, late night, kick your feet up and vibe out type of music. Make-Out music as RollingStone likes to call it.

I enjoy it though, I would recommend this group to fans of any genre, and while this lp may not pack the same exciting punch of a Greatest Hits compilation, it's still an amazing point of entry for one of musics all time greats.

Overall - 4/5
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Dan Says:
This is one of those albums you could have sex to. It's just sexy all the way. I'm not a huge fan, but enjoyed it (by myself mind you) nonetheless.

Overall - 3/5