Powerlight
Studio album by
Earth, Wind & Fire
ReleasedFebruary 3, 1983
RecordedJuly–November 1982
Studio
  • The Complex (Los Angeles)
  • Ocean Way (Hollywood)
Genre
Length41:23
LabelColumbia
ProducerMaurice White
Earth, Wind & Fire chronology
Raise!
(1981)		 Powerlight
(1983)		 Electric Universe
(1983)
Singles from Powerlight
  1. "Fall in Love with Me"
    Released: November 1982
  2. "Side by Side"
    Released: April 1983
  3. "Spread Your Love"
    Released: June 1983

Powerlight is the twelfth studio album by American band Earth, Wind & Fire, released in February 1983 by Columbia Records.[1] The album rose to No. 4 on the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart and No. 12 on the Billboard 200 chart.[2][3] Powerlight was also certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.[4]

Overview

Powerlight was produced by EWF leader Maurice White. According to White the LP's title has to do with "the chakras -- the centers of the body that connect us with cosmic power." Artists such as Robert Greenidge, Maxayn Lewis and Zakir Hussain also appeared on the album.[1][5]

Singles

The album cut "Fall in Love with Me" rose to No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 4 on the Billboard Hot R&B Songs chart. "Fall in Love with Me" was also Grammy nominated for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.[6]

As well another single entitled "Side by Side" got to No. 15 upon the Billboard Hot R&B Songs chart.[7] "Straight From The Heart" was released as a single in the Netherlands.[8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Village Voice(A-)[10]
Vanity Fair(favourable)[11]
Stereo Review(favourable)[12]
The New York Times(favourable)[13]
Philadelphia Daily News[14]
Rolling Stone[15]
Daily Mirror(favourable)[16]
Los Angeles Times(favourable)[17][18]
Smash Hits(8/10)[19]
Philadelphia Inquirer[20]
New York Daily News(favourable)[21]

Robert Palmer of The New York Times noted "Mr. (Milton) Nascimento, and Brazilian pop in general, combine African-derived rhythms that tend to be more flowing and buoyant than their North American funk counterparts with a melodious pop lyricism based on relatively complex, jazzy harmonies, and Maurice White has done something very similar on Earth, Wind and Fire's Powerlight album."[13] Vanity Fair found that "Earth, Wind & Fire's oddysey of uplift, Powerlight is, impossible as it may seem, even more relentlessly cheerful than its predecessor Raise!, a concoction designed to do precisely that to listeners' spirit".[11] Tony Prince of the Daily Mirror called Powerlight the album of the week exclaiming "The worst you can say about Earth, Wind & Fire are their high standards of arrangements are predictable. They just can't get any better!"[16] Robert Christgau of the Village Voice proclaimed with an A− grade that "Their sonic affluence and showtime groove encompass whispering strings no less perfect than their JB guitar beats, Funkafunnies harmonies no less schmaltzy than their Lionel Richie homages, and when the synthesis is this catchy it's the best argument for universalism they'll ever make."[10] Craig Lytle of AllMusic in a four out of 5 star review found "Many groups lose the steam that propelled them to the top; Earth, Wind & Fire, contemporary sound and all, were still blazing when this album was released." Lytle continued saying "Throughout the entire album, White's unifying message is fueled by the aggressive rhythms and relaxing melodies."[9] Connie Johnson of the Los Angeles Times wrote Powerlight "does show why EWF is one of the masters of studio pop." Johnson added "EWF mostly keeps the rhetoric in check focusing instead on assertive rockers that give everyone in this nine-member unit a chance to flex his muscles There is less cosmic emphasis but the EWF formula—heavy on the richly textured vocals horns and rhythm—is still intact. And surprisingly still fresh."[17]

With a 3 out of 5 stars rating, Ken Tucker of the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote "Earth, Wind and Fire's new collection of Utopian funk, "Powerlight" (Columbia), has a glossy sheen that manages to coat even the banal songs with a pretty surface that's pleasing."[20] Chip Stern of Musician claimed "Powerlight stands both as a testament to White's absolute mastery of production and EW&F's renewed vigour as a band."[22] Dave Marsh of the Philadelphia Daily News gave Powerlight 4 out of 5 stars and claimed it's mostly "notable for the power of the playing."[14] David Hepworth of Smash Hits gave the album an 8/10 rating and declared EWF are "firing on all cylinders." Hepworth added "They weld their massive sound together with such precision that their whole ensemble can provide a rhythm as spare and compulsive as a snapping finger, they write production numbers instead of songs and never allow the momentum to flag for a second, they're soppy as hell and, when they produce records like 'Powerlight', there's absolutely nothing wrong with that".[19] Hugh Wyatt of the New York Daily News found "Earth, Wind & Fire gives new meaning to the word classy, and I like it".[21]

Issac Hayes called Powerlight one of Earth, Wind & Fire's five essential recordings.[23] Powerlight was also placed by music critic Robert Christgau of the Village Voice at No. 36 on his dean's list of 1983.[24]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Fall in Love with Me"Maurice White, Wayne Vaughn, Wanda Vaughn5:54
2."Spread Your Love"Maurice White, Beloyd Taylor, Azar Lawrence3:51
3."Side by Side"Maurice White, Wayne Vaughn, Wanda Vaughn5:57
4."Straight from the Heart"Philip Bailey, Eduardo del Barrio, Roxanne Seeman, Freddie Washington4:42
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
5."The Speed of Love"Maurice White, Wayne Vaughn, Wanda Vaughn, Tony Haynes3:36
6."Freedom of Choice"Maurice White, Beloyd Taylor, Azar Lawrence4:10
7."Something Special"Maurice White, Wayne Vaughn, Wanda Vaughn4:23
8."Hearts to Heart"Maurice White, Beloyd Taylor, Azar Lawrence3:45
9."Miracles"Maurice White, Eddie Del Barrio, Jon Lind, Mary D'Astgues4:58

[1]

Credits and personnel

Production

  • Strings arranged - Bill Meyers & George Del Barrio
  • Horns arranged - Jerry Hey, George Del Barrio & Bill Meyers
  • Art Direction - Monte White & Roger Carpenter
  • Illustration - Shusei Nagaoka
  • Concertmaster - Assa Drori, David Frisina
  • Assistant Engineers - Robert Spano & Steve Crimmel
  • Mastered - Bernie Grundman
  • Additional Mixing - Tom Perry
  • Production Staff - Geri White, Leonard Smith & Monte White
  • Steel drums - Rudolph Charles
  • Producer - Maurice White
  • Recorded & Mixed - Mick Guzauski[25]
  • Composer, keyboards, piano - Eddie del Barrio
  • Horn arrangement, keyboards - George del Barrio

[26]

Charts and certifications

Charts

Albums

Year Chart Peak
position
1983 US Top LPs & Tape[3] 12
US Top Soul LPs[2] 4
Sweden Albums (Veckolista Album)[27] 2
Dutch Albums Dutch Album Top 100[28] 6
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[29] 6
Norwegian Albums (VG-Lista)[30] 7
German Albums

(Offizielle Top 100)[31]

 13
UK Pop Albums[32] 22
CA RPM Canadian Pop Albums[33] 24

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
1983 "Fall in Love with Me" US Hot R&B Singles 4[34]
US Dance Club Play 31[35]
US Hot 100 17[36]
CA RPM Canadian Pop Singles 14[37]
UK Pop Songs 47
Blues & Soul Top British Soul Singles 20[38]
"Side by Side" US Hot R&B Singles 15[39]
US Hot 100 76
"Spread Your Love" US Hot R&B Singles 57
Dutch Singles 48[40]

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Japan — 141,730[41]
United States (RIAA)[4] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Accolades

Publication Country Accolade[24] Year Rank
Village Voice U.S Dean's List 1983 36

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". 45worlds.com.
  2. 1 2 "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight (Top R&B Albums)". Billboard.com.
  3. 1 2 "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight (Billboard 200)". billboard.com. Billboard.
  4. 1 2 "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". riaa.com. RIAA.
  5. ↑ Hanauer, Joan (January 21, 1983). "COSMIC SHORT". upi.com. United Press International.
  6. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire". grammy.com. The Recording Academy.
  7. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Side by Side (Hot Soul Songs)". Billboard.com. Billboard.
  8. ↑ Earth, Wind And Fire - Straight From The Heart, retrieved October 6, 2020
  9. 1 2 Lytle, Craig. "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". AllMusic.com. AllMusic.
  10. 1 2 Christgau, Robert. "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". robertchristgau.com. Village Voice.
  11. 1 2 "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". Vol. 46. Vanity Fair. April 1983. p. 31 & 32. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  12. ↑ Garland, Phyl (June 1983). "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight" (PDF). Vol. 48, no. 6. Stereo Review. p. 84. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  13. 1 2 Palmer, Robert (February 27, 1983). "BRAZIL'S BEAT ALTERS BLACK POP". The New York Times.
  14. 1 2 Marsh, Dave (April 30, 1983). "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". newspapers.com. Philadelphia Daily News. p. 16.
  15. ↑ Connelly, Christopher (March 17, 1983). "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone.
  16. 1 2 Prince, Tony (February 12, 1983). "Tony's Top Picks". Daily Mirror. p. 17.
  17. 1 2 Johnson, Connie (February 27, 1983). "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". newspapers.com. Los Angeles Times. p. 303.
  18. ↑ Johnson, Connie (February 27, 1983). "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". newspapers.com. Los Angeles Times. p. 304.
  19. 1 2 Hepworth, David (February 16, 1983). "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". archive.org. Vol. 5, no. 3. Smash Hits. p. 28.
  20. 1 2 Tucker, Ken (February 27, 1983). "Despite glossy sheen, the songs are banal". newspapers.com. Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 195.
  21. 1 2 Wyatt, Hugh (February 25, 1983). "Music in a class all its own". newspapers.com. New York Daily News. p. 151.
  22. ↑ Stern, Chip (April 1, 1983). "RECORD REVIEWS: Earth, Wind & Fire". Musician. No. 54. p. 93. ProQuest 964123490.
  23. ↑ Hayes, Issac (July 7, 1995). Essentials: Issac Hayes on Earth, Wind & Fire. The Guardian. p. 39.
  24. 1 2 Christgau, Robert (February 28, 1984). "Pazz & Jop 1983: Dean's List". robertchristgau.com. The Village Voice.
  25. 1 2 Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight. Columbia Records. February 1983.
  26. ↑ Powerlight - Earth, Wind & Fire | Credits | AllMusic, retrieved September 12, 2020
  27. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire". sverigetopplistan.se.
  28. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". dutchcharts.nl. Dutch Charts.
  29. ↑ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  30. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". norwegiancharts.com. VG-Lista.
  31. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". offiziellecharts.de.
  32. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Powerlight". officialcharts.com. Official Charts Company.
  33. ↑ "RPM 100 Albums". bac-lac.gc.ca. Vol. 38, no. 6. RPM. April 9, 1983.
  34. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Fall In Love With Me (Hot Soul Songs)". billboard.com. Billboard.
  35. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Fall in Love With Me (Dance Club Songs)". billboard.com. Billboard.
  36. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Fall In Love With Me (Hot 100)". billboard.com. Billboard.
  37. ↑ "RPM Top Canadian Singles". Baclac.gc.ca. Vol. 38, no. 3. RPM. March 19, 1983.
  38. ↑ "Blues & Soul Top British Soul Singles". No. 374. Blues & Soul. February 8, 1983. p. 5. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  39. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Side by Side (Hot Soul Songs)". billboard.com. Billboard.
  40. ↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire: Spread Your Love". dutchcharts.nl. Dutch Charts.
  41. ↑ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
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