Earth, Wind & Fire-Gratitude (1975)


 

Artist: Earth, Wind & Fire

Title: Gratitude

Label: Columbia

Format: 2LP

Cat #: PG 33694

Year of Release: 1975

Country and Year of Edition Issue: US 1975 Terre Haute Pressing Gatefold

Listed Condition: VG+/VG with poster

Sell Date: 1/12/21

Sell Price: $4.99

Discogs Last Sold: 12/16/20 VG+/VG+ $4.50

Low: $1.50

Median: $4.75

High:  $11.99

Current low price: $1.00 VG/VG

Current Number on Sale at Discogs: 165

Have/Want: 5244/506

Where Sold:  Philadelphia, PA

Time it took to sell: 4 years

Where and When Bought: Worcester, That's Entertainment used $3.99 early 80's

Gwiz-gau Letter Grade: A

Sad To See It Go: No


If the stars were better aligned for a random record to write about on MLK Day, one would be hard pressed to find a more timely one than Gratitude.  It stands as a seminal work, almost 3 sides live and 5 studio tracks at the end encompassing Soul, Funk, Rock, Disco and Jazz.  State of the art 1975.  The live sides are unimpeachable and the studio tracks are top flight.  

This was a Billboard #1 Triple Platinum album, which meant I collected it retroactively from a list book I got in the early 80's that had the number one charts of every week of the rock era.  I'm glad I did, because although I knew the inescapable hits of the later 70's, outside of the #5 hit "Sing A Song," this incorporated music from when I was just a tad young to know it.  Even the massive "Shining Star" was brought to my consciousness more by this album than my 70's peripheral memory.

What reeled me in to Gratitude as a pre-teen was the opening playing of Africano/Power.  Now of course I recognize this as a logical evolution of James Brown and fusion-era Miles Davis, but as a pre-teen kid I just viewed it as different than what I would normally expect from the band that brought you one of the highlights of the Sgt Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band movie travesty (which I deemed as an 8 year old to be great) as well as "September" and "Boogie Wonderland" and "After The Love Has Gone" which were all childhood life backdrops for me.  

Gratitude is a big cut above all of that.  Yes, to me, the live "Shining Star" was,  and is, the highlight of the record.  The whole thing really is a tour de force of joyous expression, that has ingrained itself into my worldview from a young age.  

Stevie Wonder was always in my head from a very young age to be the ultimate 70's Soul album act.  Tamala splintered Stevie on artist demand, as well as Marvin Gaye and even Smokey Robinson from the hit making Motown mill to make statements of "serious artistry."  As the 70's went further, the disco era reemphasized singles and long club length singles.  Like The Isley Brothers and Kool And The Gang,  EW&F were massive hitmakers, but were also great in album format.  Earth, Wind & Fire I would say were arguably the Kings of this tier, cranking out great high quality music in both long and short form.

In the words of Maurice White and Al McKay I’ll advise you to sing a song.

It’ll make your day.

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