the surfer's guide to EWF - The Eternal Dance pt.1

THE ETERNAL DANCE
By David Nathan – Billboard / Blues & Soul
From "The Eternal Dance" box-set

1969
Maurice White co-founds the Salty Peppers in Chicago. They release two singles on Capitol Records.
May 15, 1971
Earth, Wind & Fire’s self-titled debut album enters the Billboard album chart, peaking at #172.
April 27, 1974
"Mighty Mighty" becomes the group’s first single to crack the pop Top Forty. They’d first entered the R&B Top Forty in July 1973 with "Evil."
May 24, 1975
Shining Star, from That’s the Way of the World, reaches #1 on Billboard’s singles chart. It earns the first of many Grammys for the group, winning Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Group.
January 1, 1976
The double-album Gratitude, a mix of studio and live recordings, tops the charts for three weeks. The group’s concerts, full of magic and pyrotechnics, help make them most popular R&B band of the mid-Seventies.
March 16, 1978
Group wins three Grammys: Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Group (for All ‘N All), Best R&B Instrumental Performance ("Runnin’") and Best Arrangement for Accompanying Vocals ("Got to Get You Into My Life.")
January 27, 1979
The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 peaks at #6 while the single "September" is on its way to #8. In February, Maurice White launches the American Recording Corporation (ARC), a CBS-distributed label whose artist roster included the Emotions and Deniece Williams.
December 1, 1983
Electric Universe, Earth, Wind & Fire’s 16th album, is released. When it sells disappointingly, an exhausted Maurice White disbands the group.
November 1, 1987
Reunited after four years, Earth, Wind & Fire unveils Touch the World. Its lead single, "System of Survival," hits #1 on the R&B chart.
October 29, 1992
The Eternal Dance, a 55-track, three-CD box set spanning the group’s entire career, is released.
March 6, 2000
Earth, Wind & Fire is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at the fifteenth annual induction dinner.