The energetic, infectious and exciting sound of Earth, Wind & Fire returns to Hawaii with a concert at Blaisdell Arena in December, promoter Rick Bartalini has announced. Tickets go on sale Saturday for the Dec. 10 concert.
Founded by Maurice White, who died in 2016, Earth, Wind & Fire issued its eponymous debut album in 1970 and made the charts with the 1972 single “I Think About Loving You,” which landed in the Top 40 on the Billboard R&B charts. A reorganization then brought in vocalist Philip Bailey, who, along with percussionist/backing vocalist Ralph Johnson and White’s brother, bassist/backing vocalist Verdine White, remains the group’s most veteran performing members.
The band’s blend of funk, jazz, R&B, soul, gospel, blues, African and Latin, created on a wide variety of instrumentation that included a brass band that came to be known as the Phenix Horns, guitars and the kalimba (aka African thumb piano), which would become part of the group’s signature sound. Its fourth album, “Head to the Sky,” was its first gold album, and was quickly followed by the platinum-selling album “Open Our Eyes,” which featured the R&B hits “Mighty Mighty”and “Kalimba Story.”
The band’s seventh album, “That’s the Way of the World,” was originally created as the soundtrack to a film, but the band released the album early because it thought the film would not do well. The album’s single “Shining Star” earned the band its first Grammy and the album was a multiplatinum seller. The group would go on to win five more Grammys, with overall album sales topping 100 million worldwide. Other honors include induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the NAACP Image Award Hall of Fame, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a BET Lifetime Achievement Award, a Soul Train Legend Award, and Kennedy Center Honors in 2019.
The band has performed several times in Hawaii, with its last performance in 2016.
“It’s always a treat for us (to perform in Hawaii). … For us, this is just the cherry on top,” Johnson said in a press release.
Opening the concert will be Jonathan Roy, who has released four studio albums and is known for introspective pop music and quality YouTube videos.
Tickets, which range in price from $46 to $226, will go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday for Hawaii residents, based on credit card information. There is a limit to eight tickets per person.
Visit ticketmaster.com or call 800-745-3000.
The Blaisdell box office will also open at 10 a.m Saturday. Tickets go on sale nationwide Oct. 29. One dollar from every ticket sold will be donated to the Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund.
