That’s the Way of the World

Until today, I had never listened to an Earth, Wind & Fire album in full. Now I see the light, and I repent for the error of my ways. These guys are the goats.

I enjoyed the funk of Happy Feelin and Yearnin Learnin but elsewhere it just felt flat and insipid schmalz. All About Love (First Impression) is just abysmal.

I'm off on another tangent. An artist I really like, The Dear Hunter, announced a new album yesterday which is the next part of a story they are telling over short films, LPs, an EP and an augmented reality game. The last LP has very funky Earth Wind and Fire vibes in places and I'd been meaning to listen to some EW&F as a result, so this was lovely timing.

I really like funk. I've said this a few times now, but I genuinely didn't know before starting this project that that was the case. 300 albums in, the Generator has provided some utterly terrible records (in my opinion) but it has shown me the way of the funk, so for that I am grateful.

That being said, this album is a bit variable for me. Shining Star, That's the Way of the World and Yearnin' Learnin' are all great. For my taste, the other tracks vary from pretty good (Africano) to "no, absolutely not" (All About Love).

So it's getting a middling mark.

3/5

This is a very warm, exuberant, kind hearted album with plenty of pep. Outside of the big singles though, I do feel a slight disconnect. It's a fun, warm listen which I’m sure would make a great party record which sits pleasantly in the background, but doesn’t give me anything deeper than that.

50% Earth, 50% Wind, no Fire.

It is interesting that I have never even bought a greatest hits of this band despite the fact that I love soul music. This was nice but pretty much just went over my head.

Oh yeah! I'm always a sucker for a 70s soul/funk album, and this is a 70s soul/funk album. Therefore, I am enjoying this record. However, it is a legitimately great record with awesome vocals and a great groove. It's very upbeat, with uplifting lyrics. This is music to dance and groove to, and every bit of it symbolic of the decadence of the 1970s. Let's not try to deny the power of 70s Motown soul, and EWF are one of the genre's greatest groups. They switch between groovy funk workouts and soulful ballads with aplomb, and they remain a fixture in pop culture to this day. What more could you ask for?

Good!

This is one of those albums where I recognize the greatness, but soul/funk is not one of my go-to genres, and having Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On so recently (And getting What's Going On? a while back), it's tough to really be into this record in comparison.

Some really great stuff here, particularly the title track, All About Love (First Impression), and Africano. Never was huge on Shining Star despite it's popularity.

So yeah. Great record, just not really my thing, and there are other records out there from this genre that I much prefer and would rather go back to.

I've never dived too deep into Earth, Wind & Fire, but I do know that some digging would be worth it. I know this is one of their more popular albums, and sure enough, I know Shining Star, an iconic song. But there's quite a bit here that's worthwhile. It's funk, it's soul, and it's very easy to listen to: There's something positive and pleasant about That's The Way Of The World that makes it hard to dislike. But, I must admit that my favorite material here is all the stuff that adheres closest to funk. Also, the mysticism here really seems to bug some people, but honestly I'm ambivalent to it. This didn't exactly change my life: there are some funk albums I know I prefer, and I didn't gel with a couple songs here: but, this is an enjoyable listen, and regardless of what I say, Earth, Wind & Fire are legends.

This was such a great album for going back to work for the first time in 2 weeks! Shining star is such a great intro to this album, and it was such a fun experience the whole way through!

3.5 stars.

Really great. Full, smooth, fun sound throughout. Another review called the sound 'velvety' which is the perfect description. Not my usual fare but super enjoyable!

Funk is not my favorite genre. The singing on this album is not great. The instruments are fun sometimes, but overall I am bored and unsatisfied. I know Earth, Wind & Fire has the capability of being great, but I didn't find that with any songs here.

Not a lot to say other than in this particular genre of music EW&F stand amongst the giants. Wonderful album.

Listened on 26th October 2025

Great

Not a bad record. Of course shining star is a classic, and I really liked Africano and See the Light, but many of the others didn't hold my attention. Still, good overall. 3/5

Alright, must be first funk and disco album, these guys are legends for sure. I find the first 2 songs significantly more memorable than the rest 6, but still is some solid music right here. Not even sure what to rate it, 4 stars seems a bit too much and 3 stars too little - a bit torn on this one. For RYM - 3.5/5.0

They gave us this one 2 days too late!!! (I must say, I have seen enough of the 'September' gif this year to last me a lifetime, but I do like the song. So I'm feeling positive about this album -- even though I know 'September' is not even on it.)

I love 'Shining Star', but that's because it's in "Muppets from Space", one of my letterboxd top 4. It is a bop though. Plus, Gonzo gets a happy ending!!! (spoilers). I'll be honest, I assumed some of the vocals in this song were dubbed in muppets, but no, it's just the original :'D

The rest of the songs are solid. Good energy, fun. The beep bloop robot ending of 'All About Love' made me chuckle. Could do without the falsetto of 'Reasons', but it's not the worst. I couldn't take my time with this one, so it's just a high 3, but it's very solid. I just don't think I'd listen to it outside of this (but I could see myself bumping it up to 4 on another day).

Highlights: 'Shining Star', 'Africano' (groovy)

Honestly didnt expect much going into this,but its insanely groovy and calming and bound to get you in a good mood.An absolute staple of the disco movement and one ill be returning to if im in the mood to dance

8.1

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 is smooth, elegant, and clearly an important moment in 70s soul-funk, but outside of 𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳 little really sticks. It flows nicely as background, yet feels more like atmosphere than substance.