I Am is the ninth studio album by the R&B band Earth, Wind & Fire, released on June 9, 1979 on CBS Records. The album features the singles "Boogie Wonderland" with The Emotions and "After the Love Has Gone". I Am has been certified double platinum in the US by the RIAA and platinum in the UK and in Canada by the British Phonographic Industry and Music Canada.
Video I Am (Earth, Wind & Fire album)
Reception
"After The Love Has Gone" won a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance By A Duo, Group Or Chorus and "Boogie Wonderland" also won a Grammy for Best R&B Instrumental Performance. "After The Love Has Gone" and an instrumental version of Boogie Wonderland also garnered Grammy nominations for Record Of The Year and Best Disco Recording respectively. Bandleader Maurice White was also Grammy nominated for Producer of the Year.
"Wait" was sampled on Talib Kweli's track "Ghetto Show", which featured Common and Anthony Hamilton. It was included on his 2004 album The Beautiful Struggle.
Maps I Am (Earth, Wind & Fire album)
Track listing
Original release
2004 Reissue
- Note
- The Emotions are Jeanette Hawes, Sheila Hutchinson-Whitt & Wanda Hutchinson-Vaughn
Unreleased Tracks
Two songs that were recorded during the I Am sessions--"September" and "Love Music"--were included on The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 in 1978. Two other tracks ("Diana" and "Dirty") were recorded during the I Am sessions but not released at the time; these were included on the 2004 reissue of the album. "Dirty" and another unreleased song recorded in the I Am sessions entitled "Where Do We Go From Here?" were re-recorded for EWF's 2003 album The Promise.
Uses in other media
"Let Your Feelings Show" was featured in the Fame episode "Heritage".
"In the Stone" was used in the 2002 movie Drumline.
"In the Stone" was also the opening theme from the Brazilian TV show from SBT, Porta da Esperança, hosted by Silvio Santos.
"In the Stone" was performed by Rickey Minor and The Tonight Show Band on June 7, 2010, during Minor's first night as the show's bandleader.
"In the Stone" was used as the opening theme for the ATN-7 Sydney "Midday At The Movies" program around 1982.
"In the Stone" was used in the opening credits for the Swedish TV-comedy Lorry.
"In the Stone" was used for the opening of its newscasts on KLAS-TV in Las Vegas from 1979 to 1981.
"Rock That" was used for the opening of its telecasts of the Los Angeles Dodgers on flagship KTTV Channel 11 during the early to mid 1980s.
Charts
Personnel
Credits are adapted from Allmusic and the album's Liner Notes
- Lead Vocals - Junior Wells (additional on 11), Philip Bailey, Maurice White
- Background Vocals - The Emotions (additional on 5), Philip Bailey, Maurice White
- Bass - Verdine White
- Cello - Daniel Smith, Delores Bing, Jacqueline Lustgarten, Jan Kelley, John Walz, Kevan Torfeh, Larry Corbett, Miguel Martinez
- Congas - Philip Bailey
- Drums - Fred White, Maurice White
- French horn - Barbara Korn, Sidney Muldrow, Richard Perissi, Marilyn Robinson
- Guitar - Johnny Graham (1-9, 11), Marlo Henderson, Steve Lukather, Al McKay
- Harmonica - Junior Wells (11)
- Harp - Sir Alexander Dutkewych (12), Dorothy Ashby
- Kalimba - Maurice White
- Keyboards - David Foster, Eduardo Del Barrio, Bill Meyers
- Percussion - Philip Bailey, Paulinho Da Costa, Ralph Johnson
- Piano, Oberheim and Moog Synthesizers - Larry Dunn
- Synthesizer programming - Steve Porcaro
- Alto and Baritone Saxophones - Don Myrick
- Tenor Saxophone - Andrew Woolfolk, Don Myrick
- Saxophone Solo - Don Myrick (3)
- Additional Saxophones - Fred Jackson, Jr., Herman Riley, Jerome Richardson
- Timpani - Richard Lepore
- Trombone - George Bohanon, Garnett Brown, Bill Reichenbach Jr., Louis Satterfield, Benjamin Powell, Maurice Spears
- Trumpet Solo - Rahmlee Michael Davis (6)
- Trumpets - Oscar Brashear, Bobby Bryant, Michael Harris, Jerry Hey, Elmer Brown, Rahmlee Michael Davis, Steve Madaio
- Viola - James Ross, Laurie Woods, Linda Lipsett, Marilyn Baker, Rollice Dale, Virginia Majewski
- Violin - Anton Sen, Sherman Bryana, Carl LaMagna, Cynthia Kovaks, Gina Kronstadt, Haim Shtrum, Harris Goldman, Henry Ferber, Henry Roth, Ilkka Talvi, Jack Gootkin, Jerome Reisler, Jerome Webster, Joseph Goodman, Joseph Livoti, Judith Talvi, Leeana Sherman, Marcy Dicterow, Pamela Gates, Pavel Farkas, Ronald Clarck, Rosmen Torfeh, Sheldon Sanov, William Henderson
Production
- Design by Roger Carpenter
- Illustration by Shusei Nagaoka
- Mastered by Michael Reese
- Producer - Maurice White (Original, Reissue), Leo Sacks (Reissue), Paul Klingberg (additional on 10, 12)
- Engineer - Tom Perry, George Massenburg
- Assistant Engineers - Craig Widby, Ross Pallone
- Mixing - Mark Wilder (11), George Massenburg
- Concertmaster - Janice Gower
- Horn Arrangements - Jerry Hey (1, 3, 7-8, 10-12), Tom Tom 84 (2, 4, 6-7, 9), Benjamin F. Wright (5)
- String Arrangements - David Foster (1, 3, 8, 10), Tom Tom 84 (2, 4, 6-7, 9), Benjamin F. Wright (5)
Accolades
The information regarding accolades attributed to I Am is adapted from Acclaimed Music
See also
- List of number-one R&B albums of 1979 (U.S.)
References
External links
- I Am on Legacy Recordings
- I Am on discogs.com
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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