Earth, Wind & Fire got their name from drummer and founding member Maurice White's astrological sign. White's sign is Sagittarius, which has the primary elemental quality of Fire and the seasonal qualities of Earth and Air. "Earth, Air & Fire" didn't sound right, so "Air" became "Wind." White was previously in a band signed to Capitol Records called Salty Peppers; Maurice developed an interest in astrology and Egyptology while he was touring the world with them.
In 1975, Earth, Wind & Fire scored the soundtrack to a film about the dark side of the music industry called That's The Way of the World. EWF also appeared in the film as a band called "The Group." When Harvey Keitel's character sees "The Group" live, he produces their first album. The movie was a bomb but EWF's soundtrack was a huge hit, spending three weeks at #1.
A white songwriter named Allee Willis co-wrote several hits with the band, including "September" and "Boogie Wonderland." Allee told us that before writing with the band, Maurice White had her read the book The Greatest Salesman In The World.
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