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1974 studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire
Open Our Eyes is the fifth studio album by American band
Earth, Wind & Fire , released in March 1974 on
Columbia Records .
[1] The album rose to No. 1 on the
Billboard
Top Soul Albums chart and No. 15 on the
Top Pop Albums chart.
[2]
[3]
Open Our Eyes has been certified Platinum in the US by the
RIAA .
[4]
Overview
Open Our Eyes was produced by
Maurice White and
Joe Wissert and recorded at
Caribou Ranch in
Nederland, Colorado ,
US . During 2001, Open Our Eyes was reissued with four
bonus tracks .
[5]
Singles
The track, "
Mighty Mighty ", peaked at No. 4 on the
Billboard
Hot Soul Songs chart and No. 29 on the
Billboard
Hot 100 chart.
[6]
[7] "
Kalimba Story " reached No. 6 on the
Billboard
Hot Soul Songs chart.
[8] Another single, "
Devotion ", peaked at No. 23 on the
Billboard
Hot Soul Songs chart and No. 33 on the
Billboard
Hot 100 chart.
[9]
[10]
Critical reception
Rolling Stone called Open Our Eyes "a pleasant miscellany of Africana, Latin rhythms, well-mannered funk, smooth jazz,
Sly Stone ,
Stevie Wonder and the
Fifth Dimension ".
[15] Dale Anderson of the
Buffalo News declared "Open Our Eyes is worthy of the attention of progressive music fans everywhere".
[13] The
Village Voice 's
Robert Christgau also described Side 1 as "A very pleasant surprise" and Side 2 as a complete "tour de force".
[15]
[16]
Music journalist
Vince Aletti named Open Our Eyes in his ballot for
The Village Voice ' s 1974
Pazz & Jop critics poll.
[20]
Track listing
Original release
Side two Title Writer(s) 6. "Drum Song" M. White 5:10 7. "Tee Nine Chee Bit" M. White, C. Stepney, P. Bailey 3:45 8. "Spasmodic Movements"
Eddie Harris 1:50 9. "Rabbit Seed" M. White 0:31 10. "Caribou" C. Stepney, R. Giles 3:25 11. "Open Our Eyes" Leon Lumpkins 5:06
[21]
2001 Reissue
Title Writer(s) 1. "
Mighty Mighty "
Maurice White ,
Verdine White 3:03 2. "
Devotion " M. White,
Philip Bailey 4:50 3. "Fair But So Uncool" M. White, Rick Giles,
Charles Stepney 3:39 4. "Feelin' Blue" Kenny Altman 4:28 5. "Kalimba Story" M. White, V. White 4:03 6. "Drum Song" M. White 5:10 7. "Tee Nine Chee Bit" M. White, C. Stepney, P. Bailey 3:45 8. "Spasmodic Movements"
Eddie Harris 1:50 9. "Rabbit Seed" M. White 0:31 10. "Caribou" C. Stepney, R. Giles 3:25 11. "Open Our Eyes" Leon Lumpkins 5:06 12. "Ain't No Harm To Moan (Slave Song)" M. White, Larry Dunn 5:21 13. "Fair But So Uncool (Walkin' In N'Awlins Mix)" C. Stepney, R. Giles, M. White 3:37 14. "Step's Tune" M. White, C. Stepney 2:33 15. "Dreams" M. White, C. Stepney, L. Dunn 3:23
[22]
Personnel
Philip Bailey - vocals, congas, percussion
Larry Dunn - Moog synthesizer, piano, organ
Johnny Graham - guitar, percussion
Ralph Johnson - drums, percussion
Al McKay - vocals, guitar, percussion
Maurice White - vocals, drums, kalimba
Verdine White - vocals, bass, percussion
Andrew Woolfolk - soprano saxophone, flute
[21]
[22]
Production
Earth, Wind & Fire - Musical arrangements
Maurice White - Producer (Original recording), Audio Mixing (12-15)
Bruce Botnick - Recording Engineer, Remix
Paul Klingberg - Audio Mixing (12-15)
Leo Sacks - Producer (Reissue), Audio Mixing (12-15)
Charles Stepney - Associate Producer (Original recording), Musical arrangements
Joe Wissert - Producer (Original recording)
[21]
[22]
Charts and Certifications
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
See also
References
^
"Great Rock Discography" . p. 254.
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes (Top Soul Albums)" . billboard.com .
Billboard .
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes (Top Pop Albums)" . billboard.com .
^
a
b
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes" . riaa.com .
RIAA .
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes" . 45worlds.com .
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Mighty Mighty (Hot R&B Songs)" . Billboard.com .
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Mighty Mighty (Hot 100)" . Billboard.com .
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Kalimba Story (Hot R&B Songs)" . Billboard.com .
Billboard .
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Devotion (Hot 100)" . billboard.com .
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Devotion (Hot R&B Songs)" . Billboard.com .
^ Henderson, Alex.
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes" . allmusic.com .
Allmusic .
^ Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes . Billboard Magazine. March 16, 1974. p. 48.
^
a
b Anderson, Dale (April 6, 1974).
"Steely Dan Geared for Jazz-Rock Fusion" . newspapers.com .
Buffalo News . p. 77.
^ Warner, Simon.
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes/Spirit" . popmatters.com .
PopMatters .
^
a
b
c Emerson, Ken (May 9, 1974).
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes" . rollingstone.com .
Rolling Stone .
^
a
b
Christgau, Robert .
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes" . robertchristgau.com .
The Village Voice .
^ Werner, Craig (March 2001).
"Earth, Wind & Fire: Open Our Eyes, Spirit" .
Vibe Magazine . Vol. 9, no. 3. p. 200.
^
"Crucial Cuts" . gale.com .
The Times . August 16, 1998. p. 191.
^
Hull, Tom (April 26, 2021).
"Music Week" . Tom Hull – on the Web . Retrieved April 27, 2021 .
^
"Our Own Critics' Poll" . robertchristgau.com .
The Village Voice . January 20, 1975.
^
a
b
c Earth, Wind & Fire. “Open Our Eyes”. Columbia. 1974.
^
a
b
c Earth, Wind & Fire. “Open Our Eyes” (Remastered). Legacy’s Rhythm Soul Series. Columbia / Legacy. 2001.
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire Chart History (Billboard 200)" .
Billboard . Retrieved July 9, 2021.
^
"Earth, Wind & Fire Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)" .
Billboard . Retrieved July 9, 2021.
^
"Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1974" . Billboard . Retrieved July 9, 2021 .
^
"Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1974" . Billboard . Retrieved July 9, 2021 .
Notable members
Studio albums Soundtrack albums Live albums Videos Compilations Singles Collaborations Related articles Lists