Earth, Wind & Fire pairs with Chic for night of dance-floor R&B at DTE

Somewhat surprisingly, Earth Wind & Fire has never toured with Nile Rodgers and Chic. But the two groups are hardly strangers to each other.

“We’ve known Niles for years,” Earth, Wind & Fire bassist Verdine White said, before touching on some shared history. “Nile had produced one of Philip’s albums, and I introduced Philip to Niles. And absolutely our paths had crossed, and we’ve done a couple of little records together. So we all know each other very well.”

Philip is, of course, Philip Bailey, lead singer of Earth, Wind & Fire. And Rodgers produced “Inside Out,” Bailey’s follow-up to his highly successful 1984 solo release, “Chinese Wall.” And there clearly has been a mutual admiration society existing between the two acts for many years, said White, who noted there was never any sense of competition between Earth, Wind & Fire and Chic, even though they were two of the most popular groups during the late 1970s heyday of R&B and disco.

“We always loved their music. We always loved their grooves, the songs,” White said of Rodgers and Chic. “And not only what he did with Chic, but he did all of those things with Diana Ross, David Bowie, all the way up to Daft Punk. Without question, he’s one of the greatest (producers) that has ever done that thing that he does.” (Rodgers was hospitalized for undisclosed reasons last weekend, but said via Twitter on Tuesday that he had been discharged and was ready to resume touring.)

After reeling off a string of hit singles — including “Everybody Dance,” "Le Freak,” “I Want Your Love” and “Good Times” over the course of its first three albums, Chic got caught in the backlash against disco in the early 1980s and saw its fortunes quickly fade. Rodgers and his fellow founding member of Chic, Bernard Edwards, dissolved the group in 1983 and focused instead on producing albums for other artists.

They had already coproduced “Diana,” the multiplatinum 1980 solo album by former Supremes lead singer Diana Ross and went on to work with Madonna on her 1984 breakthrough album, “Like a Virgin” before going their separate ways. Rodgers stayed busy, further building an impressive production resume that includes credits on such notable albums as David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance,” Duran Duran’s “Notorious,” the Thompson Twins’ “Here’s to Future Days,” Jeff Beck’s “Flash” and recently, several songs on Daft Punk’s 2013 album, “Random Access Memories.”

Rodgers and Edwards gave Chic another try in 1989, releasing the album “Chic-Ism,” but the reunion didn’t last, and Edwards passed away in 1996. And it wasn’t until 2014, after Rodgers had recovered from a bout with prostate cancer, that he brought back Chic, billing the act as Chic featuring Nile Rodgers.

As for Earth, Wind & Fire, that group’s history predates Chic by several years. Formed in 1969 by singer and main songwriter Maurice White, Earth, Wind & Fire released five albums and went through several lineup changes before — with core members Verdine White, Bailey (vocals), Larry Dunn (keyboards) and Ralph Johnson (percussion) in the band — the group made its breakthrough in 1975 with the album “That’s the Way of the World,” which featured the hit “Shining Star.”

Over the next eight years, Earth Wind & Fire reeled off a steady string of platinum albums (such as “Gratitude,” “Spirit” and “Raise”) and a basket full of hit singles (“Sing a Song,” “September” and “After the Love Has Gone,” to name a few) before deciding to take a hiatus that lasted from 1983 until 1987. By that time, the group had enough hits to ensure that it would remain a viable concert draw for as long as it decided to continue its career.

Earth, Wind & Fire hasn’t rested on its laurels, though, maintaining a regular touring schedule, while releasing another six studio albums. Earth, Wind & Fire has persevered despite the absence of founder Maurice White. Stricken by Parkinson’s disease, he had to retire from touring in 1994 and was unable to participate in the making of the group’s most recent studio album, 2013’s “Now, Then & Forever.” Maurice White succumbed to his illness in 2016.

Verdine White expressed admiration for how his older brother faced his battle with Parkinson’s.

“He dealt with it with a lot of courage, a lot of strength,” White said. “He looked it dead in the eye, and in spite of it, he had a great life.”

Even without Maurice White’s songs or guidance, “Now, Then & Forever” delivered the kind of horn-accented, melodic brand of R&B/pop that became the band’s trademark in the 1970s. This time out, Bailey took the lead creatively, writing or cowriting seven of the album’s 10 songs.

“Now, Then & Forever” gave Earth, Wind & Fire a clutch of new songs that could be inserted into the group’s live repertoire. But the show on the tour with Rodgers and Chic figures to be heavily weighted toward the classic hits.

“You want to give them songs they recognize and things that they can feel good (hearing),” White said. “Between both bands we’re going to have hits after hits after hits.”

And Verdine White and his bandmates plan to keep Earth, Wind & Fire going strong well after this summer’s tour wraps — including maintaining the legacy of their visionary founding member.

“He gave us a lot of years,” White said of his brother. “And we’ve all carried on, and every night we dedicate a portion of the show to him. And that’s what he would want us to do is to keep going.”

What’s more, not only have Earth, Wind & Fire (as well as Rodgers and Chic) retained good portions of the fan bases that began supporting them during the 1970s, White said his band continues to reach new fans.

“We did Jazz Fest (in New Orleans) a few weeks ago. We had 50,000 20-year-olds, and in Japan, we had teenagers,” White said. “Every time we walk on the streets, young people are taking pictures, teenagers, ‘I want to take it for my dad.’ ‘I want to take it for my mom.’ So both bands have this cross-generational (following).
 
“They’ve had their parents, their brothers and sisters turn them on to different songs,” he said. “They can stream it, so they’re able to get all of the good music.”

Earth, Wind & Fire

With Chic feat. Nile Rodgers

8 p.m. Tue.

DTE Energy Music Theatre

I-75 at exit 89, Clarkston

248-377-0100

$25-$125