Raise!

Raise!
Cover art by Shusei Nagaoka
Studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire
Released	November 14, 1981
Recorded	May 1981
Studio	ARC/George Massenburg Studio, West Los Angeles, CA Sunset Sounds Recording Studio, Hollywood, CA
Genre	R&B, soul, funk
Length	38:08
Label	ARC, Columbia
Producer	Maurice White
Earth, Wind & Fire chronology
Faces (1980) Raise! (1981) Powerlight (1983)
Singles from Raise!
"Let's Groove" Released: October 21, 1981 "I've Had Enough" / "Kalimba Tree (Instrumental)" Released: 1982 "Wanna Be With You" Released: January 19, 1982
Back cover
The back cover of Raise!

Raise! is the eleventh studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire, produced by the band's leader Maurice White for Kalimba Productions, and released in 1981 on CBS Records. Raise! has been certified platinum in the US by the RIAA for sales of over a million copies and gold in the UK and Canada by the British Phonographic Industry and Music Canada respectively.^[1][2]

Raise! was the bestselling R&B album of 1982.^[3] The album featured the #1 R&B and # 3 Pop hit "Let's Groove". The single "Wanna Be With You" won EWF a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance By A Duo Or Group.^[4] Raise also marked the return to the band of rhythm guitarist Roland Bautista, last heard from on 1972's Last Days and Time.

Raise! would be the final EWF album to be released on ARC. The label would be discontinued by Columbia Records the following year.

Artwork

The album art was designed by Roger Carpenter and Raise! was illustrated by Shusei Nagaoka. The front cover of Raise! features a presumed Egyptian female figure. The name of the band is present on the front cover, but the title is not.

On the back cover there is an illustration of a female figure in a sarcophagus, which is also divided into a purple left side and a blue right side. The sarcophagus appears to be hyper-modern. The title of the LP is presented in the top left corner of the back cover.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[5]
Rolling Stone	[6]
Robert Christgau	B+[7]

Ken Tucker of Rolling Stone describes Raise! as a reflection of "street-gritty black pop" and that on "Let's Groove" and the fast, cutting "Lady Sun", the horn section screams like a car running a red light". Music critic Robert Christgau says that on the album, he felt "a show of strength was due".^[8][9]

Track listing

Side one[10]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Let's Groove"	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White	5:37
2.	"Lady Sun"	Beloyd Taylor	3:39
3.	"My Love"	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White	4:35
4.	"Evolution Orange"	David Foster, O'Byrne, Maurice White	4:37

Side two
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
5.	"Kalimba Tree"	Maurice White	0:25
6.	"You Are a Winner"	Beloyd Taylor	4:09
7.	"I've Had Enough"	Philip Bailey, Greg Phillinganes, Brenda Russell	4:36
8.	"Wanna Be With You"	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White	4:36
9.	"The Changing Times"	Beloyd Taylor	5:54

2015 Expanded Version Bonus Tracks[11]
Track listing
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
10.	"Wanna Be With You" (Single Version)	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White	3:58
11.	"Kalimba Tree" (12" Long Version)	Maurice White	3:49
12.	"Let's Groove" (Special Remixed Holiday Version)	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White	6:44
13.	"Let's Groove" (Single Version)	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White	4:07
14.	"Let's Groove" (Instrumental)	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White	4:01
15.	"I've Had Enough" (7" Version)	Philip Bailey, Greg Phillinganes, Brenda Russell	3:53
16.	"The Changing Times" (7" Version)	Beloyd Taylor	4:45

Personnel

Adapted from Discogs.^[10]

Verdine White – bass, production assistant Frederick Seykora – cello Jerome Kessler – cello Larry Corbett – cello Mary Louise Zeyen – cello Paula Hochhalter – cello Selene Burford – cello Philip Bailey – co-producer, lead vocals, backing vocals, percussion Concertmaster – Assa Drori – concertmaster James Getzoff – concertmaster Fred White – drums, percussion Johnny Graham – guitar Roland Bautista – guitar Billy Meyers – keyboards David Foster – keyboards Wayne Vaughn – keyboards Larry Dunn – piano, synthesizer, production assistant Tom Saviano – saxophone Don Myrick – alto and tenor saxophone Andrew Woolfolk – tenor saxophone Michael Boddicker – synthesizer, vocoder Bill Reichenbach – trombone Charles Loper – trombone Dick Hyde – trombone George Bohanon – trombone Lew McCreary – trombone Louis Satterfield – trombone Chuck Findley – trombone Gary Grant – trumpet Jerry Hey – trombone Larry G. Hall – trombone Michael Harris – trombone Oscar Brashear – trombone Rahmlee Michael Davis – trombone

Viola – Alan DeVeritch – viola Allan Harshman – viola Gareth Nuttycombe – viola Pamela Goldsmith – viola Virginia Majewski – viola Violin – Anton Sen – violin Arkady Shindelman – violin Arnold Belnick – violin Betty LaMagna – violin Brian Leonard – violin Denyse Buffum – violin Endre Granat – violin Haim Shtrum – violin Henry Ferber – violin Irving Geller – violin Jerome Reisler – violin John Wittenbert – violin Mari Tsumura Botnick – violin Marvin Limonick – violin Myra Kestenbaum – violin Nathan Ross – violin Norman Leonard – violin Reginald Hill – violin Ronald Folsom – violin Sheldon Sanov – violin Thomas Buffum – violin William Hymanson – violin William Kurasch – violin Ms. Pluto – background vocals Beloyd Taylor – background vocals, guitar Ralph Johnson – background vocals, percussion Maurice White – producer, lead and background vocals, kalimba, drums

Production

• Billy Meyers – horn arrangements (tracks 1, 3, 7)
• Jerry Hey- horn arrangements (tracks 2, 4, 6, 8–9)
• David Foster – string arrangements (Track 4), & Billy Meyers (1, 3, 7)
• Mick Guzauski – art direction, design
• Ken Fowler – engineer
• Ron Pendragon – engineer
• Stephen McManus – assistant engineer
• Mick Guzauski – engineer (horns, string overdubs)
• Tom Perry – engineer (vocal overdubs), mixing
• Shusei Nagaoka – illustration

Charts

Album – Billboard

Year	Chart	Position
1981	Black Albums	1
	Pop Albums	5

Year	Chart	Position[12]
1982	United Kingdom	11

Singles – Billboard

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1981	"Let's Groove/I've Had Enough"	Club Play Singles	3
	"Let's Groove"	Black Singles	1
		Pop Singles	3
	"Wanna Be With You"	Black Singles	15
		Pop Singles	51

Accolades

The information regarding accolades attributed to Raise! is adapted from rocklistmusic.co.uk.^[13]

Publication	Country	Accolade	Year	Rank
NME	U.K	Albums of the Year	1981	16

See also

• List of number-one R&B albums of 1981 (U.S.)
• List of number-one R&B albums of 1982 (U.S.)
• Billboard Year-End

References

1. RIAA Certification for Raise!
2. British Phonographic Industry certification for Raise!
3. Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums of 1982
4. www.earthwindandfire.com/bio_awards.html
5. Allmusic review
6. Rolling Stone review
7. Robertchristgau.com
8. "Earth, Wind & Fire Raise! album review". rollingstone.com. February 4, 1982. Retrieved May 4, 2009.
9. "Consumer Guide Album Earth, Wind & Fire: Raise!". robertchristgau.com. 1981. Retrieved May 4, 2009.
10. Raise on discogs.com
11. Raise (Expanded Edition) on discogs.com
12. "Raise!". chartstats.com. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2009.
13. rocklistmusic – 1981 NME Lists

External links

• link
• Raise on discogs.com