I Am is the ninth studio album by the American band Earth, Wind & Fire. It was released in June 1979 by ARC/Columbia Records. The LP rose to number one on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart and number three on the Billboard 200 chart. I Am has been certified double Platinum in the U.S. by the RIAA, Platinum in the UK by the BPI, and Platinum in Canada by Music Canada.
I Am was produced by Maurice White. The album features guest appearances by the Emotions and Toto's Steve Lukather.
Contents
Singles
"After the Love Has Gone" reached number two on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Soul Songs charts. "After the Love Has Gone" also reached number three on both the Billboard Adult Contemporary Songs and UK Pop Singles charts. The ballad was Grammy-nominated in the Record of the Year and Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group categories, and won the latter.
Another single, "Boogie Wonderland", featuring The Emotions, reached number two on the Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart and number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Boogie Wonderland" was also Grammy-nominated in the categories of Best Disco Recording and Best R&B Instrumental Performance. It won the Grammy for the latter category.
Critical reception
Eric Sieger of The Baltimore Sun described I Am as "faultlessly produced." Sieger added, "The album features a horn and string section, synthesizers, congas, and kalimbas and the material ranges from straight boogie to soulful ballads. Lyrically, some of the numbers leave something to be desired, but Earth, Wind & Fire is one group where the musicianship is so sharp and vibrant that the words don't seem to matter quite so much." AllMusic's Alex Henderson noted, "I Am isn't a radical departure from its predecessor, All 'n All. Though not in a class with That's the Way of the World, Spirit, or All 'n All, I Am is a rewarding album that has a lot going for it."
Phyl Garland of Stereo Review wrote: "As Earth, Wind & Fire have strengthened their grip on success, the mystical and extraterrestrial emblems adorning their albums have gained proportionately in grandiosity. This latest one, with a title echoing the majesty of Jehovah and an inside cover featuring a portrait of the group costumed and posed as princes out of fable, is no exception. Such bombast may be considered forgivable in this case, however, because of the excellence of the music on the record. As usual, this astral outfit blasts off in a balls-of-fire flurry of rhythm, which is cleverly varied through the album, even within selections, without losing its driving thrust. There is some evidence of capitulation to disco, particularly on Boogie Wonderland, to which the Emotions lend a few spirited soprano embellishments, but the emphasis throughout is on a dazzling interplay between precision ensemble voices-employed like horns-in rapid, robust exchanges with the group's instruments augmented by a large orchestra."
Rose Riggins of Gannett exclaimed that "I Am is explosive and ready to lift you off your feet to boogie wonderland. Earth Wind & Fire's 10th album, it shows the band is still on the move upward. This is a fine LP, both versatile and creative." Dave Marsh of Rolling Stone said that "I Am is obviously meant to portend something, but who knows what? Is this Maurice White's vision of paradise?" John Rockwell of The New York Times stated: "This flashily theatrical, musically imaginative creation of Maurice White can almost always be counted on for interesting records, and the new I Am album is no exception." Rockwell added, "Mr. White's records reaffirm one of the basic truths about the shifting fashions of black music. All these up‐tempo Idioms are inherently related. Disco and funk and soul and rhythm and blues are all fruits of the same tree—the music of rural black people, growing from African roots and shaped by influences from the dominant white culture, evangelical Christianity and the 'urban experience. A band like Earth, Wind and Fire will enjoy its disco hits. But those hits won't sound like a very significant change in direction because a slight emphasis of the bass line entails only the most modest modification of the basic style."
Track listing
Personnel
Earth, Wind & Fire
Orchestra
Production
Maurice White – producer
Al McKay – producer (5)
George Massenburg – engineer, remixing
Tom Perry – engineer
Ross Pallone – assistant engineer
Craig Widby – assistant engineer
Mike Reese – CD mastering at The Mastering Lab (Hollywood, California)
Roger Carpenter – album design
Shusei Nagaoka – illustration
2004 reissue
Steve Berkowitz – Legacy A&R
Leo Sacks – producer, liner notes
Maurice White – producer, liner notes
Paul Klingberg – additional production (10, 12)
Mark Wilder – mastering at Sony Music Studios (New York City, New York)
Joy Monfried – project director
Adam Farber – A&R coordinator
Patti Matheny – A&R coordinator
Darren Salmieri – A&R coordinator