Illumination

Artist: Earth Wind & Fire
Label: Sanctuary Records
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1

UPC: 060768751323
EAN: 0060768751323
ASIN: B0002WZT8E

Release Date: 2005-09-20

Illumination

Related Categories:

Contemporary Blues

| Blues | Styles | Music

Contemporary R&B

| R&B | Styles | Music

General

| R&B | Styles | Music

General

| Soul | R&B | Styles | Music

Quiet Storm

| R&B | Styles | Music

Tracks:

Lovely People feat. Will-I-Am of the Black Eyed Peas
Pure Gold
A Talking Voice Interlude
Love's Dance
Show Me the Way feat. Raphael Saadiq
This Is How I Feel feat. Big Boi, Kelly Rowland and Sleepy Brown
Work it Out
Pass You By
The One
Elevated feat. Floetry
Liberation
To You feat. Brian McKnight
Bonus Track: The Way You Move feat. Kenny G

Similar Items:

A Time To Love
Chicago/Earth Wind & Fire - Live at the Greek Theatre
The Promise
Devoted Spirits: A Tribute to Earth Wind and Fire
So Amazing...An All-Star Tribute to Luther Vandross

Amazon.com

On Illumination, Earth, Wind & Fire take a hip-hop strategy and turn it on its head, working rhymes and beats into their still pudding-smooth harmonies and sun-warmed, ethereal soul. For other bands, it would have never worked, but Earth, Wind & Fire have always been masters at sophisticated genre-piling. If anyone has earned the right, it's frontmen Philip Bailey and Maurice White and the rest of the gang. Few other 35-year-old, eight-time Grammy-winning bands can claim as many followers or liberally-borrowing samplers. Where other old-timers might have let the young'uns--in this case Big Boi, Will.I.Am, and Kelly Rowland, among others--scribble their ultra-mod, find-it-here brand of cool all over the record, Earth, Wind & Fire are able to maintain their elemental excellence in the midst of the hip-hop boogie shuffle. Hear it on "The One," as well as the white-hot spectacle "This Is How I Feel" and the Raphael Saadiq smoothie "Show Me the Way." The Rolling Stones aren't the only Rock and Roll Hall of Famers to score an incredible new disc in 2005. --Tammy La Gorce

Customer Reviews:

EWf's 'Illumination' Shines Bright in 2005 - 2006!!.......2006-06-18

EWF's new 'Illumination' is a nice CD for avid fans & new ones alike. The group updated their sound with contemporary elements, and while I also enjoyed the previous CD ('The Promise', which featured The Emotions & Angie Stone in 2003), 'Illumination' features guests who also seem to complement Maurice White's vision for the legendary band. This approach works well for the most part in that EWF doesn't sacrifice musicianship for an attempt at sales (like the 1990 EWF dud titled 'Heritage'!!).

'Illumination' has several quality tracks which 'got me' at first play including 'Love's Dance', 'Pure Gold', 'Show Me The Way' (ft.Raphael Saadiq), 'This Is How I Feel', 'To You'(ft.Brian McKnight), and the awesome 'Liberation', which is a tight instrumental showcase for Verdine White's skills on Bass. 'The Way You Move' is merely so-so, but I can't really accept this 2 year old song as a true bonus track (and then there's the issue of Kenny G..yuck!). Jimmy Jam / Terry Lewis, Raphael Saadiq, Brian McKnight, and the great Maurice White did an outstanding job with production. It's always special having Maurice White conribute as active member, and he sounds great considering his condition.

In closing, there are probably other editions of 'Illumination', but getting the original 13 track edition is fine for starters. HOWEVER, if you're a serious EWF fan, consider adding 5 BONUS TRACKS to create an EXPANDED EDITION of 'Illumination'.

Here's the tracklisting for my own special CD...

1. Love Together (ft.Roots Manuva & Raphael Saadiq)*
2. Lovely People (ft.Will.i.am)
3. Pure Gold
4. A Talking Voice - Interlude
5. Love's Dance
6. Show Me The Way (ft.Raphael Saadiq)
7. Autumn (ft.Musiq Soulchild)*
8. Let Me Love You (ft.Floetry)*
9. This Is How I Feel (ft.Big Boi,
Kelly Rowland, and Sleepy Brown)
10. Work It Out
11. Pass You By
12. The One
13. Elevated (ft.Floetry)
14. Liberation - Instrumental
15. To You (ft.Brian McKnight)
16. The Way You Move (Kenny G ft.EWF)
17. Love Together (Aletrnate Mix 2005)*
18. Gather Round*

This is MUCH BETTER than ANY Japanese Import Edition (sorry, I refuse to pay for those overpriced CDs...W.T.F.!!).
My actual rating for the USA edition of 'Illumination' is 4 stars...failure to include the bonus tracks cost it a star.
Peace, SD
(of Chakas World)

The Elements of Greatness - This CD is "The One".......2005-11-10

Earth, Wind, & Fire revisit their era of greatness on Illumination by going back to their sounds of origin. They perfectly blend their old-fashioned powerfully harmonious vocals with their infamous horns and then, if that wasn't enough, they threw in neo soul's Black Eyed Peas' leader Wil I Am, Brian McKnight, and Raphael(of Tone, Tony, Toni fame, all in the mix, to give us the best of the older and newer R&B worlds.
From the first song (Lovely People), you know you are in for a true EWF treat as Wil I Am scats while backed by EWF's horn section and Maurice plays kalimba on this fun-loving tune. Perhaps the most impressive work (in my opnion), is the second song, "Pure Gold", in which EWF recaptures that distinctively soul stirring sound that made them the greatest band in R&B music, if not the world. Shades of "That's the Way of the World" flow throughout it, with the greatest background vocals of all time being reawakened behind Maurice and Phil's earth-shakingly powerful lead vocals. I have not stopped playing this tune since I got this CD from Amazon and if you love EWF, you won't be able to stop listening to it either, and if you don't love EWF, "Illumination" will make you a fan instantaneously. Songs like "The One" are absolutely compelling, while "Love's Dance" will force you to boogie helplessly.
I could go on about this CD, but you have to hear it 4 yourself to know the masterful effort that went into this project that incorporated the producing skills of the R&B dynamic duo, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. This is EWF's best work in decades. I have not been this enthusiastic about an Earth, Wind, and Fire release since "All N All" and "I Am". Just when R7B was getting mondain, EWF brings forth "Illumination", filled with, heart and soul, as only they could have. Make this CD a part of your collection. I dare you to listen to the sample of the tracks and then try to resist the compulsion to order it immediately !

Back to what you know.......2005-11-08

Illumination is by far the best album from the EWF camp since 1982.EWF goes back to the source and in the same vein adds a hint of contemporary creativity(both artist and music)that yields nothing less than musical perfection.

PURE GOLD.......2005-11-08

Man THE ELEMENTS NEVER FAIL ME!

I just wish more artists young and old stay true to who they are and what they stand for! So many new artists are so trendy only allowing them to be tolerable for a season.

I love the album and I must live by PURE GOLD just one of the many songs that have stuck with me for LIFE!

KEEP IT COMING!

Classic but New EWF for the FANS.......2005-10-12

I LOVE THIS ALBUM!!! I've had it for about 2 weeks and I listen to it at least 3 times per day every day. I am a big fan of EWF and I must say that I am very pleased with this entire album but my favorites in no particular order are Pure Gold, Show Me the Way, The One, Liberation, To You and The Way You Move.

I think real EWF fans will enjoy this album as much as I am!!!

Music:

Music

Music CD

Oveja Negra

Super Exitos ~ Frecuencia Mod

Te Sigo Amando ~ Los Traileros del Norte

Swing City ~ Various Artists

Glenn Miller ~ Glenn Miller

Always ~ Duke Jordan

Tripping Tropicana ~ Superlitio

Bajo Mil Llaves ~ Lalo Mora

La Discothegue ~ Banda Herradura

Se Prendio la Fiesta en la 8 ~ Various Artists