R.I.P. Maurice White

[dtothec]

Drummer, singer, songwriter and founder of Earth Wind and Fire. Passed in his sleep last night from complications due to Parkinson's disease! The world has lost another great musician!

[pauldo]

Ouch.
Great man.
 
Super sad as I watch my own father deal with Parkinson's.

[hankster]

Just saw this on news.  What a blow.  EW& Fwas a real inspiration to me when I first began to play funk bass.  He was the beating heart of EW&F, no matter who else came and went.  Rest in peace, Maurice, you made the world a funkier place.
 
R.

[jazzyvee]

Maurice White will be a really sad loss to music, I spent a lot of time in the 70's listening to EWF and singing along with those high harmonies until my voice broke. Somewhere along the way I have lost my whole EWF vinyl collection.
 
Getaway was the first EWF track I ever heard and was blown away with the musicianship of the band and how tight those brass guys were.  
 
He has a great legacy of music that will no doubt inspire many for years to come.

[jacko]

Such a shame that we've lost yet another great. By sheer coincidence, I just scored tickets for EW&F playing in Glasgow this June. Despite Maurice leaving the band many years ago it'll still be a poignant reminder.
 
Graeme

[funkyjazzjunky]

One of the most challenging bass-lines is Maurice's brother playing bass on 'Happy Feelin' from the That's The Way Of The World Album.
 
I was blessed to overhear one of Maurice White's last performances when Clinton had Earth Wind & Fire perform when the King of Jordan visited the US.  The group performed in a giant tent and I and  many others hovered around the Whitehouse fences listening and dancing.

[dtothec]

I saw them live probably a dozen times and the complex rhythms and melodies combined with the energy they bought prevented you from standing still, you feel it in your bones! Back in the early days they did David Copperfield magic tricks during their performances, they'd disappear and pop up in the rear of the venue. I remember one show they were playing Getaway and men in space suits came out, a pyramid came down and one at a time they got into the pyramid and it went back up in the air and exploded and the spacemen who were standing there with their arms raise the whole time turned around took off their helmets and it was the members of EWF.  You couldn't take your eyes off of the stage or you might miss something. They were/are not only great musicians but also performers, they put on a show that is/was so tight, and the horns section simply incredible! His music is timeless and will live on!

[David Houck]

I saw them at Greensboro Colosseum probably around mid 70's or so.  Great show; and yes, very tight.  And yes, very influential; I loved their music.

[JuancarlinBass]

Oh man, oh man oh man, just when I thought it was enough of this so far this year. Mr. White was truly an inspiration for me, his music has accompanied me since I was a little kid, and he has been certainly a clear example for me of what to follow, and how to do it. I had the wonderful opportunity in 2000 to meet the band (Maurice was already restraining from touring due to the illness), and we agreed on the wonderful musical and personal legacy of such a great man and musician. I guess, as you get older most of your heroes will fade into eternity at certain point, I just didn't expect them to go all together at once, and it just starts to seem like that to me. Thee are sad, sad news for me indeed.

[funkyjazzjunky]

Dave,
 
I was a teenager at a number of the mid 70's to early 80's EWF concerts in the Greensboro Coliseum.  
Blew my mind!