Now, Then & Forever

Studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire

Released

September 10, 2013

Recorded

2012-2013

Genre

R&B, funk

Length

43:21

Label

Legacy

Producer

Neal H. Pogue, Walt B., Jai-Dig, JR Hutson, Philip J. Bailey, Myron McKinley, Justin Panarielo, Philip D. Bailey, Larry Dunn

Earth, Wind & Fire chronology

Illumination
(2005)

Now, Then & Forever
(2013)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]

Now, Then & Forever is the 20th studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire, released on September 10, 2013, by Legacy Recordings, a division of Sony Music. This is the first Earth, Wind & Fire album without musical input from founder Maurice White ,although he supplied liner notes. Larry Dunn, another founding member, joined the production team on this album lending his signature style as the keyboardist for several tracks. The first release from the album was "Guiding Lights" which premiered in 2012. In 2013, the second single "My Promise" was released. Band members say that this album is a return to the old Earth, Wind & Fire sound and formula while mixing in some new innovations as well.^[2]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Sign On" (featuring Daniel McClain)	Philip D. Bailey, Sharlotte Gibson, Austin Jacobs, Daniel McClain, Neal H. Pogue, Darrin Simpson	4:17
2.	"Love Is Law"	Allen Bundy, Lee Hutson, Jr., Jairus Lemuel-Jada Mozee, Ric'key Pageot, Eric Rousseau, Meg Todd	4:20
3.	"My Promise"	Siedah Garrett, Austin Jacobs, Darrin Simpson	3:22
4.	"Guiding Lights"	Philip D. Bailey, Austin Jacobs, Daniel McClain, Darrin Simpson	6:24
5.	"Got to Be Love"	Philip D. Bailey, Philip J. Bailey, Ralph Johnson, Myron McKinley	3:41
6.	"Belo Horizonte"	Raymond Crossley, Frederick A. Johnson, Ralph Johnson, Morris O'Connor	1:50
7.	"Dance Floor"	Philip D. Bailey, Sondria Bailey, Justin Panariello	4:59
8.	"Splashes"	Philip D. Bailey, Justin Panariello	5:21
9.	"Night of My Life"	Philip D. Bailey, Jevon McGlory, Justin Panariello	4:00
10.	"The Rush"	Philip J. Bailey, Larry Dunn, Allee Willis	5:07

Target edition bonus tracks^[3]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Hero As He Rose"	Philip D. Bailey, Jevon McGlory, Justin Panariello	4:00
12.	"Whirlwind"		5:37

Best Buy bonus tracks^[4]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Can't Hide Love (Masters at Work Remix)"	Skip Scarborough
12.	"Shining Star (DJ Jin Asakusa Samba Remix)"	Philip Bailey, Larry Dunn, Maurice White

French bonus track^[5]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"My Promise" (featuring Omar Sy)	Siedah Garrett, Austin Jacobs, Darrin Simpson	3:25

Deluxe edition bonus tracks^[6]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Boogie Wonderland" (featuring The Emotions)	Jon Lind, Allee Willis
12.	"Sing a Song"	Al McKay, Maurice White
13.	"September"	Al McKay, Maurice White, Allee Willis
14.	"Let's Groove"	Wayne Vaughn, Maurice White
15.	"Got To Get You Into My Life"	John Lennon, Paul McCartney
16.	"After The Love Has Gone"	David Foster, Jay Graydon, Bill Champlin

International edition Disc 2^[7]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"Can't Let Go"	Bill Meyers, Maurice White, Allee Willis
14.	"Runnin’"	Maurice, White, Larry Dunn, Eddie DelBarrio
15.	"Shining Star"	Philip Bailey, Larry Dunn, Maurice White
16.	"Turn It Into Something Good"	Valerie Carter, James Newton Howard, Maurice White
17.	"Power"	Maurice White, Earth, Wind & Fire
18.	"You And I"	Maurice White, Allee Willis, David Foster
19.	"Fantasy"	Maurice White, Verdine White, Eddie DelBarrio

Japan Limited Edition Disc 2^[8]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"Can't Let Go"	Bill Meyers, Maurice White, Allee Willis
14.	"Runnin’"	Maurice, White, Larry Dunn, Eddie DelBarrio
15.	"Shining Star"	Philip Bailey, Larry Dunn, Maurice White
16.	"Turn It Into Something Good"	Valerie Carter, James Newton Howard, Maurice White
17.	"Power"	Maurice White, Earth, Wind & Fire
18.	"You And I"	Maurice White, Allee Willis, David Foster
19.	"Fantasy"	Maurice White, Verdine White, Eddie DelBarrio
20.	"Can't Hide Love"	Skip Scarborough
21.	"September"	Al McKay, Maurice White, Allee Willis
22.	"September (DJ KOMORI Remix)"	Al McKay, Maurice White, Allee Willis
23.	"Let's Groove (TJO & YUSUKE from BLU-SWING Remix)"	Maurice White, Wayne Vaughn

Credits

Adapted from Allmusic and album liner.^[9]

Philip Bailey — Composer, Producer, Vocals, Vocals (Background), and Percussion
Philip J. Bailey — Composer, Executive Producer, Producer, Vocals, Vocals (Background), and Percussion
Sondria Bailey — Composer
Trinity Bailey — A&R
Duane Benjamin — Trombone
Gary Bias — Sax (Alto), Sax (Tenor)
Mathieu Bitton — Design
Terence Blanchard — Trumpet
Allen Bundy — Composer
Errol Cooney — Guitar
Sal Cracchiolo — Trumpet
Raymond Crossley — Composer
Tishaun Dawson — Cover Art, Creative Director
Reggie Dozier — Horn Engineer
Larry Dunn — Composer, Engineer, Fender Rhodes, Hammond B3, Handclapping, Keyboards, Mini Moog, Moog Synthesizer, Piano, Piano (Grand), Producer, Soloist, Synthesizer
Jennifer Feinberg — Project Director
Chuck Findley — Flugelhorn, Trumpet
James Ford — Trumpet
Matthew Fronke — Trumpet
Siedah Garrett — Composer, Vocals (Background)
Sharlotte Gibson — Composer

Jerry Hey — Horn Arrangements
J.R. Hutson — Producer
Lee Hutson, Jr. — Composer
Dr. Billy Ingram — Insert Photography
Fred Jackson, Jr. — Flute, Sax (Tenor)
Munyungo Jackson — Percussion
Austin Jacobs — Composer, Keyboards, Programming, Synthesizer
Frederick A. Johnson — Composer
Ralph Johnson — Composer, Drums, and Percussion
Eric Jorgensen — Trombone
Wendell Kelly — Trombone
Paul Klingberg — Engineer
Nicholas Lane — Trombone
David Leach — Percussion
Daniel McClain — Composer, Featured Artist, Vocals, Vocals (Background)
Jevon McGlory — Composer, Vocals (Background)

Myron McKinley — Composer, Fender Rhodes, Keyboards, Producer, Synthesizer
Justin Merrill — Engineer
Gregory Moore — Guitar
Kenny Moran — Engineer, Percussion Engineer, Synthesizer
Jairus Lemuel — Composer
Jarius Mozee — Guitars, Composer
Vernon Mungo — Vocal Engineer
Morris O'Connor — Composer, Guitar, Guitars
Jeremiah Olvera — Assistant, Mixing, Mixing Assistant
Don Pace — Cover Art
Ric'key Pageot — Composer, Keyboards, Synthesizer
Justin Panariello — Composer, Producer
John Pappenbrook — Trumpet
Jim Parham — Project Director
John Paris — Drums, Vocals
Dave Pensado — Mixing
Neil Pogue — A&R
Neal H. Pogue — Additional Production, Composer, Engineer, Handclapping, Mixing, Percussion, Producer
Satnam Ramgotra — Tabla
David Rideau — Engineer
Eric Rousseau — Composer
Darrin Simpson — Composer, Guitar, Hammond B3, Handclapping, Horn Arrangements, Keyboards, Piano, Programming, Synthesizer
Damien Smith — A&R
Jubu Smith — Guitars
Michael "Patches" Stewart — Trumpet
Randee St. Nicholas — Photography
Meg Todd — Composer
Juan F. "Jef" Villaluna — Guitar
Mark Visher — Sax (Baritone), Sax (Tenor)
Wait B — Handclapping, Producer
Verdine White — Bass, Executive Producer, Handclapping, Mixing Assistant
B David Whitworth — Vocals (Background) and Percussion
Allee Willis — Composer
Benjamin Wright — Conductor, Horn Arrangements
Reggie Young — Trombone (Bass), Trombone (Tenor)
Reginald Young — Trombone

Charts

Chart	Peak position
scope="row"	Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)^[10]	75
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)^[11]	171
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)^[12]	121
French Albums (SNEP)^[13]	94
scope="row"	German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[14]	55
Japanese Albums (Oricon)^[15]	34
Korean Albums (Gaon)^[16]	26
Italian Albums (FIMI)^[17]	14
scope="row"	Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)^[18]	35
scope="row"	Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)^[19]	85
scope="row"	Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)^[20]	96
UK Albums (OCC)^[21]	25
scope="row"	US Billboard 200^[22]	11
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[23]	6

References

↑ Andy Kellman. "Now, Then & Forever - Earth, Wind & Fire - Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic.
↑ Music News Desk. "FIRST LISTEN: Earth, Wind & Fire's New Single 'Sign On'". broadwayworld.com.
↑ "Earth Wind & Fire - Now, Then & Forever - Only a... : Target". Target.
↑ jackel88 (1 December 2014). "Now, Then & Forever Best Buy Exclusive - CD - Best Buy". Best Buy.
↑ "Deezer is coming soon!". Deezer.
↑ "Now, Then & Forever: Amazon.co.uk: Music". amazon.co.uk.
↑ "Amazon.co.jp: Wind & Fire Earth : Now, Then & Forever (Int'l Deluxe 2CD) - 音楽". amazon.co.jp.
↑ "Amazon.co.jp: アース・ウインド&ファイアー : フォーエヴァー(初回生産限定盤) - 音楽". amazon.co.jp.
↑ "Now, Then & Forever - Earth, Wind & Fire - Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic.
↑ "Earth Wind And Fire – Now, Then & Forever" (in German). Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved October 04, 2013.
↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire – Now, Then & Forever" (in Dutch). Ultratop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire – Now, Then & Forever" (in French). Ultratop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
↑ "Earth Wind And Fire – NOW, THEN & FOREVER (ALBUM)". Lescharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved October 05, 2013.
↑ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved October 06, 2013.
↑ "Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2013-09-23" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved September 23, 2013.
↑ "South Korea Gaon Album Chart". On the page, select "2013-09-14" to obtain the corresponding chart. Gaon Chart Retrieved October 19, 2013.
↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire – Now, Then & Forever". Italiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
↑ "Earth Wind And Fire – Now, Then & Forever" (in Dutch). Dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 14, 2013.
↑ "Earth Wind And Fire – Now, Then & Forever". Swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved October 06, 2013.
↑ "Earth Wind And Fire – Now, Then & Forever". Spanishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 18, 2013.
↑ "2013-11-02 Top 40 UK Albums Archive". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire Album & Song Chart History" Billboard 200 for Earth, Wind & Fire.
↑ "Earth, Wind & Fire Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Earth, Wind & Fire. Retrieved September 28, 2013.

Earth, Wind & Fire

Maurice White Philip Bailey Verdine White Ralph Johnson

Studio albums	Earth, Wind & Fire The Need of Love Last Days and Time Head to the Sky Open Our Eyes That's the Way of the World Spirit All 'n All I Am Faces Raise! Powerlight Electric Universe Touch the World Heritage Millennium In the Name of Love The Promise Illumination Now, Then & Forever

Compilations and live albums	Another Time Gratitude The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 The Collection The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 2 The Eternal Dance Elements of Love: Ballads Greatest Hits Live Greatest Hits The Ultimate Collection The Essential Earth, Wind & Fire That's the Way of the World: Alive in 75 Live in Rio Love Songs Ultimate Collection

Singles	"Evil" "Keep Your Head to the Sky" "Mighty Mighty" "Devotion" "Shining Star" "That's the Way of the World" "Reasons" "Sing a Song" "Can't Hide Love" "Getaway" "Saturday Nite" "Serpentine Fire" "Fantasy" "Got to Get You into My Life" "September" "Boogie Wonderland" "After the Love Has Gone" "Let Me Talk" "And Love Goes On" "Let's Groove" "Wanna Be with You" "I've Had Enough" "Fall in Love with Me" "System of Survival" "Thinking of You" "Sunday Morning" "All in the Way" "Pure Gold"

Other albums	Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song

Videos	Earth, Wind & Fire: In Concert The Eternal Vision Earth, Wind & Fire: Live Earth, Wind & Fire: Live By Request

Related articles	Ramsey Lewis The Pharaohs Charles Stepney The Phenix Horns The Emotions Devoted Spirits: A Tribute to Earth Wind and Fire Interpretations: Celebrating the Music of Earth, Wind & Fire

Lists	Discography Awards and nominations Tribute albums Current and former members

Book Category