【Title/标题】
Earth, Wind & Fire Got 24 Hours’ Notice From Sabrina Carpenter
【Source/来源】
Media Outlet/媒体：Vulture
Written by/作者：Devon Ivie
【Transcript/文稿】
Prior to this weekend, the best-known duet of
Philip Bailey’s career was the stone-cold Phil
Collins classic “Easy Lover.” Now, it might be a
little shorter and sweeter. Earth, Wind & Fire were
the surprise guests at Sabrina Carpenter’s
Lollapalooza set on August 3, with the band
joining Carpenter for a rump-shaking two-song set
of “Let’s Groove” and “September.” Bailey, who’s
served as lead singer since 1972, credits Carpenter’s
agent for conjuring up the idea. However, there
was a major time crunch leading up to the
performance, so much so that Bailey was initially
skeptical the correct decision was made. “It was
one of those kinds of things that happened in 24
hours,” he recalls. “We had to really turn this thing
around.”
Earth, Wind & Fire were up in Detroit for a
concert on August 2 and had two days off before
their next gig in the northern Michigan town of
Interlochen. Lollapalooza, held in Chicago — the
group’s hometown — was an easy enough
commute for the friendly and luxurious skies.
“They sent a private plane for us and our
entourage,” Bailey says. “We hopped a plane at
seven in the morning, went in, and had the
rehearsal. It was very quick and kind of sketchy. I
was almost concerned about it. But by that
evening, they had dialed everything in, and she did
her homework on what verses she was going to
take. We went out there and floated on all that
energy.” The song choices of “Let’s Groove” and
“September” were an easy decision because they
“always keep the party rocking,” although Bailey
says Carpenter was well versed in the band’s
deeper discography during their brief time
together. She later wrote on social media that
Earth, Wind & Fire “raised me on the greatest
songs of all time; true soul moving timeless music.”
Bailey wasn’t familiar with Carpenter’s work
besides the caffeinated earworm “Espresso,” and
time constraints for the rehearsal prevented them
from getting to know each other a little bit better,
as there were several other members of Earth,
Wind & Fire to contend and choreograph with on
stage, including longtime percussionist and singer
Ralph Johnson. “She’s very cordial, very kind, and
very approachable,” Bailey says of the pop star. “We
both greeted each other warmly, but we didn’t have
time to talk about anything. Everybody was on a
tight schedule. We didn’t even have time to run
over the performance thoroughly. There were
things that weren’t right during the run-through,
so my people stayed there and we trusted that they
would get all that stuff ready in due time.”
The results, of course, speak for themselves:
Carpenter, strutting around in a sequined pink
bodysuit, looks over the moon to be in the presence
of such legendary elements. Bailey looks dashing
himself in a patterned suit, dancing the night away
to some of the most joyous hits in the American
canon. “Sometimes things work, and oftentimes
they don’t,” Bailey explains. “Her energy and our
energy were very compatible and complementary
to one another. How she puts her show together, in
terms of how it accelerates and builds, was
fantastic. Where she chose to put our segment was perfect.”
Consider it a successful weekend for respecting the
classics. The night prior, Carpenter’s fellow
Lollapalooza headliner Olivia Rodrigo brought out
Weezer for a one-two punch of “Say It Ain’t So” and
“Buddy Holly,” continuing her own impressive
festival streak of highlighting rock elders for
younger audiences. (Carpenter has stated in the
past her admiration for Queen, the Beatles, and
Rush, in case we’re scoping out ideas for the future.
You think she has the range for “Fly by Night”?)
But, for now, Bailey is thrilled. “I had to ask
everybody once we were done, ‘How was it?’
Because you can’t really feel with that short
performance if you’re actually meeting the mark or
not and I think we all had nerves,” he says, as if the
tens of thousands of gyrating fans in the audience
weren’t enough confirmation. “We were honored to
be asked and very appreciative to her and to her
fans for embracing these moments we were able to create together.
