Photo: Jamie McCarthy / Getty Images Entertainment / Getty Images
Does he remember?
Earth, Wind & Fire member Philip Bailey opened up the band's iconic 1978 single, "September," revealing that at first, he wasn't convinced it would be a hit.
"We used to do listening sessions after we finished doing all the tracks," Bailey explained to PEOPLE on Saturday (June 13). "Before they were mixed properly, we would listen to all the different songs. That was one of them, and I just thought it was kinda corny. I was like, 'Bah-bee-ah? What's this?' But I was definitely wrong!"
Upon its release, the track hit the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, and it's since become a beloved party anthem.
"Even without the lyrics, it's just a feel-good track!" bandmate Ralph Johnson told the outlet. "And when you add the vocal stuff on top of that, it's hard to beat."
The iconic group's formation and rise to fame is detailed in the new documentary, Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs That's the Weight of the World), now streaming on HBO Max.