Earth, Wind & Fire built a reputation with a sound and style that was buoyant, brassy and soulful.
Shining Star will pay tribute to the eclectic group at a 7:30 p.m. Aug. 24 show at Munster’s Theatre at the Center in The Center for Visual and Performing Arts. A cash bar will be available.
Shining Star strives to be a precise mimic, according to Al Bullitt, founder and manager of the 10-member band.
Bullitt, who does not perform in the group, has crafted design concepts for members’ onstage outfits.
Shining Star is a celebration of “one of the most successful musical stories ever told,” according to promotional material for the band.
Accurate replication of Earth, Wind & Fire’s music is the goal.
“We perform the song as close to the record as possible,” said Bullitt, a resident of Sauk Village, Ill.
He lauded the musicians in the band: “They pay attention to detail.”
Shining Star is named after Earth, Wind & Fire’s chart-topping, Grammy Award-winning song of the same name from 1975.
Earth, Wind & Fire is in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
In its biographical summation of Earth, Wind & Fire, the hall of fame states that the group “drew from various streams of black music, synthesizing soul, funk, R&B, pop, gospel and African styles into a polished, precision-tooled approach.”
In Shining Star, Terrance Franklin takes on the part of Maurice White, founder and lead singer of Earth, Wind & Fire.
Franklin said its catalog cuts across generations and cultures.
“It’s the music of past and present,” said Franklin, a retired police homicide detective who worked in Illinois.
More Top Picks Best Electric Trolling Motors For Kayaks
“It’s an iconic music that is part of our past; this is the music of your lifetime,” he continued. “It is the most diverse music for every nationality in the world. It is the world’s music. It’s a music for everyone.”
A Northwest Indiana resident, Franklin said he can sing in the baritone to first tenor range.
Franklin said he has “grown to love all the songs” that are rolled out by Shining Star, but related that personal favorites to perform include “September” and “After the Love Has Gone,” both from the late ’70s.
The smooth-flowing funk of “In the Stone” also is part of Shining Star’s musical menu.
Shining Star’s makeup includes a three-piece horn section, two keyboardists, guitar, bass, drums and two lead singers, while also displaying vibrant, throwback fashion of the ’70s and wig-aided hairstyles.
“It is a show,” said Franklin, touting the Las Vegas-style flavor of performances.
Bullitt said a dance-friendly Earth Wind & Fire song from 1979 ranks as a crowd pleaser at Shining Star shows.
“‘Boogie Wonderland’ gets people up and partying,” he assured.
A Top 10 pop hit, “Boogie Wonderland” stands as one of more than 15 Top 40 songs racked up by Earth Wind & Fire on Billboard’s mainstream singles chart.
Those chart successes include the effervescent “Sing a Song” (1975) and a jazzy remake the Beatles’ “Got to Get You Into My Life” (1978).
Shining Star’s renditions of such hits are given voice by Eric Rapier, who shares lead-singing duties with Franklin.
Rapier recreates the vocals of Earth, Wind & Fire’s Philip Bailey.
“He has the high voice, the falsetto, like Philip Bailey,” Bullitt, who formed Shining Star, said.
Shining Star has taken its salute to various spots in the country.
“We’ve been in Atlanta, Georgia, a couple times,” said Bullitt, noting stops also have been made in Arizona, Minnesota and New York state.
Shining Star: A Tribute to Earth, Wind & Fire
When: 7:30 p.m. Aug. 24
Where: Theatre at the Center, 1040 Ridge Road, Munster
Tickets: $30
Information: 219-836-3255; www.TheatreAtTheCenter.com