System of Survival

"System of Survival" is a song by the band Earth, Wind & Fire issued as a single in October 1987 on Columbia Records.[1] The single reached number one on both the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart and Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart. System of Survival also reached No. 9 on the New Zealand Pop Singles chart, No. 14 on the Dutch Pop Singles chart and No. 25 on the Belgian Pop Singles chart.[2][3][4][5][6]

"System of Survival"
Single by Earth, Wind & Fire
from the album Touch the World
B-side"Writing on the Wall"
ReleasedOctober 1987
Format7", 12"
GenreR&B
Length4:08
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Skylark
Producer(s)Maurice White, Preston Glass
Earth, Wind & Fire singles chronology
""Boogie Wonderland" (Remix)"
(1986)		 "System of Survival"
(1987)		 "You and I"
(1987)
Music video
"System of Survival" on YouTube

Overview

System of Survival was produced by Maurice White and Preston Glass and composed by an unknown songwriter called Skylark.[1]

The single's b-side was a song called Writing on the Wall. System of Survival though came upon EWF's 1987 studio album Touch the World.[1]

Critical reception

Jon Pareles of the New York Times described the song as having "a groove out of James Brown by way of Prince".[7] John Milward of USA Today proclaimed that the song "boasts a clean dance groove".[8] Chris Heim of the Chicago Tribune found that "the ebullient celebration of everyone as a Shining Star has given way to the grimmer task of constructing a System of Survival".[9] Cashbox called System of Survival a "blistering rock/funk outing".[10] Connie Johnson of the Los Angeles Times declared that the tune is "packed with energy and passion".[11] Roe Hoeburger of Rolling Stone also described the song as "a Stayin' Alive for the eighties".[12]

Credits
  • Horns – Gary Grant, Marc Russo, Wayne Wallace
  • Horns, Arranged By – Jerry Hey
  • Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals – Philip Bailey
  • Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Vocoder – Maurice White
  • Producer, Electric Guitar, Synthesizer, Drum Programming – Preston Glass

Written-By, Drum Programming, Synthesizer, Backing Vocals – Skylark[1]


Chart positions
Chart (1987) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 1
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales 1
U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles 1
New Zealand RIANZ Top 40 Singles[4] 9
Dutch Single Top 100[5] 14
Belgian Singles Ultratop 50[6] 25
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 60

Accolades
Year Country Publication Accolade[13] Rank
1987 U.S Village Voice Dean's List 19

References
  1. Earth, Wind & Fire: System of Survival. Columbia Records. October 1987.
  2. "Earth, Wind & Fire: System of Survival (Dance Club Songs)". billboard.com. Billboard.
  3. "Earth, Wind & Fire: System of Survival (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". billboard.com. Billboard.
  4. "Earth, Wind & Fire: System of Survival". charts.nz. RIANZ.
  5. "Earth, Wind & Fire: System of Survival". dutchcharts.nl. Dutch Charts.
  6. "Earth, Wind & Fire: System of Survival". ultratop.be. Ultratop.
  7. Pareles, Jon (November 22, 1987). "RECORDINGS; A Pair of Pop Albums Hit a Political Groove". nytimes.com. New York Times.
  8. Milward, John (24 November 1987). "Popular". USA Today. p. 05D. ProQuest 305961244.
  9. Hiem, Chris (March 23, 1988). "Earth, Wind & Fire: Touch the World". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune.
  10. "Single Reviews". americanradiohistory.com. Vol. 51 no. 15. Cashbox. October 17, 1987. p. 8.
  11. Johnson, Connie (December 13, 1987). "EARTH, WIND & FIRE: Touch the World". latimes.com. Los Angeles Times.
  12. Hoeburger, Roe (January 14, 1988). "Touch The World". rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone.
  13. Christgau, Robert. "Pazz & Jop 1987: Dean's List". robertchristgau.com. Village Voice.
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