Peak
8
Weeks
17
Score
2,584
Chart Year
1979
///
This song has a tendency to make people happy when they hear it. Allee Willis, who wrote the song with Maurice White and Al McKay from Earth, Wind & Fire, describes it as "Joyful Music." It was the first song Willis wrote with the band, and quite a learning experience. She told Songfacts: "Their stuff was very much based on Eastern philosophies, an incredibly positive outlook on life; the lyrical content of their songs was not typical of what would have been in soul music at that time. So when I left the studio that first day, Maurice gave me the name of a book, it was called The Greatest Salesman In The World, and he sent me to the Bodhi Tree, which is a very spiritual bookstore here in LA. I got that and a bunch of other books that the saleswoman said was the philosophy. And what went from being a very simple experience turned into, for me, an incredibly complex experience. Because I dove into these books. And even the way they were written, the language they were written in, I kind of didn't understand anything. But Maurice told me right from the jump he thought I was a very spiritual person, and I was put here to communicate. And I thought, if Maurice was saying that to me, I need to hang with this. I was pouring through these books for a couple of months. Lyrics started being 25-30 pages long as I'm trying to figure all this stuff out. Reading all that stuff changed me forever. He lead me to a path I've stayed on. "So 'September' was fantastic and thrilling, and they had started the intro of it by the time I had walked into the studio to meet everyone. Just as I opened the door and I heard that little guitar intro, I thought, Oh God, please let this be what they want to work with me on. Because it was so obviously a hit." Willis co-wrote most of the songs on Earth, Wind & Fire's next album I Am, including the hit "Boogie Wonderland." According to Maurice White, he got the idea for this song in an unlikely place: a hotel room in Washington DC while there was some kind of protest going on below. Said White, "There's all these cats screaming and throwing things and going crazy and this tune just evolved." There are many theories as to the significance of the "21st night of September" in the opening lyrics, and until 2018, even the song's co-writer, Allee Willis, was in the dark - Maurice White told her it had no real significance and was chosen because it sang well phonetically. White died in 2016; two years later, Willis was having lunch with his widow, Marilyn, who told her that September 21 was the due date for their son, Kahbran, and that Maurice put that specific date into the song as a secret message. Kahbran ended up being born early on August 1, which definitely wouldn't have the same ring to it as a lyric. Although many people hear the first words in the chorus as "Party On," it's really "Bada-Ya." Allee Willis explained in her Songfacts interview: "I absolutely could not deal with lyrics that were nonsensical, or lines that weren't complete sentences. And I'm exceedingly happy that I lost that attitude. I went, 'You cannot leave bada-ya in the chorus, that has to mean something.' Maurice said, 'No, that feels great. That's what people are going to remember. We're leaving it.' We did try other stuff, and it always sounded clunky - thank God." "The main lesson I learned from Earth, Wind & Fire, especially Maurice White, was never let a lyric get in the way of a groove," she added. "Ultimately it's the feel that is the most important, and someone will feel what you're saying if those words fit in there right." This was written specifically for Earth, Wind & Fire's greatest hits album The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1. Along with their cover of "Got To Get You Into My Life," it was one of two new songs included on the set, which became their best-selling album and helped the band cross over to a broader audience. Movies that used this song include Night at the Museum, The Ringer, Soul Food, Dan In Real Life and Babel. In our interview with EW&F bass player Verdine White, he talked about the song's lasting influence. "People now are getting married on September 21st," he said. "The stock market goes up on September 21st. Every kid I know now that is in their 20s, they always thank me because they were born on September 21st." This was featured on the NBC spy comedy Chuck in the 2010 episode "Chuck Versus the Living Dead." On the show, Buy More manager Big Mike claims he was once a member of the band back when they were called Earth, Wind, Fire & Rain (he was Rain). In 2009, the Stanford-educated duo Pomplamoose posted their cover version of "September" to YouTube in their signature style of showing how every sound is made. It got the attention of the song's co-writer Allee Willis, who sought them out for a multimedia collaboration that became "Jungle Animal," released the following year. Taylor Swift released an airy, banjo-and-acoustic-guitar version of this song on April 13, 2018 that provoked ire on social media. Her recording was part of a Spotify promotion; she explained that she covered it for "sentimental reasons" and because the month of September is when one of her memorable breakups occurred. Philip Bailey of EW&F came to her defense, tweeting, "Music is free like that... Ain't Got Nothing But Love for Ya."
Do you remember the 21st night of September? Love was changing the minds of pretenders While chasing the clouds away Our hearts were ringing In the key that our souls were singing As we danced in the night Remember how the stars stole the night away Hey hey hey Ba de ya, say do you remember? Ba de ya, dancing in September Ba de ya, never was a cloudy day Ba duda, ba duda, ba duda, badu Ba duda, badu, ba duda, badu Ba duda, badu, ba duda My thoughts are with you Holding hands with your heart to see you Only blue talk and love Remember how we knew love was here to stay Now December found the love we shared in September Only blue talk and love Remember true love we share today Hey hey hey Ba de ya, say do you remember? Ba de ya, dancing in September Ba de ya, never was a cloudy day And we say Ba de ya, say do you remember Ba de ya, dancing in September Ba de ya, golden dreams were shiny days The bell was ringing, oh oh Our souls were singing Do you remember? never a cloudy day, yow And we say Ba de ya, say do you remember? Ba de ya, dancing in September Ba de ya, never was a cloudy day And we say Ba de ya, say do you remember? Ba de ya, dancing in September Ba de ya, golden dreams were shiny days Ba de ya de ya de ya Ba de ya de ya de ya Ba de ya de ya de ya de ya Ba de ya de ya de ya Ba de ya de ya de ya Ba de ya de ya
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nov 18, 1978 | 79 | 47 |
| 2 | Nov 25, 1978 | 67 | 59 |
| 3 | Dec 2, 1978 | 58 | 68 |
| 4 | Dec 9, 1978 | 49 | 77 |
| 5 | Dec 16, 1978 | 31 | 95 |
| 6 | Dec 23, 1978 | 18 | 108 |
| 7 | Dec 30, 1978 | 18 | 108 |
| 8 | Jan 6, 1979 | 15 | 111 |
| 9 | Jan 13, 1979 | 14 | 112 |
| 10 | Jan 20, 1979 | 12 | 114 |
| 11 | Jan 27, 1979 | 10 | 116 |
| 12 | Feb 3, 1979 | 9 | 117 |
| 13 | Feb 10, 1979 | 8 | 118 |
| 14 | Feb 17, 1979 | 11 | 115 |
| 15 | Feb 24, 1979 | 35 | 91 |
| 16 | Mar 3, 1979 | 64 | 62 |
| 17 | Mar 10, 1979 | 83 | 43 |