I can’t remember the exact moment I realized that it was a brilliant song, but it was catalyzed at least in part by a sudden realization that the group was not saying “party on,” but in fact the much less clunky, much freer nonsense word “Badiya.” The usage of sounds with no actual meaning in music has a long history, from the throaty ad-libs used in blues songs such as “Smokestack Lightnin’” to the tossing around of a word like “woo-wapty” in songs by Chicago-based rappers, all the way back to, well, probably that “Queen of the Night” aria from Mozart’s Magic Flute that’s basically just a repurposed vocal exercise. I had heard it on the radio countless times and actually had downloaded other EW&F tracks on iTunes years earlier (that I grew colder towards as time went on) before paying attention to “September” specifically. This 1978 Earth, Wind & Fire single, however, spent a lot time gestating in the back of my mind before I really latched onto it. Most songs I love I’ve either loved a long time or discovered later in life and loved the moment I heard them. “September” is that rare song that had a ubiquitous, in-the-background presence in my life. IFSoAT is a series where I discuss my feelings and relationship to my favorite (popular) songs of all time, going from #150 all the way down to #1!
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