*It’s one of the most famous dates mentioned in a song, but do you really know why Earth, Wind & Fire highlighted September 21 in its classic chart-topper “September?”
As much as it would be nice that the day represented some significant day in history, a person’s life or a signal the summer is over, with fall officially arriving on Sept. 22, truth is the date’s mention is far from what you may think it is.
We hate to break it to you, but as.com cites an interview Allee Willis, the Grammy-winning songwriter who worked with Earth, Wind & Fire founder and former lead singer Maurice White and the group’s guitarist Al McKay on the song, where she confessed that there is no particular significance attached to the “21st night of September.”
“We went through all the dates,” Willis shared with NPR in 2004 about the writing process behind “September. “‘Do you remember the first, the second, the third, the fourth … ‘ and the one that just felt the best was the 21st.”
“I constantly have people coming up to me, and they get so excited to know what the significance was. And there is no significance beyond it just sang better than any of the other dates,” she added. “So … sorry!”
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Originally released as a single on Nov. 18, 1978, and featured on Earth, Wind & Fire’s first greatest hits album “The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1,” “September” is one of the band’s best-known tunes.
It is noted for its infectious bass line and cheerful chorus, with a reign on top of the US R&B chart, a number eight spot on the Billboard Hot 100, and a number three ranking on the UK singles chart.
The popularity of “September” even gave way to an official holiday, as September 21 playfully emerged as “Earth, Wind & Fire Day.” If you’re bummed over there not being significant with September 21, then you may want to sit down for the next revelation.
As we know, the chorus of “September” is sung, “Ba-dee-ya,” by Earth, Wind & Fire as well as those caught up in a good time grooving to the dancefloor fixture. In reality, that lyric is one of the most misunderstood in a song.
As told by Willis before she passed away in 2019, the source of the “Ba-dee-ya” is White himself, who came up with the unique sounds when he, Willis, and McKay were writing the words to “September.”
“The, kind of, a go-to phrase that Maurice used in every song he wrote was ‘ba-dee-ya,’ ” she told NPR. “So right from the beginning he was singing, ‘Ba-dee-ya, say, do you remember / Ba-dee-ya, dancing in September.’ ”
At the time, concern and frustration were present with Willis, who thought the ditty seemed too simple and wanted White to break down the meaning of ‘ba-dee-ya.’
“Finally, when it became clear he wouldn’t explain, I just asked, ‘What does ‘ba-dee-ya’ mean?’” His response expanded her musical perspective. “He basically said, ‘Who cares?’” she jokingly recalled.
For White, the story is a funny lesson in songwriting from White, her “greatest lesson” as she put it.
“I learned my greatest lesson ever in songwriting from him, which was never let the lyric get in the way of the groove,” Willis said about the Earth, Wind & Fire vocalist, who died in 2016. She would later take that lesson with her when co-writing other hits, including the group’s “Boogie Wonderland,” The Pointer Sisters’ “Neutron Dance,” The Pet Shop Boys’ “What Have I Done to Deserve This?” featuring Dusty Springfield, and the theme song of the classic sitcom “Friends,” “I’ll Be There for You” by The Rembrandts.
“If the melody, beat, and spirit are there then everyone will know — emotionally, they will know — what you’re saying,” she told American Songwriter. “Lyrics can be clunky sometimes because someone is trying to make too much sense or fit in a four-syllable word when a two-syllable one feels better.”
And there you have it, the scoop behind “September” from one of the folks who wrote it.
So, take it how you want. Whether you sing the song as it is written or insert your personal stylings when promoting your version of the chorus, singing “Ariel,” “Barbie Doll,” or “Bloody Hell,” you do it how you want to do it.
Just have as much fun as you can do it.
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