Shining Star (Earth, Wind & Fire song)

"Shining Star" is a 1975 song by Earth, Wind & Fire from their album That's the Way of the World. The song was written by Maurice White, Larry Dunn and Philip Bailey and produced by White. "Shining Star" was Earth, Wind & Fire's first major hit, hitting No. 1 on both the U.S. Hot 100 and R&B charts from 1975.

"Shining Star" is considered a prime example of funk music that attained mainstream success. The concept for the song came to White while strolling at night during the band's recording of "That's the Way of the World". He was inspired by looking up at the starry sky and took his ideas about the song to the other band members. The song is noted for the way the instruments drop out during the last repeated choruses with the group singing the final lines a cappella followed by the song's abrupt end.

Reception
"Shining Star" won Earth, Wind & Fire a Grammy for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. The single was successful commercially, selling over a million copies. It has been certified gold as up until the RIAA lowered the sales levels for certified singles in 1989, a Gold single equaled one million units sold.

Earth, Wind & Fire performed "Shining Star" on the television series The Midnight Special.

In the film Doctor Strange (2016) neurosurgeon Dr. Strange, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, scrubs up and performs brain surgery as he listens to "Shining Star".

It appears in a 2017 TV commercial for Walmart, in which their 1.5 million associates - "shining stars" - are thanked for their work during the Christmas season.

Covers

 * In 1990, the Christian metal band Stryper included a heavy metal cover of the song as the lead single for the album Against The Law.
 * In 1999, the Dust Brothers covered the song for the Jim Henson Pictures feature Muppets from Space soundtrack.
 * In 2003, Jump5 covered the song for Disney's The Lizzie McGuire Movie soundtrack.
 * In 2004, Ruben Studdard covered the song for the soundtrack of Warner Bros. Pictures' Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. He also makes a cameo at the end of the film singing the song.
 * In 2005, trumpeter Rick Braun covered the song for his album Yours Truly.

Accolades
The information regarding accolades attributed to "Shining Star" is adapted from AcclaimedMusic.net and awards on Earthwindandfire.com.

(*) designates lists that are unordered.