George HaffendenFormer Earth, Wind & Fire guitarist and producer Al McKay is back with a brand new single that harks back to his days with the mighty elements.
As a former guitarist, songwriter and producer for one of the greatest bands of all time, Al McKay has spent much of his life performing music with the greats, becoming a world renowned musician in the process. McKay was a member of Earth, Wind & Fire during their heyday, co-writing songs such as ‘Sing A Song’ for the group and ‘Best of My Love’ for the Emotions. When the group took a hiatus in the eighties, McKay went to write and produce for others, including The Temptations, producing their 1984 smash ‘Treat Her Like A Lady‘ (along with EWF percussionist Ralph Johnson). Since then he’s been touring with The Al McKay Allstars/Earth, Wind & Fire Experience, releasing an album of EWF covers and a live album. Now McKay is set to release a new album of material, and has just dropped his latest single ‘Heed the Message‘.
The song clearly harkens back to his days with EWF, drawing on his experience of performing, writing and producing with Maurice White. Everything you expect from an EWF song is here: decent lyrics, funky rhythm and those tight, punchy horns. If we can expect more like this from McKay soon, bring on his new album!