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Maurice White, leader of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, dead at 74

Maurice White died at home in Los Angeles on Wednesday, said his brother, Verdine White. He was 74.

Neil Diamond and Maurice White rock out in the studio in 1986.
Neil Diamond and Maurice White rock out in the studio in 1986.(File photo)

White founded Earth, Wind & Fire in the late 1960s. The group went on to sell more than 90 million albums worldwide, displaying a flashy and eclectic musical style that incorporated his influences from growing up in Memphis, Tennessee, and at the influential Chicago music labels Chess and Okeh.

The band's many hits included "September," ''Shining Star," a cover of the Beatles' "Got to Get You into My Life" and "Boogie Wonderland."

Earth, Wind & Fire won six Grammys and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.