"September" is in the key of A major with a tempo of 126 beats per minute in common time. The vocals span from A2 to E5. Using a chord progression written by Earth, Wind & Fire guitarist Al McKay, vocalist Maurice White and songwriter Allee Willis wrote the song over one month. Willis was initially bothered by the gibberish "ba-dee-ya" lyric White used through the song, and begged him to rewrite it: "I just said, 'What the fuck does 'ba-dee-ya' mean?' And he essentially said, 'Who the fuck cares?' I learned my greatest lesson ever in songwriting from him, which was never let the lyric get in the way of the groove." The song was included on the band's first compilation—The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1—solely to boost sales with original content. Although several theories about the significance of the date have been suggested, the songwriter Maurice White claimed he simply chose the 21st due to how it sounded when sung. His wife, Marilyn White, however, claimed that September 21 was the due date of their son, Kahbran, according to lyricist Allee Willis.
Reception
The song was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry and certified gold in the US "September" was later certified Gold for digital sales by the RIAA, and has sold over 2 million digital copies in the US as of September 2017. Earth, Wind & Fire recorded a new version of the song, retitled "December", for their 2014 Christmas albumHoliday. In the United Kingdom the song has been popular as the basis of football chants at a number of clubs: according to a Guardian article this originated at Newcastle United F.C. where fans started singing a chant about player Chancel Mbemba in the autumn of 2015. It was also adapted by fans of the England national football team at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia: "Woah, England are in Russia / Woah, drinking all the vodka / Woah, England’s going all the way". A version featuring the band accompanied by Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake is featured in the 2016 film Trolls. It was released on September 23, 2016, as part of the Trolls: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. A mash-up version of the song called "When the Rune Sparkles in September" was created for the Macross series by combing this song to "Rune ga Pika too Hikattara" sung by Minori Suzuki. In the "Molly Makes Soup" episode of Mike & Molly the guys sing the song while riding in a limo through downtown Chicago. The 2014 Big Sean single "IDFWU" uses a slowed-down sample of the "ba-dee-ya" chorus in its closing ad-libs.
"September ’99"
A remix of the song called "September '99" was issued in 1999 on Columbia Records. The single reached No. 1 on the RPM Canadian Dance Songs chart, No. 4 on the UK Dance Singles chart and No. 25 on the UK Pop Singles chart.
Overview
The song was remixed by English dance music duo Phats and Small and was included on EWF's 1999 compilation album The Ultimate Collection.
Frankin's rendition was produced by Maurice White and came from the 2007 tribute album.
Critical reception
Steve Jones of USA Today wrote "Franklin turns the energetic September into a gospel-fueled romp. James Christopher Monger of Allmusic found "Kirk Franklin offering up an impeccable, if nearly identical rendition of "September". Mike Joseph of Popmatters said "Kirk Franklin takes the band’s “September” and refashions it into an anthem of survival, using September as a metaphor for a time when things aren’t going so well, and using his talented choir of singers to give the lyrics a jubilant reading." People exclaimed "Kirk Franklin turns “September” into a rousing celebration of faith."
