Copperfield, Santana among Earth Wind & Fire influences

There are two calls, before the one from Verdine White. These are folks who have known him for a very long time.

One is from Jon Astor-White, of Las Vegas Entertainment and Sports Television. Astor-White was the first executive to ever present the band that would become Earth Wind & Fire on TV. This was in L.A., in 1970. Astor-White hosted “The White House” variety show, and band was known as The Salty Peppers.

That relationship, and appearance, helped launch Earth Wind & Fire.

Soon after, it’s David Copperfield, who introduced the band when it received the Kennedy Centers Honors in 2019. Copperfield once “de-materialized” the whole band, “Star Trek”-style, in front of 20,000 fans during in a 1979 CBS-TV special.

The point, among many others, is White has touched a lot of people in his 50-plus years with EWF. The band is back on the Strip, packing and rocking The Venetian Theatre. Shows continue at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Taken in order, White recalls the days from “The White House.”

“Jon was friends with my brother, Maurice, back in the day — way back in the day,” White says. “He’s from Chicago, too, like us. He had seen Ramsey (Lewis, a band mate of Maurice’s) at the Playboy Club, I believe, a long time ago. I was only 18 and we were really just getting started.”

Copperfield bonded with the EWF because it was among the first arena bands to invoke magic in its stage show.

“He is one of my favorite people. He gave us a great speech at the Kennedy Center honors,” White says. “He’s such a star. He looked great. He was a total pleasure to work with.”

Copperfield had told the Kennedy Center audience, “It’s true, I got to hang out with the coolest in show business, Earth Wind & Fire.”

No argument there. White is still exceptionally cool, strutting across the stage and working the room at age 71. He diets. He practices yoga and works out regularly.

“In fact, my trainer is flying up here to work me out. I gotta be in tip-top shape (laughs),” White says. “He bought tickets to the show, and I said, ‘So, while you’re here. We’re going to work out.”

EWF is also tight with Carlos Santana. The two bands co-headlined a tour this year, a series cut short by several dates after Santana suffered health concerns during a show in Detroit. Santana has since recovered. The guitar great’s return at House of Blues coinciding with EWF’s shows at The Venetian.

“Carlos is one of the greatest artists ever, so it was great to work with him,” White says. “We were doing 25,000, 30,000 people a night. He’s a wonderful person, too, a real inspiration.”

EWF took two weeks off prior to their shows at The Venetian. The band plans to play all the hits, with the fabulous vocalist Philip Bailey still at the front. They play such classics as “Sing A Song,” “Serpentine Fire” and “September” continually on tour, the band is always musically prepared.

“We rehearsed yesterday, sort of like what a team does when it scrimmages, just to warm up a little bit,” White says. “We were off for two weeks after the Santana tour. When you’re off for two weeks and come back, it’s almost like you never did it. So Philip said, ‘We gotta go back to work,’ and he was right, and now we’re ready again.”

Dillon to JKCC

Jimmy Kimmel’s Comedy Club has created a new opportunity comedy magician Farrell Dillon. This is also a way to say that Dillon is checking out of The Magic Attic at Bally’s/soon-to-be-Horseshoe after his 6 p.m. show Sunday.

Dillon is taking the 4:30 p.m. slot Fridays through Sundays at JKCC, beginning Nov. 18. Pompey Entertainment, headed up by ex-Caesars Entertainment exec Damian Costa and entertainment entrepreneur Nick Cordero, manages both rooms.

South Point’s a player

A friend remarked to me over the weekend that his favorite Vegas shows are all now at South Point Showroom. The Righteous Brothers, Human Nature and Bronx Wanderers (opening Feb. 28, after closing at Westgate on Nov. 14) are all performing in Michael Gaughan’s spiffy haunt.

All three were at Strip venues before heading south, if you get the point.

This is some impressive locals’ programming, with Michael Libonati game-planning the room. With shows, the room is full. No shows, it is empty. Lesson: Live entertainment has value.

Pompey Entertainment, headed up by ex-Caesars Entertainment exec Damian Costa and entertainment entrepreneur Nick Cordaro, manages both rooms.

Walk, don’t run

The 5th Annual UNLV Art walk is from 5 p.m.-9 p.m. Friday at the UNLV campus’s academic mall. The event is replete — replete, I tell you! — with art exhibits, live music, dance performances, film screenings, VR exhibits and F&B booths, a beer garden, wine-tastings. No cost for any of it, including parking. Go to UNLV.edu for info.

Cool Hang Alert

Column fave Lisa Gay and her band is at Dispensary Lounge at 2451 E. Tropicana Avenue at 8 p.m.-11 p.m. Thursday. Mike Clark is music director/keyboardist, Dave Hart on guitar, Peppe Merolla on drums. Jazz and some smooth R&B in the mix. A $10 per-table entertainment fee is required. Go to thedispensarylounge.com for info.

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.