Today’s link is between the smooth sounding 70’s R&B jams of Earth, Wind & Fire to the a cappella group Pentatonix, which got popular on NBC’s “The Sing Off’ and now have a Top 40 and Adult Pop hit, called “Can’t Sleep Love.”

Earth, Wind & Fire blended their voices in much the same way as Pentatonix does today, but with the benefit of instrumentation. “Can’t Sleep Love” has a similar groove as EW&F’s 1978 “Fantasy” –both glide along on a soulful melody.

Who Are Pentatonix?

Group formed in Arlington, TX in 2011. Five vocalists.

They do covers of existing songs, sometimes in medleys, plus original material. Their “style” is in the arrangements: tight vocal harmonies, extensive vocal riffing, deep and steady vocal basslines, and a wide range of vocal percussion and beatboxing

Pentatonix has a large, and growing, fan base, and will be releasing their third album next month.

Why You Want To Know About Them
PTX has caught the public’s fancy. Their YouTube channel has over 8.7 million subscribers and more than 1 billion cumulative views; it’s the 13th most subscribed-to music channel and the 44th most subscribed channel overall. Their most viewed music video, a tribute to Daft Punk, has over 150 million views.