I am writing this late, because I knew after watching and listening to Stevie Wonder perform this past weekend at Bonnaroo I would have a greater understanding of this person who is one of America's greatest treasures. At 60 years of age, this man's voice was as clear and beautiful as the day he recorded his first record at the age of 12. His love for all human beings and intolerance of hatred was a theme throughout his lightning fast 2 hour set of hits, and I was in awe!His amazing voice isn't even what Stevie hangs his hat on as an artist. It is his powerful songwriting and his ability to convey the strongest of emotions that gives his music such depth and life. His talent to weave this vivid imagery into the fabric of each of his songs is a gift from a higher being; he has been without sight his entire life and as a person with excellent vision I feel like Stevie has seen more vibrant colors and landscapes than I will ever be lucky enough to gaze upon. Another one of my favorite singers, Tony Bennett, calls him Stevie Wonderful and I have to completely agree. He is a vessel of such positivity and warmth that it is obvious he is fulfilling his destiny, by sharing his gifts with all of us.
He was an integral part in the explosion of Motown Records where he wrote hit songs for The Spinners and Smokey Robinson. He holds the record for most Grammy awards won in a lifetime by a male performer with 22. He has collaborated with artists from every genre of music including: Andrea Bocelli, Prince, Jeff Beck, Michael Jackson, and Elton John. His piano skills are only matched by his precision on the harmonica and drums. The accolades could go on forever, but I think you get the picture. It was not easy selecting just a few albums to listen to for this week; I wanted to expose you all to a younger Stevie with "For Once In My Life", the tightrope walk of consciousness and playfulness on "Innervisions", and the musical genius that is "Songs In The Key of Life". There are so many of Stevie's wonderful songs that are not covered in this weeks listening, here's one of my favorites:
required listening:
* For Once In My Life '68
* Innervisions '73
* Songs In The Key of Life '76
Stevie Wonder is one of a kind, and the way he can tell a story is magical. It is crazy to think that someone who has been blind his whole life, is able to tell a story using colors and images as references. You have to wonder what he imagines these things look like, and for him to have such a positive attitude even with his handicap, makes him all the more special in my opinion.
ReplyDelete“For Once in my Life” is one of my favorite Stevie Wonder songs. I love the positive message to the song, and it really makes you think of the ones you love in your life. It is one of those songs that automatically put you in a good mood. The upbeat tempo, and Stevie’s great vocals make this a classic. “Shoo Be Doo…” really starts showing off Stevie’s funk ability. Which, like the song “Superstition” really seem to show Stevie at the top of his game. It just seems like Stevie really pours his heart and soul into all his music. “I wanna make her love me” is another great song and gives me an almost uncontrollable urge to want to get up and dance. “Sunny” is of course a cover from the Booby Hebb classic, and while I like Stevie’s version there is just something about the original that can’t be touched. I do think however that Stevie did the song great justice, and really sang his heart out. It isn’t until “Do I love her” that I am back on the Stevie train. This song sounds like it could have been a Jackson 5 track. I really like the orchestration, and the cute lyrics. I think Madden would like this song with all the nursery rhyme references in it. The songs in-between just didn’t do much for me. I have to say that this album was a little harder for me to write about. While there are some great tracks on here, I think I am looking for more of that funky vibe I love so much about Stevie.
I have to say that I love the title of this album, Stevie was spot on with it. I absolutely love the song “Visions.” The bass line on this song is superb, and that along with the beautiful guitar playing and Stevie’s voice paint a masterpiece of a song. “Living for the City” tells a poignant story of a poor boy growing up in the poor south, hoping someday to make something of himself in the city. Unfortunately he finds more of the same when he gets there. It is kind of a downer song as far as Stevie Wonder goes, but I know that many people can relate especially during this recession. Stevie also put behind some great production value to this song. “Golden Lady” was another favorite of mine, after listening to it two times through I couldn’t help but sing along at the chorus. Even though Stevie is blind, he knows how to compliment a lady on a visual level which gives him major props. “Higher Ground” is a funky jive that from the start sucks you in and makes you want to get up and dance. I love the crazy noises being created in the background that really makes the song creative. “Jesus Children Of America,” has a great message, in that we need to practice what we preach. Don’t try and make someone feel bad for something they did, when you yourself have done that exact same thing. Stevie sends the message that the only one with the right to judge is Jesus himself. Spread the word Stevie, and wake some people up. “Don’t you worry bout a thing” is a song I had heard many times before, but somehow never realized it was Stevie Wonder singing it. To me this song has that longevity factor, meaning I could easily see this song coming out nowadays from someone like Jamie Cullum. Overall this album was great, and I think it is my favorite of the week.
When you guys choose legends like The Beatles and Stevie Wonder, I feel like a real asshole critiquing their work. Knowing what they have achieved automatically nullifies any critique I could come up with. Either way, I will give it my best shot.
ReplyDeleteEverything I have ever heard from Stevie, whether on the radio or a live performance, has been phenomenal. He, Peter Cetera, and Karen Carpenter have the smoothest vocals around that just leave me in awe. It really doesn’t matter what they are singing or what the band is playing behind them, their vocals just shine over all else and is all I hear. I was excited to see Stevie as this weeks pick as I wanted to get more familiar with his work beyond ‘Superstition’ and ‘Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours.’
I know David said the order of my discs was off, so bear with me. I started off with Innervision and ‘He’s Misstra Know it All’ was the first track on my disc. When I hear a title like that, I am expecting a song dogging some asshole. This song had a very positive attitude and the verses did not make any sense with the chorus. ‘Too High’ was a nice step in the right direction with a nice little keyboard line and a catchy chorus. ‘Visions’ was a very slow and captivating track. The guitar draws you in and Stevie shows a softer and darker side. I am pretty sure I have heard ‘Living for the City’ on the radio before, but had not heard the little stories within the track before. I guess that was a pretty popular song concept that even Stevie felt the need to incorporate in his work. I know the prejudice related to race is a topic that drives a lot of emotion, but is it a requirement as a song topic as an African American artist? ‘Higher Ground’ was a funky song incorporating a little religion promoting all the positive things we as humans are performing in society. If those continue, then Stevie will live a sin-free life and reach his highest ground. ‘Don’t you Worry About a Thing’ reminds me of Dancing with the Stars as it sounds like a song you would do a Cuban waltz to, or a tango. This album did not really feature Stevie’s vocals, but was a solid album.
Songs in the Key of Life starts off with ‘Loves in Need of Love Today’, which is a pretty inspiring track, the backing vocals however annoy the living hell out of me. It reminds me of an infomercial you would see advertising a compilation of choir songs. ‘Village Ghetto Land’ had the worst vocal I have ever heard from Stevie. Perhaps I am just in an irritable mood, but this song was excruciating. After the Wesley Willis like transition track, we come to Sir Duke which is the highlight of the album. The horn section kicks ass and the chorus was built for a Mcdonald’s Commercial promoting happy meals. I can’t help but think of Salma Hayek in Wild Wild West when I hear ‘I Wish.’ It is always nice to hear the songs that inspire other artists to create spin offs. I had never heard ‘Pastime Paradise’ before, but again, nice to hear those tracks that inspire others. I absolutely loved the intro to this track and would probably love the entire track if I could get Coolio, Weird Al, and Amish people out of my head. ‘Summer Soft’ probably has the best vocal on the album. The song subject was a little happy-go-lucky, but it wasn’t obnoxious and resulted in just a feel good song. This album obviously was inspiring to other artists and I can certainly see why.
ReplyDelete‘Isn’t She Lovely’ should have been added to my list of Stevie Wonder hits I am familiar with. For some reason this makes me thing of weddings, was this in Father of the Bride? After a painful ‘Joyful for My Tears’, we stumble upon ‘Black Man’ which is a decent track until the kids jump in with their reference to people with great achievements in history. I just don’t see how that fits into this song. Through ‘I Am Singing’ I can say that I at least learned Stevie was bilingual through Music Togetherness. ‘As’ was the complete opposite of ‘Loves in Need of Love Today’ where the backing vocals actually flourished and added value in Stevie’s message. ‘Another Star’ was my favorite discovery of the week. This is the most emotion I have ever heard from him and I can easily picture myself thoroughly enjoying all 8+ minutes of this live. ‘Saturn’ was an absolutely bizarre track. I guess he is saying it is too violent on Earth and he wants to get away. Of all the tracks on the album ‘All Day Sucker’ was the catchiest and was the one that ended up getting stuck in my head the rest of the day. The jazzy guitar and the random backing vocal through the chorus left me trying to hit that same note the rest of the day. I will have to do some research to see if that vocalist is the same from Phil Collins’ Easy Lover.
I wish I would have listened to ‘For Once in My Life’ before the others. This would have given me an idea on how his sound has progressed throughout time. This album is by far my favorite of this week’s selections. It has a unique blend of Stevie’s youth and peppiness with very mature lyrics and a talent that sounds so polished. I can not believe an 18 year old put this record together. The title track is one I haven’t heard in a long time and is one I had no idea was performed by Stevie. This is exactly what I would have guess Michael Jackson would have sounded like in his late teens. The harmonica solo is probably the only thing that clarifies its Stevie. The emotion on “I Wanna Make Her Love Me” and “Don’t Know Why I Love You” is so strong. These are definitely songs 18-year old me could relate to. The young love topics throughout this album really bring me back, along with make me feel much older. ‘I’d be a Fool Right Now’ demonstrates a great control for his vocals. I love how you can tell he is having an absolute blast performing these songs. That attribute is one of my favorite qualities in an artist and is one you don’t hear too often. I absolutely love his style on ‘House on the Hill’. It is not just verse, chorus, versue, chorus, bridge, chorus, chorus chorus. It is entirely focused on telling the story and doesn’t care about any song writing rules. This was a very fun and impressive album. These seems like one that you could play at any event and everyone would enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteOverall for the week, I learned quite a bit about Stevie. Before ‘For Once in My Life’, I was thinking that I like him less after this week than before. I know it is probably a necessity for him to play that race card for him to sell records to his target audience, but I did not feel it was as positive message as Justin did. ‘For Once in My Life’ saved this week for me. Either way, I completely agree he is one of the all-time greats and I would argue you could chalk him up as an artist we could have a second week of Music Togetherness for.
Driving down to Bonnaroo was the first time I realized how many Stevie Wonder songs I actually knew and loved. The songs I hadn't heard before or wasn't as familiar with - I wasn't really a fan of, but let's see what I thought going through the albums Justin specified.
ReplyDelete"For Once In My Life" starts off with the spirited self-titled classic. It's very uplifting. Although I don't believe I heard this one live this past weekend, one thing I can say right off the bat - between this and his live performance, you can't help but move when you hear these songs. Stevie is a great performer. That being said, going through this first album was kind of blah for me.
I didn't hear anything I necessarily didn't like, but I didn't hear anything I loved all that much either. And after catching the live show this weekend I guess that was a little disappointing to me. I guess for me, Stevie's hit are where it's at. I've not yet found any hidden gems - it seems at this point that the hits were the hits for a reason.
Moving on...
"Innervisions" starts of with "Too High," the intro for which sounds like a porno score before progressing into a funky groove that could have been the theme for a blaxploitation film. This is a side of Stevie I'm not sure I like. In "Visions," he slows things down a notch and really shows off his vocal chops. Even though the song can be really pretty, it's also a bit sleepy at times for me. The title does seem a bit ironic, but it makes me curious about blind people and what they see inside their heads. What we see are typically reflections of what we've seen with our eyes - memories. But what he sees must be a magical imaginary universe - and this music is the only glimpse we get of it.
ReplyDelete"Living for the City" is a breath of fresh air of familiarity, and was fantastic live. I can't put my finger on what these hits have that I don't see in the others. They just don't have the catchy hooks and don't come together as well. I would say nostalgia is a factor, but I'm only familiar with these songs - I probably haven't heard them enough for them to be nostalgic, if that's surprising to you.
"Golden Lady" manages to be groovy and pretty at the same time. Bravo Mr. Wonder. "Higher Ground" just gets you moving, and was a good choice to perform live. "Don't You Worry About a Thing" sounds like the Sex and the City theme, which I'm sure took a cue from Stevie Wonder. It sounds very tropical, something you'd hear on a vacation. (Funny, because I did, and it was so hot it might has well have been tropical.)
Overall, I liked this album better than the first.
"Songs in the Key of Life" is an iconic album. It starts off on the right foot with "Isn't She Lovely?" Again, the beauty he's singing about is so much more than superficial and it's stunning. "Village Ghetto" has an interesting orchestral build I found enjoyable. It creates an obvious climax. "If It's Magic" is absolutely beautiful with the harp and pretty vocals. "Pastime Paradise" was interesting to me because I never knew "Ghetto Paradise" was a cover of a Stevie Wonder flow.
ReplyDeleteOverall, this was my favorite album of the week, but I'm a little sad you didn't include anything with the songs "Superstition" of "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" which are my favorite Stevie Wonder tracks of all time. I mean, I know you're trying to get us to listen to something new.
BTW, I found the Stevie Wonder setlist from Bonnaroo (on a really cool website with videos and everything) if anyone's interested - http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/stevie-wonder/2010/bonnaroo-festival-manchester-tn-4bd427f2.html - and I'm going to listen to that a few more times ;)
The greatest part about seeing Stevie Wonder last Saturday night (other than the fact that his voice sounds as great now at the age of 60 as it did when he first started releasing singles as a child) was the look of sheer joy that the man has to be playing his music for others. Through all of the adversity that Stevie has had to face throughout his life - not only is he blind, but a car accident in 1973 left him permanently without the ability to smell - Stevie has kept the joy of living with him every day of his life and has done his best to transmit that joy to everyone he touches through his music.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing to me that 'For Once In My Life' was made by an 18 year old. Comparing Stevie Wonder with the "artists" that are making music today at the same age is laughable. Stevie's voice and songwriting abilities were WELL beyond his years, and this set just goes to show what a musical prodigy he was from birth. Some people are just born with music in their soul....and Stevie is one of the chosen few. Starting off with the most famous song on the album, "For Once In My Life" is just dominated by Stevie's amazing voice. He has a power on this song that few are able to compare with, and also introduces us to the major theme throughout this album...the amazing abilities of the Motown band that was working behind him. The Motown record label was at the height of their powers in 1968, and basically everything they touched at the time turned to gold.....mix them with the already golden Stevie Wonder and you can't help but come out with a classic. "I Don't Know Why" is an underrated classic....the tension that Stevie and the band create through the first half of the song is released in one of the most powerful and emotional vocal performances of his career and gives me chills every time I hear it. "I'd Be a Fool Right Now" is the other standout track on the album for me, as the combination of the amazing Motown instrumentation, the great backing vocals, and another fantastic Stevie vocal combine to make what should have been a huge hit. This album as a whole is a lot of fun to listen to, and shows that Stevie was making amazing music long before what's considered his "classic period" of the 1970's.
'For Once In My Life' Album Rating: 89%
'Innervisions' is probably the funkiest album of Stevie's career. "Too High" shows us the amazing talent he had with the harmonica to go along with his abilities with the keyed instruments. The amazing thing about this album is that Stevie played most of the instruments on 6 of the 9 tracks on the album himself, showing just how talented he really was. "Visions" has an amazing use of imagery to show us what the visions in Stevie's mind of a utopia would look like, and shows his faith in humanity to make this vision come true someday....this is an honestly beautiful song. "Living for the City" is a true classic, and once again shows off Stevie's powerful voice. The song is like a novel set to music, showing a man's travels from the struggle of small city living to the different struggle that accompany a move to the big city. "Golden Lady" is one of the greatest love songs ever written....once again the imagery is amazing. I'd love to spend a second inside of his mind to see all of the beautiful things that he's seen. "Higher Ground" was almost ruined by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but hearing the original once again almost removes every trace of that having existed. This song is the theme of the album itself, in it's quest for the better life that must come out of the existence that we all live through every day. "All In Love Is Fair" is another beautifully composed song, featuring Stevie hitting some amazing notes throughout, and it shows how even the simply constructed songs work as well as the more complex. "Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing" is so uplifting, and will put a smile on my face every time I hear it for the rest of my life. "He's Misstra Know-It-All" was written as an attack on then-President Richard Nixon but today can be seen as an indictment of anyone with money and a lack of care for humanity in general. This is truly an amazing album, and one that will be listened to forever.
ReplyDelete'Innervisions' Album Rating: 98%
After kicking off with a couple of tracks that I don't like as much as the rest, 'Songs in the Key of Life' really gets going for me with "Village Ghetto Land". The orchestration behind the song runs perfectly counter to the lyrics of the song, with the strings painting the scene as a great place, while the lyrics point out just how bad life really is for many people. "Sir Duke" is the first part of one of the greatest one-two punches in album history. This is the most supremely joyful song I've ever heard, and is Stevie's musical tribute to music itself. He was able to take all of the joy that music can give a person and concentrate it into one 4 minute burst. As a specific tribute to the big band artists of the 40's and 50's (particularly Duke Ellington), the composition fits the theme beautifully....you can add Stevie Wonder's name to the list of great musicians like Duke, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie and Ella Fitzgerald that he names in the song. This song flows directly into the second half of the punch, the amazing "I Wish". It's all about reminiscing about life as a child, and wishing you could go back to those times....I think everyone has those thoughts from time to time, and this is as good a lyrical interpretation of that thought as you can get. Of course we've all heard "Pastime Paradise" as re-interpreted by Coolio in "Gangsta's Paradise", and I have to applaud Coolio in his taste of songs to re-work. The ambient sounds behind the verses of "Summer Soft" are gorgeous, and I love how Stevie's voice takes off at certain points in the song.
ReplyDeleteThe second half of the album gets going with "Isn't She Lovely", which is the song every man should listen to upon the birth of a daughter....obviously I don't know from experience, but I can imagine that it conveys the feeling of seeing your newborn child for the first time perfectly. "The Joy Inside My Tears" is another of Stevie's beautiful love songs, and a few songs later we get "If It's Magic", which wonders why we as a whole don't appreciate the power of this love as we should. Hearing "Another Star" live was, in retrospect, one of the highlights of the evening, with the amazing horn section on the outro. This song originally closed out the album, so I will leave the album with this.....it's the perfect close to another amazing album from the genius that is Stevie Wonder. The title to the album is perfect for the songs that it contains, as every song is a sort of meditation on different aspects of life. It deals with the positive side as well as the negative, but Stevie attempts to bring the negative aspects into a light where they may become positive one day in the future.
'Songs in the Key of Life' Album Rating: 97%
“Songs in the key of Life” was similar to “Innervisions.” I like the way “Talk with God” starts off with all these different sounds. Stevie did a great job mixing all sorts of noises into one cohesive sound. Going into “Village Ghetto Land” you can see that Stevie does not stick with one sort of style, and this even has a more classical backdrop to it. I think being blind may be an attribute to his musical career, since he relies so much on his hearing he is able to put tracks together that any other person would never be able to come up with. “Sir Duke” I hear on an almost daily basis on my local oldies station, and while I love the upbeat free flowing spirit to it, I can’t appreciate it because of the overexposure I have had to it. “I Wish” is a great song, I only wish Will Smith would not have dabbled with it because all I can hear is his version Wild Wild West. For the record, Stevie’s original version is a million times better than the remake. For some reason I had no idea that Coolio remade “Pastime Paradise.” I am guessing all these newer artists couldn’t find their own sound and knew Stevie was a master. “Joy Inside My Tears” is the actual first song of Stevie’s that I hated. I can’t stand his voice in this song, I know it isn’t off key but the way it goes up and down makes it seem like he is. “Black Man” for me is a typical song of this time, it seemed like most black artists at this time had to make some sort of racial statement with their music, so Stevie just followed suit. “If it’s Magic” is a very nice song and I love how Stevie keeps it simply his voice and a harp. The big surprise comes later in the song where he throws some harmonica in there. I have to say it is the first time I have heard a harp and harmonica used in the same song. I must give props to Stevie for keeping us on our toes. “As” is one of my favorite tracks from all of the albums. The message, the way the tempo picks up, and of course the great gospel singers in the background make for an altogether great song. “All Day Sucker” was my other favorite track off this album. It’s just another funky and fun song.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised this week at how many song I really enjoyed. I am highly impressed at what he was able to accomplish at such a young age, and with his handicap. He is a class act.