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Related: About this forumStevie Wonder’s ‘Songs in the Key of Life’: The Masterpiece That Captured Every Color of Life
Stevie Wonders Songs in the Key of Life Turns 40: The Masterpiece That Captured Every Color of Life
by Stereo Williams
The double album is the superstar musicians favorite indulgence. A double LP, more often than not, is a status symbol for top-tier pop artists to both flex creatively and to announce themselves as an artiste of the highest order. Double albums are, by nature, sprawling; a testament to both the artists creative ambition and ego-driven indulgence. In the post-CD era, double albums are especially unnecessary and overstuffedeven the best double albums since 1987 are weighed down with just too much musicand not all of it is inspired. But in the 1970s, the album was still the tool with which artists transmitted their most evocative musical ideas, and the double album was a sign that youd reached a certain level of artistry.
And while the LP era gave us a plethora of great double albumsthe visceral urgency and variety of the Rolling Stones Exile on Main St., the mish-mash collection of eccentricities on the Beatles White Album, Marvin Gayes achingly personal Here My Dear, Elton Johns melodic pop opus Goodbye Yellow Brick Roadnone of those great albums achieve the kind of balance in creative scope, musical variety and consistent listenability that Stevie Wonder captures so masterfully on his magnificent Songs In the Key of Life.
Hed had to fight to get to this place. In the 1960s, Wonder was one of Motowns hitmakers, but hadnt had anywhere near the level of consistency that label standard-bearers like The Supremes, Smokey Robinson and Marvin Gaye had enjoyed. His commercial lulls even led to in-house speculation at one point that it would be best for the label to drop the former child star.
If I were the president of the company Id do the same thing, Wonder recalled decades later in a 1984 interview with David Breskin. Straight out. But fortunately, it all worked out
to everyones surpriseor to some peoples surprise. Because some people would say things like, Oh, that boys gonna really be great. You dont know how talented that boy is. And the others would say Yeah, yeah, yeah, uh-huh, sure. They didnt really vibe on me. Now [Motown greats] James Jamerson and Benny Benjamin always said Id be great. I had the confidence that something good was gonna happen but I didnt know when. And then
it began to happen.
More here:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/10/02/stevie-wonder-s-songs-in-the-key-of-life-turns-40-the-masterpiece-that-captured-every-color-of-life.html
It's tough to pick a favorite song from this or any of Stevie records. All of Music On My Mind, Talking Book, Innervisions, Fullfillingnes' First Finale, Songs & Hotter Than July is what I'd say! Songs In The Key Of Life has Pastime Paradise, Have a Talk with God, Love's in Need of Love Today & of course I Wish & Sir Duke. As is one of my faves:
What are some of your favorite Stevie Wonder songs?
Raster
(20,999 posts)lovemydog
(11,833 posts)That's one of my faves too Raster!
kwassa
(23,340 posts)A wonderful lead-in bass line, to an absolutely great funk song. Wonder at his best.
tonedevil
(3,022 posts)Stevie Wonder was putting out albums that charted where popular music was going for the next several years. After Talking Book and Innervisions come out everybody was trying to sound like that. Songs in the Key of Life appears and for the next five years all the popular artists are trying to copy that sound. In many ways I think Stevie Wonder influenced and changed popular music even more than the Beatles. Oh yeah one more thing, Superstitious has the best bass line ever written.
lovemydog
(11,833 posts)I haven't thought about it too much but I think you're right.
Stevie & all the Motown records definitely influenced the Beatles & other popular music in the 60's & 70's.
His unique use of synthesizers influenced so much of 80's music too, now that I think more on it.
Thanks for sharing your musical insight.
sheshe2
(88,096 posts)The videos tell it.
Thanks for posting his life and songs. Awesome, lovemydog.
mopinko
(71,940 posts)got me through a broken heart.
i think "as" is the one i cant resist singing.
saw him in '08 doing a free concert in grant park here. played for 3 hours, everyone in the crowd singing and dancing.
Silver Gaia
(4,908 posts)(which is from the first time I heard this album) This is one of my all-time favorite albums, and contains some of my all-time favorite songs. Just had to go listen to a few on YouTube... Love's in Need of Love Today... I Wish... Sir Duke... but really, all of it. It's still relevant and still makes me want to get up and dance...
Thanks!
TheDebbieDee
(11,119 posts)Jackson 5 come along, sing with me! Say: Doo-da wop!
lovemydog
(11,833 posts)Co co co doo da wop
byronius
(7,642 posts)mahina
(19,024 posts)Sang it then, singing it now, loving the. best. artist. of. my. lifetime.
bigbrother05
(5,995 posts)40 next month. When he was crying and wouldn't quiet down, two minutes in and we were dancing around the room with smiles
paulkienitz
(1,339 posts)Eleanors38
(18,318 posts)lovemydog
(11,833 posts)I love the horns on this one:
Eleanors38
(18,318 posts)I think the best sounds were Processional! The horns were at least as strong as strings in heralding the music, maybe more so. When I grew up, I longed for the Homecoming/Gator Growl each year in Gainesville, Florida when FAMU's great band were guests, and performed down University Avenue, and then at Florida Field the same night before tens of thousands. Man! those horns! A victory parade -- and they got the applause.
Another Star is epic. You could imagine a movie and write the narrative to it.
Montauk6
(8,766 posts)George Benson - Takes over lead duties on the close of "Another Star"
Herbie Hancock - Beautiful Rhodes solo on "As"
Dorothy Ashby - Ethereal harp on "If It's Magic"
Michael Sembello - Killer guitar on "Contusion"
Deniece Williams, Minnie Riperton - Angelic backgrounds on "Ordinary Pain" not to mention Shirley Brewer's counterpoint
Bobbi Humphrey - Great flute work leading into the Benson takeover