CLASSIC REVIEW: STEVIE WONDER - SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE

 

 ALBUM REVIEW:

STEVIE WONDER - 

SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE

 It's been a while, so I thought it fitting to return with a classic review, and what album more fitting than the one that prince dubbed "the greatest of all time" - Stevie Wonder's Magnum Opus, Songs In The Key Of Life.

 

Stevie Wonder is undoubtedly one of the greatest musicians of all time, boasting one of the most consistent discographies and having some of the widest influence of any musician. And by all means, the epitome of his work is the 1976 Double Album (plus EP), Songs In The Key Of Life.

From the very first track, this album reels you in with its astounding beauty, taking a somewhat minimalist, yet lush approach to the classic Stevie Wonder formula, and this track deserves every second of its 7-minute runtime.

Track Two, titled "Have A Talk With God", is only 2-minutes 40, but is orchestrated with these wonderful saxophones and triangles, which give the mix an angelic, heavenly feel, which is fitting when considering its premise.

The past two tracks are amazing, but track three sees the album really hitting its stride, as Stevie Wonder gives a sharp socioeconomic critique on the lush Village Ghetto Land. The instrumental is comprised predominantly of strings, which give the track a "proper" feel, as if a king is being welcomed into a village. This is starkly juxtaposed by the dark lyrics and subject matter, where Stevie details the rampant destruction in ghetto communities. 

 This minimal, string-focused ballad, is than followed by the instrumental jazz cut contusion, which juxtaposes said ballad with its maximalism, as a clean guitar rips through this groovy jazz instrumental.

Fittingly, this track than transitions into Stevie's ode to musicians, specifically Duke Ellington, Titled Sir Duke. Over this chromatic Rhodes line, an array of horns provides an ornate background for this masterclass in songwriting.

Next comes one of my personal favourite tracks when day-to-day listening, I Wish, this song sees Stevie assuming a storyteller roll, as he tells us about his childhood. This is all delivered over this uplifting beat, however the lyricism turns somewhat dark when the chorus is reached, where he wishes for the days of his childhood to return, and laments about adulthood. This sentiment is shared by Frank Ocean's track Ivy, in which the refrain says "You Ain't A Kid No More, We'll Never Be Those Kids Again". 

In a nice change of pace, the next track, titled Knocks Me Off Your Feet, takes a more easy listening direction, with the instrumental even resembling that of muzak. However, this builds to something more jazzy and layered, culminating in the repeating phrase "I don't wanna bore you with it; oh but I love you, I love you, I love you" which Stevie delivers with such sincere passion it makes me weak and knocks me off my feet.

The next track, Pastime Paradise, has gained a level of notoriety due to it being sampled in the 90s Rap Track "Gangsta's Paradise", which is one of the most enduring rap cuts of the 90s. However this track can stand on its own in this album, in the same vain as I Wish and Village Ghetto Land.

Next comes one of the weaker cuts on the album, although it could top every song make by an artist such as drake, the track Summer Soft has some well needed energy, it just feels a bit samey and could benefit from some slower pacing.

Side A finishes with the longing track Ordinary Pain, a ballad about love-sickness, in which a man, played by Stevie Wonder, gets broken up with, however the exceptional performance comes from one of the only features on the entire album, by Shirley Brewer, it does overstay its welcome a bit, but it is nice to hear some female vocals for a break.

Side B starts with the worst part of the album, that being the baby crying at the start of track one, Isn't She Lovely, it is just somewhat outputting, especially when playing publicly, as without it, this song would be perfect for a baby shower or baptism. Even then, i would be willing to overlook the baby crying, cause this song is just as immaculate as the rest of the album, between the lush instrumental and Stevie's pristine vocals.

Track Two, Joy Inside my Tears is a slow ballad, with one of the most catchy choruses I have ever heard, it revels in its melancholy, and is another highlight of the album.

This is followed by the groovy track "Black Man", an 8-minute long song about race relations, and how this world was made for everyone. It then finishes with a 2 minute outro, set in a classroom. 

The next track, Ngiculela-Es Una Historia-I Am Singing, continues the consistent greatness of this album, before leading into the contemplative track Is It Magic?, which contemplates the uncanny perfectness of the universe we live in, over simple harp chords.

This features as a perfect prelude to one of my favourite tracks off the album, As. This song is so beautiful, between the airy choir, the introspective, comforting lyrics, it is an experience in the best sense of the term.

Proceeding this track is an even better cut, possibly my favourite off the entire album, Another Star, It has the amazing instrumentation of As, improved with some slight African influence. The lyrics unfold into this beautiful poem, reinforced by the stunning choir. Overall, this is an utterly stellar song.

The song Saturn is an interesting one, its stylings seem to throw back to early Stevie Wonder, such as Music of My Mind, however, don't let that fool you, this track is dominated by the chorus, which offers a slight yet welcome change of pace.

As we approach the end of the record, there is the piano ballad Ebony Eyes, with chords straight out of a ragtime track, and a more soulful delivery by Mr. Wonder, it would have been nice to have this as a change of pace as side A, but nevertheless this is still a great track.

Second to last is the track All Day Sucker, by far the funkiest on the album, and very obviously influenced by the tracks off Innervisions, such as Too High. 

 Finally, we have the closing track, East Going Evening (My Mama's Call), a chill instrumental cut, perfect for winding down at the end of this album, giving the album a sense of resolution.

Overall, This album is a feat of absolute musical prowess, the fact that majority of these instruments were played by Stevie Wonder, combined with the fact that he is blind, justifies his position as one of the greatest musicians of all time.

10/10 (Undisputed Classic)

https://open.spotify.com/album/6YUCc2RiXcEKS9ibuZxjt0?si=O9nySoniThSNaujuAYdC5g