All this talk of Michael Jackson and his importance in the world of music may have given some the impression that he is the greatest artist that ever lived.
Not so folks.
As talented as he was, the greatest artist in music history is not he. That honour belongs to one man only. The gentleman originally known as the boy wonder, and now recognized the world over by just one name:
Stevie!
That's right. Stevie Wonder is the most outrageously talented musician of the last century, with no exception. The trouble is that people say this for different reasons and I would like to set the record straight.
For years, Stevie wrote songs that made us move, that told us stories, that made us feel, and he did it with a voice that was not overly perfect, but as sublimely real as anyone ever.
However, it seems that fellow artists, musicians and true music enthusiasts have delved further into his repertoire than the average Person.
I only say this because everytime the topic of Stevie Wonder comes up in conversation, some young white woman pulls an "I Just Called to say I Love you" out of their butt! Hey, I'm not saying you can't LIKE the song! Heck, if I had written it, I'd still be talking about it. But to define the man, his music, or career by that song, is a back-handed bitch-slap to him, and every artist he has influenced, and that is one looong list.
Of course, nobody's worried about Stevie getting his due. He gets plenty, but it should not have anything to do with the condition of his eyesight, or the fact that a couple of his catchiest tunes have been so commercialized.
This is not a tribute to Stevie Wonder per se. It is a plea to music lovers who have not explored his music, to do themselves a favour and listen to at least a portion of a staggering body of work while he is still alive.
You've heard every Michael Jackson song ever recorded, over the last two weeks, and Ray Charles exploded posthumously due to a hit movie and a 'Duets' album, but Stevie will leave a larger footprint than Ray, Michael and Elvis put together!
From a young age, Stevie was recognized by the greatest minds in music, and given more freedom than most artists. His thirst for every facet of sound brought him greater strength with each endeavour, and by age 15, he had written and recorded countless hits on which he played various instruments including, Keyboard, drums, Harmonica, Bass, and every percussive instrument known to man, and even discovered a few new ones. He also sang not only lead vocals, but his own back-up vocals as well, sometimes performing each part of a five part harmony all by himself. A good example is the song They Won't Go When I Go which was later covered by George Michael (Remember him?)
Sometimes he would even synthesize his own voice to mesh with his own, creating the illusion of a duet like on You Are The Sunshine Of My Life (Oh, you thought that was a woman?)or Ordinary Pain where he sounds like a little boy.
In addition to many of those unique gifts, so raw and sincere were his lyrics that he would humble even the greatest musicians.
One example is Eric Clapton in the mid '70s while riding a huge wave of admiration among rock fans who proclaimed freely that "Eric Clapton is God!" He once told Rolling Stone Magazine that when he felt his ego getting out of control, he would put on a Stevie record, and come right back down.
For 30 years, Stevie prolifically produced more timeless classics than anyone. Songs that hold up in all situations, and all times.
If you've ever wondered (no pun intended) why Stevie has that perpetual bump on his head, it is because in 1973, a log fell from a truck, went through the windshield of his car (no, he wasn't driving.) and hit him right in the head. He ended up in a coma for four days and lost most of his sense of smell, and also left him temporarily without a sense of taste, a particularly tough pill to swallow for someone already born without sight.
After returning to much fanfare in 1974, Stevie set out to begin his biggest project. An album that would take 2 years and a couple of million dollars to complete (a huge sum at the time).
This album would cause Berry Gordy so much grief that he had almost begun to lose faith in his most solid commodity.
Almost.
Stevie's double album, which also included an additional extended play 45, finally went on sale in September 1976.
Songs In The Key of Life became the first American album to hit #1 on its first day.
There it remained for 14 non-consecutive weeks. To this day, the album ranks 56th on Rolling Stone Magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, behind his own Innervisions at #23. In my estimation, 'Songs' is still grossly under-ranked.
Those two albums, in conjunction with Fulfillingness First Finale are referred to as Mr. Wonder's "classic period". Rolling Stone Magazine said, of this period, that Stevie "pioneered stylistic approaches that helped to determine the shape of pop music for the next decade".
In 2005, music mogul Kanye West said, "I'm not trying to compete with what's out there now. I'm really trying to compete with Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life. It sounds musically blasphemous to say something like that, but why not set that as your bar?"
Why not indeed!
If you fancy yourself a music lover, and have never explored any of these classic albums, consider yourself informed.
Non-commercial songs like Love's In Need of Love, Too Shy To Say, You Haven't Done Nothing, Lately, and All Is Fair In Love have been covered by artists such as Jodeci, Marc Anthony, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Mary J. Blige.
His music is consistently sampled by rappers like 50 Cent in the song "Ryder Music". Warren G sampled "Village Ghetto Land" for his song "Ghetto Village." "Pastime Paradise" was re-worked only slightly for Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" while Will Smith used "I Wish" as the basis for the theme song to his movie, Wild Wild West. In 1999, Salome De Bahia made a Brazilian version of "Another Star". Tupac Shakur sampled "That Girl" for his hit song "So Many Tears" and Red Hot Chili Peppers covered "Higher Ground" in 1989 on their "Mother's Milk" album.
Many more songs by Stevie Wonder have also been sampled or re-made. Wonder is one of the most sampled artists/singers ever.
So if Stevie inspires the artists you listen to in order to create the songs you love, shouldn't you give the original a chance?
It's high time for the youth of the world to hear the real deal.
Often imitated, but never duplicated......the one and only,
Stevie Wonder.
Not so folks.
As talented as he was, the greatest artist in music history is not he. That honour belongs to one man only. The gentleman originally known as the boy wonder, and now recognized the world over by just one name:
Stevie!
That's right. Stevie Wonder is the most outrageously talented musician of the last century, with no exception. The trouble is that people say this for different reasons and I would like to set the record straight.
For years, Stevie wrote songs that made us move, that told us stories, that made us feel, and he did it with a voice that was not overly perfect, but as sublimely real as anyone ever.
However, it seems that fellow artists, musicians and true music enthusiasts have delved further into his repertoire than the average Person.
I only say this because everytime the topic of Stevie Wonder comes up in conversation, some young white woman pulls an "I Just Called to say I Love you" out of their butt! Hey, I'm not saying you can't LIKE the song! Heck, if I had written it, I'd still be talking about it. But to define the man, his music, or career by that song, is a back-handed bitch-slap to him, and every artist he has influenced, and that is one looong list.
Of course, nobody's worried about Stevie getting his due. He gets plenty, but it should not have anything to do with the condition of his eyesight, or the fact that a couple of his catchiest tunes have been so commercialized.
This is not a tribute to Stevie Wonder per se. It is a plea to music lovers who have not explored his music, to do themselves a favour and listen to at least a portion of a staggering body of work while he is still alive.
You've heard every Michael Jackson song ever recorded, over the last two weeks, and Ray Charles exploded posthumously due to a hit movie and a 'Duets' album, but Stevie will leave a larger footprint than Ray, Michael and Elvis put together!
From a young age, Stevie was recognized by the greatest minds in music, and given more freedom than most artists. His thirst for every facet of sound brought him greater strength with each endeavour, and by age 15, he had written and recorded countless hits on which he played various instruments including, Keyboard, drums, Harmonica, Bass, and every percussive instrument known to man, and even discovered a few new ones. He also sang not only lead vocals, but his own back-up vocals as well, sometimes performing each part of a five part harmony all by himself. A good example is the song They Won't Go When I Go which was later covered by George Michael (Remember him?)
Sometimes he would even synthesize his own voice to mesh with his own, creating the illusion of a duet like on You Are The Sunshine Of My Life (Oh, you thought that was a woman?)or Ordinary Pain where he sounds like a little boy.
In addition to many of those unique gifts, so raw and sincere were his lyrics that he would humble even the greatest musicians.
One example is Eric Clapton in the mid '70s while riding a huge wave of admiration among rock fans who proclaimed freely that "Eric Clapton is God!" He once told Rolling Stone Magazine that when he felt his ego getting out of control, he would put on a Stevie record, and come right back down.
For 30 years, Stevie prolifically produced more timeless classics than anyone. Songs that hold up in all situations, and all times.
If you've ever wondered (no pun intended) why Stevie has that perpetual bump on his head, it is because in 1973, a log fell from a truck, went through the windshield of his car (no, he wasn't driving.) and hit him right in the head. He ended up in a coma for four days and lost most of his sense of smell, and also left him temporarily without a sense of taste, a particularly tough pill to swallow for someone already born without sight.
After returning to much fanfare in 1974, Stevie set out to begin his biggest project. An album that would take 2 years and a couple of million dollars to complete (a huge sum at the time).
This album would cause Berry Gordy so much grief that he had almost begun to lose faith in his most solid commodity.
Almost.
Stevie's double album, which also included an additional extended play 45, finally went on sale in September 1976.
Songs In The Key of Life became the first American album to hit #1 on its first day.
There it remained for 14 non-consecutive weeks. To this day, the album ranks 56th on Rolling Stone Magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, behind his own Innervisions at #23. In my estimation, 'Songs' is still grossly under-ranked.
Those two albums, in conjunction with Fulfillingness First Finale are referred to as Mr. Wonder's "classic period". Rolling Stone Magazine said, of this period, that Stevie "pioneered stylistic approaches that helped to determine the shape of pop music for the next decade".
In 2005, music mogul Kanye West said, "I'm not trying to compete with what's out there now. I'm really trying to compete with Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life. It sounds musically blasphemous to say something like that, but why not set that as your bar?"
Why not indeed!
If you fancy yourself a music lover, and have never explored any of these classic albums, consider yourself informed.
Non-commercial songs like Love's In Need of Love, Too Shy To Say, You Haven't Done Nothing, Lately, and All Is Fair In Love have been covered by artists such as Jodeci, Marc Anthony, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Mary J. Blige.
His music is consistently sampled by rappers like 50 Cent in the song "Ryder Music". Warren G sampled "Village Ghetto Land" for his song "Ghetto Village." "Pastime Paradise" was re-worked only slightly for Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" while Will Smith used "I Wish" as the basis for the theme song to his movie, Wild Wild West. In 1999, Salome De Bahia made a Brazilian version of "Another Star". Tupac Shakur sampled "That Girl" for his hit song "So Many Tears" and Red Hot Chili Peppers covered "Higher Ground" in 1989 on their "Mother's Milk" album.
Many more songs by Stevie Wonder have also been sampled or re-made. Wonder is one of the most sampled artists/singers ever.
So if Stevie inspires the artists you listen to in order to create the songs you love, shouldn't you give the original a chance?
It's high time for the youth of the world to hear the real deal.
Often imitated, but never duplicated......the one and only,
Stevie Wonder.
Posts
