Songs In The Key Of Life [VINYL]

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Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone's definitive list of the 500 greatest albums of all time".

The grand finale Another Star turns up the heat still more, an impassioned Latin dance number bringing together Stevie's biggest group of players in all kinds of instrumental combinations, with Bobbi Humphrey and George Benson respectively starring on flute and guitar towards the end, and the "La la" refrain, slamming horns, kinetic percussion and handclaps contributing to all the excitement. Even though it wasn't a Hit, it one of many "Stevie Wonder Favorites", and it was constantly on the radio. I got rid of all of my remastered CD's and replaced them with all of the original mid 80's US Tamla CD's that I could find. During a period when Crystal Sounds had a prior obligation to record another artist, the production team traveled to the Hit Factory in New York City to work for about six weeks, but only used one basic track from those sessions. I'm going to go out on a limb and say Songs in the Key of Life is certainly the most cohesive double/triple album ever made.There are a few random fillers strewn about here and there that are nicely produced and all but shallow, like the synth-driven "Have a Talk With God," the instrumental "Contusion," and the admittedly pretty but not very memorable "If It's Magic. With all things considered, the longer songs, although not all flawless, are necessary to achieve this album's intended profound impact and its aim to really drive the emotional message home to the listener, which it succeeds remarkably in doing, without ever sounding overly heavy-handed, contrived or convoluted - the miracle is that for all the effort and work put into it, it works just as well as a natural and spontaneous-sounding outpouring of the heart as it would if it were just a 35 minute collection of short poppy songs, if not better. Songs in the Key of Life debuted atop the Billboard 200 and spent thirteen consecutive weeks in the number one spot. It was (one of) the first album(s) which had an international release date; that is, the day it was released in the States, it was also released in Germany. And the coda is the first one of Stevie's many amazing vocal workouts, with its endlessly varied and inventive ad-libbing on the phrases of the chorus, interweaving of his lead and own backing vocals, not to mention the calming but no less heartbreaking interlude just over a minute from the end.

IMHO, they are not too severely limited as to hinder my enjoyment of the music and I so far am not too bothered by the No-Noising, though on a couple of his sparser arrangements I can imagine there being more breathing room. The album spent thirteen consecutive weeks at number one in the US, eleven of which were in 1976, making it the album with the most weeks at number one during that year. From 1973, Wonder's presence at the Grammy Awards ceremonies was consistent – he attended most of the ceremonies and also often performed on stage – but in 1976 he did not attend and was not nominated for any awards, as he had not released any new material during the previous year.Ebony Eyes is a clear nod to Stevie's Motown roots, combining a retro pop tune with a quirky modern production and fun use of talk box, with a humorously clichéd ending. However, by the end of 1975, Wonder seriously considered quitting the music industry and emigrating to Ghana to aid children with disabilities. Released during the second half of 1977, as sales for the album began to decline, the last two singles from Songs in the Key of Life failed to match the success of "I Wish" and "Sir Duke". As I am now trying to replace my childhood vinyl, I found a VG+/VG+ of this pressing complete with the lyrics booklet and the 7inch, also VG+.

So despite a shaky middle, yet another Stevie classic and owing to the greatness of so much of its music over its 85 minutes, only Innervisions can top this. Some would be sketched out, some were more finished than others and we just kept working until he had what he wanted. As is not only the breath-taking and fitting conclusion to what had already been three of Stevie's finest love songs, but the clear winner of the four, for the lyrics alone; who could not identify with such poetic and resonant lines as "I'll be loving you always/Until the rainbow burns the stars out in the sky" and "Until the ocean covers every mountain high", just to name a couple?Sometimes i am annoyed by the QC of records pressed in the USA,during the vinyl heyday,, i understand they had access to the same masters , so if both have the same source why is the german press better? Continuing the album's mostly one-man-band approach at the start, Village Ghetto Land is the second of Stevie's stinging commentaries on ghetto life and political neglect, but more compellingly done than Big Brother, achieving a chilling effect through its ironic juxtaposition of pseudo-classical synthesized strings and "cheerful" tune, and the horror of its lyrical imagery and the underlying anger of Stevie's cutting vocals. The laidback instrumental Easy Goin' Evening doesn't add very much though, being at best a pleasant if somewhat forgettable addition; with the exception of How Can You Believe from Eivets Rednow, harmonica-led instrumentals had rarely been among the best of Stevie's songs, simply because while it's a valuable supplement to his singing, as an instrument it's just too thin to consistently carry a song that succeeds in being emotionally fulfilling.

Love's In Need of Love Today" and "Joy Inside My Tears" use their codas to let Stevie belt, and you know he does. The equivalent of a greasy, limp Greggs cheese slice compared to the utterly delicious highest quality nine-course FEAST of this. Knocks Me Off My Feet" (which you might not have heard) is simply one of the greatest songs of all time, merging a fantastic melody, kick-in-the-butt drumming, and a wonderfully bombastic chorus.Wonder stretches the boundaries of soul as if he's the most flexible preacher on Earth and delivers smash after smash, hit after hit, just wave after wave of beautiful, soft cushioned soul while his keyboards rain over you like a great revelation, the feeling of finally being free. And then we get to the first love song of the album, the mid-tempo Knocks Me Off My Feet, one of those quintessentially beautiful mellow ballads that only Stevie could dream of, driven by a gorgeous shimmering piano and Fender Rhodes backed arrangement, winning melody, affectingly rich harmonic changes and its chorus's fervent proclamation of love.