Stevie Wonder: A Musical Guide to the Classic Albums

This was a very informative and enjoyable read. Lodder gives a good outline of how Stevie developed as part of the Motown creative and production processs. As a keyboard player (and synthesiser programmer) he is well placed explain the musical stucture and arrangements of the songs. I am semi-articulate with music theory (chords etc) so some of this was over my head, but I now understand the bass lines, clavinet parts and drum rhythms much better.A strong feature of the account is a truly critical examination of the work. Stevie's career falls roughly into 3 sections with the focus here on the most innovative and challenging work of the mature middle phase (1972-1976).The vagaries of Wonder's later career were a talking point amongst my peers at the time, folks knew to give The Secret life of plants a miss. I had several LOL moments as Lodder proceeds with his autopsy on the bizarre failings of the project. He only goes up to track 5, I was left hoping for more...He also does a nice demolition job on I just called to say I love you, a piece of bland, syrupy confection that back in 1984 led me to write Wonder off such that I almost forgot how brilliant Innervisions had been until 1994. Lodder amusingly tries to restrain the sharpness of his critique while looking at Songs in the Key of Life (1979), but here too he identifies the intial signs of the path into bland and flabby recordings.His suggestion that TONTO (Cecil and Margouleff) were key to channelling and provoking Stevie's muse is very plausible. Just before they began their collabloration the 1971 LP Where I'm coming from reflected Stevie's intent to venture into more challenging material but floundered about and failed to realise this manifesto. Post TONTO he imediately fell off the cutting edge.Stevie Wonder's career highlights the fine line between inspiration and mediocrity. Lodder does well to show why some things worked and others did not. He also asks some important questions about how music technology can distract musicians from creative focus.

Hugely painstaking and expert dissection of perhaps the most impressive creative period of any artist of our time. Written with an awed admiration throughout, but with humour and irreverence where you'd hope, and criticism where it's deserved.For anyone spellbound by Stevie's classic albums, this book is a treasure. For anyone not yet, this book may get you there.

Nice one!!

First of all, happy to have any book that delves into the combination of background/genesis, influence, music theory and production of Stevie's music. Lodder covers the 'classic album period' in most depth, but really Stevie's entire career. 3 1/2 stars right there, close to 4. That doesn't mean I wasn't furious while reading parts. Lodder has a friendly style, but the flipside is that he also feels free to voice his dislikes/critical prejudices within the context of a 'guide'. Hopefully anyone who'd pick up this book knows these albums/songs well enough to laugh these off, disagree, or agree - but it really poisons parts of the book. What makes me madder is that the opinions represent stereotypes I've seen in 70's baby-boomer music criticism, but that are no longer universal. This is irresponsible, and intellectually lazy, in an otherwise solidly intelligent book. Some examples: - A general predetermined streak against overt sentiment, which is dangerous when reviewing Stevie's work. (To Lodder, strings are almost inherently bad/easy-listening/sentimental/pandering, Major-7 chords are inherently "sugary" (disregarding that they can be used in many contexts). Yes, TONTO's synths do sound fresh and otherworldly vs. strings, but Gaye's What's Goin' On transfigures strings and came out right before the 'classic period', he disregards that orchestration could be anything but a cynical grab at white audiences. That association also ignores Lodder's own book structure, which highlights Stevie's different impulses (funk, ballads, social commentary) and their ability to balance each other. - Stevie is a master of complexity, funk and social consciousness, but he's just as known for the simpler, joyous singles and that aspect of his personality, so to rip apart "Sunshine of my Life" is missing the point. From what I know about Stevie, I think he thinks of that type of song with no less than full dignity, sincerity and importance, and he's no fool for thinking that way. - Lodder calls out some lyrics as "preachy" or "self-important" - again, with Stevie, direct sincerity is one of his primary strategies, esp. on "Songs In The Key Of Life", so why disclaim them? The statement that "no one likes to be preached to" is a loaded one, and discounts a key role for artists. - Suggests changes Stevie should have made to certain songs (take out backing vocals in "For Once in My Life" he suggests, or the orchestration in "Never Dreamed You'd Leave In Summer" (aspects which presumably most people consider either indivisible or indispensable to those songs.) Lodder apologizes for the essential intro to "Ma Cherie Amour" as "blocky"? - Says a few songs are unlistenable - the problem here is you should never disqualify any song (esp. in a master's catalog), because there's always an angle = I've seen other critics get past seemingly "negative" aspects of the same songs ("Wanna Talk To You" for example). You may say none of these are outrageous in and of themselves - but it's also the condescending, 'tsk-tsk', "Stevie should know better" way it's written. I wish Lodder would resist channeling Christgau (and online, Wilson/Alroy) in their overconfident, flippant but often predictable dismissals of certain artistic choices, especially artistic choices that are inherent facets of the identity of that artist. Lodder's obviously a deep Stevie fan, and for every time he criticizes, it's dwarfed by his general praise and in many specific passages. He has a friendly writing style, which may explain why he's so free about expressing opinions. A lot of great information, synthesis, and sheer work/research, to the degree it makes me feel guilty for 3 stars and I leaned towards 4 despite my profound annoyance. I got a lot from it, and I thank him for writing it.

Fascinating, in-depth exploration of the master's most creative and groundbreaking albums, from the early to mid 70's. If you like learning about the creation of great art by great artists you'll like this book.