Stevie Wonder: Innervisions

Astounding is an apt word to describe the incredible output of Stevie Wonder from 1972 to 1977, when he channeled his phenomenal talent and energies to churn out a series of great recordings from Music of My Mind to the double-album Songs in the Key of Life.  How anyone can definitively say that one was the best is the challenge, but, to this blogger, 1973's Innervisions is certainly a high-water mark amid one of the most astonishing runs in musical history.

He was a child prodigy when he burst on the pop scene about a decade earlier and amassed many chart-toppers while basically confined to a hit-machine mode by Barry Gordy and his Motown label, but, hearing what Marvin Gaye did in 1971 with What's Going On, Wonder immediately sought that route of artistic freedom, as well as experimentation.  In 1972, he released Music of My Mind and Talking Book, both of which reflected huge leaps of growth in his new direction.

With Innervisions, which came out in early August 1973, Wonder produced an astounding album that matched his melodic strengths with his multi-instrumental talents, including the T.O.N.T.O. (The Original New Timbral Orchestra) synthesizer.  Three are guest musicians and vocalists, as well, making important contributions to a half-dozen of the nine tracks that, from start to finish, comprise a remarkable recording.  Every tune is strong, including love songs like "Golden Lady" and "All in Love is Fair," spiritual pieces like "Jesus Children of America" and "Higher Ground," and political tunes such as "He's Misstra Know-It-All," a scathing indictment of President Richard Nixon, and the awesome "Living for the City," with a general positive uplift in "Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing."

One of the main elements that makes Innversions so strong is Wonder's ability to merge R&B, soul, funk, jazz, and rock in ways that are both forward-thinking and accessible.  Years of performing in a pop environment, in which his talent was obvious, but the opportunities for showcasing evolution and growth were limited, were finally followed by a period, not unlike what happened with Gaye, in which Wonder was able to give full expression to his immense abilities, but also his vision and ambition.  This was aided to no small extent by his associate producers, and the T.O.N.T.O. creators, Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff, who encouraged Wonder to pursue new musical directions.  Again, it's challenging to pick the best Stevie Wonder album, but this one has to be a serious contender.