Review #34: Innervisions, Stevie Wonder
#34: Innervisions, Stevie Wonder
This album is much shorter than Songs in the Key of Life, which was kind of nice — I came to appreciate the shorter albums. The double LPs that some of these rock stars love became too much. Listening to an album is sort of like stepping into somebody’s house. You ever been at a party where you don’t know anyone and you’re dying to get out, but your ride isn’t leaving for an hour, so you just have to grin and bear it? That’s what listening to a long album in a genre you don’t like is. Shorter albums are like open houses in rich neighborhoods.
I was surprised to find that I knew many of the words to many of the songs. I’m starting to think that’s just a feature of listening to the 500 “greatest” albums of all time — I’m really just listening to the 500 most popular albums of all time. That’s not a bad thing! I love singing along, loudly. They never let me do that in open houses.
FAVORITE SONGS:
“Too High” — The grooviest anti-drug song I’ve ever heard.
“Visions” — The guitar on this!
“Living For The City” — What a deceptively fun song! I never really listened to the lyrics of it before (also this was another song I thought was a Michael Jackson song because I’m stupid) but that skit at the end is brutal.
“Higher Ground” — YES. There aren’t enough good things for me to say about this ultra-classic song so I’ll just link the equally amazing Red Hot Chili Peppers cover. Anyway, I got ready to go to a funeral to this song.
“Don’t You Worry ‘Bout A Thing” — Gosh Stevie Wonder songs have just been absorbed into the culture. It’s like how the Beatles are baked into everything.
“He’s Misstra Know-It-All” — This song is a bit slow but for some reason I love it. Maybe it’s because the background music is so lush and lovely.
LEAST FAVORITE SONGS:
“Golden Lady” — Sorry, Stevie Wonder but this is too sappy for me, and the key change gives me a lot of anxiety.
“All In Love Is Fair” — His voice is beautiful but he gets points off for being wrong.
IS RS FULL OF IT?
“Living For The City” and “Higher Ground” could be the only songs on this album and I would still think it belonged here. God bless Stevie Wonder.
