Stevie Wonder 'A Time 2 Love' album

Born in Saginaw, Michigan, Stevie Wonder moved to Detroit at an early age and has become one of that city’s most famous sons.

Blind from birth, Stevie has never allowed that to be an obstacle or handicap. His normal childhood activities of playing games and climbing trees with his friends were suddenly set on a different path when his amazing musical talents were spotted by Bonnie White of Smokey Robinson’s group The Miracles. White took Stevie to Motown Records and introduced him to Berry Gordy, the company’s founder, who instantly recognized his tremendous musical potential and signed him to Motown in 1961. He has been with the label ever since and recently signed a life-long deal.

The 1963 release, “Fingertips, Part 2,” was Stevie’s first number one record and the first of a string of hits throughout the 1960’s. However, it wasn’t until the 1970’s – having made the transition from Little Stevie Wonder the child start to Stevie Wonder the mature, adult superstar – that he began to show the true depth of his potential.

Stevie turned the ripe age of 21; he rejected his previous recording agreements and negotiated the freedom to become a musical pioneer. The albums he recorded in the 1970’s, particularly Talking Book (You are the Sunshine of My Life” “Superstition”), Innervisions (Living for the City.” “Higher Ground,” “All in Love is Fair”), Fulfillingness First Finale (“Boogie on Reggae Woman”, “Too Shy to Say”), and Songs in the Key of Life (Isn’t She Lovely,” “I Wish,” “Sir Duke”), met with unprecedented success, netting him 15 Grammy Awards. For many, these albums became icons of the seventies.

Stevie continued his success into the 1980’s with his Hotter Than July album, which became the springboard that launched his campaign to have January 15 the birthday of Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King, declared a U.S. national holiday. In 1984, his efforts culminated in success when President Ronald Reagan announced that the third Monday of each January was to be officially known as Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

1984 was also a big year for Stevie on the recording front with the song “I just Called to Say I Love You,” from the soundtrack of the motion picture The Woman in Red, wining him an Oscar. This song also became Motown’s all time biggest-selling single internationally. This wasn’t Stevie's first foray into movie soundtrack recording. He had previously recorded the soundtrack to the film Secret Life of Plants in 1979. And subsequently, he enjoyed considerable success with the 1992 release of the multi-hit LP to director Spike Lee’s film Jungle Fever. The album that was recorded in the amazingly short span of only three weeks.

In 1985, Stevie continued his record success with the LP In Square Circle, which contained the hit single “Part Time Lover”.

By now, however, Stevie was starting to show some unease about the direction the things were moving, both musically and socially, in young America. In the late eighties, it became vague in music to espouse the virtues of street violence and disrespect of one’s fellow man and more particularly woman. His 1987 Characters album remained true to his principals of love and respect, but was not met with critical acclaim. Undeterred, Stevie began work immediately on Conversation Pieces, an album which, as the title implies, underscores his continuing belief that the peaceful road is the better way.

The first two songs on the album, “Rain Your Love Down” and “Edge of Eternity,” immediately establish the fact that this is in no way a nostalgic album. Stevie is right up-to-date with a very modern sound that doesn’t compromise his trademark song quality. For the Stevie Wonder purists, “Taboo to Love” confirms that he has not abandoned the idea of creating classic, timeless love songs. This song is reminiscent of “You and I,” and “All in Love is Fair,” although on this 1995 outing, Stevie uses real strings instead of the synthesizers of the 1970’s.

Stevie’s continued interest in world music is clearly demonstrated by the songs “Take the Time Out” and Tomorrow Robins Will Sing”. “Take the Time Out” reinforces the traditional Stevie Wonder message: “Take the Time to love someone/be it king or some homeless one/we are one underneath the sun.”

While “Tomorrow Robins Will Sing” displays a “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” style sense of humor in the lyric and infectious Reggae-based backing, the tune “Treat Myself” has echoes of the lyrical sentiments of the song “Visions” from the Innervision album with Stevie deciding, “I Think I’ll treat myself to all the pretty places in my head.”

“My Love Is With You,” is the most powerful social statement that Stevie makes on this album. Inspired by the murders of two personal friends, Jeffrey James and Lori Miles, it is a plea to “Ban the Handgun” and ends by using the voices of Jeffrey and Lori as a reminder that these were people who left behind real memories and families.

Stevie’s music has always shown some jazz influence and on “Sensuous Whisper” it bubbles to the surface. A strong, walking bass line forms the backdrop to a powerful vocal melody and sharp-edged backing vocals.

“For Your Love” is the first single from the album. A classic Stevie Wonder love song, this tune has the hallmarks of a standard that will be just a popular in ten or twenty years time.

Many of the songs for this album were written while Stevie was spending time in Ghana. One of these, “Cold Chill”, shows the carefree abandon that Stevie says came from the freedom he felt by being away from the everyday pressures of Los Angeles.
“Sorry” is as close as Stevie comes to an out-and-out dance track on this album, but typically he does it with a style and panache which leaves many younger dance music artist trailing in his wake.

The song “I’m New” has superb backing vocals provided by Take 6, one of several tremendous guest performances on this album.

“Conversation Peace” is a very fitting title track for the album, pulling together the over-riding sentiment of the collection. As Stevie says, “there’s no chance of world salvation unless the conversation’s peace.”

And there’s no doubt that now is the right time for this album.

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Stevie Wonder - A Time 2 Love