Ok, every now and then you get a bit of a no brainer to review. An album by an artist who has by sheer virtue of who he is, has already cemented a musical legacy that will long surpass him. When he or she collects together their ‘best of’ or in this case a collection of number one singles then even before you put it in the CD player you kind of know you are on safe ground.
Stevie Wonder is the latest to put together such a collection. A twenty track compilation of career highlights starting with ‘Fingertips Part 2” (on which he sounds so much younger than I remember), right through to ‘So What The Fuss’ which showed him maintaining a capacity to move with the times and hold that “golden touch” which has served him so well over the years. Along the way you get all the obvious material such “Superstition”, “Living For The City”, “Sir Duke” and “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours”.
Of course even with someone of Stevie’s musical credibility there are of course going to be a couple of turkeys. His duet with Paul McCartney “Ebony and Ivory” will test even the strongest stomachs and “I Just Called To Say I Love You” has of course been the staple of bad club turns in holiday resorts in Spain for many years. Time has mellowed my opinion of either track not one iota.
Still for the most part it’s a fine body of work and one that serves as a fitting introduction to the man’s work. If you’re new to Stevie’s output then this would be a fine place to start.
