Songs In The Key Of Life
Stevie Wonder

The big one. The poster-album-child of the Bachtivision movement ever since day 1. Often cited as one of the greatest albums of all time. The kind of album that is so sprawling that it's impossible to contain it in a review, the kind of album that you notice some new stroke of genius every single time. Last time it was the genius of the instrumental "Contusion". The time before that it was the utopian vision of "Saturn" where people live in orange snow until they're two hundred and five. There are so many grand ideas, little flourishes, and shifting musical styles on this double album - and couple that with the fact that I'm a relatively new listener to Stevie Wonder - that I am still processing much of what's on here. Not to mention just how many incredibly successful songs and artists have sampled or straight lifted entire portions of these songs - Coolio took "Pastime Paradise" wholesale; as did Will Smith with "I Wish", and when I first heard Wonder's version of "As" all I could think of was how George Michael sang it note for note. The sprawling, eclectic, experimental nature of the album isn't without issues (though I am sure people will argue that's what makes it great): Should "Ordinary Pain" REALLY be 2 different songs in one? Unlikely. Would I prefer to listen to "Isn't She Lovely" without the baby crying parts? Probably, but that also might be missing the point. Does the album feel incohesive due to the sheer amount of STUFF going on and mix of styles? Certainly. Will I keep listening to this when I'm two hundred and five? Definitely.

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