Obscure Stevie Wonder Bangers Please

[Dr Rock]

I am familiar with all the (adult) studio albums, but there's a ton of singles I don't know on my itunes, some from his early days, some from fuck knows where. Any recommendations please. Also super-covers versions Steveland will be welcome too.

[BlodwynPig]

Hugo Montenegro - Too High

[McChesney Duntz]

"Front Line" off '82's Original Musiquarium I is as obscure and gem-like as obscure gems come, I daresay...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG9LoWnOlok

[Video Game Fan 2000]

He's all over Syreeta Wright's first record

[Dr Rock]

He's all over Syreeta Wright's first record

ii ONly just discovered this - I've been listening to Your Kiss Is Sweet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LQSA7V7ffs for months, having no idea what it was, except extremely awesome. Last week I looked it up and saw the Stevie Wonder connection - I now have all her stuff.

Hugo Montenegro - Too High

Super!

"Front Line" off '82's Original Musiquarium I is as obscure and gem-like as obscure gems come, I daresay...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG9LoWnOlok

Excellent, ta x

[Pauline Walnuts]

He does a good one on Paul McCartney's Tug Of War, Ebony And Ivory 'What's That You're Doing?'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xear0vw_TAo

[Petey Pate]

Stevie contributed a harmonica solo to this Herbie Hancock track.  Herbie returned the favour by playing keys on Stevie's As.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcZ5NNuPq-c

Here's also a clip of Stevie joining Chick Corea's band onstage for an instrumental version of Pastime Paradise.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wohb6mkSW4Q

[Petey Pate]

Oh another Stevie Wonder jazz connection, he guested on Stanley Turrentine's album of cover versions of his songs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdCUypps2lc

This had made me realise how seriously good a harmonica player Stevie Wonder is, a somewhat overlooked quality of his.

[pupshaw]

ii ONly just discovered this - I've been listening to Your Kiss Is Sweet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LQSA7V7ffs for months, having no idea what it was, except extremely awesome. Last week I looked it up and saw the Stevie Wonder connection - I now have all her stuff.

Super!

Excellent, ta x

Harmour Love is even better

[willbo]

It's not obscure beyond the top handful, but I love Missra Know it All

[non capisco]

Those two guys dressed as Sylvester the Cat who used to mime to a saxophone instrumental of 'Part Time Lover' at the foot of the escalators at London Victoria underground throughout the late '90s.

[Better Midlands]

Put this in the Alternative History thread earlier this year, This synth follow up to Wonder's #1 smash hit I Just Called To Say I Love You also on the soundtrack to Gene Wilder's The Woman In Red reached #44 in the UK.

Stevie Wonder - Love Light In Flight




There's a really nice The Revenge edit of it too.

[Better Midlands]

Little Stevie Wonder - Fingertips Parts 1 & 2 (Live) 1963

[SpiderChrist]

Carl Anderson - Buttercup

Written by Steveland

https://youtu.be/MxAf8qekGEk

The Jackson 5 had a swing at it too, but it's pretty anaemic and MJ appears to sing "there's a chance for every botty" which is spookily prescient

https://youtu.be/-adgKAoLRL4

[SpiderChrist]

And another shout for the Syreeta album.

[DrGreggles]

I know it was a single, but I genuinely love I Don't Know Why.
Never seems to get as much credit as it deserves as it pre-dates his (admittedly awesome) 1972-6 heyday.

[Golden E. Pump]

Feeding Off the Love of Land. The song was released as the b-side to 'Gotta Have You', from the 1991 soundtrack to Jungle Fever but make no mistake, it's from his classic period. A really beautiful piano ballad with those trademark harmonies originally recorded for the abandoned Fulfillingness' Second Finale 1975 project; it's much better than anything on the album. It's essentially a pre-cursor to Songs in the Key of Life which he would go on to create instead.

[phantom_power]

All of Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants

[PlanktonSideburns]

Any idea why he did a harmonica solo on that Steven segal album?

[kalowski]

Do yourself a favour and make sure you know Do Yourself a Favor


...and everything off the Signed, Sealed and Delivered album.

[Dr Rock]

It's not obscure beyond the top handful, but I love Missra Know it All

Me too. I think Innervisions is my favourite album of his.

Do yourself a favour and make sure you know Do Yourself a Favor

A banger and no mistake

[kalowski]

Me too. I think Innervisions is my favourite album of his.

Had this conversation with a mate recently. We both agreed on Innervisions. How good is Jesus Children of America.
Recently managed to get the run from Signed, Sealed... to Secret Journey... on vinyl. Fullfillingness sounds particularly good.

[pupshaw]

 Sometimes I envy people who still have the pleasure of discovering unknown Stevie for the first time.

What about these two from "Where I'm Coming From?

Sunshine In Their Eyes

Some great harmonic invention, and a Hey Jude singalong fadeout which is better than Hey Jude.

Think Off Me As Your Soldier

His vocal accuracy is just amazing

[Video Game Fan 2000]

I love "Do Yourself A Favor"! Whole album is great, definitely overlooked and just as good as the classics that surround it. I think of it as a two-fer with Syreeta's glorious debut, Where I'm Coming From is a Stevie record that is overwhelmingly influenced by Syreeta and Syreeta record follows Stevie's most experimental work.

Is it the only effing on a Stevie record?

[kalowski]

Is it the only effing on a Stevie record?

What effing?

[Video Game Fan 2000]

One of the scat overdubs audibly has "do yourself a fuckin' favor" after "get your funky self together"

Can't find a timestamp but its in the ratatat bit with the talkbox.

[kalowski]

I think I know the bit you mean, but it's "Get your funky self together".

(Nice example of tmesis)
Edit: missed your reply. Will have another listen!

[Video Game Fan 2000]

Hm, I'm no longer sure if that overdub is funkin' or fuckin', it sounds odd because he sighs and it sounds like an overdub of "...together" right after. Doesn't matter, the important thing is how much those overdubs and talkboxing cook.

It's wild how much Stevie and Syreeta's collaborations pushed things. I love Sign Sealed and Delivered, but its a very classic sounding soul record. Where I'm Coming From sounds like a massive leap forward. It's like Beach Boys Today! v Pet Sounds in terms of the arrangements and technical innovations on show.

Syreeta doesn't get nearly enough credit as an innovater, she might have been a writer rather than an arranger but its her influence on Where I'm Coming From that pushed Stevie to stay raw and gritty despite all the technical advances on the album. Then just after she puts out her debut, one of the most futuristic sounding pieces of pop ever recorded. Incredible range.

[blisterman]

The original version of All I Do that he wrote for Tammi Terrell in the 60s that was shelved for over a decade.

https://youtu.be/qqbvX_sYoN0

[Dr Rock]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHr1zYnNWGA

Be Cool, Be Calm(And Keep Yourself Together) - quite the banger.