Fulfillingness’ First Finale

Don't think I have every listened to a complete SW album - this one is particularly laid back and chill with a few recognisable single releases

Soulful

As always with Stevie, some tracks are 5+ stars, and the slow ballads are really bad.

Als Stevie los gaat, gaat ie lós. Als hij niet los gaat, is hij ook echt heel saai. Dat laatste horen we vandaag. Dit is het minst interessante album dat we van hem voorgeschoteld kregen. Had achterwege mogen blijven.

Third time lucky? Nope. Still just don't like SW's voice, songs, or sound. All the talent in the world but none of the taste. The components are good - smooth funk & jazzy RnB, high spec 70s production - but it just ends up as cheesy pap. His nasal melisma is unbearable. The bass and keyboard parts redeem it a bit at least on the high tempo tracks where he's ripping off herbie hancock but the slow ones are just awful: sappy and dull.

Another record that I only know from the singles, since I never had a copy and wasn't ever really into Stevie Wonder at the time.

It was great to hear "Boogie On Reggae Woman" again for the first time in a while. I love that funky bassline, it sounds kind of like an electronic tuba. And "You Haven't Done Nothin'" sadly still hits pretty hard today. A great funk track.

Some of this was more mellow than what I usually like, but hey, if you have to have mellow music, it might as well be this, right? There's not an off note in any of it; the arrangements and harmonies all work well and are all varied enough for the record to be interesting as a whole.

I have a friend who saw Stevie Wonder in England last year, and she said it was a great show. So good to see he's still at it.

Return of the farty bass tones.

Dude is a prodigy to produce this music whilst blind. That said I preferred Innervisions. 3/5.

1/5

3.5 stars.

Really loved this! I've never properly listened to Stevie Wonder before and didn't know much about him. This is absolutely not my usual genre but I loved how smooth and polished everything sound and how much range there was on the album. Some great songs, super enjoyable, would happily listen again!

This was not a Stevie album i knew before this. It hits all the classic notes.
Boogie on Reggae Woman is enjoyably funky.
You haven’t done nothing evokes Superstition with it’s funky accompaniment and is a highlight for that reason.
They wont go when i go slows things down and deliver an emotional vocal which probably rescues what would otherwise be a dull track

Firstly, love an alliterative album appellation.

If I were only rating Boogie on Reggae Women, the album would be getting a 5/5 without any hesitation. I absolutely loved it. There were other songs I found fairly forgettable, or that I liked but they didn't set my world alight, but I thought that track was great. It has been a surprise to me how much I like funk. And a harmonica.

As for everything else, the "bum bum ti didi" part of Smile Please was hysterical. It certainly made a song that I otherwise would have probably instantly forgotten, very memorable.

The slower, more plodding, songs were generally less interesting. For me, the best of the bunch of that type was They Won't Go When I Go which I thought was really beautiful and Stevie sounded fantastic.

I really enjoyed whenever the female backing vocals kicked in on tracks because they were a really lovely contrast to Stevie's incredible vocals. I have no idea what the weird sound in Bird Of Beauty is, but the vocals were great.

You Haven't Done Nothin' sounded like it was going to turn into Superstition as any moment. Which meant it was a really enjoyable song, but slightly disconcerting.

I am wishing for a 3.5 again... I think this was more great tracks than forgettable ones, so I'm rounding up.

4/5

I think Stevie Wonder is a hit-maker artist, and this album didn't have any hits. So it didn't really do it for me, despite the greatness of the artist.

Great album

Stevie Wonder was on such an incredible roll in the 1970s. I was thinking of downgrading this to four stars just because I slightly prefer Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life, but that feels like I'm penalising him for being too much of a genius.

Like my second favorite album by him. Still, pretty amazing work by Stevie.

Good album. Stevie is so talented and at the top of his game at this point in the 70’s that even in second gear, as he is here, it sounds beautiful. It’s laid back and almost easy listening music but it consistently sounds warm, pleasant and interesting.

Incredible. 4.5⭐

good, but not his best.

Another reviewer said "I love music! I love Stevie Wonder!" That does it for me too.

I haven't ever heard They Won't Go When I Go, and wow, what a blessing that song is.

Thoroughly enjoyed this one. Thanks, Stevie!