So back in the day I used to say that my two favorite musicians were Peter Gabriel and Stevie Wonder. Then someone just called to say I love you, and Stevie dropped off that list.
His releases in the 1980s and 1990s didn't do much to refute the "High Fidelity"; argument that a great artist can invalidate his prior genius with later idiocy. And while Stevie Wonder's new CD is nothing like his revolutionary political and spiritual soul music of the 1970s, A Time To Love is at least a pleasant listen. Or maybe it's just that I can't relate to current R&B ....
However, this CD really does have its moments. "Moon Blue" is a very catchy down-tempo ballad that recalls (dimly) Stevie's more sensual tracks from the 1970s, like, say, "Creepin'." There are also a number of groovin' upbeat numbers (some with politically sharp lyrics, like "So What The Fuss"), and Stevie does things he hasn't done in decades on them, like play live drums. There is a bit of the All-Star approach on this record (like many of Stevie's post-1980 releases), but he keeps his guests in check and the album never begins to feel like a We Are (Still) The World project. Prince contributes guitar on one track, Bonnie Raitt offers up some slide on another, but the songs always remain Stevie Wonder's show. There are, of course, some really dippy ballads which ooze sugar substitutes, but they actually did not make me reach for the eject button (at least not the first time through the album).
A humorous footnote: The current single from the record ("From The Bottom Of My Heart") features as a bonus track a 12" version of "Part-Time Lover," another of Mr. Wonder's ugly moments from the 1980s. I doubt a full-time mix of that part-time hit will revise Jack Black's opinion.
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