Stevie Wonder

Signed, Sealed Delivered marks the beginning of Stevie Wonder's shift from the hit-focused Motown songwriting mentality to the funkier, more socially aware style that would dominate his work in the 1970s. You can hear Wonder's aesthetic changing, even as he's delivering pop tunes like the title track. Hidden gems include the lesser-heard "I Gotta Have A Song."

Any of the 12 songs on Stevie Wonder's new album holds more creative singing than you're
likely to find in another performer's entire body of work. And while everything may not
reach the energy level of the title song, "Signed, Sealed, Delivered," there's not a bad cut
on the LP. One of the best is a version of Lennon-McCartney's "We Can Work It Out," which
had a startling, brand-new vitality even on an early unmixed tape. In its finished... More >

Sometime in the past (can it be?) eight years, Little Stevie became Big, and so did his frantic one-smash-a-year style--wheezes, shrieks, and all. Consistent Motown albums are rare, and Wonder is still an immature ballad singer, though at least now he's covering "We Can Work It Out" (some ballad) rather than (I'm not making this up) "The Shadow of Your Smile." All the good stuff here is stuffed onto one great side--the most exciting music by a male soul singer in quite some time, and it fits no mold, Motown's included. (Grade - B+)