Music of My Mind

Music of My Mind
Studio album by Stevie Wonder
Released March 3, 1972
Studio Media Sound, Electric Lady
(New York, New York)
Crystal Industries
(Los Angeles, California)
Genre Soul
Length 47:53
Label Tamla
Producer Malcolm Cecil, Robert Margouleff, Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder chronology
Where I'm Coming From
(1971)Where I'm Coming From1971		 Music of My Mind
(1972)		 Talking Book
(1972)Talking Book1972

Music of My Mind is the fourteenth studio album by American soul musician Stevie Wonder. It was released on March 3, 1972, by Tamla Records. Wonder used synthesizers for many musical parts on this album.[1] It was a modest commercial success, but critics found the record representative of Wonder's artistic growth.

Recording

Wonder played all of the instruments on this album except trombone by Art Baron and guitar by Howard "Buzz" Feiten. This is the first of a set of collaborations between Wonder and his co-producers Robert Margouleff and Malcolm Cecil.

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Austin Chronicle[3]
CreemB+[4]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[5]
The Great Rock Discography7/10[5]
Los Angeles Times[6]
MusicHound4.5/5[5]
Q[7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[8]
Sputnikmusic3.5/5[9]

When Music of My Mind was first released on March 3, 1972, it became a modest success with both black and white audiences in the United States, charting at number six and number 21 on the Billboard R&B and pop charts, respectively.[10] Contemporary critics viewed it as Wonder's final step into artistic maturity.[11] In Rolling Stone, Vince Aletti said it showcased the ambitious use of his newfound artistic control and maturity as a songwriter, although he found some of the studio and vocal effects both gimmicky and self-indulgent.[12] Robert Christgau from Creem believed that like Ray Charles, Wonder transcended aesthetic sensibilities on Music of My Mind, which he said featured "some of the most musical synthesizer improvisations yet" but whose individual songs were not as impressive as the "one-man album" concept.[4] Penny Valentine was more enthusiastic in her review for Sounds, viewing the record as a milestone in modern music and a culmination of soul music's creative maturity. She especially praised Wonder's arrangement of "intriguing vocal patterns" on what she deemed "an album of explosive genius and unshackled self-expression".[11]

In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Music of My Mind at number 284 on the magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[5] It was re-released in the UK in 2008 to coincide with Wonder's European tour.[13]

Track listing

All Songs by Stevie Wonder unless stated otherwise.

Side one

  1. "Love Having You Around" (Wonder, Syreeta Wright) – 7:21
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Fender Rhodes, talk box, drums, Moog bass
    • Art Baron – trombone
      •
    • Background Singers – uncredited
  2. "Superwoman" – 8:08
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Fender Rhodes, drums, Moog bass, T.O.N.T.O. synthesizer
    • Buzz Feiten – electric guitar
  3. "I Love Every Little Thing About You" – 3:46
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Fender Rhodes, drums, bongos, Moog bass
  4. "Sweet Little Girl" – 4:54
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, keyboard, Fender Rhodes, harmonica, drums, Moog bass
    • Background Singer - Syreeta (uncredited)

Side two

  1. "Happier Than the Morning Sun" – 5:18
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Hohner clavinet, Moog bass
  2. "Girl Blue" (Wonder, Yvonne Wright) – 3:36
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, Hohner clavinet, drums, talk box, harmonica, Moog bass, T.O.N.T.O. synthesizer, percussion
  3. "Seems So Long" – 4:22
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, keyboards, drums, Moog bass, T.O.N.T.O. synthesizer
  4. "Keep On Running" – 6:40
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, piano, Hohner clavinet, handclaps, drums, Moog bass
    • Background Singers – uncredited
  5. "Evil" (Wonder, Y. Wright) – 3:33
    • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, piano, drums, Moog bass, T.O.N.T.O. synthesizer
    • Choir – uncredited

Charting singles

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1972) Position
U.S. Billboard Pop Albums[14] 21
U.S. Billboard R&B Albums[14] 6

Year-end charts

Chart (1972) Position
US Billboard Pop Albums[15] 47

References

  1. ↑ Hogan, Ed. "Hogan, Ed at". Allmusic.com. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  2. ↑ Allmusic review
  3. ↑ Moser, Margaret (May 19, 2000). "Review: Music of My Mind, Talking Book, Innervisions, Fulfillingness' First Finale". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  4. 1 2 Christgau, Robert (October 1972). "The Christgau Consumer Guide". Creem. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Music of My Mind". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  6. ↑ Hilburn, Robert (April 1, 2000). "Motown Releases Remind Us of Stevie Wonder's Impact". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  7. ↑ Q. London: 123. August 2000.
  8. ↑ Considine, J. D. (2004). "Stevie Wonder". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian. The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. pp. 885–87. ISBN 0743201698. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Sputnikmusic review". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
  10. ↑ Perone, James E. (2006). The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 30. ISBN 027598723X. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  11. 1 2 Penny Valentine (1971-12-04). "Sounds review". Rocksbackpages.com. Retrieved 2013-12-27. (subscription required)
  12. ↑ Aletti, Vince (April 27, 1972). "Music of My Mind". Rolling Stone. New York. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Stevie Wonder interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' March 1995". Bluesandsoul.com. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
  14. 1 2 "Allmusic: Sweet Baby James: Charts & Awards: Billboard Albums". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
  15. ↑ "Billboard.BIZ Top Pop Albums of 1972". billboard.biz. Archived from the original on 2012-12-06. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
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