Stevie Wonder » Talking Book

Talking Book by Stevie Wonder

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Tracklist

    Track     Duration Listeners
1 You Are The Sunshine Of My Life 2:58 188,297
2 Maybe Your Baby 6:51 36,266
3 You And I 4:38 31,473
4 Tuesday Heartbreak 3:02 32,732
5 You've Got It Bad Girl 4:59 30,282
6 Superstition 4:26 441,516
7 Big Brother 3:34 31,838
8 Blame It On The Sun 3:26 31,615
9 Lookin' For Another Pure Love 4:44 16,461
10 I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever) 4:50 48,023
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With: Marvin Gaye, Donny Hathaway, Earth, Wind & Fire, The Temptations and more…

About this album

Universal Music Portugal SA (2007) Released: 1 Jan 2007 10 tracks (43:28)
After releasing two “head” records during 1970-71, Stevie Wonder expanded his compositional palate with 1972’s Talking Book to include societal ills as well as tender love songs, and so recorded the first smash album of his career. What had been hinted at on the intriguing project Music of My Mind was here focused into a laser beam of tight songwriting, warm electronic arrangements, and ebullient performances — altogether the most realistic vision of musical personality ever put to wax, beginning with a disarmingly simple love song, “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” (but of course, it’s only the composition that’s simple). Stevie’s not always singing a tender ballad here — in fact, he flits from contentment to mistrust to promise to heartbreak within the course of the first four songs — but he never fails to render each song in the most vivid colors. In stark contrast to his early songs, which were clever but often relied on the Motown template of romantic metaphor, with Talking Book it became clear Stevie Wonder was beginning to speak his mind and use personal history for material (just as Marvin Gaye had with the social protest of 1971’s What’s Going On). The lyrics became less convoluted, while the emotional power gained in intensity. “You and I” and the glorious closer “I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever)” subtly illustrate that the conception of love can be stronger than the reality, while “Tuesday Heartbreak” speaks simply but powerfully: “I wanna be with you when the nighttime comes / I wanna be with you till the daytime comes.
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  • Second-Prize

    Why? Well, Because hotterthanjuly always likes to bring up the topic of race whenever he can because he is black, and seemingly in the minority as it were. There are obviously not as many idiotic black music critics who believe everything they say is fact like he does, and this no doubt makes him feel good about himself since he is always striving to appear original, when really his whole "I'm black feel sorry for me" or "I'm black so I'm more likely to get this kind of music" routine is getting really old. I'm sure he does have some deep hatred for the white man though, in fact he probably hates white people just as much as he hates himself.

    21 days ago

  • DeathOfCool

    why must there be racism in this shoutbox? :/

    22 days ago

  • cjkisaragi

    This is a pretty good album.

    27 days ago

  • javiikiller

    First time I listen this album and all I can say is that it's really great. I'll be listening it a lot.

    March 2012

  • hotterthanjuly

    Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life are the two Stevie Wonder albums rock critics (white people) feel more obligated to like because they are more "important," while acting like there is no such thing as Fulfillingness' First Finale. Stevie Wonder would equal Talking Book with those subsequent albums, but never better it.

    March 2012

  • hotterthanjuly

    THE best Stevie Wonder album, and still the greatest album ever made.

    March 2012

  • granpubah

    ragi ya nuts 2nd best stevie album! lol

    February 2012

  • cjkisaragi

    The 3rd best Stevie Wonder album

    November 2011

  • roiboi

    absolutely amazing!

    October 2011

  • hotterthanjuly

    As far as I'm concerned, this will always be the greatest album ever recorded.

    August 2011

  • RaquelTogepi

    353 plays in your library

    July 2011

  • mrshankly_

    am I dead? why does this sound better than..everything? if I'm not I'll kill myself for sleeping through his set at Bonnaroo last year. Or be fair and just blame it on that Tennesse sun.

    June 2011

  • gsm007g

    1972...Music was A lot more different.....all it was ....was music....Now it's...well thank God for....Two Words: Stevie Wonder....that's It!

    March 2011

  • ChatTypeman

    This was always like Stevie's Pet Sounds to me.

    December 2010

  • waxear

    Why, oh why isn't modern music produced like this?

    October 2010

  • earstoit

    yummy

    June 2010

  • daniel_martman

    food for your soul

    June 2010

  • Jayneymo

    Talking book and innervisions - 2 earliest albums I carried around (still do)

    April 2010

  • Marxism1

    <3

    November 2009

  • vyntage1

    "Well, the many sounds that meet our ears, the sights our eyes behold... Will open up our merging hearts and feed our empty souls....." Pure poetry. 'I Believe in you Stevie'.

    November 2009
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