|   Stevie Wonder and other memories from the twee '80s | 3-LockBox
Apr 19, 2002 1:21 PM | | Has anyone heard the remastered CD issue of Wonder's Original Musiquarium? I see on CDNow for about $22, but I'm thinking I'll wait till I can get to a BB or CC, they both had Innervisions and Hotter Than July. I had Original Musiquarium on vinyl back when I was jes a chirllin. I think my sister may still have that packed away some where...I bought Musiquarium with my own B-day money ('80 or '81); I remember my sorta friends shakin their heads at me, because while they were buying Ted Nugent and Cheap Trick and .38 Special and KISS, I was buying Bob Seger (I'll bet ya you can guess which ones), Steve Miller (greatest hits, Circle Of Love), Stevie Wonder, ELO (greatest hits, Time), Paul McCartney (the not-so-bad Tug Of War lp), and David Bowie (Scary Monsters & Super Creeps). And now that I think of it, I have a confession to make. I actually owned on vinyl Stars On 45. I got it as a gift. Those of you who are familiar with this atrocity know my shame. Not all my b-day presents were busts, I also got J. Geils Band-Freeze Frame, which did allow me back into certain circles. ah youth... |
| Yes, I own it... | Mr MidFi
Apr 19, 2002 1:58 PM | | And it's the bomb-diggity. I'm pretty sure this is the only soul/R&B title I own (no wait...let me think...no I'm right...it's the only one). I recommend it whole-heartedly. It's the one to have if you're havin' only one (like Miles Davis' Kind of Blue is to jazz, or Beethoven's 9th is to classical). |
| Stevie Wonder and other memories | PwrPopGuy
Apr 19, 2002 5:38 PM | | Hey 3Lock, reading your post, I couldn't help but notice a few similarities in your music listening past and my own. I didn't never get SW's OM, but I did get Songs In the Key of Life back in '76- one of the very few R&B records to make it's way into my collection. I remember very well, though, hearing a couple songs from Musiquarium on my local free-form radio station back then and thinking, "wow, that's some cool music!" I bought ELO's Time on LP in '81- probably their last really good one, Tug Of War has been a favorite album of mine since I first heard it- I remember it got a 4-star rating from Rolling Stone, and the mark of George Martin could be heard on the record. And, don't feel bad about Stars On 45- I must confess I had the cassette and I still think the Beatles medley is pretty awesome! |
| Stevie Wonder twee, not David Bowie? | cc
Apr 19, 2002 7:39 PM | | Er, this isn't really my department, but maybe you see here something like Darius was talking about as far as how race informs a lot of our culture in ways we might not recognize. Just that the bands you mention as you and your friends listening to are all mad "white," and then they're baffled when you buy a Stevie Wonder album. Ostensibly they're shaking their heads at the "wimpier" genre of the music you had the guts to plunk down the change for, but the racial difference is still apparent. Of course this analysis also exemplifies anecdotal evidence, so... but I'm struck by the list of bands. Not a comment on your views at all, especially from 20 years ago.
And there's David Bowie at the end! Mainstream rock's favorite "eccentric," aka open bisexual fascinated with nazism and violence who happens to write huge "rock" hits (which are often about same).
Actually, I think a lot of the decline in Bowie's popularity after the Ziggy phase had to do with that he went toward funk, and white rockers, especially white rock critics, weren't necessarily into that. And I think Bowie was following his idol Lou Reed here, whose 1973 Sally Can't Dance was hated by critics, and not coincidentally contained a fair number of funk riffs. Doesn't sound "serious" to critical ears.
Stevie is either rumored or confirmed to have lots of paternity suits, so I don't think twee-ness is an issue for him. I like the Musiquarium but the individual albums more than stand up too. Though the anthology may have some unavailable singles... |
| Maybe we're talkin two different twee's here | 3-LockBox
Apr 22, 2002 10:06 AM | | I meant my own twee tastes as a teen (as I know twee to mean). Yes, I still have sweet tooth as far as pop goes, but my tastes did change as I got older and started discovering music that I didn't hear growing up in rural Tennessee (Top 40 stations played a mix of country and pop). I made new music discoveries the two times my brother and I drove to Michigan to see family (listening to different stations as we went along) My brother was into Bowie, so it was his influence for that purchase. I may not own Scary Monsters on CD, but I will own Wonder's OM. It's really his last good release, IMO. |
| hmm, guess so | cc
Apr 22, 2002 6:51 PM | | Well...
That's interesting that you were able to hear different music as you went through different areas. Nowadays the radio is so centralized, the only local differences are the relative proportions of country and Christian stations. And I guess in major metropolitan areas there might be more ethnic radio, such as in NY we have a few Latin stations. But classic rock east is classic rock west. What a bummer... |
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