STEVIE WONDER • CONCEPTION

Conception: An Interpretation of Stevie Wonder's Songs - Various Artists
Stevie Wonder is one of the most influential voices in R&B to the point where R&B probably wouldn’t sound the same if Stevie wasn’t here. So it’s fitting to have this retrospective of songs interpreted by some of the hottest stars around.

The album starts out with a roaring rendition of "Higher Ground" by Eric Clapton. The Bluesy-Rock swing of Clapton’s guitar really gives justice to the energy of a Stevie recording and at the same time puts a new and original spin on things, unlike some other songs on the album. Take Glenn Lewis’ rendering of "Superstition." The famous main lick of the song is buried underneath a barrage of squeaky-clean horns while riding on the thump of modern-R&B drums. The modern twists on these classics sometimes fall short of the complexity of the original music while they attempt to smooth out the edges, leaving Stephen Marley to do his best impersonation of his father on a lost "Master Blaster," and Caron Wheeler to get weighed down under the kicks of "Another Star" while some anonymous voice whispers “Talk to ‘em ma.”

But sometimes things work. Sometimes the new arrangements (when done properly) make Wonder’s songs seem refreshing and current. For instance, on "You Will Know," Angie Stone doesn’t pull out any vocal tricks, but that’s okay. Over this steady and clear-eyed rendering of the song, she sounds totally comfortable. Philly crooner Musiq doesn’t need Stevie’s vocal chops to do justice to his songs. On "Visions," he translates the arm-chair introspection of that song without being swallowed by it.

The jewels of this album however are Dave Hollister’s "Love’s in Need Of Love Today," and Mary J Blige’s "Overjoyed." Hollister’s "Love…" undergoes a tempo change and piano treatment, turning it into a sober ballad for change that is suitable in these times of conflict. Blige is absolutely radiant on "Overjoyed," redone with new flourish. She comes across like a person running only on emotions of joy and feeling great about it.

Stevie-purists might long for less popular songs to get re-tooled as well (I would love to hear an Alternative artist’s take on his over-looked "Big Brother," or a Hip-Hop artist with DJ in hand tackling "All Day Sucker.") And although this collection is hit and miss at times, there is a lesson here: that music doesn’t reside in one time period to be one day left in the past. Stevie Wonder has been influential to so many artists nowadays. Neo-Soul has his finger-prints all over it. The choir build-up on the last chorus of a song is all him. And let’s not talk about the samples and remakes that have struck gold for several artists. Just because a song may not have the brand new studio-trick on it, doesn’t mean it is to be discarded, because the message is universal. And as long as we give it to the next generation to cherish, they can be infinite as well.