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The CHIRP Blog
Josh Friedberg: Music Historian's Corner writesRediscovering Our Record Collections: Stevie Wonder’s “Songs in the Key of Life”
Preachy, saccharine, bloated, inconsistent—call it what you will, but Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life has held up exceptionally well over the last 40 years. Maybe it’s because the messages are still relevant, maybe it’s because the arrangements to songs like “Sir Duke” and “I Wish” still sound fresh, maybe it’s because Stevie Wonder toured behind the album two years ago and audiences still love it. In any case, this month, Stevie Wonder’s double-LP-plus-a-7”-EP (!)-length monstrosity has been selected for Classic Album Sundays, which CHIRP is sponsoring in Chicago at Transistor (transistorchicago.com) on Sunday, September 25.
In terms of my relationship with this album, I saw it in my mother’s CD collection as a kid, and I eventually bought the later remastered version. I’ve sometimes had a mixed reaction to this album: as others have pointed out, the lyrics are convoluted and the songs go on and on, but if you just pay attention to the arrangements and the overall sound, the album is absolutely brilliant, and today it is among my ten (five?) favorite albums ever.
Clarence Ewing: The Million Year Trip writes@CHIRPRadio (Week of September 19)
Special Announcements
- The CHIRP Radio Fall Fundraiser is in full swing! A huge THANK YOU to everyone who has contributed so far. We’ve still got plenty of thank-you’s for everyone who gives, including the new CHIRP Member Card, which WILL make you the coolest benefactor on your block! Go to http://chirpradio.org/donatenow to make a donation. Thanks!
Upcoming Events
- CHIRP Radio Welcomes Sara Watkins to the Old Town School of Folk Music on Wednesday September 21st
- BACON, BANDS, AND BREWS! CHIRP will be at Exit Strategy Brewing for Baconstock on Saturday September 24th
- CHIRP will be there for Classic Album Sundays, celebrating the 40th anniversary of Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life at Transistor on Sunday September 25th
New Media
- First Time - First Taste by Mindy Segal
- First Time - First Taste by Dave Toropov
- Amelia Hruby interviews Shamir
- Josh Friedburg Rediscovers Carol King’s classic album Tapestry
Josh Friedberg: Music Historian's Corner writesRediscovering Our Record Collections: Carole King’s “Tapestry”
I’ve pretty much always loved Carole King’s 1971 blockbuster album Tapestry, but I’ve sometimes been conflicted about embracing its flaws. Yes, this is one of the most beautiful pieces of pop song craft ever made—it’s a different kind of candidate for “greatest pop album ever” than a dance album like Michael Jackson’s Thriller—but I would be dishonest if I acted like I think every single song is an absolute masterpiece. In fact, 1971 was so good a year for classic albums that Tapestry was probably not even one of the very best albums of the year, though it won Album of the Year at the Grammys. But today I do enjoy every single song on the album, while acknowledging that some are better than others.
One sleeper track, “Way Over Yonder,” has played a very special role in my life. I sang it at my college graduation ceremony and at a Take Back the Night march against sexual violence, dedicating it to a number of friends. But still, “Way Over Yonder” is by no means one of the album’s several all-time classics: “I Feel the Earth Move,” “So Far Away,” “It’s Too Late,” “You’ve Got a Friend,” and others far outdistance it in quality. But this song has woven itself into the story of my life in a way that different songs on the album did for millions of listeners in the ‘70s.
SKaiser writes@CHIRPRadio (Week of September 12)
UPCOMING EVENTS
- CHIRP Radio is excited to welcome Calexico (for two shows) to the Old Town School of Folk Music (4544 N. Lincoln Avenue) on Friday, September 16th at 7:00 PM | All Ages
- Join CHIRP Radio in welcoming husband and wife duo The Handsome Family to the Old Town School of Folk Music on Sunday, September, 18th at 7:00 PM
NEW MEDIA
- Don't Play With Your Food...Hang Out with CHIRP this September! gig poster by Greg Kantowicz
- First Time: First Taste with CHIRP's own Dave Toropov
- Rediscovering Our Record Collections: "Portrait of a Legend: 1951-1964" By Sam Cooke written by John Friedberg
- Amelia Hruby caught up with XL's Shamir Bailey before his set at the 2016 Pitchfork music festival
Greg Kantowicz writesDon’t Play With Your Food…Hang Out With CHIRP This September!
