Talking Book [Original recording remastered]

Stevie Wonder | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 21, 2000)
• Original Release Date: 1972
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Motown
• ASIN: B00004S36A
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (107 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,747 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #45 in Music > R&B > Classic R&B
  • #72 in Music > R&B > Motown
  • #97 in Music > R&B > Funk > General

Editorial Reviews

The breakthrough 1973 album that spawned the #1 hits Superstition and You Are the Sunshine of My Life !

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonder's pages of the heart October 23, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Audio CD

"Innervisions"may show his genius at full form,& "Songs in the Key of Life"may be his masterpiece,but it's"Talking Book" that balances his musical genius and his emotional core. Not only are we treated to the salacious funk of"Superstition",and the georgeous"You are the Sunshine of my life",but other emotionlly charged songs that stemmed from his break-up with then-wife Syreeta Wright.From the turmoiled fueled "Maybe your Baby"&"You've got it bad,Girl"to the overtly ignored post break-up classic"Blame it on the Sun".But heartbreak gives way to the hopefullness of "You & I"(yet another buried classic ,which could pounce "I just called..."as the ultimate wedding song),"Looking for Another Pure Love",& the georgous album closer,I Believe(when I fall in love it will be forever) giving the indication that bliss is just around the corner. Only 22 at the time of recording,Wonder showed his talent was not only impressive,but most importantly,expressive.

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Words can't describe how incredible this CD is April 13, 2005

By Theresa

Format:Audio CD

When you think about the fact that Stevie was so young when he wrote this music, that he was taking huge artistic risks, that he was talking about serious things in serious ways while fluff abounded around him makes this album that much more significant. He didn't just write love songs; he infused deep, soul-wrenching emotion into them. I dare you to say you don't get goose pimples listening to "You and I" or "You are the sunshine of my life." On the flip side, songs like "Superstition" and "Maybe Your Baby" shows how he can jam hard-core. The brother is bad! And let's not forget the fabulous players on this record - Ray Parker, Jr. on "Maybe Your Baby" or Jeff Beck on "Looking for another Love," to name a couple. Stevie's music is incomporable, and he is a rare musical genius. This CD is a fabulous representation of what a master songwriter can produce. You should check it out.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Good Book January 29, 2001

By Thomas Magnum HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

After the personal triumph of Music Of My Mind, Stevie Wonder proved he was a true musical force with Talking Book. The album shows that Mr. Wonder could run the gamut of music stylings from ballads to hard rockers and succeed in producing memorable music. The album opens with one of his most familiar songs, "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life". The songs opens with not Mr. Wonder, but two backup singers. Mr. Wonder slides in on the third verse and takes over with smooth grace. "Maybe Your Baby" has some nice guitar work from a young Ray Parker, Jr. and "Tuesday Heartbreak has sax playing from a young David Sanborn. The album contains some great socio-political songs that Mr. Wonder is known for with the stinging "Big Brother" standing out. Mr. Wonder was going through the breakup of his first marriage at the time and songs like "You & I", "You Got It Bad Girl", "Looking For Another Pure Love" (Jeff Beck contributes his guitar work to the song) and the aforementioned "Tuesday Heartbreak". When Mr. Beck was laying down his guitar track, he asked if Mr. Wonder would write a song for him for his new album. Mr. Wonder came up with "Superstition" and then deemed that it was too good to give up. He was right as the song is one of his best with its combination of funk, rock and soul and that evil sounding guitar riff. It became his first number one song since his first single, "Fingertips, Pt. 2". Mr. Beck was none too happy about the situation. Talking Book proved to be a huge success and set Mr. Wonder hurtling towards the stratosphere.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Sounds good for hit-and-miss AF label August 6, 2010

By Nicholas Murphy

Format:Audio CD

This album sounds pretty good. I have, like others, been unsure about the quality coming from AF these days. I "try before I buy" on most of these discs if you know what I mean. It's a shame that there is a wealth of information on Steve Hoffman's site (the main AF mastering engineer), but any criticism posted about AF gets deleted immediately by his Gestapo.

Oh, and this definitely didn't use the master tapes. Steve won't let anyone. I wouldn't get too excited about that because a good 30 inch per second analog dub can be unnoticeable from the original. However, AF should be up front with customers about the source they used. Would you rather them keep the "From the Original Master Tape" label on there but it not be true? That's what they were doing (see AF Simon & Garfunkel "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme"). Several times it's been proven to be untrue. For $30 discs, they should tell us what source they used.

I would recommend this disc, but I would say "caveat emptor" for AF discs in general. Wait for others to review them (and don't look on Steve Hoffman's site for that info). The DCC label was before my time (AF is a reincarnation of DCC) but I have downloaded several old DCC discs. The magic that was on those is gone, and AF has been shown to lie and cover up about the sources they used. Too bad.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Music From A Modern Master. July 9, 2000

By WILLIE A YOUNG II

Format:Audio CD

This brilliant work by Motown's first child prodigy has become the standard by which all R&B is judged. Filled to the brim with gorgeous melodies, gentle keyboard textures, and romantic, but never sappy lyrics, "Talking Book" has weathered every trend in music and is still without peer. This seminal release from a man who is justifiably called a genius is still a class act. The opening "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" is a pop music standard that sounds like it could have been recorded yesterday and is probably the greatest love song ever written. Stevie's understated electric piano, the soft bongo playing in the background, the sprightly horns on the chorus and beautiful vocals by Lani Groves, Jim Gilstrap (on the intro) and Wonder himself all combine to make this song the perfect intro to a classic album filled with brilliant, timeless music. Pointing out highlights is almost pointless, this being a complete, cohesive work of art. The songs presented here perfectly complement each other and create an open-ended song-cycle that ebbs and flows in all the right places. The funky, paranoid "Superstition" (a no.1 R&B and pop hit) is matched by the extended, slow, bass/clavinet drenched "Maybe Your Baby" which itself is innovative in it's use of multi-speed and altered vocals, wicked rock guitar and Stevie's searing lead vocal. The ballads are wonders unto themselves; the acoustic guitar blessed "Blame It On The Sun", the stark and hopefully romantic "You And I", and a pair of smooth-as-butter ballads, the jazzy, easy paced "Lookin' For Another Pure Love", and the drop- dead beautiful "You've Got It Bad Girl" are the most sonically pleasing confections on the album.... Highlighted respectively by a great guitar solo (do it Jeff!) and synthesizer solo Stevie stretches out to astounding effect on these numbers. (Special note: The 'Jeff' Stevie is referring to is none other than Jeff Beck, in case there are still 2 or 3 people in the world who don't know.) This is the record that forever put 'Little Stevie Wonder' to rest and showed the world that a gifted musician, composer and singer was claiming his place in moderm music and effectively launched one of the single greatest runs (both creatively and commercially) in the history of pop music. No collection is complete without it. Read more ›