As of now, “Innervisions,” by Stevie Wonder remains an instant classic in my record collection. The bass lines, the melodies, and Wonder’s lyricisms just take you onto a new level. It’s sort of a great melodic mystery. While l was enjoying each song, it dawned on me that you don’t know what you’re heading into. You’ve got no clue what Wonder’s got up his melodic sleeve, but let me tell you that, it’s gonna be worth it. Trust me! I came across this record for the first time this year, 2024. Yeah, I know I’m kinda late, and I didn’t really know the songs, maybe the melody from “Higher Ground,” but that’s all I could think of. After the first time listening to it, I loved it immediately. There weren’t any awkward breaks, or even misleading tracks that would break the flow, each song somehow gets intertwined with each other. And, the transitions in between some songs where they would go from quiet, mellow, and acoustic to an engaging funky jam. 

“Visions,” is such a great song, not only for it’s mellow melody, but how it acts as a sort of “calm before the storm.”. And its meaning is just as beautiful, because it highlights the importance behind peace. And, I feel that we can all relate to this because, we all want peace, but in order to achieve peace or even if we go a-bit further such as including love, well, don’t we have to find peace, and love within ourselves, before we can express it one amongst the other? 

From “Vision,” we then dive right into this superb song, “Living For the City.”  It starts off mellow, where you can hear the keys being played smoothly on that Fender Rhodes electric keyboard, but then slowly builds up along with Wonder’s powerful lyrics. It fits perfectly hand in hand with the melody because it expresses deeply the continuous struggles of an urban life, for a Black working class family that still resonates in today’s society. And, I’ve gotta tell you that every time I hear Wonder’s powerful vocal tone, I feel as if he’s grasping down into my soul, nourishing it with its message, with the bonus of incorporating a great funky melody. But, nothing beats “Higher Ground” in my book. Impossible. I mean this is such a great track following its predecessor of “Superstition,” from Talking Books. This song embraces the beautiful aesthetic of funk within its melody. The melodic lines coming out of the Rhodes, this hypnotizing bass line, and drum that opens your horizons into the world of funk music. And, what’s interesting was how Wonder wrote this song foreshadowing what’s gonna happen, sort of like an “awakening experience.” 

“I’m so darn glad He let me try it again 

‘Cause my last time on earth, I lived a whole world of sin 

I’m so glad that I know more than I knew then 

Gonna keep on tryin’ ‘

Til I reach my highest ground, whoo.”