Wonderlove: The Development of Stevie Wonder’s Band Traced Through ‘Superstition’
May 13, 1971. Motown throws a huge party for Stevie Wonder’s 21st birthday. The next day, Wonder hightails it out of there into a Manhattan Holiday Inn. Wonder has music he wants to record. Soon after, bassist Ronnie Blanco, swings Wonder by one of Blanco’s close friend’s.
Robert Margouleff and Malcolm Cecil had just released their synth-heavy and experimental ‘Zero Time.’ And Wonder was inspired. It was Memorial Day Weekend. After an hour of meeting, they hit the studio and spend the next three days recording. 17 songs came out of that first meeting. Over the next five years, they would record 143 more (songs).
Cecil confesses that they never set out to record albums, per se, just threw a bunch of songs in a pot and pieced together a coherent album later. Well, ten months, on March 3, 1972, later they emerged with Music of My Mind.
In February of that year, Wonder signed up to open for The Rolling Stones American Tour, a two month, 48 show romp from Vancouver to NYC. So Wonder needed to put a band together. And this is where our story begins.
THE DAVID FROST SHOW, EPISODE #4 122 — MARCH 8, 1972
But he walked into the studio and sat down at the drums. And started off, just [drum noises] And, and, and that was all he played, was like the drum track for like five minutes, and that was it. And he came back and he said, let’s get a good bass sound, want a real funky bass sound. So we went out and programmed up a bass sound. And then he put on [sings bass] And then he says, I want some clavinet. And we haven’t heard any melody, we haven’t heard any sound. We didn’t know what this all was yet. Malcolm Cecil
It was clear to see that Stevie Wonder was Little Stevie no more. He had wrote, produced, and recorded his first album free of the grips of the Motown Machine, had immersed himself in the latest technology, and became known for his innovative spirit…but he still had not had a hit since 1963.
The story behind “Superstition” is the stuff of legend: him writing the song for Jeff Beck, deciding to keep it — blah blah blah. I’m only interested in the recording process, it’s release, and how it became the centerpiece of the Wonderlove set.
Anyone who knows “Superstition”, knows that it is a drum driven song — as opposed to the other songs started on piano. Later, Wonder went in and put the finishing touches on there with the clavinet — eight of the sixteen tracks were clavinet — but “Superstition” is essentially a groove.
Between the beat, the piercing horns accent, and the now legendary clavinet sound, Wonder created a song that — two albums later, was still used as the closing track on his tours. And it was a hit. “Superstition” shot up the charts and stayed there for weeks. This is why we have chosen to trace Wonderlove through this song.
Wonderlove, a nine (sometimes ten) piece band consisted of: Stevie Wonder — Scott Edwards, Jr. — Bass, Ralph E. Hammer — Guitar, Steven P. Madaio — trumpet, Denny Morouse — Horns (sax), Ray E. Parker — Lead Guitar, Keith Stevens — Congas, Ollie Eugene Brown — drums, Shirley Brewer (who replaced Gloria Barley) — Singer, Lani Groves (later replaced by Susaye Green) — singer, Delores Harvin — singer — not sure where Deniece Williams fit in or who she replaced but she was in and out as a background singer as was Jim Gilstrap.
CONCERT FOR WILLOWBROOK — AUGUST 30, 1972
As early as June 6th, 1972, three days into the tour, “Superstition” was the closing song. The song would not be released for another four months so it’s hard to determine if Wonder had already recorded a rough draft while negotiating with Jeff Beck or if the song developed over time, night after night.
What is clear is that Wonder’s plan of exposing himself to a new audience had paid off. In the above clip, the crowd is already going crazy- whether it’s due to the song that proceeded, (which was often a rendition of “Papa Was a Rolling Stone,” according to available set-lists of 1972), or maybe the audience knows what to expect. Whatever the case may, when Wonderlove cues up “Superstition” for the John Lennon led, charity concert to “Free the Children of Willowbrook” on August 30, 1972, we can barely hear the band through all of the cheering.
This version is a Scott Edwards, Jr., bass-heavy, slower version than most people are accustomed to and the pace is even. Towards the end of the song, lead guitarist, Buzzy Feiten has a quick solo. Other than that, this is a pretty straight-forward performance, and, according to one account, this wasn’t the closing song (although the video above brings that into question), the closing song was “Keep on Running.” It is likely. At the time, “Superstition” had not been released, and “Keep on Running” was on the charts.
SOUL! — DECEMBER 26, 1972
From its September 1968 debut to the final episodes in 1973, Soul! provided a stage for a breathtaking array of black cultural and political luminaries, including many performers who had never before appeared on TV. Soul! was unapologetic about aiming its diverse and self-critical weekly affirmation of black culture and politics to African American viewers, a group that had previously not had the pleasure of seeing itself widely, or truthfully, represented on television. Soul! was the brainchild of Ellis Haizlip, the first black producer at WNET (then WNDT), who joined the station in the mid-60s. PBS Channel Thirteen, show description.
Stevie Wonder and Wonderlove appeared on the seminal show Soul! and put on a clinic. Talking Book had been out in the public for almost two months and, unlike Music of My Mind, was a runaway hit.
“Superstition” closes the hour-long show out. Ollie Brown brings the band in which resembles how the song appears on the album and for this show, Keith Stevens’ playing is better mic’d so that the congas are more prominent in this performance. Also in this performance, we begin to see the pattern — Wonderlove plays the song pretty straight-forward for what is the length of the recorded song (about 3:49) and then to various degrees, “Superstition” becomes a jam.
In this instance, Steven P. Madaio & Denny Morouse give us horn stabs, which appears to be cued on by Wonder when he says, “play, play” (3:53) this leads into a breakdown (4:51). Listen to enough band leaders, follow enough tight musicians, you learn to pick up on cues. I would guess that Wonder’s “whoah” at 5:00 is to tell the band to get back into the groove, they do, and slow up into “Maybe Your Baby” then at 7:37, Wonder throws up his hand and they swiftly shift back into “Superstition.” You have to watch it. It’s masterful. And that mastery whips the crowd into a frenzy.
At nine minutes in, Wonder turns and raises his hand to the band again and they bring it on home. Minus the “Maybe Your Baby” aside, the song clocks in at what appears to be the length that Wonderlove would keep for “Superstition” as a closing number — six to seven minutes.
SESAME STREET, EPISODE 514 — April 26, 1973
Can I just say — the audience is a bunch of children. The show is edited but I can only imagine that Stevie Wonder & Wonderlove played for them for up to ten to fifteen minutes. That’s a long time for the modern child — maybe it was different in 1973…I don’t know, I can’t remember — I was one.
Wonder at this point had just begun his hectic pace but was still writing two to three songs a day and hitting Media Sounds with Malcolm Cecil and Bob Margouleff five days a week. Billboard Magazine predicted it was for the next album but in reality, as we pointed out earlier, Cecil, Margouleff, & Wonder were amassing a catalog of music to cull from later…but I digress.
The introduction of this performance almost mirrors the Soul! performance: Ollie Brown brings the band in — and Kevin Stevens congas are prominent here as well, but the tempo is a tad bit quicker. Also it appears to be more stripped back, more focused around how the clavinet and Scott Edwards’ bass compliment each other. (maybe there’s no guitar playing straightaway…)
Not quite sure what Stevie says at 3:31 but apparently it’s the cue for Madaio & Morouse because they give us those horn stabs (3:41) — they go into the break down at 4:35 (though, I missed the cue) but his “whoah” mentioned before certainly appears the one (cue) to bring them back to the groove. They go into a second break down at 5:15 with a quick raise of the hand.
Reading this, you may not find it fascinating…but then again, you may not be a music-geek like myself. Watching how a band relates, to me, has always been a great study of band continuity and discipline. So seeing Wonder bounce in his seat (5:25) with the band hitting on his every drop…only to launch back in the groove after two heys and a raise of the hand (5:34) is like getting a Wonka Golden Ticket. If one were watching an orchestra, the question is often asked what the conductor does — hell, they’re reading music. They still need the conductor to maintain the tempo. But when you see a rock or funk or R&B band (even a Hip-Hop band nowadays), it may be unclear how they are finding out how fast to play, when to stop, etc. Hence, my joy in finding cues.
Madaio & Morouse give us some more horn stabs, Wonder serenades, “Se-sa-me Street” and then at 6:43, Stevie brings both hands down, and Ollie gives us a few more beats, Wonder says, “okay,” and they’re done. Wonderful performance for the adolescent set.
Stevie Wonder had packed his schedule for the Spring and Summer of 1973, with shows from Passaic, New Jersey (April 26) to Honolulu, Hawaii (May 20). He played Black colleges (Morgan and Hampton, respectively). He played Jazz Festivals (Newport Jazz in Cali and Soul Sessions at Newport at Shea Stadium, Queens, NY.) He was busy.
Come August 3rd, 1973, Motown released Innervisions. Fronted by “Higher Grounds” as a single, Innervisions like Talking Book was a quick success, climbing up the Billboard charts from 85 to 4 in less than a month.
This video had to be recorded sometime before August 3rd because we know that on August 6th, while coming from a show, Wonder was asleep in the car when the driver, John Harris, slammed into a suddenly stopping logging truck, jogging lumber free, and propelling it into the windshield of their vehicle. Wonder was struck in the head and lay in a coma for four days. He was slow to recover and didn’t play anything for months, therefore this had to proceed that.
This version begins with Wonder’s clavinet with no trace of Kevin Stevens (which I attribute to the mic placement, because you can hear him clearly at 1:22). It’s a slower groove with the horns not as pronounced, with only Madaio playing. It also appears that there’s no Shirley Brewer, Lani Groves, Delores Harvin, or any back up singer for that matter, on this promo set.
Madaio has to go the horn stabbing alone at 4:05. Unfortunately, the editing of the show prevents us from seeing the song play straight through. It fades out into an interview at 5:01 and when they return, Ollie Brown’s blowing a whistle, they break at 5:10 and then, again, at the standing Stevie’s “hey” (or “play”) the pared down Wonderlove break again at 5:28 when Wonder sits. He cues “faster, faster, faster” at 5:45…and that is what they do…much faster until right before Stevie raises his hand (6:24)and brings the song to an end. Look, if you only watch that last 40 seconds, you won’t be disappointed.
I would correct the Wiki page if I could, but it ain’t that kind of party. According to Wiki, Wonder didn’t emerge again to perform until March of 1974…but here we have him performing at Musikladen (erroneously titled Beat Club by VH1, a show that was defunct in 1972), he also performed at the Gala du Midem in Cannes, and even clocked two shows in jolly o’ Engand — all in January…maybe I read that wrong…maybe they were just talking about the U.S. tour, don’t mind me. Musikladen.
Musikladen was a show that was put on by the same producer of Beat Club, Radio Bremen, and took on the same live performance format. Stevie Wonder and Wonderlove played their shortest, abbreviated version of “Superstition” on the show, a performance that clocked in at a mere 2 minutes and 41 seconds. It was also a performance that had neither Madaio nor Morouse so the guitar and bass subbed for those parts; they were more of a quartet. Towards the end of the song, our background singers take on the role of the horns. We’re not privy to how the song ends, we have a clap-track and the Beat Club title, fading to Black.
Award season was underway, Stevie Wonder and Wonderlove were back from their European tour, and they put down this 4 minute and 39 second set for the American Music Awards, February 19, 1974.
The crowd drowns out Ollie Brown but he starts the song off. It’s another bass-heavy performance. Doesn’t sound like there’s any congas. Madaio is present but that doesn’t look like Morouse on the sax.
Aside from the ladies of Wonderlove singing along with the horns, they play it pretty straight forward.
The horn stabs come in at 3:50 with Ollie going to town on the whistle. It’s an abbreviated version (in comparison to the typical show length) so Wonder calls for the break down at 3:57 with the raise of a hand.
(I really want to know if Stevie’s saying “hey” or “play” but alas) Wonder calls out a cue and stands — we can now see that the standing/sitting cue calls for “hits” on each sitting motion. They “hit” Wonder, speeding up with each one until Stevie stands at 4:21, arms raised and when he brings them down they bring the jam to an end.
For the 16th Annual Grammy Awards, Innervisions took album of the year. And while people often discount awards — especially considering the modern nominees — not that many of the ‘73 nominee names ring out, but if you look across the musical landscape of 1973–74, there’s nothing but powerhouses.
A few months later Fulfingness’ First Finale would be released, and it would be another hit, bringing in the album of the year award at the 17th Annual Grammy Awards.
It’s so interesting reading reviews from white critics like New York magazine compared to Ebony Magazine. More often than not, it’s like night and day. Take these excerpts as an example:
Sooner or later, however, there are the lyrics to be confronted, and these truly are abysmal. For years now, Wonder has been telling us that Love is the answer, that all we need is bliss. As philosophies go, this has two major drawbacks. First, it isn’t true, second, it isn’t interesting. Repeat it ad infinitum, as Wonder does, and it becomes unbearable.
compared with:
For he stands as a hero, a source of inspiration at a time when the national climate has turned chilly towards blacks. He is no Martin Luther King, no Malcolm X, and never would pretend to such political portent. His mission is conducted through his music. He reaches out to all, singing of universal love in a post-activist period when the flower children (no longer threatened by the spectre of their own suffering in the quiet aftermath of Vietnam) have gone home to roost in the weedy middle-American terrain that inadvertantly produced them.
I don’t think an advanced degree is needed to determine who, out of Nik Cohn and Phyl Garland, wrote which blurb and for which magazine.
Scan through the archives, look at the reviews, and you will see the same theme: magazines like Billboard, New York, or periodicals like Village Voice find problems with most of Wonder’s performances. A perfect example is the post- accident opening, “Contusion.” It sometimes ran as long as ten minutes and was called “confusing” by white writers. Meanwhile, in Black periodicals, you never see such complaints.
Stevie and Wonderlove would continue performing throughout ‘74-’75 and for me, it all culminated with the October 4, 1975 Wonder Dream concert; the concert to cap off a week-long Tennis event billed as “Holiday Jamaica 75” with some proceeds going to the visually impaired. Yes, this is the Wailer Reunion concert. And yes, Bob Marley and Stevie Wonder played together; “I Shot the Sheriff” and you guessed it, they also played “Superstition.”
If there’s video of the performance, I can’t find it. If you know someone that has it, have them bless us.
It would be two more years before Wonder released his opus, Songs in the Key of Life, a double album with a four song ep to boot, and although Wonderlove would stay together in one form of the other until 1981, no time period — even the so-called “commercial period” would measure up, creatively, to the “golden era.” Wonderlove, essentially a funk band, could have gone toe to toe with any of the fusion jazz bands that were popular at the time. If we had have based this writing on “Contusion,” that point would have been easily proven. “Superstition,” in all of its incarnations above, demonstrate how tight of a band, and how skilled they were at translating Wonder’s mostly single-man created music into an engaging experience night after night.
