In Square Circle

About

When <i>In Square Circle</i> was released in September 1985, it had been five years since Stevie Wonder’s last studio album, and the delay had left critic, fan, and industry friends musing about the singer’s future. During that time, the musical landscape changed dramatically: There was the pop ascendance of Wonder’s fellow Motown alum Michael Jackson, and the rise of Prince to superstar status—phenomena that would have been impossible if not for Wonder’s trailblazing success in the 1970. At the same time, hip-hop was making its way out of the New York boroughs and onto the chart, which were increasingly being dictated by the upstart cable network MTV. Wonder had been keeping busy during those year, in part by celebrating his own past: The singer participated in the Motown label’s epochal 25th anniversary broadcast celebration, tacked four new songs onto the 1982 best-of <i>Original Musiquarium, Vol. 1</i>, and was inducted into the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame. And the singer had made the occasional cameos at the top of the pop chart, duetting with Paul McCartney on the 1982 hit “Ebony and Ivory,” and releasing a global smash with the Oscar-winning “I Just Called to Say I Love You," from the soundtrack to <i>The Woman in Red</i> (the tune would displace Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy” from the No. 1 spot on the Billboard charts). .

via Apple Music

The Clerk says

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