In Square Circle

Last updated
In Square Circle
Stevie Wonder In Square Circle CD cover.JPG
Studio album by
Stevie Wonder
ReleasedSeptember 13, 1985
Recorded1984–85
Studio Wonderland (Los Angeles, California)
Genre
Length46:00 (LP)
49:22 (CD)
Label Tamla
Producer Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder chronology
The Woman in Red
(1984)		In Square Circle
(1985)		 Characters
(1987)
Singles from In Square Circle
  1. "Part-Time Lover"
    Released: August 24, 1985
  2. "Go Home"
    Released: October 1985
  3. "Overjoyed"
    Released: Late 1985
  4. "Land of La La"
    Released: April 1986
  5. "Stranger on the Shore of Love"
    Released: July 1986
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Robert Christgau B+ [2]
Rolling Stone (favorable) [3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]

In Square Circle is the twentieth studio album by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released in September 1985 on Tamla Records. [5] In Square Circle spent 12 weeks at number one on the US Billboard Top R&B Albums chart. The album also made the top five on the US Billboard 200 and peaked at No. 5 on the UK Pop Albums chart.

Contents

Singles

In Square Circle features hit singles "Part-Time Lover" (No. 1), "Go Home" (No. 10), "Overjoyed" (No. 24), and "Land of La La" (No. 86).

Critical reception

Jon Pareles of Rolling Stone claimed "Wonder seems immune to the current epidemic of posturing self-importance, and with his unforced optimism and his no-sweat audio perfectionism, he makes your ears happy, again and again. On In Square Circle, he's as irresistible as ever." [3]

With a B+ Robert Christgau of the Village Voice found "Compare this to the others in your head and you'll be hard-pressed to specify what's missing, but slap on Talking Book or Hotter Than July and you'll hear how cushy it is--polyrhythmic pop rather than polyrhythmic rock. Stevie's effervescence is so indomitable that it's a pleasure even so, but nothing rises far enough out of the stew". [2]

Ron Wynn of AllMusic, gave a 3 out of 5 stars rating saying, "Although it went platinum, nothing stands as better evidence of how cyclical the pop experience is than the response to In Square Circle. Wonder actually wrote some superb songs, and several, like "Overjoyed" and "I Love You Too Much," were superior to the hit single "Part-Time Lover." But that one zoomed to the top spot and became the album's definitive tune in the minds of many." [1]

RJ Smith of Spin called the album, "a pleasant muttering packaged as a Major Statement. Where's the energy and comedy of the man who turns into a mercurial mimic on stage? The lights are on, but nobody's home." [6]

Stephen Holden of the New York Times declared "Chock full of surging chromatic melodies, powerful dance rhythms and churning synthesized instrumentation, In Square Circle is classic Stevie Wonder in the way it combines extremes of primitivism and lofty spiritual and artistic aspiration. Like all of Mr. Wonder's best records, In Square Circle is an allegorical pop mural whose panels each suggest a different symbolic tableau. Musically, the album is more concise and less experimental than the sprawling two-disk sets, Songs in the Key of Life and the Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants. His latest songs are also more consistently melodic and danceable than those on his 1980 album, Hotter Than July." [7]

Wonder also won, a Grammy for the album, in the category of Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. [8]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Part-Time Lover" Stevie Wonder 4:09
2."I Love You Too Much"Stevie Wonder5:30
3."Whereabouts"Stevie Wonder4:17
4."Stranger on the Shore of Love"Stevie Wonder5:01
5."Never in Your Sun"Stevie Wonder4:07
6."Spiritual Walkers"Stevie Wonder5:12
7."Land of La La"Stevie Wonder5:14
8."Go Home"Stevie Wonder5:18
9."Overjoyed"Stevie Wonder3:43
10."It's Wrong (Apartheid)"Stevie Wonder3:29

[5]

Notes

Personnel

Musicians

"Part-Time Lover"

"I Love You Too Much"

"Whereabouts"

"Stranger on the Shore of Love"

"Never in Your Sun"

"Spiritual Walkers"

"Land of La La"

"Go Home"

"Overjoyed"

"It's Wrong (Apartheid)"

Technical personnel

Notable performances

"Go Home" was performed during the 1986 Grammy Awards ceremony as part of a synthesizer jam with Thomas Dolby, Herbie Hancock, and Howard Jones. [9] It was also performed, along with "Overjoyed," on the May 7, 1983, episode of Saturday Night Live , which Wonder hosted. [10]

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for In Square Circle
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) [28] 2× Platinum200,000^
France (SNEP) [29] Gold100,000*
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong) [30] Gold10,000*
Japan (Oricon Charts)—596,000 [15]
New Zealand (RMNZ) [31] Gold7,500^
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [32] Platinum100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [33] Gold100,000^
United States (RIAA) [34] 2× Platinum2,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. 1 2 Wynn, Ron. "Stevie Wonder: In Square Circle". AllMusic . Retrieved December 15, 2024.
  2. 1 2 Christgau, Robert. "Stevie Wonder". Village Voice . Retrieved 2010-05-08.
  3. 1 2 Pareles, Jon (24 October 1985). "In Square Circle". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on 22 June 2018. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  4. ↑ "Stevie Wonder: Album Guide | Rolling Stone Music". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on 2013-04-06. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  5. 1 2 3 Stevie Wonder - In Square Circle. Tamla Records. September 13, 1985.
  6. ↑ Smith, RJ (December 1985). "Spins". Spin . No. 8. p. 29.
  7. ↑ Holden, Stephen (September 15, 1985). "STEVIE WONDER -- THE POP IS VINTAGE". New York Times . Retrieved December 15, 2024.
  8. ↑ "Stevie Wonder". The Recording Academy . Retrieved December 15, 2024.
  9. ↑ YouTube: "Synthesizer Showdown at the 1985 Grammys"
  10. ↑ "May 7, 1983". The SNL Archives. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  11. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  12. ↑ "austriancharts.at Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  13. ↑ Library and Archives Canada. Archived 2014-02-01 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2014-04-27
  14. ↑ "dutchcharts.nl Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle" (ASP). dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts . Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  15. 1 2 Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN   4-87131-077-9.
  16. ↑ "charts.nz Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle" (ASP). Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand . Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  17. ↑ "norwegiancharts.com Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle" (ASP). Hung Medien. VG-lista. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  18. ↑ "swedishcharts.com Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle" (ASP) (in Swedish). Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  19. ↑ "Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle – hitparade.ch" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Swiss Music Charts. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  20. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  21. ↑ "Stevie Wonder Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle" (in German). Media Control . Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  23. ↑ "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1985". RPM . Archived from the original on July 23, 2012. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
  24. ↑ "Les Albums (CD) de 1985 par InfoDisc" (in French). infodisc.fr. Archived from the original (PHP) on October 27, 2012. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
  25. ↑ "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1986". RPM . Retrieved February 20, 2013.
  26. ↑ 年間アルバムヒットチャート 1986年（昭和61年） [Japanese Year-End Albums Chart 1986] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on 2013-11-02. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  27. ↑ "Billboard.BIZ  – Year-end Charts – Billboard 200 – 1986". billboard.biz. Archived from the original on 2012-12-09. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  28. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle". Music Canada . Retrieved 2013-09-26.
  29. ↑ "French album certifications – Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle" (in French). InfoDisc.Select STEVIE WONDER and click OK. 
  30. ↑ "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1988". IFPI Hong Kong. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  31. ↑ "New Zealand album certifications – Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle". Recorded Music NZ . Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  32. ↑ Solo Exitos 1959-2002 Ano A Ano: Certificados 1979-1990. Iberautor Promociones Culturales. 2005. ISBN   8480486392.
  33. ↑ "British album certifications – Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved 2013-09-26.
  34. ↑ "American album certifications – Stevie Wonder – In Square Circle". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved 2013-09-26.
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