In Square Circle | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 13, 1985 | |||
Recorded | 1984–85 | |||
Studio | Wonderland (Los Angeles, California) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 46:00 (LP) 49:22 (CD) | |||
Label | Tamla | |||
Producer | Stevie Wonder | |||
Stevie Wonder chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from In Square Circle | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Robert Christgau | B+ [2] |
Rolling Stone | (favorable) [3] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [4] |
In Square Circle is the twentieth studio album by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released in 1985. The album features the hit singles "Part-Time Lover" (No. 1), "Go Home" (No. 10), "Overjoyed" (No. 24), and "Land of La La" (No. 86). The album earned Wonder a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 1986 Grammy Awards.
In Square Circle made the top five on the Pop Albums chart, and spent 12 weeks at number one on the Top R&B Albums chart. On the UK Albums Chart, it peaked at number five.
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." [5]
All songs written, produced and arranged by Stevie Wonder.
Side one
Side two
Notes
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
"Go Home" was performed during the 1986 Grammy Awards ceremony as part of a synthesizer jam with Thomas Dolby, Herbie Hancock, and Howard Jones. [6] It was also performed, along with "Overjoyed," on the May 7, 1983, episode of Saturday Night Live , which Wonder hosted. [7]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada (Music Canada) [25] | 2× Platinum | 200,000^ |
France (SNEP) [26] | Gold | 100,000* |
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong) [27] | Gold | 10,000* |
Japan (Oricon Charts) | — | 596,000 [12] |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [28] | Gold | 7,500^ |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [29] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [30] | Gold | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [31] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
Private Dancer is the fifth solo studio album by Tina Turner. It was released on May 29, 1984, through Capitol Records and was her first album released through the label. After several challenging years of going solo after divorcing Ike Turner, Private Dancer propelled Turner into becoming a viable solo star, as well as one of the most marketable crossover singers in the recording industry. It became a worldwide commercial success, earning multi-platinum certifications, and remains her best-selling album in North America to date.
Songs in the Key of Life is the eighteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter and musician Stevie Wonder. A double album, it was released on September 28, 1976, by Tamla Records, a division of Motown. It was recorded primarily at Crystal Sound studio in Hollywood, with some sessions recorded at the Record Plant in Hollywood, the Record Plant in Sausalito, and The Hit Factory in New York City; final mixing was conducted at Crystal Sound. The album has been regarded by music journalists as the culmination of Wonder's "classic period" of recording.
Talking Book is the fifteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on October 27, 1972, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. This album and Music of My Mind, released earlier the same year, are generally considered to mark the start of Wonder's "classic period". The sound of the album is sharply defined by Wonder's use of keyboards and synthesizers.
A Time to Love is the twenty-third studio album by Stevie Wonder, his first since Conversation Peace in 1995. Originally to have been completed in 2004, it was finally released to stores on October 18, 2005, following an exclusive digital release on Apple's iTunes Music Store on September 27.
Hotter than July is the nineteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on September 29, 1980, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. Wonder primarily recorded the album in Los Angeles, California, at Wonderland Studios, which he had recently acquired. The album peaked at number three on the Billboard Top LPs & Tapes chart and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on February 3, 1981. It was Wonder's most successful album in the UK, where it peaked at number two on the UK Albums Chart and produced four top-10 singles. Music videos were produced for the album's first, third, and fourth singles.
Famous Blue Raincoat: The Songs of Leonard Cohen is the sixth studio album recorded by the American singer Jennifer Warnes. It debuted on the Billboard 200 on February 14, 1987, and peaked at No. 72 in the US Billboard chart, No.33 in the UK albums chart, and No.8 in Canada. Originally released by Cypress Records, it was reissued by Private Music after Cypress went out of business. It is the only Jennifer Warnes album to make the UK albums chart.
Beyond Appearances is the fourteenth studio album by Santana, released in 1985.
The Other Side of the Mirror is the fourth solo studio album by American singer and songwriter Stevie Nicks. Released on May 11, 1989, through the Modern Records label, the album was recorded in California, New York, and Buckinghamshire in England, and is loosely based around the theme of Lewis Carroll's novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865).
"Part-Time Lover" is a song by American R&B singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder, released as the first single from his twentieth studio album, In Square Circle (1985). The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, R&B, dance, and adult contemporary charts, becoming Wonder's final number one hit to date. The song's simultaneous chart successes made Wonder the first artist to score a number-one hit on four different Billboard charts. The song was also released as a special 12" version. Lyrically, it tells the story of a man who is cheating on his wife with a mistress, only to find out in the end that his wife is cheating on him as well.
"Go Home" is a song by Stevie Wonder, released as the second single from his twentieth studio album, In Square Circle (1985). The song showcased the narrator's plea to a young woman to go home, though the girl tries to get the narrator to stay with her. In the US, the song peaked at #2 on the Billboard R&B chart and #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and, to date, is Wonder's last song to reach the US top ten on the Hot 100. "Go Home" also topped both the Billboard dance chart and the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.
The Woman in Red: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the second soundtrack album released by American musician Stevie Wonder on the Motown label. Also featuring Dionne Warwick, the album was released in 1984 for the film of the same name. It features Wonder's biggest hit, "I Just Called to Say I Love You", which hit number one internationally and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, and also features the follow-up hit, "Love Light in Flight" and "Don't Drive Drunk", the song and the accompanying music video for which were used in the Ad Council and the US Department of Transportation's Drunk Driving Prevention public service announcement the following year.
Characters is the twenty-first studio album by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released in late 1987. The album features six singles including the Grammy-nominated "Skeletons" and "You Will Know", which both reached number one on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. The album also contained a duet with Michael Jackson, "Get It", that was a minor hit.
Conversation Peace is the 22nd album released by American musician Stevie Wonder, on the Motown label in 1995. The album was Wonder's first full-length non-soundtrack studio album since 1987's Characters. This album yielded the hits "For Your Love" and the reggae-flavored "Tomorrow Robins Will Sing". This album also saw Wonder reuniting with Robert Margouleff, who assisted during Wonder's "classic period" from 1972 to 1974.
I'm in You is the fifth studio album by English musician and songwriter Peter Frampton. It was released on 3 June 1977, almost a year and a half after his 1976 signature breakthrough live album, Frampton Comes Alive! It was recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York, where Frampton's Camel was recorded four years earlier. Stevie Wonder, Richie Hayward, Mike Finnigan and Mick Jagger are featured on the album.
Baby It's Me is the eighth studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on September 16, 1977, by Motown Records. It peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Top 200 and No. 7 on the R&B album chart. The album was produced by producer Richard Perry. The LP yielded one top 40 hit, "Gettin' Ready for Love", reaching number 27 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Other charting singles released from the album include "You Got It" and "Your Love Is So Good for Me", the latter receiving a Grammy nomination.
"Seven Wonders" is a song by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac from their fourteenth studio album, Tango in the Night (1987). Stevie Nicks sang lead vocals on the song, and it was written by Sandy Stewart, with additional lyrics by Nicks.
"Overjoyed" is a hit single written and performed by American R&B singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder on the Tamla (Motown) label from his 1985 album In Square Circle. The single peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in April 1986, remaining in the Top 40 for six weeks. In addition, "Overjoyed" was a No. 1 hit on the adult contemporary chart, the eighth of his career. An alternate single release featured an instrumental version on the B-side.
Suddenly is the fifth studio album by British singer Billy Ocean, released on 12 September 1984 by Jive Records. It featured his first major US pop hit single "Caribbean Queen ", which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Prior to that, his biggest success on the US charts had been a number-22 placing for "Love Really Hurts Without You" in 1976, which was one of a number of UK hits he had achieved by the release of this album. Despite these earlier hits, Suddenly became Ocean's first charting album in the United Kingdom, reaching number nine on the UK Album Chart. It also reached number nine in the US, and spawned two additional US top-five singles in the title track and "Loverboy", while a fourth single, "Mystery Lady", reached the US top 40. "Caribbean Queen" and "Suddenly" also reached the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart.
"Living for the City" is a 1973 single by Stevie Wonder from his Innervisions album. It reached number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 1 on the R&B chart. Rolling Stone ranked the song number 104 on their 2004 list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
Headed for the Future is the seventeenth studio album released by Neil Diamond in March 1986 on Columbia Records. The album went to number 20 on the US Billboard 200. Headed for the Future has also been certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.