There was little to indicate that when the hapless Stevie Wonder clone first exploded onto the music scene with his Acid Jazz single ‘When You Gonna Learn’ in 1992, that the aging sound of jazz-funk would fuel a career, let alone a handful of multi-million selling albums for the walking embodiment of the simple-minded, New Age hippie. Yet here we sit 15-years on still bestowing kudos on the man with the stupid hats. We’re all grown up with the man’s music, and whilst at times he’s rarely strayed from the formula that he initially made his name with, you can’t argue with the consistency and chart stats. All are present and correct: ‘Too Young To Die’, ‘Virtual Insanity’, ‘Cosmic Girl’, ‘Deeper Underground’ and ‘Love Foolosophy’ amongst the 17 “hits”; the added attraction a pair of new recordings: the disco-embellished ‘Runaway’ and the harder edged strummed funk riffs of ‘Radio’.
4 Out Of 5
Reviewed By: Lewis Dene
