Stevie Wonder wrote this song just before he was in a bad car crash. Coincidentally, the song deals with reincarnation; it’s just one of those funny things, that he had written a song that dealt with death and second chances just before a close shave. One prominent line is “I’m so darn glad he let me try it again “. Whatever your views on all that, it never goes amiss to live as best you can while you still can.
The song is a colourful wave of easygoing funk brilliance. Even more impressive, and indicative of Stevie Wonder’s enormous talent, is that he wrote and then recorded the whole thing in a 3 hour burst of inspiration. Oh, and that he plays every instrument on it…
Apart from Stevie’s singing, the main elements of the song are an electronic clavinet (sort of piano-ey thing), and bass from a Moog synthesizer, which is now viewed as “classic” and “retro” but was pretty fresh back then!
The track was released on his Innervisions album in 1973. It has a great 70s mood that conjures up imagery of sunny drives and strolls along the beach front, full of optimism.
Positive vibrations in abundance…