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In Square Circle

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In Square Circle
Studio album by
Stevie Wonder
ReleasedSeptember 13, 1985
Recorded1984–85
StudioWonderland Studios
(Los Angeles, California)
Genre
Length46:00 (LP)
49:22 (CD)
LabelTamla
ProducerStevie 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[1]
Robert ChristgauB+[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.

Reception[edit]

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]

Track listing[edit]

All songs written, produced and arranged by Stevie Wonder.

Side one

  1. "Part-Time Lover" – 4:09
  2. "I Love You Too Much" – 5:30
  3. "Whereabouts" – 4:17
  4. "Stranger on the Shore of Love" – 5:01
  5. "Never in Your Sun" – 4:07

Side two

  1. "Spiritual Walkers" – 5:12
  2. "Land of La La" – 5:14
  3. "Go Home" – 5:18
  4. "Overjoyed" – 3:43
  5. "It's Wrong (Apartheid)" – 3:29

Notes

  • On CD and Streaming editions of the album, "It's Wrong (Apartheid)" runs for 6:52

Personnel[edit]

Musicians

"Part-Time Lover"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, synthesizers, drums
  • Luther Vandross – lead vocal, background vocal
  • Syreeta Wright – background vocal
  • Philip Bailey – background vocal
  • Keith John – background vocal
  • Melody McCully, Billy Durham, Peter Byrne, Renee Hardaway, Darryl Phinnessee – background vocal

"I Love You Too Much"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, synthesizers, drums, percussion

"Whereabouts"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, synthesizers, drums, percussion
  • Keith John – background vocal
  • Darryl Phinnessee – background vocal
  • Deniece Williams – background vocal
  • Howard Smith – background vocal

"Stranger on the Shore of Love"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, synthesizers, drums, harpsichord, accordion

"Never in Your Sun"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, synthesizers, drums, percussion, harmonica

"Spiritual Walkers"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, Yamaha CS-80 synthesizer, drums, percussion
  • Edwin Birdsong – Yamaha CS-80 synthesizer
  • Larry Gittens – trumpet
  • Bob Malach – saxophone
  • Janice Moore, Cheta Akins, Carolyn Garrett, Ruthell Holmes, Kay Gibbs, Valencia Cox – background vocal

"Land of La La"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, synthesizers, electric piano, percussion, drums
  • Ben Bridges – guitar
  • Rick Zunigar – guitar
  • Renee Hardaway – background vocal

"Go Home"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, synthesizers, drums, vocoder
  • Bob Malach – saxophone
  • Larry Gittens – trumpet

"Overjoyed"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, acoustic piano, environmental percussion (incl.: crickets, bird sounds, ocean, pebbles in pond, stone dropped, crushing leaves), Yamaha CS-80 synthesizer
  • Earl Klugh – guitar
  • Paul Riser – string arrangement

"It's Wrong (Apartheid)"

  • Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, synthesizers, drums, percussion, kora
  • Musa Dludla, Thandeka Ngono-Raasch, Linda Bottoman-Tshabalala, Muntu Myuyana, Lorraine Mahlangu-Richards, Fana Kekana, Tsepo Mokone – background vocal

Technical personnel

  • Stevie Wonder – producer, performer, writer, composer
  • Bob Bralove, Brad Buxer, Abdoulaye Soumare – synthesizer programming
  • Gary Olazabal – synthesizer programming, recording engineer, associate producer, audio mixing
  • Bobby Holland – photography (album cover/booklet), concept designer (album cover)
  • Renee Hardaway – concept designer (album cover)
  • Johnny Lee – art direction (album cover)

Notable performances[edit]

"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]

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Certifications for In Square Circle
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.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

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