Stevie Wonder
Songs In The Key Of Life Performance
Madison Square Garden
NY, NY
November 6, 2014

Source: CA-14 cards > CA9100 > Edirol R-09HR @ 24/48 > Kingston SDHC > Audacity- tracks split, downsampled to 16/44.1 > flac (level 8)
Location Right Front Orchestra
Taper: absnj

The tickets for this show were for my wife's 60th birthday. We used "As" as our wedding song, so I am on board as a Stevie fan as well. Stevie does not tour often and this seemed to come up very quickly, so I jumped at the chance to get the tickets.

The band was enormous... a string section, generous horn section, two sets of backup singers, various keyboard players, guitars, bass drums and percussionists. The show had some sound issues... vocals and keyboards too low in the mix, and overbearingly thumping bass. I am not sure why a major market like New York was chosen as the first performance, instead of working out the kinks in a smaller city. But none of that stopped the sold-out crowd from having a blast. I have never left a Stevie Wonder show without a smile and without unconsciously singing some of his tunes and this was no exception.

India Arie escorted Stevie on Stage and shared some of the vocal chores, and did several other singers.

Some tapers believe in sharing the unadulterated original recording. I don't. I did some major equalization and believe the result is far more listenable than the raw tape. If that offends any purists, I apologize.

I have posted samples so you can judge for yourself.

Enjoy and share!!!

Setlist
101-Opening remarks
102-Love's In Need Of Love Today
103-Have A Talk With God
104-Village Ghetto Land
105-Contusion
106-Sir Duke
107-I Wish
108-Knocks Me Off My Feet
109-Pastime Paradise
110-Summer Soft
111-Ordinary Pain
112-Saturn
113-Ebony Eyes
201-David Marks Tribute
202-Isn't She Lovely
203-Joy Inside My Tears
204-Black Man
205-All Day Sucker
206-Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call)
207-Ngiculela-Es Una Historia-I Am Singing
208-If It's Magic
209-As
210-Another Star
211-Superstition