Music Capsule Review

At the Close of a Century (1999)

Stevie Wonder

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WHAT A WONDER-FULL WORLD Stevie's work is impeccably represented in ''Century''

Credits

Lead Performance: Stevie Wonder

A+

By Ken Tucker

Ken Tucker

Ken Tucker is critic-at-large for EW

Four discs, 70 cuts, not a dud among them -- boxed sets don't get any better than this one from Stevie Wonder. The singer's signal contribution to Motown soul was a buoyant eclecticism that found its most exhilarating expression in upbeat anthems (from ''Uptight'' to ''I Just Called to Say I Love You'') whose sentimentality was always redeemed by musical rigor.

Even on the last disc of ''At the Close of a Century,'' where the middle-aged former child star is supposed to falter, the selections are worthy, as are early semi-hits (1969's ''I Don't Know Why,'' which peaked at No. 39 on the pop chart, is, in a word, magnificent). Billed as ''The 12 Year Old Genius'' on his third album, he proves a genius for all time. A+

Posted Dec 13, 1999

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