Stevie Wonder is one of our generation’s great treasures. His string of albums from 1972’s Music of My Mind to 1976’s Songs in the Key of Life is one of the most impressive accomplishments in the history of popular music.
Today’s classic song of the day wasn’t part of that historic group of masterpieces, but came just before it. The song is “If You Really Love Me” and Stevie released it as a single in July of 1971. It reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100, #9 on the Cash Box Top 100, #10 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart, and #4 on Billboard’s R&B chart.
Stevie wrote “If You Really Love Me” with his then-wife, Syreeta Wright. One of the last tracks recorded at Motown’s Hitsville USA studios, it features Stevie on piano, Moog bass synthesizer, and drums; members of Detroit’s Funk Brothers filled in the other instruments. Syreeta sang backup.
Even though “If You Really Love Me” isn’t included as part of Stevie’s legendary string of influential recordings, it should be. It would fit right in with the classic tracks on Music of My Mind or Talking Book. “If You Really Love Me” is notable for its breakdown after the intro and first chorus, where Stevie slows it down and strips it back to a simple piano backing before it picks back up again for another chorus. It’s an unusual structure, with the choruses first and at a fast tempo, and the verses second and at the slower and a tempo. Then again, one should never expect the usual in a Stevie Wonder composition.
For today’s daily bonus video of the day, here’s Stevie Wonder performing “If You Really Love Me” live on the PBS program SOUL! in December of 1972. I love his improv at the beginning; Stevie is and has always been something special.
