Stevie Wonder – Hotter Than July (1980) [Japanese Limited SHM-SACD 2011 # UIGY-9075] {SACD ISO + FLAC 24bit/88.2kHz}

Features the 2011 DSD mastering based on the US master. Reissue features the high-fidelity SHM-SACD format (fully compatible with standard SACD player, but it does not play on standard CD players). DSD Transferred by Ellen Fitton.

Four years after the pinnacle of Stevie Wonder’s mid-’70s typhoon of classic albums, Hotter Than July was the proper follow-up to Songs in the Key of Life (his Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants concept record was actually a soundtrack to an obscure movie that fared miserably in theaters). It also found Wonder in a different musical climate than the one that savored his every move from 1972 to 1977. Disco and new wave had slowly crept their way into the mainstream record-buying public, and hindered the once-ample room for socially and politically charged lyrics. However, Wonder naysayed the trends and continues to do what he did best. Solid songwriting, musicianship, and production are evident in the majority of Hotter Than July. Wonder also carries on his tradition of penning songs normally not associated with his trademark sound, from the disco-tinged “All I Do” (originally planned to be released by Tammi Terrell almost ten years previously) to the reggae-influenced smash “Master Blaster (Jammin),” which went straight to the top of the R&B charts. While admittedly there are a few less-than-standard tracks, he closes the album on an amazing high note with one of the most aching ballads in his canon (“Lately”) and a touching anthem to civil rights pioneer Martin Luther King, Jr. (“Happy Birthday”). While most definitely not on the same tier as Innervisions or Songs in the Key of Life, Hotter Than July is the portrait of an artist who still had the Midas touch, but stood at the crossroads of an illustrious career.

Tracklist:
01 – Did I Hear You Say You Love Me
02 – All I Do
03 – Rocket Love
04 – I Ain’t Gonna Stand For It
05 – As If You Read My Mind
06 – Master Blaster (Jammin’)
07 – Do Like You
08 – Cash In Your Face
09 – Lately
10 – Happy Birthday

DSD Transferred from analogue master tapes by Ellen Fitton at Universal Studio Mastering.

SACD ISO

StevieWnderHtterThanJuly1980Japan2011SHMSACDIS.part1.rar
StevieWnderHtterThanJuly1980Japan2011SHMSACDIS.part2.rar

FLAC 24bit/88.2kHz

StevieWnderHtterThanJuly1980Japan2011FLAC2488.2.rar