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Stevie WonderOf the relatively small number of Christmas albums recorded during Motown's "Golden Decade," Someday At Christmas (Tamla, 1967) by Stevie Wonder is one of the least impressive. Recorded well before Wonder's celebrated emancipation from the Motown régime - freedom that resulted in five of the best albums of the 1970's - most of Someday At Christmas is straight off the Motown assembly line. True, Motown's standards were high, but the LP is notable mainly for just two songs.

First, there's the surprising title track, first released as a single in 1966, when it reached #24 on Billboard's Christmas Singles chart. "Someday At Christmas" is a genuine anti-war protest masquerading as a Christmas song, which was pretty edgy for the time - especially for image-conscious Motown Records. Written by Stevie's frequent partners Ronald Miller and Bryan Wells at the height of the Vietnam War, it paints an idealistic Yuletide vision of a world at peace. The older I get, sadly, the more naive that sounds. I can't help but think that, in the words of another rock icon, someday never comes. Regardless, the Temptations and the Jackson 5 also recorded fine versions of "Someday At Christmas" on their subsequent Christmas albums, both released in 1970.

I've heard criticisms of "Someday At Christmas" as pious, pompous, and self-righteous. Personally, I love the song, but I see the point. However, they can't say that about the other standout track on Someday At Christmas. "What Christmas Means To Me" is a punchbowl full of pure Motown joy driven by a percolating bass line played by James Jamerson - well, probably, since the LP gives no musician credits. It was written by Motown founder Berry Gordy's sister Anna and brother George, along with staff writer Allen Story, and it's a great example of what made Motown's holiday music great. "What Christmas Means To Me" sounds like a classic Motown single that just happens to be about Christmas. It was, in fact, released as a single in 1967, but it flopped. No accounting for taste, I guess....

But, like I said at the start, the rest of Someday At Christmas is less than impressive, mixing traditional songs with undistinguished Motown originals - none written by Stevie Wonder, by the way. The sentimental "One Little Christmas Tree" has its charms, but that's about it - though it's fun hearing Stevie show off his pipes on Schubert's "Ave Maria." Significantly, all four of these highlights are included on A Motown Christmas, which I strongly recommend (read more).

Stevie WonderConsumer Notes

Wonder's original Motown LP had an entirely different cover (pictured above) from later reissues, most of which used a strangely generic illustration and - more to the point - suffered from lackluster mastering. These include the common 1986 CD reissue and a relatively rare 1990 CD reissue pairing Wonder's Christmas album with the Supremes' 1965 holiday effort.

Instead, I recommended The Best Of Stevie Wonder: The Christmas Collection (2004), a much-needed sonic upgrade replete with two rare 60's bonus tracks previously issued on Motown's Christmas In The City (1993). One of them, "The Miracles Of Christmas," was the original 1966 non-LP b-side of "Someday At Christmas." The other, "Everyone's A Kid At Christmas Time," is an outtake from the 1967 Someday At Christmas album sessions. Plus, The Christmas Collection incorporates artwork from the original LP.

While Motown's parent company Universal released the disc under the mammoth, generic umbrella of their 20th Century Masters series, this edition sure beats Motown's earlier, dry-sounding, no-frills iterations. So, Stevie finally gets his propers, even if for an album of somewhat dubious accomplishment.... Later, Motown reissued the original vinyl album with restored cover art, and they also made it available for download and streaming with the aforementioned bonus tracks.

Postscript

Over 30 years later, Stevie Wonder contributed a couple of duets to A Very Special Christmas 5 (2001), one with Wyclef Jean of the Fugees and another with undistinguished singer Kimberly Brewer (read more). In 2011, he recorded a benefit single called "A Merry Christmas" with a large crew including Dionne Warwick, Jermaine Jackson, and - rather improbably - TV host Larry King. In 2015, Wonder waxed a new version of "Someday At Christmas" with neo-soul singer Andra Day, released as a now-deleted digital single but later included on her 2016 album Merry Christmas From Andra Day. Finally, in 2023, he reprised "What Christmas Means To Me" with Cher on her album Christmas.

None of these latter-day efforts are terrible, but none are terribly remarkable, either - and they certainly don't add much to Wonder's legacy. Perhaps Stevie should just stick to "Superstition" and leave Santa Claus alone! [top of page]

Albums Albums

SongsEssential Songs

  • One Little Christmas Tree (1967)
  • Someday At Christmas (1966) Top 100 Song
  • What Christmas Means To Me (1967)

Further ListeningFurther Listening

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