Stevie Wonder Albums Ranked

Few artists have had the impact Stevie Wonder had in the '70s.

His legacy started a decade earlier, when Motown tried to shape the 11-year-old blind singer and harmonica player into a junior version of Ray Charles. But, as you'll see in our list of Stevie Wonder Albums Ranked, his legend and influence grew in the '70s.

That's the decade when, arguably, no other artist racked up a string of classic records in such a short span: five years, five essential LPs – and he even skipped 1975!

It took over a dozen albums before he hit his creative stride, but that doesn't mean those early works should be passed over. From the start, Wonder gave fans a reason to seek out his records, whether for any of the hit singles that anchored most of those LPs or his soulful interpretations of Beatles and Bob Dylan songs.

But he took a huge turn in the early '70s, just as other Motown artists like Marvin Gaye and the Temptations did, by working outside the factory system. At times, he almost became a one-man band, playing keyboards, drums and other instruments on entire songs alone. He also became socially conscious, as songs like "Higher Ground" and "Living for the City" detailed the post-Civil Rights struggle he and other black people still faced.

Through it all, he was a music visionary who inspired other artists from across the board – rock and soul to pop and jazz – to take personal and professional risks. At the height of his career, he made an experimental soundtrack record that incorporated the sounds of nature among ambient synth noises – a bold move from one of the 20th century's most innovative artists that still somehow hit the Top 5 and spawned a hit single. The following list of Stevie Wonder Albums Ranked Worst to Best is filled with such moments.