re/discoveries: "Creepin'"
A delicious plate of Stevie Wonder, served three ways.
Some songs take the front door. They don’t bother to knock, they push their way in and make themselves known — demanding your attention on first listen. Others sneak in the back, slink around the interior a bit — sizing the place up like a thief in the night.
If you’ve got a taste for the slow burn or an affinity for the quiet house guest, you’ll find great pleasure in the steady endurance of the Stevie Wonder soft cut “Creepin’,” from his 1974 album Fulfillingness' First Finale.
“I wonder do I creep into your dreams or could it be I sleep alone in my fantasy?”
Covered quite a bit since its debut, these three interpretations of the Wonder magic solve for that romantic urge to sneak inside ones thoughts and rendez-vous in the dreamland using three very different approaches.
Stevie Wonder - “Creepin’” (1974)
This synth slow down features Wonder in a sensual lull, decelarating the groove to a pulse that both knocks hard and rocks to sleep. Featured on background vocals? None over than the sugary-voiced angel that is Minnie Ripperton, adding a subtle back and forth to underscore the lyrical play.
Tamiko Jones - “Creepin’” (1975)
Just a year later, R&B/soul singer and forgotten gem Tamiko Jones would rework the song, taking it from a subtle groove to one that slithers, sulks, and saunters. The delicate way she punctuates moments of the bridge—especially with a slightly exaggerated phrasing of “baby”—feels like the deliberate choice of a woman setting traps for a man, not naively waiting for one.
Luther Vandross - “Creepin’” (1985)
Where Jones moves with intention and specificity, silk throated crooner Luther Vandross slows it back down in order to turn up the romance, using the full four minutes as a vocal playground of runs and riffs that move like fingertips up and down the spine. Each chorus teases and taunts but never moves out of its subtle thrust to climax, a musical choice that leaves a panting for more.
With other covers by Nnenna Freelon, Herbie Mann, Boney James, among others, which take gets you there? Listen and let me know in the comments.