New Stevie Wonder Biography: Signed Sealed Delivered: The Soulful Journey of SW

[jobeterob]

Brand new, 2010, hard back.....unfortunately by Mark Ribowksy who hasn't exactly proven himself in the past.

This is what it says on the sleeve:

"Packed with little known facts and keen insights into Stevie Wonder's musical growth and creative process, his successful collaboration with and failed marriage to Syreeta Wright, and his long struggle with sexual addiction and suicidal depression, Signed Sealed Delivered is essential reading for all Stevie Wonder fans and anyone interested in the history of Motown."

What do you think of that?

I've bought the book and will read it soon but I'm in the middle of a history of the First Governor of the Hudson Bay Company.

[MissLish]

What does Miss Lish think? Miss Lish thinks she will buy it. I've got about three or four titles, six if you count textbooks going on that I am currently reading. Is it any wonder [[pun intended) that I have no time these daze to listen to Baby Love?

[bobkayli]

Having no access to Stevie or anyone truly close to him makes the book a bit superficial.
Interesting interviews with Margouleff/Cecil give some insight into the 70s and the issues with motown at that time.
The book really doesn't get inside Stevie. Much of the anecdotes and motown stories have already been written elsewhere. He also uses similar stories in his book on the Supremes so that at times i thought i was reading the same book.
It tells the story largely thru a chronological following of his musical releases. Obviously a fair amount of research has gone into putting this book together. Mainly though this seems to be from music magazines and reviews from the time so can seem a bit sterile at times. Even still there are mistakes. For example the BBC was not involved in the Ready Steady Go Motown special in UK in 1965. The program was made by its main competitor ATV. This mistake is also repeated in the Supremes book.
As a motown fan, i read the book and it is worthwhile as a written record of Stevie. It would be great though if someone could one day get Stevie to sit down and write the real story.

[jobeterob]

Ribowsky is definitely a Posner type of writer; I suspect most of us would qualify as being "there" as opposed to Posner or Ribowsky. Neither lived the music or the artists like we did and it shows.

He makes stupid mistakes; he says Fingertips replaced Leslie Gore's My Boyfriends Back at #1. Well, it's spelled Lesley and Lesley sang It's My Party but she did not sing My Boyfriends Back. It's not hard to check these kinds of facts and he should have done it.

It will be a while before I get to the book. What is this about suicidal depression and sexual addiction? Is this the bait to stir some media interest in the book and cause a bit of a sensation? Or isn't there very much to it? I was kind of put off by that but I suppose there are these issues in everyone's life unless they are a eunuch.

[jonc]

Ribowsky is definitely a Posner type of writer; I suspect most of us would qualify as being "there" as opposed to Posner or Ribowsky. Neither lived the music or the artists like we did and it shows.

He makes stupid mistakes; he says Fingertips replaced Leslie Gore's My Boyfriends Back at #1. Well, it's spelled Lesley and Lesley sang It's My Party but she did not sing My Boyfriends Back. It's not hard to check these kinds of facts and he should have done it.

It will be a while before I get to the book. What is this about suicidal depression and sexual addiction? Is this the bait to stir some media interest in the book and cause a bit of a sensation? Or isn't there very much to it? I was kind of put off by that but I suppose there are these issues in everyone's life unless they are a eunuch.


Didn't Ribowsky refer to TopDiva as Tony Tucker all throughout his Supremes biography? I guess the name Tony Turner isn't embedded in people's brains after all.

[jobeterob]

I heard he did.

His Supremes book created barely a ripple for some reason; either no one cares or everyone has heard "a" story too many times or a version has been told too many times and we don't want to hear this stuff over and over..........

[nomis]

He certainly did - all the way through the book it was highly annoying and shows poor editing -The Supremes book digged some new facts up about he very early days,I was initally impressed then it soon went into the usual -mud-slinging-Diana-as-The-Wicked-Witch-fare,And as pointed out he didnt real "feel" the music -people on this forum could have done a better job.
On Stevie - I read in the 80s that author Jackie Collins based a character in one of her novels on the music industry on Stevie and it wasnt a flattering portrait..apparently she was given the low down on his private life by a Motown insider and wrote what she was told word for word..I guess as time goes on the muck-raking as oppossed to music analysis will continue to tarnish The Motown legacy...

[topdiva1]

Another basically bad cut and paste job from Ribowsky - posters here have written much better.

[MissLish]

He certainly did - all the way through the book it was highly annoying and shows poor editing -The Supremes book digged some new facts up about he very early days,I was initally impressed then it soon went into the usual -mud-slinging-Diana-as-The-Wicked-Witch-fare,And as pointed out he didnt real "feel" the music -people on this forum could have done a better job.
On Stevie - I read in the 80s that author Jackie Collins based a character in one of her novels on the music industry on Stevie and it wasnt a flattering portrait..apparently she was given the low down on his private life by a Motown insider and wrote what she was told word for word..I guess as time goes on the muck-raking as oppossed to music analysis will continue to tarnish The Motown legacy...



Miss Lish needs to know the title of la Collin's book nomis..

[bobkayli]

Despite the hype there is little in the book about depression and sexual addiction.

Ribowsky comments that Stevie has been married often and has a reputation for chasing women but since he has had no input from any of Stevies wives or anyone particularly close to him, there is little to back up the publicity apart from general gossip and news articles which we all know.

The book is an interesting read for motown fans to read again a largely well-trodden path rather like reading children a favourite fairy tale. Berry Gordy is cast as the big bad wolf who ripped Stevie off. the author doesn't explain why stevie stayed with motown throughout his career despite being ripped off other than saying he got big advances each time he signed a new deal, but at his peak Stevie could have got big advances wherever he signed so this explanation is inadequate.

As you mention the Supremes book is similar except that Diana joins Berry to form a pair of big bad wolves.

As is mentioned elsewhere on the thread, many on this forum could have written a book on Stevie with more insight and feeling.

[smark21]

Miss Lish needs to know the title of la Collin's book nomis..

Rock Star, came out in the late 80's.

[marybrewster]

I've yet to read any of Ribowsky's books [[I did pick up his take on the Supremes, but have yet to indulge) but what makes me curious:

His book on the Supremes was released in June of 2009. His Stevie book was released in April of 2010. He's got a Temptations book due September of 2010. This doesn't seem like a lot of time between books to do quality research? Is Ribowsky truly a Motown expert, or someone that is riding on the Motown bandwagon?

[MissLish]

Oh! I read that, but I don't remember the Stevie part. I do remember the very thinly disguised Miss Ross character tho. I may have to find it.

[nomis]

Your right Mary -hes churning them out he wrote something along the lines of Diana "spreading her Legs"- absolutley disgusting...

[midnightman]

Have you seen how he looks @ Mark Ribowsky? That dude looks like a snake.

[jobeterob]

I went looking on line Midnight, but found nothing. Can you share a link or a pic? I would love to think the man even looks like a common skunk.

He's is a true parasite; he lives off the lives of others. When a biographer issues a true biography that he has put much work into, much research, even when critical, the author can be called a biographer.

When they cull apparent facts from other sources, when they gossip and repeat unsubstantiated facts, when they print sensationalism because they've been told they must to sell a few books - that is a true parasite.

I will say for Randy Tarraborelli - he is better than the true parasite. Mark Ribowsky is a true parasite and his cheap Stevie Wonder shots are to be expected. It does no good to call a fill in Temptation or some background singer a cheap slut but it can catch the odd headline even 50 years late if we pin the label to Berry, Diana, Stevie, Michael or Marvin.

I bought another music biography when I bought this one; I've scanned it and it is much better written than anything Mark can do. It is by an author who has done a Neil Young Bio. This bio is Tammy Wynette - unfortunately, another singer who died as an addict to prescription drugs.

[uptight]

I believe this other bio was pulled from the market, but I wish I had read the book that was supposedly told to an author by Stevie's mother. I neither remember the name of it nor its author. I saw it once at the Motown Museum Gift Shoppe at Detroit Metro Airport and thought I would have a chance to buy it later. Has anyone here read it or seen it?

[reese]

I believe this other bio was pulled from the market, but I wish I had read the book that was supposedly told to an author by Stevie's mother. I neither remember the name of it nor its author. I saw it once at the Motown Museum Gift Shoppe at Detroit Metro Airport and thought I would have a chance to buy it later. Has anyone here read it or seen it?

I think you're referring to BLIND FAITH by Dennis Love. I bought it when it was first released. To be honest, I don't remember too much about it, other than Lula recanting some of the revelations after the book was published.

Re Ribowsky, I picked up his new Tempt book last night, but haven't started it yet. At the speed he's churning these books out, I gather he just interviewed a lot of Motown folks, read a lot of books, and is now distilling all of that info into these books. I suppose he'll have another one out next year. Michael? Marvin? Who knows?

[midnightman]

@jobeterob I guess he's not that popular lol I saw his image on the "E! True Hollywood Stories" of Whitney and Diana. In the Diana one, he's filmed almost closed up, and he looked scary when mentioning Flo's funeral. It was eerie.