AN ONLINE QUARTERLY MUSIC MAGAZINE
EDITOR: KOFI NATAMBU
WINTER, 2014
VOLUME ONE NUMBER ONE
MILES DAVIS
Featuring the Musics and Aesthetic Visions of:
ANTHONY BRAXTON
November 1-7
November 1-7
CECIL TAYLOR
November 8-14
STEVIE WONDER
November 15-21
JIMI HENDRIX
November 22-28
GERI ALLEN
November 29-December 5
HERBIE HANCOCK
December 6-12
SONNY ROLLINS
December 13-19
JANELLE MONAE
December 20-26
GARY CLARK, JR.
December 27-January 2
NINA SIMONE
January 3-January 9
ORNETTE COLEMAN
January 10-January 16
WAYNE SHORTER
January 17-23
*[Special bonus feature: A celebration of the centennial year of musician, composer, orchestra leader, and philosopher SUN RA, 1914-1993]
January 24-30
THE
MUSIC OF STEVIE WONDER: AN EXTENSIVE VIDEO OVERVIEW, A CROSS SECTION OF RECORDINGS, MUSICAL ANALYSIS
AND COMMENTARY, PLUS VARIOUS INTERVIEWS WITH MR. WONDER
"He is the composer of his generation. A melody writer of such effortless virtuosity that he is virtually incomparable. His voice is an incredible instrument - the perfect phrasing and intonation. Many people try to imitate Stevie Wonder, but there's only one Stevie Wonder. "- Paul Simon inducting Stevie Wonder into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 1989
"Stevie Wonder made a mark in music, which is that popular music can be art too."
--Herbie Hancock
See more at: https://rockhall.com/inductees/stevie-wonder/#sthash.wGpX6Ltu.dpuf
https://rockhall.com/inductees/stevie-wonder/bio/
https://rockhall.com/inductees/stevie-wonder/bio/
Stevie Wonder was Motown’s golden child. In his more than 30 years at Motown, Wonder has been a musical icon: first, as a child prodigy; second, as a young man with a soulful, maturing and multifaceted talent; and finally, as an adult driven by the challenge of realizing his ever-deepening inner visions. Over the course of his career, Wonder has been a true musical pioneer whose work has embraced influences as diverse as reggae and jazz. He created music that sounded startlingly fresh in the Seventies by bending synthesizer technology to his own funky, visionary ends. A true child of the Sixties, the idealistic Wonder’s music has remained inseparable from his spirituality and humanitarian outlook. Over the years he has been a committed advocate of causes ranging from the anti-apartheid movement to advocacy on behalf of blind and mentally challenged children.
Blind from infancy, Wonder was born Steveland Judkins (later Morris) in Saginaw, Michigan. He literally grew up at Motown, signing with the label at age 12 after an audition for Berry Gordy, Jr., that had been arranged by Ronnie White of the Miracles, whose younger brother was an acquaintance impressed by Wonder’s precocious talent on harmonica and bongos. Motown’s “Hitsville” complex thereupon became a second home for Wonder, who found mentors and tutors in such legendary behind-the-scenes figures as bassist James Jamerson and drummer Benny Benjamin. While his early singles fared poorly, the exuberant pre-teen Wonder began tearing it up in concert. Thus, it was no surprise that his breakthrough single, “Fingertips, Part 2,” was culled from an impromptu encore recorded live at Chicago’s Regal Ballroom and released by Motown in August 1963. At this point, he was billed as “Little Stevie Wonder,” and subsequent releases capitalized on the novelty appeal of his youthful talent while pegging him as an heir apparent to the soulful shouting of Ray Charles (with whom Wonder also had blindness in common).
Blind from infancy, Wonder was born Steveland Judkins (later Morris) in Saginaw, Michigan. He literally grew up at Motown, signing with the label at age 12 after an audition for Berry Gordy, Jr., that had been arranged by Ronnie White of the Miracles, whose younger brother was an acquaintance impressed by Wonder’s precocious talent on harmonica and bongos. Motown’s “Hitsville” complex thereupon became a second home for Wonder, who found mentors and tutors in such legendary behind-the-scenes figures as bassist James Jamerson and drummer Benny Benjamin. While his early singles fared poorly, the exuberant pre-teen Wonder began tearing it up in concert. Thus, it was no surprise that his breakthrough single, “Fingertips, Part 2,” was culled from an impromptu encore recorded live at Chicago’s Regal Ballroom and released by Motown in August 1963. At this point, he was billed as “Little Stevie Wonder,” and subsequent releases capitalized on the novelty appeal of his youthful talent while pegging him as an heir apparent to the soulful shouting of Ray Charles (with whom Wonder also had blindness in common).
White House Video from January 2009
Stevie Wonder Gershwin Prize concert:
Stevie Wonder - Gershwin Prize
Back to Gershwin Prize Honorees
Second Gershwin Prize Honoree: Stevie Wonder
Born
in Saginaw, Michigan in 1950, Stevie Wonder became blind shortly after
birth. He learned to play the harmonica, piano and drums by age 9. By
the time he was 10, his singing and other musical skills were known
throughout his neighborhood, and when the family moved to Detroit,
impressed adults made his talents known to the owners of Motown Records,
who gave him a recording contract when he was age 12.
His early
hits included "Fingertips," "Uptight (Everything’s All Right)" "For Once
in My Life," "My Cherie Amour," "Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours,"
and "If You Really Love Me." He undertook the study of classical piano,
and later, music theory, and beginning in 1967, he began writing more
of his own material. In the early 1970s, Wonder toured with the Rolling
Stones and had major hits with the songs "Superstition" and "You are the
Sunshine of My Life."
In the mid-70s, his album "Songs in the Key of Life" topped the charts for 14 weeks. Over the years Stevie Wonder has garnered 25 Grammy Awards, as well as the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996. He collected an Academy Award for the 1984 hit "I Just Called to Say I Love You" from the film The Woman in Red. In 1989, he was inducted into the Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame. In 1999, Stevie became the youngest honoree of the Kennedy Center Honors. He was inducted into the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame in 2002, and in 2004 he won the Johnny Mercer Award in recognition of a lifetime of outstanding creative work.
In 2005, the Library of Congress added Stevie
Wonder’s 1976 double album "Songs in the Key of Life" to the National
Recording Registry, which recognizes recordings that are "culturally,
historically or aesthetically important, and/or inform or reflect life
in the United States."
Related Resources
President Obama Gives Gershwin Prize for Popular Song to Stevie Wonder Feb. 25
Singer/Songwriter Stevie Wonder Named Recipient of Library of Congress Gershwin Prize, Sept. 2, 2008
National Recording Registry
"The Wonder of Stevie"
Library of Congress Information Bulletin, April 2009
Stevie Wonder Performs "Sketches of a Life" at the Library of Congress
Webcast 2/23/09
Press Conference Announcing Library Commission of Stevie Wonder Composition
Webcast 2/23/09
Stevie Wonder Discusses Library Commission Sketches of a Life
Webcast 2/24/09
Sheet Music
The richness of the Library's sheet music collection is to a large degree the result of Copyright Deposit. For years, composers and songwriters were required to deposit sheet music, lead sheets, or other written transcripts of their music when registering their works. The Copyright law changed in 1978 to allow claimants to submit recordings instead of written material. These images are just a sample of the materials - manuscripts and sheet music - that previous Gershwin Prize winner Stevie Wonder submitted for Copyright registration over the years.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/10/stevie-wonder-songs-in-the-key-of-life-tour-kickoff_n_6132428.html?utm_hp_ref=entertainment&ir=Entertainment
Stevie Wonder Mixes Politics With Music In 'Songs In The Key Of Life' Tour Kickoff
November 10, 2014
Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Stevie Wonder has always blended his musical genius with social activism, and as he launched his new tour, he stayed true to form, advocating gun control, pleading for an end to racism and promoting equality for those with disabilities.
"I challenge America, I challenge the world, to let hatred go, to let racism go," Wonder told the sold-out audience at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. "That is the only way we will win as a nation and the world."
Wonder's "Songs in the Key of Life" tour was dedicated to the music from that groundbreaking double album, which included classic hits like "Sir Duke," ''I Wish," ''As" and "Isn't She Lovely." A legendary album celebrated as much for its musicality as its message, the 1976 project won multiple Grammy Awards and further cemented Wonder's brilliance.
The music still resonates, as Wonder proved during an electrifying concert that ran for almost three hours (including intermission) and had the audience roaring and standing on its feet in approval.
There were lighthearted moments, such as when Wonder confessed to a flub mid-song — "I forgot my own words," he said, laughing early on.
He also dismissed recent reports that his partner is having triplets — it's just one baby.
"I don't know who started that bull," he said, eliciting laughter. He then brought his infant daughter, Zaiah, onstage for a performance of "Isn't She Lovely," which he wrote for daughter Aisha Morris — one of his background singers — years ago.
Wonder was overcome with emotion at one point as he sang "Summer Soft," as tears streamed down his face. A backup singer had to perform with Wonder, who was seemingly unable to find his voice.
But he was in fine form for most of the concert, playing various instruments, including harmonica, with a huge band.
He also made sure his viewpoint was heard on various issues. He invited the family of 6-year-old Ana Grace Marquez-Greene, one of 26 killed by a gunman in the Sandy Hook tragedy of 2012. Wonder acknowledged father Jimmy Greene, wife Nelba Marquez-Greene and 10-year-old brother Isaiah Marquez-Greene in the audience as he spoke about gun control.
"The only thing that guns do is make the gun manufacturers rich and the mortuaries richer," he said.
He also called for the creation of better services for disabled and challenged residents in New York City.
"I want there to be accessibility for anybody who is deaf, who is a paraplegic," he said.
Though the tour was dedicated to "Songs in the Key of Life," Wonder included one classic song that wasn't on that album — "Superstition."
Wonder's tour, which included Grammy-winning singer India.arie, ends in December in the Los Angeles area.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/10/stevie-wonder-songs-in-the-key-of-life-tour-kickoff_n_6132428.html?utm_hp_ref=entertainment&ir=Entertainment
STEVIE WONDER - “SUPERSTITION” (1974)—
Composition, lyrics, singing, and arrangement by Stevie Wonder
(“Superstition" was the number one record in the United States and Europe in 1974)
Live performance at Q2 Arena in London, England, 2008:
STEVIE WONDER IN 1973
STEVIE WONDER IN 1963
MILES DAVIS AND STEVIE WONDER
STEVIE WONDER - “SUPERSTITION” (1974)—
Composition, lyrics, singing, and arrangement by Stevie Wonder
(“Superstition" was the number one record in the United States and Europe in 1974)
Live performance at Q2 Arena in London, England, 2008:
“When you believe in things that you don’t understand, then you suffer…"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RRWI6O57IE—Stevie Wonder, “Superstition”
Stevie Wonder Full Performance Glastonbury 2010:
STEVIE WONDER - Live At Last (London), 2008 (FULL CONCERT):
Stevie Wonder live - Songs in the Key of Life (part1), 12/21/2013:
The
first live performance of the masterpiece landmark album! Part one of
Stevie Wonder's 18th Annual House Full of Toys Benefit Concert at Nokia
Theatre L.A. LIVE.
0:14:40 Love's in Need of Love Today (w/ Joe, Soul Seekers)
Stevie Wonder--'Songs In The Key Of Life' [Full Album] 1976:
"I remember one time we were in Puerto Rico, and it was a sunshiney day," said Ira Tucker. "And Stevie was saying it was gonna rain. He said he could smell the moisture in the air, and we were all laughing at him. Three hours later, sure enough, it came. A hailstorm!"
What Tucker — an assistant to Stevie Wonder for five years now — was saying was that Wonder wasn't handicapped. Born blind, yes. Hampered, no.
This article appeared in the April 26, 1973 issue of Rolling Stone. The issue is available in the online archive.
"He can hear," Ira continued, here in his Holiday Inn room across a concrete bridge from Chinatown, San Francisco. "Like when I get stoned and listen to the radio and then I can pick up things. He's there all the time." Tucker sat back in a yellow T-shirt named after Wonder's latest single, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life."
"He even turns the lights on and off when he goes to the bathroom," said Ira. "What for? I don't know. He said it's 'cause he hears everybody else do it. Click, you go in, click, you're out. So he does it, too. But he goes to the movies, runs from place to place, going out to airports by himself. And on planes people think he's a junkie, 'cause he sits there with these glasses on, and his head goes back and forth, side to side when he feels good...."
Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time: Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder entered the synagogue for a post-concert party Motown was throwing for him. Half a year after the tour with the Stones, he was completing his show of new strength. He had conquered New York a month ago; here, he was headlining two shows, at Winterland and at the Berkeley Community Theater. He sold out both shows and won over both audiences. For the wider, whiter crowds he now draws, Wonder mixes together an Afro consciousness, a jazz/soul/rock/synthesized-up music, medleys of old hits and bits of other people's hits, and, in one quick exercise in excess, a shot of one-man-band razzmatazz, as he moves from drums to electric piano to ARP-wired clavinet to guitar to harmonica. What he cannot achieve through eye contact is reached by output of energy, by a music that is by turns loving and lusty, that tells how Stevie Wonder cherishes freedom, and how he uses it. And the music, sure enough, reflects the man.
Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: Stevie Wonder's 'Innervisions'
For the party, Wonder put aside his Afro gown and shark's tooth necklace and dressed up in a champagne-gold suit, matched by a plaid bow tie and metallic-copper platforms stacked four inches high. He plopped down onto the floor to talk with people; he played the harmonica; with Coco, his most constant companion since his divorce last year from Syreeta Wright, he explored the building. Upstairs is the old synagogue, complete with balconies and pews enough to hold 1000 worshippers, fixed up with red carpeting, showboat lighting, and stained-glass windows all shaped into colored Stars of David. Stevie and Coco and their entourage sat in a pew, feeling the airiness of the room, listening to the music coming off the speakers on the stage, where the altar used to be. Suddenly, the synagogue was filled with "Superstition." The disk jockey at KSAN had been alerted and she was putting together a string of Wonder hits. Stevie's head snapped up, started to go from side to side...You would've thought he was a junkie...
Photos: Grammy's Memorable Moments, 1975 to 2009 - Bette Midler and Stevie Wonder
Stevie was born Steveland Morris on May 13th, 1950, in Saginaw, Michigan; he was the third oldest in a not particularly musical family of six children. They moved to Detroit in the early Fifties, where they lived a lower-middle class life. Despite his blindness, Stevie was never treated special by his family; in fact, he claims, he hung out more than his four brothers did. He listened to a radio show in Detroit called Sundown and got filled with blues and jazz. He began playing the piano, and by age 11, he was also playing drums, "harmonica, bongos and hookey." He would play with a cousin, a friend of the brother of Ronnie White of the Miracles. White auditioned Stevie and took him to Motown, where staff producer Brian Holland listened. Motown signed him and advertised him as a 12-year-old Genius.
Now in his eleventh year in show business, formerly Little Stevie Wonder is finally in absolute control.
"He feels he's back to making music again," said Ira Tucker. "There was a lull for a time, from the time he was 17 to Music of My Mind" (which followed Where I'm Coming From in Wonder's post-Signed Sealed and Delivered progression in music). After two five-year contracts with Motown, Stevie was looking around, stalled six months, finally negotiated six weeks over a 120-page contract and made a deal. He got his own publishing — an unprecedented achievement for any Motown artist — and a substantially higher royalty rate (guessed at 50% by one close associate; Stevie would say only that he felt "secure").
"It was a very important contract for Motown," said Wonder's attorney, Johannan Vigoda (who negotiated contracts for Jimi Hendrix and Richie Havens, among others), "and a very important contract for Stevie, representing the artists of Motown. He broke tradition with the deal, legally, professionally — in terms of how he could cut his records and where he could cut — and in breaking tradition he opened up the future for Motown. That's what they understood. They had never had an artist in 13 years, they had singles records, they managed to create a name in certain areas, but they never came through with a major, major artist. It turned out they did a beautiful job."
Stevie is not, in fact, alone at the top at Motown, still home for Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Diana Ross, and the album-proportion skills of Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. But Motown, now headquartered in Los Angeles — in a large office building on Sunset, across from the Soul'd Out nightclub — has moved its estimable weight into TV, films, and even onto Broadway (with Pippin). Berry Gordy recently became chairman of the board for Motown Industries, leaving the presidency of his Motown Records. And in the last year, while black music has moved vigorously into the pop charts, Motown has seemingly lost much of its touch. The label is signing more artists — black and white — and releasing more product, and getting fewer hits. Artists have upped and left; others complain more openly than ever before.
Marvin Gaye is a Gordy in-law; Smokey a vice president; Diana too close to ever leave. When she was pregnant with her first child and waiting to begin Lady Sings the Blues, in fact, Berry kept her busy by naming her head of Product Evaluation at Motown; for almost a year, she had the power of a vice president; in charge of deciding which tunes became singles, which singles got released and when.
For Stevie Wonder — too young in the days of "The Sound of Young America" to be so integral a part of the family — the price for staying at Motown was security and freedom. Now, he writes and produces for himself; he books his own concerts; he manages himself and he can free-lance at will. He is producing an album by his group, Wonder-love, a second LP for Syreeta, and one for the Supremes. He has worked in sessions with Eric Clapton, Graham Nash and Jeff Beck; on tour, he jammed with the Stones.
On the road and off the stage, Stevie spends his time in his hotel room, composing on a clavinet wired up to an ARP synthesizer, writing two or three tunes a day. He also explores, walking through Chinatown in gold lame, head swaying from side to side as he passes the stores and smells the fish, the ducks, the pickled greens. And he loves to talk. He establishes rapport on the basis of astrological signs and otherwise talks in black-hippie fashion, zigzagging, sometimes, from Pollyannish to apocalyptic. He sees the earth zigging towards a destructive end; he can see himself dying soon and he hopes, by his music, to be able to leave something for the rest of us — even if we ain't that far behind him.
It's amazing, I been in the business ten years, going on 11 now, and I look back and see so many things, changes, it's almost like I'm an old person sometimes.... The musical changes, how different eras have come and gone, a lot of people that I thought would be major people have died. Otis, Jimi Hendrix...you know Michael Jeffery was killed just recently, goin' from Spain to London. Two planes collided, one exploded, the other landed safely. I heard there were some bitter things that went down, that Hendrix was ripped off fantastically by Jeffery, but I don't know how true those stories are....
It's heavy, and I guess you could say if he did the things that I heard he did, then that's his karma, but again, what about the other people on the plane? That's the question I always ask.
It's been really amazing...like when certain things I felt were gonna happen, I'd have dreams. I had a dream about Benny Benjamin [Motown's first studio drummer, who died of a stroke in 1969]. I talked to him a few days before he died; he was in the hospital. But in my dream I talked to him, he said, "Look man, I'm...I'm not gonna make it." "What, you kiddin'!" The image...he was sitting on my knee, which means like he was very weak. And he said, "So, like I'm leavin' it up to you." That was like a Wednesday, and that following Sunday I went to church and then to the studio to do a session; we were gonna record "You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover," and they said, "Hey, man, we're not gonna do it today, Benny just died."
He died without notice. I mean, nobody really knew who he was.
Stevie
on Greg Phillinganes: "I also want to say a very special thanks to the
music producer of this show. And after I came up with the idea of doing
it he's the one that helped me put it together."
00:00 Stevie intro - Season's Greetings - Family
01:22 About the benefit
02:37 Stevie introduces Radio Free KJLH Performance Choir
03:50 His Mercy Endureth Forever
09:05 Go Tell It on the Mountain
10:22 Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (singer's name?)
12:22 Shelea escorts Stevie back,warm up
Songs in the Key of Life:
0:14:40 Love's in Need of Love Today (w/ Joe, Soul Seekers)
0:22:16
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xtxrzw7-Tmk** Stevie on performing SITKOL live
The first ever live performance of the masterpiece landmark album! Part two of Stevie Wonder's 18th Annual House Full of Toys Benefit Concert at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE.
0:00:12 Isn't She Lovely
0:07:49 Joy Inside My Tears (w/ Joe)
0:14:45 Black Man
0:25:14 All Day Sucker (w/ Ledisi, John Mayer)
0:33:20 Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call) (w/ Esperanza Spalding, Frédéric Yonnet, John Popper)
0:39:44 Ngiculela -- Es Una Historia -- I Am Singing (w/ India.Arie)
0:48:15 If It's Magic (w/ Dorothy Ashby's original harp track)
0:53:42 Stevie on arts in school
0:54:59 As (w/ Herbie Hancock, India.Arie)
1:03:22 Living for Your Love
1:10:26 Another Star
1:17:52 Stevie's goodbye greetings
PS: Announced 9/10/2014 - Stevie Wonder will be performing Songs in the Key of Life live this fall at 10 US cities and 1 in Canada! Don't miss it! Looks like tickets go on sale at Ticketmaster later this month. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/new...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j7z3nQJj-0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xtxrzw7-Tmk** Stevie on performing SITKOL live
0:23:36 Have a Talk with God (w/ Frédéric Yonnet, John Popper, Joe and background vocals Jory Steinberg, Shelea)
0:27:03 Village Ghetto Land
0:32:06 Contusion (w/ Chick Corea)
0:38:27 Sir Duke
0:42:53 I Wish (w/ Keith John, Eric Benét, Joe)
0:47:31 Knocks Me Off My Feet
** Stevie on his mother & Mandela
0:55:19 Pastime Paradise (w/ Esperanza Spalding)
1:00:20 Summer Soft (w/ Ronnie Foster, Eric Benét)
1:06:41 Ordinary Pain (w/ Ledisi, Shirley Brewer)
1:14:39 Saturn (w/ India.Arie)
1:19:52 Ebony Eyes (w/ Mike Phillips)
1:24:13
Intermission
P.S.: Announced 9/10/2014 - Stevie Wonder will be performing Songs in the Key of Life live this fall at 10 US cities and 1 in Canada! Don't miss it! Looks like tickets go on sale at Ticketmaster later this month.
Stevie Wonder - 1976 Listening Party - Songs In The Key Of Life
In celebration of the 35th Anniversary of the album "Songs In The Key Of Life" is a promotional documentary that chronicled the lavish press party Stevie Wonder hosted @ Long View Farms Studios in '76.
Stevie flew over 200 reporters and journalists from L.A. and New York to the famed studio resort near Worcester, Massachusetts for a first listen of the album played straight through the reels of the master tapes.
FYI
The album was actually recorded at the Record Plant in Los Angeles and The Hit Factory in New York City.
Long View Farms Studio was chosen for its accommodation, serenity and its top notch service. Music track has been re-laid from the original vinyl album. Thanks to Gil Markle for preserving and sharing this historic visual and audio document. studiowner.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T3FucGDSI0
Stevie Wonder live - Songs in the Key of Life (part 2), 12/21/2013: Intermission
P.S.: Announced 9/10/2014 - Stevie Wonder will be performing Songs in the Key of Life live this fall at 10 US cities and 1 in Canada! Don't miss it! Looks like tickets go on sale at Ticketmaster later this month.
Stevie Wonder - 1976 Listening Party - Songs In The Key Of Life
In celebration of the 35th Anniversary of the album "Songs In The Key Of Life" is a promotional documentary that chronicled the lavish press party Stevie Wonder hosted @ Long View Farms Studios in '76.
Stevie flew over 200 reporters and journalists from L.A. and New York to the famed studio resort near Worcester, Massachusetts for a first listen of the album played straight through the reels of the master tapes.
FYI
The album was actually recorded at the Record Plant in Los Angeles and The Hit Factory in New York City.
Long View Farms Studio was chosen for its accommodation, serenity and its top notch service. Music track has been re-laid from the original vinyl album. Thanks to Gil Markle for preserving and sharing this historic visual and audio document. studiowner.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T3FucGDSI0
The first ever live performance of the masterpiece landmark album! Part two of Stevie Wonder's 18th Annual House Full of Toys Benefit Concert at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE.
0:00:12 Isn't She Lovely
0:07:49 Joy Inside My Tears (w/ Joe)
0:14:45 Black Man
0:25:14 All Day Sucker (w/ Ledisi, John Mayer)
0:33:20 Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call) (w/ Esperanza Spalding, Frédéric Yonnet, John Popper)
0:39:44 Ngiculela -- Es Una Historia -- I Am Singing (w/ India.Arie)
0:48:15 If It's Magic (w/ Dorothy Ashby's original harp track)
0:53:42 Stevie on arts in school
0:54:59 As (w/ Herbie Hancock, India.Arie)
1:03:22 Living for Your Love
1:10:26 Another Star
1:17:52 Stevie's goodbye greetings
PS: Announced 9/10/2014 - Stevie Wonder will be performing Songs in the Key of Life live this fall at 10 US cities and 1 in Canada! Don't miss it! Looks like tickets go on sale at Ticketmaster later this month. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/new...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j7z3nQJj-0
Stevie Wonder--‘Innervisions’ [Full Album] 1973:
Stevie was only 22 years old(!) when he composed all the music, wrote all, the lyrics, did nearly ALL of the singing, played nearly ALL of the instruments (absolutely staggering feats in themselves), AND wrote ALL the orchestrations and arrangements on this incredibly sophisticated, musically innovative, relentlessly groundbreaking, and thoroughly original MASTERPIECE. Profound, witty, dynamic, sensual, inspiring, wise, joyous, somber, loving, and powerful, to say that this magisterial recording is the work of genius is a great understatement. Popular music in America had never seen ANY individual artist this gifted, this skillful, and this creatively original this young and for the most part it still hasn’t (the only exceptions I can think of in the past century in the U.S. are PRINCE and JIMI HENDRIX)…There is not one weak or mediocre composition or song on this entire recording….amazing...
Stevie was only 22 years old(!) when he composed all the music, wrote all, the lyrics, did nearly ALL of the singing, played nearly ALL of the instruments (absolutely staggering feats in themselves), AND wrote ALL the orchestrations and arrangements on this incredibly sophisticated, musically innovative, relentlessly groundbreaking, and thoroughly original MASTERPIECE. Profound, witty, dynamic, sensual, inspiring, wise, joyous, somber, loving, and powerful, to say that this magisterial recording is the work of genius is a great understatement. Popular music in America had never seen ANY individual artist this gifted, this skillful, and this creatively original this young and for the most part it still hasn’t (the only exceptions I can think of in the past century in the U.S. are PRINCE and JIMI HENDRIX)…There is not one weak or mediocre composition or song on this entire recording….amazing...
Stevie Wonder--'Songs In The Key Of Life' [Full Album] 1976:
Stevie was only 25 years old when he composed all the music, did nearly all the singing, wrote all the lyrics, orchestrations, and arrangements and played many of the instruments in this extraordinary recording which also happens to be still another masterpiece...In fact just take every damn thing I said above in my shameless rave about 'Innervisions' and apply it times (X) at least 2 to 'Songs in the Key of Life' and simply leave it at that. This justly legendary, even iconic recording is justly considered one of the finest in the entire history of popular music and the massive evidence for such an adoring assessment can be found in every single groove in this recording...
Compositions and songs in "Songs In the Key of Life":
1. Love's in Need of Love Today
2. Have a Talk with God
3. Village Ghetto Land
4. Contusion
5. Sir Duke
6. I Wish
7. Knocks Me off My Feet
8. Pastime Paradise
9. Summer Soft
10. Ordinary Pain
11. Isn't She Lovely
12. Joy Inside My Tears
13. Black Man
14. Ngiculela -- Es Una Historia -- I Am Singing
15. If It's Magic
16. As
17. Another Star
18. Saturn
19. Ebony Eyes
20. All Day Sucker
21. Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call
2. Have a Talk with God
3. Village Ghetto Land
4. Contusion
5. Sir Duke
6. I Wish
7. Knocks Me off My Feet
8. Pastime Paradise
9. Summer Soft
10. Ordinary Pain
11. Isn't She Lovely
12. Joy Inside My Tears
13. Black Man
14. Ngiculela -- Es Una Historia -- I Am Singing
15. If It's Magic
16. As
17. Another Star
18. Saturn
19. Ebony Eyes
20. All Day Sucker
21. Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call
Stevie Wonder On 'Soul Train' in 1971:
For another glimpse into just how much of an incredible musical and human phenomenon the then 21 year old Wonder is check out this luminous appearance on the legendary dance and music program 'Soul Train' in 1971. Dig the beautiful mesmerizing bluesy funk filled ode that Stevie composes on the spot during the program and then sings it to (and with) the audience of captivated young people on the show and Don Cornelius himself @ 7:35-11:32.
Stevie Wonder - 'Songs In The Key Of Life'
[Documentary: Classic Albums] 1996:
Stevie Wonder--'Fulfillingness' First Finale' (1974):
The Masterpiece Parade continues. Stevie at 23(!)...
'Nuff said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZePbNFLPaiw
2. Maybe Your Baby
3. You and I (We Can Conquer the World)
4. Tuesday Heartbreak
5. You've Got It Bad Girl" (Wonder, Yvonne Wright)
6. Superstition
7. Big Brother
8. Blame It on the Sun (Wonder, Syreeta Wright)
9. Lookin' for Another Pure Love" (Wonder, Syreeta Wright)
10. I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EflBAO_Zma0
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/songs-in-the-key-of-life-19761216
By Ben Fong-Torres | May 13, 2011
For another glimpse into just how much of an incredible musical and human phenomenon the then 21 year old Wonder is check out this luminous appearance on the legendary dance and music program 'Soul Train' in 1971. Dig the beautiful mesmerizing bluesy funk filled ode that Stevie composes on the spot during the program and then sings it to (and with) the audience of captivated young people on the show and Don Cornelius himself @ 7:35-11:32.
Stevie Wonder - 'Songs In The Key Of Life'
[Documentary: Classic Albums] 1996:
Stevie Wonder-Music of My Mind [Full Album] 1972:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gI0TykzCybs
...Uh...that's right folks. Still ANOTHER damn masterpiece. This gem was composed, arranged, orchestrated, played, sung etc. etc. by Stevie when he was only 21 years old. I KNOW, huh. It's SICK (and I mean that in the best sense possible)...Damn Stevie, BLOW the house down brother!!Stevie Wonder--'Fulfillingness' First Finale' (1974):
The Masterpiece Parade continues. Stevie at 23(!)...
'Nuff said.
Stevie Wonder - 'Talking Book' --(1972)--HD Audio
Aw c'mon now yall, this is ridiculous...Just how many masterpieces is any artist allowed to have in one lifetime? With Stevie the Wonder it's a rhetorical question. This is Stevie at age 22 doing every damn thing there is to do on this recording (including fully producing and engineering the thing) as if it was simply the 'normal thing' to be doing...I think this is what is really meant by the overused word "gifted" ...
1. You Are the Sunshine of My Life2. Maybe Your Baby
3. You and I (We Can Conquer the World)
4. Tuesday Heartbreak
5. You've Got It Bad Girl" (Wonder, Yvonne Wright)
6. Superstition
7. Big Brother
8. Blame It on the Sun (Wonder, Syreeta Wright)
9. Lookin' for Another Pure Love" (Wonder, Syreeta Wright)
10. I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EflBAO_Zma0
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/songs-in-the-key-of-life-19761216
Songs In The Key Of Life
- Songs In The Key Of Life
- Stevie Wonder
- Motown
By Ben Fong-Torres | May 13, 2011
Rolling Stone
[From The Archives Issue 133: April 26, 1973]
"I remember one time we were in Puerto Rico, and it was a sunshiney day," said Ira Tucker. "And Stevie was saying it was gonna rain. He said he could smell the moisture in the air, and we were all laughing at him. Three hours later, sure enough, it came. A hailstorm!"
What Tucker — an assistant to Stevie Wonder for five years now — was saying was that Wonder wasn't handicapped. Born blind, yes. Hampered, no.
This article appeared in the April 26, 1973 issue of Rolling Stone. The issue is available in the online archive.
"He can hear," Ira continued, here in his Holiday Inn room across a concrete bridge from Chinatown, San Francisco. "Like when I get stoned and listen to the radio and then I can pick up things. He's there all the time." Tucker sat back in a yellow T-shirt named after Wonder's latest single, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life."
"He even turns the lights on and off when he goes to the bathroom," said Ira. "What for? I don't know. He said it's 'cause he hears everybody else do it. Click, you go in, click, you're out. So he does it, too. But he goes to the movies, runs from place to place, going out to airports by himself. And on planes people think he's a junkie, 'cause he sits there with these glasses on, and his head goes back and forth, side to side when he feels good...."
Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time: Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder entered the synagogue for a post-concert party Motown was throwing for him. Half a year after the tour with the Stones, he was completing his show of new strength. He had conquered New York a month ago; here, he was headlining two shows, at Winterland and at the Berkeley Community Theater. He sold out both shows and won over both audiences. For the wider, whiter crowds he now draws, Wonder mixes together an Afro consciousness, a jazz/soul/rock/synthesized-up music, medleys of old hits and bits of other people's hits, and, in one quick exercise in excess, a shot of one-man-band razzmatazz, as he moves from drums to electric piano to ARP-wired clavinet to guitar to harmonica. What he cannot achieve through eye contact is reached by output of energy, by a music that is by turns loving and lusty, that tells how Stevie Wonder cherishes freedom, and how he uses it. And the music, sure enough, reflects the man.
Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: Stevie Wonder's 'Innervisions'
For the party, Wonder put aside his Afro gown and shark's tooth necklace and dressed up in a champagne-gold suit, matched by a plaid bow tie and metallic-copper platforms stacked four inches high. He plopped down onto the floor to talk with people; he played the harmonica; with Coco, his most constant companion since his divorce last year from Syreeta Wright, he explored the building. Upstairs is the old synagogue, complete with balconies and pews enough to hold 1000 worshippers, fixed up with red carpeting, showboat lighting, and stained-glass windows all shaped into colored Stars of David. Stevie and Coco and their entourage sat in a pew, feeling the airiness of the room, listening to the music coming off the speakers on the stage, where the altar used to be. Suddenly, the synagogue was filled with "Superstition." The disk jockey at KSAN had been alerted and she was putting together a string of Wonder hits. Stevie's head snapped up, started to go from side to side...You would've thought he was a junkie...
Photos: Grammy's Memorable Moments, 1975 to 2009 - Bette Midler and Stevie Wonder
Stevie was born Steveland Morris on May 13th, 1950, in Saginaw, Michigan; he was the third oldest in a not particularly musical family of six children. They moved to Detroit in the early Fifties, where they lived a lower-middle class life. Despite his blindness, Stevie was never treated special by his family; in fact, he claims, he hung out more than his four brothers did. He listened to a radio show in Detroit called Sundown and got filled with blues and jazz. He began playing the piano, and by age 11, he was also playing drums, "harmonica, bongos and hookey." He would play with a cousin, a friend of the brother of Ronnie White of the Miracles. White auditioned Stevie and took him to Motown, where staff producer Brian Holland listened. Motown signed him and advertised him as a 12-year-old Genius.
Now in his eleventh year in show business, formerly Little Stevie Wonder is finally in absolute control.
"He feels he's back to making music again," said Ira Tucker. "There was a lull for a time, from the time he was 17 to Music of My Mind" (which followed Where I'm Coming From in Wonder's post-Signed Sealed and Delivered progression in music). After two five-year contracts with Motown, Stevie was looking around, stalled six months, finally negotiated six weeks over a 120-page contract and made a deal. He got his own publishing — an unprecedented achievement for any Motown artist — and a substantially higher royalty rate (guessed at 50% by one close associate; Stevie would say only that he felt "secure").
"It was a very important contract for Motown," said Wonder's attorney, Johannan Vigoda (who negotiated contracts for Jimi Hendrix and Richie Havens, among others), "and a very important contract for Stevie, representing the artists of Motown. He broke tradition with the deal, legally, professionally — in terms of how he could cut his records and where he could cut — and in breaking tradition he opened up the future for Motown. That's what they understood. They had never had an artist in 13 years, they had singles records, they managed to create a name in certain areas, but they never came through with a major, major artist. It turned out they did a beautiful job."
Stevie is not, in fact, alone at the top at Motown, still home for Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Diana Ross, and the album-proportion skills of Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. But Motown, now headquartered in Los Angeles — in a large office building on Sunset, across from the Soul'd Out nightclub — has moved its estimable weight into TV, films, and even onto Broadway (with Pippin). Berry Gordy recently became chairman of the board for Motown Industries, leaving the presidency of his Motown Records. And in the last year, while black music has moved vigorously into the pop charts, Motown has seemingly lost much of its touch. The label is signing more artists — black and white — and releasing more product, and getting fewer hits. Artists have upped and left; others complain more openly than ever before.
Marvin Gaye is a Gordy in-law; Smokey a vice president; Diana too close to ever leave. When she was pregnant with her first child and waiting to begin Lady Sings the Blues, in fact, Berry kept her busy by naming her head of Product Evaluation at Motown; for almost a year, she had the power of a vice president; in charge of deciding which tunes became singles, which singles got released and when.
For Stevie Wonder — too young in the days of "The Sound of Young America" to be so integral a part of the family — the price for staying at Motown was security and freedom. Now, he writes and produces for himself; he books his own concerts; he manages himself and he can free-lance at will. He is producing an album by his group, Wonder-love, a second LP for Syreeta, and one for the Supremes. He has worked in sessions with Eric Clapton, Graham Nash and Jeff Beck; on tour, he jammed with the Stones.
On the road and off the stage, Stevie spends his time in his hotel room, composing on a clavinet wired up to an ARP synthesizer, writing two or three tunes a day. He also explores, walking through Chinatown in gold lame, head swaying from side to side as he passes the stores and smells the fish, the ducks, the pickled greens. And he loves to talk. He establishes rapport on the basis of astrological signs and otherwise talks in black-hippie fashion, zigzagging, sometimes, from Pollyannish to apocalyptic. He sees the earth zigging towards a destructive end; he can see himself dying soon and he hopes, by his music, to be able to leave something for the rest of us — even if we ain't that far behind him.
It's amazing, I been in the business ten years, going on 11 now, and I look back and see so many things, changes, it's almost like I'm an old person sometimes.... The musical changes, how different eras have come and gone, a lot of people that I thought would be major people have died. Otis, Jimi Hendrix...you know Michael Jeffery was killed just recently, goin' from Spain to London. Two planes collided, one exploded, the other landed safely. I heard there were some bitter things that went down, that Hendrix was ripped off fantastically by Jeffery, but I don't know how true those stories are....
It's heavy, and I guess you could say if he did the things that I heard he did, then that's his karma, but again, what about the other people on the plane? That's the question I always ask.
It's been really amazing...like when certain things I felt were gonna happen, I'd have dreams. I had a dream about Benny Benjamin [Motown's first studio drummer, who died of a stroke in 1969]. I talked to him a few days before he died; he was in the hospital. But in my dream I talked to him, he said, "Look man, I'm...I'm not gonna make it." "What, you kiddin'!" The image...he was sitting on my knee, which means like he was very weak. And he said, "So, like I'm leavin' it up to you." That was like a Wednesday, and that following Sunday I went to church and then to the studio to do a session; we were gonna record "You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover," and they said, "Hey, man, we're not gonna do it today, Benny just died."
He died without notice. I mean, nobody really knew who he was.
Man,
he was one of the major forces in the Motown sound. Benny could've very
well been the baddest — like [Bernard] Purdie. He was the Purdie of the
Sixties. But unknown.
Why unknown?
Why unknown?
Well,
because for the most part these cats'd be in the studios all day and as
musicians they weren't getting that recognition then, you know. People
weren't really that interested in the musicians.
Couldn't they also have had jobs with performing groups?
Couldn't they also have had jobs with performing groups?
They'd
do clubs, but they all were basically...Benny would be messin' up all
the time. Benny'd be late for sessions, Benny'd be drunk sometimes. I
mean, he was a beautiful cat, but...Benny would come up with these
stories, like [in an excited, fearful voice]: "Man, you'd never believe
it man, but like a goddamn elephant, man, in the middle of the road,
stopped me from comin' to the session so that's why I'm late, baby, so
[clap of hands] it's cool!" But he was ready, man. He could play drums,
you wouldn't even need a bass, that's how bad he was. Just listen to all
that Motown shit, like "Can't Help Myself" and "My World Is Empty
Without You Babe" and "This Old Heart of Mine" and "Don't Mess with
Bill." "Girl's All Right with Me," the drums would just pop!
Did Benny teach you a lot about drumming?
Did Benny teach you a lot about drumming?
Yeah, you can hear it, you know. I learned from just listening to him.
Is it true that you put out a drum album once?
Is it true that you put out a drum album once?
Well,
I put out an album that I played drums on, called The Jazz Soul of
Little Stevie. I did another album which was called Eivets Rednow about
'68, an instrumental with "Alfie" and a few other things..."Eivets
Rednow" being "Stevie Wonder" spelled backwards.
Everybody knew who it was right away...
Everybody knew who it was right away...
Some
people did, some didn't. As a matter of fact there was a cat in the
airport that came up and said, "Hey, man" [laughs], he said "Man, these
whites takin' over everything," he says, "Look, I heard a kid today,
man, played 'Alfie' just like you, man!" "Oh yeah, this cat named
Rednow?" "Yeah, that's it!" I said, "Ooooh, man, that cat is — well,
don't worry about him!" [laughs]
You've said that the first song that you ever wrote was "Uptight," but the credits were given to Sylvia Moy, Henry Cosby and a "S. Judkins." Was that you?
You've said that the first song that you ever wrote was "Uptight," but the credits were given to Sylvia Moy, Henry Cosby and a "S. Judkins." Was that you?
Well,
Judkins is my father's name. But it's crazy to explain it. Morris was
on my birth certificate and everything, but Judkins was the father. I
took his name when I was in school. We just signed the song contract
like that.
Why didn't you sign "Stevie Wonder"?
Why didn't you sign "Stevie Wonder"?
I don't know.
You signed "Wonder" on songs like "I'm Wondering" and "I Was Made to Love Her."
You signed "Wonder" on songs like "I'm Wondering" and "I Was Made to Love Her."
Well, that was later; I decided I wanted people to know that I wrote those songs.
How did you get the name "Wonder"?
How did you get the name "Wonder"?
It was given to me by Berry Gordy. They didn't like "Steve Morris" so they changed it.
Were there some alternatives?
Were there some alternatives?
"Little
Wonder"..."Wonder Steve..." I think we should change it to Steveland
Morris [laughs]. That would put a whole different light on everything.
You weren't an immediate hit, were you? You put out a record called "I Call It Pretty Music."
You weren't an immediate hit, were you? You put out a record called "I Call It Pretty Music."
It
was a thing that Clarence Paul wrote...an old blues thing...The first
thing I recorded was a thing called "Mother Thank You." Originally it
was called "You Made a Vow," but they thought that was too lovey for me,
too adult.
How did the first records do?
How did the first records do?
They started after we did "Contract On Love." That made a little noise. "Fingertips" was after that. That was a biggie.
The first production credit you were given was on the 'Signed Sealed and Delivered' album, but that wasn't the first producing you did.
The first production credit you were given was on the 'Signed Sealed and Delivered' album, but that wasn't the first producing you did.
Well,
that was the first that was released. I also did a thing with the
Spinners, "It's A Shame," and the followup, "We'll Have It Made." I
wanted that tune to be big. I was so hurt when it didn't do it.
You also produced Martha once?
You also produced Martha once?
Yeah, they never released it. Called [sings, snapping fingers], "Hey, look at me, girl, can't you see..."
And one on David Ruffin.
And one on David Ruffin.
Yeah,
[sings] "Lovin' you's been so wonder-ful...." In the midst of all that,
I was in the process of gettin' my thing together and decidin' what I
was gonna do with my life. This was like I was 20, goin' on 21, and so a
lot of things were left somewhat un-followed-up by me. I would get the
product there and nobody would listen and I'd say, "Fuckit"...I wouldn't
worry about it.
This was around "Signed Sealed and Delivered"...
This was around "Signed Sealed and Delivered"...
It was a little after that. "Signed Sealed and Delivered" was like the biggest thing I'd had.
Then you went into a lull.
Then you went into a lull.
Yeah,
we did Where I'm Coming From — that was kinda premature to some extent,
but I wanted to express myself. A lot of it now I'd probably remix. But
"Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer" came from that album, and "If You
Really Love Me"...but it's nothing like the things I write now. I love
gettin' into just as much weird shit as possible. I'll tell you what's
happening. Syreeta's album is better than my last two albums, man, shit!
[laughs] No, but it's cool....
How about Syreeta's first album?
How about Syreeta's first album?
For
some reason it wasn't accepted. I don't know if it was lack of
promotion...I told them I didn't want to be associated so much with the
album, the wife/husband thing, which I think was not an asset.
What are the difficulties, if any, in producing your ex-wife?
What are the difficulties, if any, in producing your ex-wife?
It's
still going through things...but I'm always a friend. It's kinda hard
for friends to understand it; women think, "I know you guys are here, so
I know you're gonna get back together." But if your head is really
cool...like I used to always worry about when I used to go with someone,
about them doing something with somebody else....
You were always the jealous type...
You were always the jealous type...
Well,
not really. I wouldn't even show it — but I was.... This is like one
thing that I've tried to do, and I think successfully, that when you
realize that nothing really belongs to you, you begin to appreciate
having an understanding of just where your head is at, and you feel so
much better.
That's easy to say.
That's easy to say.
I know, but I'm telling you, I'm doing it, man!
How long did your marriage last?
How long did your marriage last?
A year and a half.
My lady friend, one thing we have that's good is she can feel people like I do, when you meet all the phony bullshit people, she's able to sense that, so I feel there is someone that is there with me.
I've never dealt with a woman on the "Stevie Wonder" level.
My lady friend, one thing we have that's good is she can feel people like I do, when you meet all the phony bullshit people, she's able to sense that, so I feel there is someone that is there with me.
I've never dealt with a woman on the "Stevie Wonder" level.
When
you meet someone and begin to like them, then you do let them know you
even more personally than the public knows. There's not really a
difference between me and "Stevie Wonder" — only thing is I'm not
singing "Fingertips" or "Big Brother" or "Superstition" all the time.
There's other things, listening to other people, and going to the park
or seeing a movie or going bowling.
But the public Stevie Wonder is a lot of ideas and images that people have of you, regardless of what you actually are.
But the public Stevie Wonder is a lot of ideas and images that people have of you, regardless of what you actually are.
I
know there are thousands of images of me. There was a guy one time, I
heard: "Hey, uh, Stevie Wonder told me to come and get this grass from
you, so where is it?" He said, "Stevie Wonder told you? He didn't, man,
'cause I'm his guitar player, and he doesn't even smoke grass. He
doesn't even get high." I guess people expect or figure me to be a lot
of different things.
You never got into drugs?
You never got into drugs?
No.
Never?
Never?
I smoked grass one time and it scared me to death.
Put images into your head?
Put images into your head?
Well,
things just got larger. It was something new and different, but I found
I'm so busy checking things out all the time anyway that I don't really
need it.
Are there times when you wish you could see?
Are there times when you wish you could see?
No. Sometimes I wish I could drive a car, but I'm gonna drive a car one day, so I don't worry about that.
And fly, too?
And fly, too?
I've flown a plane before. A Cessna or something, from Chicago to New York. Scared the hell out of everybody.
Who was your copilot — God?
Who was your copilot — God?
No
[laughs], this pilot was there, and he just let me handle this one
thing, and I say "What's this?" and we went whish, whoop...
You've actually said that you considered your blindness to be a gift from God.
You've actually said that you considered your blindness to be a gift from God.
Being
blind, you don't judge books by their covers; you go through things
that are relatively insignificant, and you pick out things that are more
important.
When did you discover that there was something missing, at least according to other people's standards?
I never really knew it. The only thing that was said in school, and this was my early part of school, was something that made me feel like because I was black I could never be or would never be.
So being black was considered to be more a weight...
I guess so. [laughs] This cat said in an article one time, it was funny: "Damn! He's black! He's blind! What else?!" I said, "Bull shit, I don't wanna hear that shit, you know."
So you wouldn't even bother having people describe things to you. Colors and...
When did you discover that there was something missing, at least according to other people's standards?
I never really knew it. The only thing that was said in school, and this was my early part of school, was something that made me feel like because I was black I could never be or would never be.
So being black was considered to be more a weight...
I guess so. [laughs] This cat said in an article one time, it was funny: "Damn! He's black! He's blind! What else?!" I said, "Bull shit, I don't wanna hear that shit, you know."
So you wouldn't even bother having people describe things to you. Colors and...
Well,
I have an idea of what colors are. I associate them with the ideas
that've been told to me about those certain colors. I get a certain
feeling in my head when a person says "red" or "blue," "green," "black,"
"white," "yellow," "orange," "purple" — purple is a crazy color to
me....
Probably the sound of the word...
Yeah, yeah. To me, brown is a little duller than green, isn't it?
Yes, you got it...What about sex?
Probably the sound of the word...
Yeah, yeah. To me, brown is a little duller than green, isn't it?
Yes, you got it...What about sex?
What
about it? [laughs] It's the same thing, Jack! As a matter of fact it's
probably even more exciting to the dude. Ask my woman what it's like....
No, no! [laughs] I mean you just have to get in there and do that shit,
you know. That shit is just fantasticness!
I used to live on a street called Breckinridge. They just tore my house down. I wish I could've gotten a few pictures of it, too...but...
So you didn't miss a thing.
I used to live on a street called Breckinridge. They just tore my house down. I wish I could've gotten a few pictures of it, too...but...
So you didn't miss a thing.
We
listened to Redd Foxx and did all that stuff! We tried to sneak and do
it to little girls. I used to get into a lot of shit, Jack! I got caught
trying to mess with this girl. I was about eight years old. It was the
play house trip. And I really was like taking the girl's clothes off and
everything, I don't understand how I did that stuff, you know. I mean, I
was in it! I had her in my room with my clothes off. And she gave it
away 'cause she started laughin' and giggling 'cause I was touching her.
I used to hop barns with all the other dudes. You know those small sheds they used to have in back of houses; in the ghetto where I lived, we'd hop atop them from one to the other. I remember one time my aunt came and said, "OK, Steve, Mama said don't be doin' that," and I said, "Aw, fuck you," and there're some neighbors out and they said, "Aw, child, you oughta be ashamed of yourself, I thought you was a child of the Lawd, you out there cussin' 'n' everything." That was like back of our house in the alley, you know, so I just kept on, just hopping the barns, jumping around and everything, till all at once I jumped and fell right into my mother's arms. The ironing cord, the whipping. The Magic Ironing Cord Whipping.
You've mentioned in various interviews that you feel like you haven't paid a lot of dues. You were talking about Ray Charles, about how you can sense the pathos in that man's voice.
I used to hop barns with all the other dudes. You know those small sheds they used to have in back of houses; in the ghetto where I lived, we'd hop atop them from one to the other. I remember one time my aunt came and said, "OK, Steve, Mama said don't be doin' that," and I said, "Aw, fuck you," and there're some neighbors out and they said, "Aw, child, you oughta be ashamed of yourself, I thought you was a child of the Lawd, you out there cussin' 'n' everything." That was like back of our house in the alley, you know, so I just kept on, just hopping the barns, jumping around and everything, till all at once I jumped and fell right into my mother's arms. The ironing cord, the whipping. The Magic Ironing Cord Whipping.
You've mentioned in various interviews that you feel like you haven't paid a lot of dues. You were talking about Ray Charles, about how you can sense the pathos in that man's voice.
I heard a lot of things, you know, the way people really did him in, but I think he's doing a lot better now.
People did him in?
People did him in?
Well,
they knew like when he was on drugs. A lot of people would like bust
him, just to get money, or they would put him in jail in some of the
Southern places just to get some bread.
In school, what subjects did you like best?
In school, what subjects did you like best?
History,
world history, but it got kind of boring. And science. The history of
this country was relatively boring — I guess because of the way it was
put to us in books. The most interesting to me was about civilizations
before ours, how advanced people really were, how high they had brought
themselves only to bring themselves down because of the missing links,
the weak foundations. So the whole thing crumbled. And that's kind of
sad. And it relates to today and what could possibly happen here, very
soon. That's basically what "Big Brother" is all about.
I speak of the history, the heritage of the violence, or the negativeness of being able to see what's going on with minority people. Seemingly it's going to continue to be this way. Sometimes unfortunately violence is a way things get accomplished. "Big Brother" was something to make people aware of the fact that after all is said and done, that I don't have to do nothing to you, meaning the people are not power players. We don't have to do anything to them 'cause they're gonna cause their own country to fall.
"My name is Secluded; we live in a house the size of a matchbox." A person who lives there, really, his name is Secluded, and you never even know the person, and they can have so many things to say to help make it better, but it's like the voice that speaks is forever silenced.
I understand that when you don't hear anything and you hear this very high frequency, that's the sound of the universe.
Or a burglar alarm, which takes some of the mystery out of it...Tell me about your experiments with electronic effects and music. First, have you listened to Beaver and Krause, or Pink Floyd, Emerson Lake and Palmer, or Walter Carlos?
Walter Carlos, yes, but for the most part I've listened to just what's in my head, plus Bob Margoloff and Malcolm Cecil — they just built a new synthesizer you should see — they have their own company, Centaur, and they did an album, Tonto's Expanding Headband. They are responsible for programming and I just tell them the kind of sound I want.
I hadn't got tired of strings or horns or anything, it's just another dimension. I'd like to get into doing just acoustic things, drums, bass, no electronic things at all except for recording them.
How about the Bag [a throat-sound amplifier made by Kustom]? What does that do for communication?
I speak of the history, the heritage of the violence, or the negativeness of being able to see what's going on with minority people. Seemingly it's going to continue to be this way. Sometimes unfortunately violence is a way things get accomplished. "Big Brother" was something to make people aware of the fact that after all is said and done, that I don't have to do nothing to you, meaning the people are not power players. We don't have to do anything to them 'cause they're gonna cause their own country to fall.
"My name is Secluded; we live in a house the size of a matchbox." A person who lives there, really, his name is Secluded, and you never even know the person, and they can have so many things to say to help make it better, but it's like the voice that speaks is forever silenced.
I understand that when you don't hear anything and you hear this very high frequency, that's the sound of the universe.
Or a burglar alarm, which takes some of the mystery out of it...Tell me about your experiments with electronic effects and music. First, have you listened to Beaver and Krause, or Pink Floyd, Emerson Lake and Palmer, or Walter Carlos?
Walter Carlos, yes, but for the most part I've listened to just what's in my head, plus Bob Margoloff and Malcolm Cecil — they just built a new synthesizer you should see — they have their own company, Centaur, and they did an album, Tonto's Expanding Headband. They are responsible for programming and I just tell them the kind of sound I want.
I hadn't got tired of strings or horns or anything, it's just another dimension. I'd like to get into doing just acoustic things, drums, bass, no electronic things at all except for recording them.
How about the Bag [a throat-sound amplifier made by Kustom]? What does that do for communication?
It
creates an emotion in that the voice is low. And it frightens you a
little. We used it on Syreeta's album, "She's Leaving Home," I was just
playing the ARP, not really singing, but playing the note and moving my
mouth.
What else are you checking out these days?
What else are you checking out these days?
There's
this string instrument made in Japan. You tune it like a harp to a
certain chord scale. It takes you somewhere else that's sort of earthy
and in the direction where my head is slanting — like going to Africa.
Maybe I'll take a tape recorder over there and just sit out and write
some stuff.
In concert, your opening number includes African scatting.
In concert, your opening number includes African scatting.
I
got that from this thing called The Monkey Chant that we used in
different rhythms, and we came up with [chop-chants, in speedtime]
ja-ja-ja-jajajajajaja...
And there are three pairs of drumsticks going.
And there are three pairs of drumsticks going.
It's like fighting. I'd love to go to Ghana, go to the different countries and see how I'd like to live there.
Do you know Sly Stone?
Do you know Sly Stone?
I've seen him a couple of times. I haven't heard too much about him lately, just rumors.
He influenced you to a degree.
He influenced you to a degree.
...Ah...I
think there's an influence in some of the things I've done, like "Maybe
Your Baby." But I can hear some of the old Little Stevie Wonder in a
lot of his early things [Stevie sings a bit of "Sing a Simple Song"]. It
used to tickle me...
You've said that your writing was influenced by the Beatles.
You've said that your writing was influenced by the Beatles.
I just dug more the effects they got, like echoes and the voice things, the writing, like "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite."
Did it make you feel that you could be more loose yourself?
Did it make you feel that you could be more loose yourself?
Yeah.
I just said, "Why can't I?" I wanted to do something else, go other
places. Same thing about keys. I don't want to stay in one key all the
time.
I understand that in the old days at Motown, groups had to compete for tracks. Writers would come up with a song and a track, and artists would all sing over it, and the best would get a single released.
I understand that in the old days at Motown, groups had to compete for tracks. Writers would come up with a song and a track, and artists would all sing over it, and the best would get a single released.
I
could see why that would happen, though. It's kind of crazy. But then
again you think the writer, whoever the writer is — the music, the sound
wasn't really Motown as much as the writer. I think for the most part
they should listen in advance and know the artists.
Holland-Dozier-Holland usually would sing the melodies themselves and
say, "This is how I want you to do it."
What about you? Did you always have more independence?
What about you? Did you always have more independence?
I
had the independence because I was somewhat distant, because I was in
school, and I would just come back home sometime and do some singing.
"Blowing in the Wind" and "Alfie" were unusual songs for a Motown artist to be doing back when you did them.
"Blowing in the Wind" and "Alfie" were unusual songs for a Motown artist to be doing back when you did them.
Most
of them came about from doing gigs and wanting certain kinds of tunes.
Clarence Paul, who was my arranger and conductor when we had the big
group — we would work out doing tunes, ridin' in cars like in England
around '65. We'd think of different songs like "Funny How Time Flies
Away" or "Blowin' in the Wind."
Writers are so important. I think a lot of our artists could have been more sustained if they had other writers, besides Holland-Dozier-Holland, because then they would have found their identity — and that's what everybody needs.
So you can understand why groups like Gladys and the Pips, Martha and the Vandellas, the Tops, the Spinners, left.
I do, when you become just one of the others, it's difficult to be a sustaining power for a long period of time. It's like a person comes out with a beat, and you keep on doing it and doing it and driving it to the ground.
Did you hang out around Studio A at Motown?
I did when I was younger, but like when I was 12 or 13, I couldn't 'cause I was in school. I used to play on a lot of gospel sessions.
Did you play in sessions outside of Motown?
No, but I have now, recently.
You were working with Jeff Beck last year; then he got angry at you because you put out "Superstition" as a single before he did.
Writers are so important. I think a lot of our artists could have been more sustained if they had other writers, besides Holland-Dozier-Holland, because then they would have found their identity — and that's what everybody needs.
So you can understand why groups like Gladys and the Pips, Martha and the Vandellas, the Tops, the Spinners, left.
I do, when you become just one of the others, it's difficult to be a sustaining power for a long period of time. It's like a person comes out with a beat, and you keep on doing it and doing it and driving it to the ground.
Did you hang out around Studio A at Motown?
I did when I was younger, but like when I was 12 or 13, I couldn't 'cause I was in school. I used to play on a lot of gospel sessions.
Did you play in sessions outside of Motown?
No, but I have now, recently.
You were working with Jeff Beck last year; then he got angry at you because you put out "Superstition" as a single before he did.
Well,
I'd written a thing for them — they wanted "Maybe Your Baby," and I
said no, do this, this is even better, and I wrote "Superstition" that
same night. And they wanted the track, which I couldn't give them,
'cause of Motown, so I said, "I'll give you a seven [a 7-1/2 ips tape]
and you all work on it and I'll play on the session, 'cause he said he'd
play on a thing of mine. And I wrote another thing for them which was
even more like Jeff Beck, a thing called "Thelonius" which they haven't
done anything with, it's really bad [Stevie sings, scatting with
triple-timed kneeslaps]...but I told him I was using "Superstition" for
my album. The tune I wanted to release as a single was "Big Brother,"
but that was done too late to come out as a single. Motown decided they
wanted to release "Superstition." I said Jeff wanted it, and they told
me I needed a strong single in order for the album to be successful. My
understanding was that Jeff would be releasing "Superstition" long
before I was going to finish my album; I was late giving them Talking
Book. Jeff recorded "Superstition" in July, so I thought it would be
out. But I did promise him the song, and I'm sorry it happened and that
he came out with some of the arrogant statements he came out with. I
will get another tune to him that I think is as exciting, and if he
wants to do it, cool.
After the Stones tour, there was a story in a magazine where the Stones — Keith Richards — was yelling about you, calling you a "cunt" when you couldn't make a gig because of your drummer. There were claims that you'd been partying instead of working.
After the Stones tour, there was a story in a magazine where the Stones — Keith Richards — was yelling about you, calling you a "cunt" when you couldn't make a gig because of your drummer. There were claims that you'd been partying instead of working.
If
Keith did say that, he's just childish, because I love people too much
to just want to fuck up and miss a show. And it's crazy, the things he
said, if they were said — and if he did not say them, he should clarify
them, because I will always hold this against him; I can't really face
him, I'd feel funny in his presence.
Was Keith pretty friendly throughout the tour?
Was Keith pretty friendly throughout the tour?
I
had mixed emotions about where he was comin' from, you know, so I
wouldn't be surprised if he said it, but I'm really not too surprised
about anybody saying anything about anything. What really bugged me
about the whole thing was that our drummer was in a very bad situation,
mentally and spiritually, and that's why he left. What climaxed the
whole thing was, we got into an argument. I told him he was rushing the
tempo — this was in Fort Worth, Texas — and he said, "I tell you what:
You know how to play harmonica, you take the mike, you sing, and play
drums and all that shit at the same time, 'cause I quit," and he split. I
called up the Stones and said, "Look, man, our drummer left, and we
might not be able to make the gig, so we'll try to make the second one
but we won't be able to make the first show." And they said "OK, that'll
be cool." The next thing, I saw the Stones and they heard the new
drummer and said, "Oh, out of sight!" Then the next thing was I read all
this shit.
Were you treated fairly, financially, for the tour?
Were you treated fairly, financially, for the tour?
It wasn't a money-making thing, that wasn't the idea — exposure was the thing.
I want to reach the people. I feel there is so much through music that can be said, and there's so many people you can reach by listening to another kind of music besides what is considered your only kind of music. That's why I hate labels where they say This Is Stevie Wonder and for the Rest of His Life He Will Sing 'Fingertips'...Maybe because I'm a Taurean and people say Taureans don't dig change too much. I say as long as it's change to widen your horizons, it's cool.
http://www.openculture.com/2013/06/see_stevie_wonder_play_superstition_and_banter_with_grover_on_sesame_street_in_1973.html
I want to reach the people. I feel there is so much through music that can be said, and there's so many people you can reach by listening to another kind of music besides what is considered your only kind of music. That's why I hate labels where they say This Is Stevie Wonder and for the Rest of His Life He Will Sing 'Fingertips'...Maybe because I'm a Taurean and people say Taureans don't dig change too much. I say as long as it's change to widen your horizons, it's cool.
http://www.openculture.com/2013/06/see_stevie_wonder_play_superstition_and_banter_with_grover_on_sesame_street_in_1973.html
Stevie Wonder plays "Superstition" live on Sesame Street in 1973
See Stevie Wonder Play “Superstition” and Banter with Grover on Sesame Street in 1973
In 1969, Sesame Street debuted and introduced America’s children—growing up in the midst of intense disputes over integration—to its urban sensibilities and multicultural cast, all driven by the latest in childhood development research and Jim Henson wizardry. Despite the racially fractious times of its origin, the show was a success (although the state of Mississippi briefly banned it in 1970), and its list of celebrity guests from every conceivable domain reflected the diversity of its cast and hipness of its tone. With certain exceptions (particularly in later permutations), it’s always been a show that knew how to gauge the tenor of the times and appeal broadly to both children and their weary, captive guardians.
Being one of those weary captives, I can’t say enough how grateful I’ve been when a recognizable face interrupts Elmo’s babbling to sing a song or do a little comedy bit, winking at the parents all the while. These moments are fewer and farther between in the later ages of the show, but in the seventies, Sesame Street had musical routines worthy of Saturday Night Live. Take, for example, the 1973 appearance of Stevie Wonder on the show. While I was born too late to catch this when it aired, there’s no doubt that the child me would find Wonder and his band as funky as the grown-up parent does. Check them out above doing “Superstition.”
Like most musical artists who visit the show, Stevie also cooked
something especially for the kids. In the clip above, watch him do a
little number called “123 Sesame Street.” Wonder breaks out the talk box, a favorite
gadget of his (he turned Frampton on to it). The band gets so into it,
you’d think this was a cut off their latest album, and the kids (the
show never used child actors) rock out like only seventies kids can. The
show’s original theme song had its charm, but why the producers didn’t
immediately change it to this is beyond me. I’d pay vintage vinyl prices
to get it on record.
Finally, in our last clip from Stevie’s wonderful guest spot, he
takes a break from full-on funk and roll to give Grover a little scat
lesson and show off his pipes. The great Frank Oz as the voice of Grover is, as always, a perfect comic foil.
Stevie Wonder @ The Beat Club (1973):
Berlin, Germany
A rare recording of Stevie Wonder in his prime. One of his best!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Og2mJjecDYw
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Wonder
Stevie Wonder
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Stevie Wonder | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wonder performing in 1973
|
||||||
| Background information | ||||||
| Birth name | Stevland Hardaway Judkins | |||||
| Also known as | Stevland Hardaway Morris (legal) Little Stevie Wonder (stage) |
|||||
| Born | May 13, 1950 Saginaw, Michigan, U.S. | |||||
| Origin | Detroit, Michigan | |||||
| Genres | Soul, pop, R&B, funk, jazz | |||||
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist | |||||
| Instruments | Vocals, keyboards, harmonica, drums, bass guitar, congas, bongos, keytar | |||||
| Years active | 1961–present | |||||
| Labels | Tamla, Motown | |||||
| Website | steviewonder.net | |||||
Stevland Hardaway Morris (born May 13, 1950, as Stevland Hardaway Judkins),[1] known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. A child prodigy, he has become one of the most creative and loved musical performers of the late 20th century.[2] Wonder signed with Motown's Tamla label at the age of 11[2] and continues to perform and record for Motown as of the early 2010s. He has been blind since shortly after birth.[3]
Among Wonder's works are singles such as "Superstition", "Sir Duke", "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" and "I Just Called to Say I Love You"; and albums such as Talking Book, Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life.[2] He has recorded more than 30 U.S. top ten hits and received 22 Grammy Awards, the most ever awarded to a male solo artist, and has sold over 100 million albums and singles, making him one of the top 60 best-selling music artists.[4] Wonder is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday a holiday in the United States.[5] In 2009, Wonder was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace.[6] In 2008, Billboard magazine released a list of the Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists to celebrate the US singles chart's 50th anniversary, with Wonder at number five.
Contents
Early life
Stevie Wonder was born in Saginaw, Michigan, in 1950, the third of six children to Calvin Judkins and Lula Mae Hardaway. He was born six weeks premature, which, along with the oxygen-rich atmosphere in the hospital incubator, resulted in retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), a condition in which the growth of the eyes is aborted and causes the retinas to detach; so he became blind.[3][7] When Wonder was four, his mother left his father and moved to Detroit
with her children. She changed her name back to Lula Hardaway and later
changed her son's surname to Morris, partly because of relatives.
Wonder has retained Morris as his legal surname. Wonder began playing
instruments at an early age, including piano, harmonica, drums and bass.
He formed a singing partnership with a friend; calling themselves
Stevie and John, they played on street corners, and occasionally at
parties and dances.[8]
Music career
Sixties singles: 1962–69
In 1961, when aged 11, Wonder sang his own composition, "Lonely Boy", to Ronnie White of the Miracles;[9][10] White then took Wonder and his mother to an audition at Motown, where CEO Berry Gordy signed Wonder to Motown's Tamla label.[1] Before signing, producer Clarence Paul gave him the name Little Stevie Wonder.[3] Because of Wonder's age, the label drew up a rolling five-year contract in which royalties would be held in trust until Wonder was 21. Wonder and his mother would be paid a weekly stipend to cover their expenses: Wonder received $2.50 a week, and a private tutor was provided for when Wonder was on tour.[10]
Wonder was put in the care of producer and song-writer Clarence Paul, and for a year they worked together on two albums. Tribute to Uncle Ray was recorded first, when Wonder was still 11 years old. Mainly covers of Ray Charles's songs, it included a Wonder and Paul composition, "Sunset". The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie
was recorded next, an instrumental album consisting mainly of Paul's
compositions, two of which, "Wondering" and "Session Number 112", were
co-written with Wonder.[11]
Feeling Wonder was now ready, a song, "Mother Thank You", was recorded
for release as a single, but then pulled and replaced by the Berry Gordy
song "I Call It Pretty Music, But the Old People Call It the Blues" as
his début single;[12] released summer 1962,[13] it almost broke into the Billboard 100, spending one week of August at 101 before dropping out of sight.[14] A follow-up single, "Little Water Boy", had no success, and the two albums, released in reverse order of recording—The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie in September 1962 and Tribute to Uncle Ray in October 1962—also met with little success.[11][15]
At the end of 1962, when Wonder was 12 years old, he joined the Motortown Revue, touring the "chitlin' circuit" of theatres across America that accepted black artists. At the Regal Theater, Chicago, his 20-minute performance was recorded and released in May 1963 as the album Recorded Live: The 12 Year Old Genius.[11] A single, "Fingertips", from the album was also released in May, and became a major hit.[16]
The song, featuring a confident and enthusiastic Wonder returning for a
spontaneous encore that catches out the replacement bass player, who is
heard to call out "What key? What key?",[16][17] was a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 when Wonder was aged 13, making him the youngest artist ever to top the chart.[18] The single was simultaneously No. 1 on the R&B chart, the first time that had occurred.[19]
His next few recordings, however, were not successful; his voice was
changing as he got older, and some Motown executives were considering
cancelling his recording contract.[19] During 1964, Wonder appeared in two films as himself, Muscle Beach Party and Bikini Beach, but these were not successful either.[20] Sylvia Moy persuaded label owner Berry Gordy to give Wonder another chance.[19] Dropping the "Little" from his name, Moy and Wonder worked together to create the hit "Uptight (Everything's Alright)",[19] and Wonder went on to have a number of other hits during the mid-1960s, including "With a Child's Heart", and "Blowin' in the Wind",[17] a Bob Dylan cover, co-sung by his mentor, producer Clarence Paul.[21] He also began to work in the Motown songwriting department, composing songs both for himself and his label mates, including "Tears of a Clown", a number one hit for Smokey Robinson and the Miracles.[22]
In 1968 he recorded an album of instrumental soul/jazz tracks, mostly harmonica solos, under the title Eivets Rednow, which is "Stevie Wonder" spelled backwards.[23]
The album failed to get much attention, and its only single, a cover of
"Alfie", only reached number 66 on the U.S. Pop charts and number 11 on
the U.S. Adult Contemporary charts. Nonetheless, he managed to score
several hits between 1968 and 1970 such as "I Was Made to Love Her";[21] "For Once in My Life" and "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours".
Seventies albums & classic period: 1970–79
In September 1970, at the age of 20, Wonder married Syreeta Wright, a songwriter and former Motown secretary. Wright and Wonder worked together on the next album, Where I'm Coming From; Wonder writing the music, and Wright helping with the lyrics.[24] They wanted to "touch on the social problems of the world", and for the lyrics "to mean something".[24] The album was released at around the same time as Marvin Gaye's What's Going On. As both albums had similar ambitions and themes, they have been compared; in a contemporary review by Vince Aletti in Rolling Stone,
Gaye's album was seen as successful, while Wonder's album was seen as
failing due to "self-indulgent and cluttered" production,
"undistinguished" and "pretentious" lyrics, and an overall lack of unity
and flow.[25] Reaching his 21st birthday on May 13, 1971, he allowed his Motown contract to expire.[26]
In 1970, Wonder co-wrote, and played numerous instruments on the hit "It's a Shame" for fellow Motown act the Spinners.
His contribution was meant to be a showcase of his talent and thus a
weapon in his ongoing negotiations with Gordy about creative autonomy.[27]
During this period, Wonder independently recorded two albums and signed a contract with Motown Records. The 120-page contract was a precedent at Motown and gave Wonder a much higher royalty rate.[28] Wonder returned to Motown in March 1972 with Music of My Mind. Unlike most previous albums on Motown, which usually consisted of a collection of singles, B-sides and covers, Music of My Mind was a full-length artistic statement with songs flowing together thematically.[28]
Wonder's lyrics dealt with social, political, and mystical themes as
well as standard romantic ones, while musically Wonder began exploring
overdubbing and recording most of the instrumental parts himself.[28] Music of My Mind marked the beginning of a long collaboration with Tonto's Expanding Head Band (Robert Margouleff and Malcolm Cecil).[29][30]
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Released in late 1972, Talking Book featured the No. 1 hit "Superstition",[31] which is one of the most distinctive and famous examples of the sound of the Hohner Clavinet keyboard.[32] Talking Book also featured "You Are the Sunshine of My Life", which also peaked at No. 1. During the same time as the album's release, Wonder began touring with the Rolling Stones to alleviate the negative effects from pigeonholing as a result of being an R&B artist in America.[9]
Wonder's touring with the Stones was also a factor behind the success
of both "Superstition" and "You Are the Sunshine of My Life".[28][33] Between them, the two songs won three Grammy Awards.[34] On an episode of the children's television show Sesame Street that aired in April 1973,[35]
Wonder and his band performed "Superstition", as well as an original
called "Sesame Street Song", which demonstrated his abilities with the
"talk box".
Innervisions, released in 1973, featured "Higher Ground" (No. 4 on the pop charts) as well as the trenchant "Living for the City" (No. 8).[31]
Both songs reached No. 1 on the R&B charts. Popular ballads such as
"Golden Lady" and "All in Love Is Fair" were also present, in a mixture
of moods that nevertheless held together as a unified whole.[36] Innervisions generated three more Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year.[34] The album is ranked No. 23 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.[37] Wonder had become the most influential and acclaimed black musician of the early 1970s.[28]
On August 6, 1973, Wonder was in a serious automobile accident while on tour in North Carolina, when a car in which he was riding hit the back of a truck.[28][38]
This left him in a coma for four days and resulted in a partial loss of
his sense of smell and a temporary loss of sense of taste.[39] Despite the setback, Wonder re-appeared in concert at Madison Square Garden in March 1974 with a performance that highlighted both up-tempo material and long, building improvisations on mid-tempo songs such as "Living for the City".[28] The album Fulfillingness' First Finale appeared in July 1974 and set two hits high on the pop charts: the No. 1 "You Haven't Done Nothin'" and the Top Ten "Boogie On Reggae Woman". The Album of the Year was again one of three Grammys won.[34]
The same year Wonder took part in a Los Angeles jam session that would become known as the bootleg album A Toot and a Snore in '74.[40][41] He also co-wrote and produced the Syreeta Wright album Stevie Wonder Presents: Syreeta.[42][43]
On October 4, 1975, Wonder performed at the historic "Wonder Dream Concert" in Kingston, Jamaica, a benefit for the Jamaican Institute for the Blind.[44]
By 1975, in his 25th year, Wonder had won two consecutive Grammy Awards: in 1974 for Innervisions and in 1975 for Fulfillingness' First Finale.[45] In 1975, he played harmonica on two tracks on Billy Preston's album It's My Pleasure.
The double album-with-extra-EP Songs in the Key of Life,
was released in September 1976. Sprawling in style, unlimited in
ambition, and sometimes lyrically difficult to fathom, the album was
hard for some listeners to assimilate, yet is regarded by many as
Wonder's crowning achievement and one of the most recognizable and
accomplished albums in pop music history.[28][31][46] The album became the first by an American artist to debut straight at No. 1 in the Billboard charts, where it stood for 14 non-consecutive weeks.[47] Two tracks became No. 1 Pop/R&B hits "I Wish" and "Sir Duke". The baby-celebratory "Isn't She Lovely?"
was written about his newborn daughter Aisha, while songs such as
"Love's in Need of Love Today" and "Village Ghetto Land" reflected a far
more pensive mood. Songs in the Key of Life won Album of the Year and two other Grammys.[34] The album ranks 57th on Rolling Stone′s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.[37] Until 1979's Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants" his only release was the retrospective three-disc album Looking Back, an anthology of his early Motown period.
Commercial period: 1980–90
The 1980s saw Wonder achieving his biggest hits and highest level of
fame; he had increased album sales, charity participation, high-profile
collaborations, political impact, and television appearances. The 1979
mainly instrumental soundtrack album Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants" was composed using an early music sampler, a Computer Music Melodian.[48] Wonder toured briefly in support of the album, and used a Fairlight CMI sampler on stage.[49] In this year Wonder also wrote and produced the dance hit "Let's Get Serious", performed by Jermaine Jackson and (ranked by Billboard as the No. 1 R&B single of 1980).
Hotter than July (1980) became Wonder's first platinum-selling single album, and its single "Happy Birthday" was a successful vehicle for his campaign to establish Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday as a national holiday. The album also included "Master Blaster (Jammin')", "I Ain't Gonna Stand for It", and the sentimental ballad, "Lately".
In 1982, Wonder released a retrospective of his 1970s work with Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium, which included four new songs: the ten-minute funk classic "Do I Do" (which featured Dizzy Gillespie), "That Girl" (one of the year's biggest singles to chart on the R&B side), "Front Line", a narrative about a soldier in the Vietnam War that Wonder wrote and sang in the first person, and "Ribbon in the Sky", one of his many classic compositions. He also gained a No. 1 hit that year in collaboration with Paul McCartney in their paean to racial harmony, "Ebony and Ivory".
In 1983, Wonder performed the song "Stay Gold", the theme to Francis Ford Coppola's film adaptation of S. E. Hinton's novel The Outsiders. Wonder wrote the lyrics. In 1983, he scheduled an album to be entitled People Work, Human Play. The album never surfaced and instead 1984 saw the release of Wonder's soundtrack album for The Woman in Red. The lead single, "I Just Called to Say I Love You",
was a No. 1 pop and R&B hit in both the United States and the
United Kingdom, where it was placed 13th in the list of best-selling
singles in the UK published in 2002. It went on to win an Academy award for best song in 1985. The album also featured a guest appearance by Dionne Warwick, singing the duet "It's You" with Stevie and a few songs of her own. The following year's In Square Circle featured the No. 1 pop hit "Part-Time Lover". The album also has a Top 10 Hit with "Go Home." It also featured the ballad "Overjoyed", which was originally written for Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants", but did not make the album. He performed "Overjoyed" on Saturday Night Live when he was the host. He was also featured in Chaka Khan's cover of Prince's "I Feel For You", alongside Melle Mel, playing his signature harmonica. In roughly the same period he was also featured on harmonica on Eurythmics' single, "There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)" and Elton John's "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues".
Wonder was in a featured duet with Bruce Springsteen on the all-star charity single for African Famine Relief, "We Are the World", and he was part of another charity single the following year (1986), the AIDS-inspired "That's What Friends Are For". He played harmonica on the album Dreamland Express by John Denver in the song "If Ever", a song Wonder co-wrote with Stephanie Andrews; wrote the track "I Do Love You" for the Beach Boys' 1985 self-titled album; and played harmonica on "Can't Help Lovin' That Man" on The Broadway Album by Barbra Streisand. In 1987, Wonder appeared on Michael Jackson's Bad album, on the duet "Just Good Friends". Michael Jackson also sang a duet with him entitled "Get It" on Wonder's 1987 album Characters. This was a minor hit single, as were "Skeletons" and "You Will Know".
Later career: 1991–present
After 1987's Characters album, Wonder continued to release new material, but at a slower pace. He recorded a soundtrack album for Spike Lee's film Jungle Fever
in 1991. From this album, singles and videos were released for "Gotta
Have You" and "These Three Words". The B-side to the "Gotta Have You"
single was "Feeding Off The Love of the Land", which was played during
the end credits of the movie Jungle Fever but was not included on
the soundtrack. A piano and vocal version of "Feeding Off The Love of
the Land" was also released on the Nobody's Child: Romanian Angel Appeal compilation. Conversation Peace and the live album Natural Wonder were released in the 1990s.[50]
Among his other activities he played harmonica on one track for the 1994 tribute album KISS My Ass: Classic KISS Regrooved;[51] sang at the 1996 Summer Olympics closing ceremony;[52] collaborated in 1997 with Babyface on "How Come, How Long", a song about domestic violence that was nominated for a Grammy award;[53] and played harmonica on Sting's 1999 "Brand New Day".[54] In December 1999, Wonder announced that he was interested in pursuing an intraocular retinal prosthesis to partially restore his sight.[55]
Into the 21st century, Wonder continues to record and perform; though
mainly occasional appearances and guest performances, he did do two
tours, and released one album of new material, 2005's A Time to Love. His key appearances include performing at the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Paralympics in Salt Lake City,[56] the 2005 Live 8 concert in Philadelphia,[57] the pre-game show for Super Bowl XL in 2006, the Obama Inaugural Celebration in 2009, and the opening ceremony of the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens, Greece.[58]
He sang at the Michael Jackson memorial service in 2009,[59] at Etta James' funeral, in 2012,[60] and a month later at Whitney Houston's memorial service.[61]
Wonder's first new album in ten years, A Time to Love,
was released in October 2005 to lower sales than previous albums, and
lukewarm reviews—most reviewers appearing frustrated at the end of the
long delay to get an album that mainly copied the style of Wonder's
"classic period" without doing anything new.[62]
The first single, "So What the Fuss", was released in April. A second
single, "From the Bottom of My Heart", was a hit on adult-contemporary R&B radio. The album also featured a duet with India.Arie on the title track "A Time to Love". By June 2008, Wonder was working on two projects simultaneously: a new album called The Gospel Inspired By Lula, which will deal with the various spiritual and cultural crises facing the world, and Through The Eyes Of Wonder,
an album he has described as a performance piece that will reflect his
experience as a blind man. Wonder was also keeping the door open for a
collaboration with Tony Bennett and Quincy Jones concerning a rumored jazz album.[63]
If Wonder were to join forces with Bennett, it would not be for the
first time; Their rendition of "For Once in My Life" earned them a
Grammy for best pop collaboration with vocals in 2006.[34] Wonder's harmonica playing can be heard on the 2009 Grammy-nominated "Never Give You Up", featuring CJ Hilton and Raphael Saadiq.[64]
In October 2013, Wonder revealed that he had been recording new material for two albums, When the World Began and Ten Billion Hearts, in collaboration with producer David Foster, the albums to be released in 2014.[65]
Wonder did a 13-date tour of North America in 2007, starting in San
Diego on August 23; this was his first U.S. tour in over ten years.[66]
On September 8, 2008, Wonder started the European leg of his Wonder
Summer's Night Tour, the first time he had toured Europe in over a
decade. His opening show was at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham. During the tour, Wonder played eight UK gigs; four at the O2 Arena in London, two in Birmingham and two at the M.E.N. Arena in Manchester. Wonder's other stops in the tour's European leg also found him performing in the Netherlands (Rotterdam), Sweden (Stockholm), Germany (Cologne, Mannheim and Munich), Norway (Hamar), France (Paris), Italy (Milan) and Denmark (Aalborg). Wonder also toured Australia (Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane) and New Zealand (Christchurch, Auckland and New Plymouth) in October and November.[67] His 2010 tour included a two-hour set at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, a stop at London's "Hard Rock Calling" in Hyde Park, and appearances at England's Glastonbury Festival, Rotterdam's North Sea Jazz Festival, and a concert in Bergen, Norway and a concert in Dublin, Ireland at the O2 Arena on June 24.[67]
In 2000, Wonder contributed two new songs to the soundtrack for Spike Lee's Bamboozled album ("Misrepresented People" and "Some Years Ago").[68] In June 2006, Wonder made a guest appearance on Busta Rhymes' album, The Big Bang on the track "Been through the Storm". He sings the refrain and plays the piano on the Dr. Dre and Sha Money XL-produced track. He appeared again on the last track of Snoop Dogg's album Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, "Conversations". The song is a remake of "Have a Talk with God" from Songs in the Key of Life. In 2006, Wonder staged a duet with Andrea Bocelli on the latter's album Amore, offering harmonica and additional vocals on "Canzoni Stonate". Wonder also performed at Washington, D.C.'s 2006 "A Capitol Fourth" celebration. Wonder appeared on singer Celine Dion's studio album Loved Me Back to Life performing a cover of his 1985 song "Overjoyed".[69] The album was released in October 2013.
On February 23, 2009, Wonder became the second recipient of the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize for pop music, honored by president Barack Obama at the White House.[70] On March 6, 2010, Wonder was appointed a Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by French Culture Minister Frédéric Mitterrand.
Wonder had been due to be invested with this honor in 1981, but
scheduling problems prevented this from happening. A lifetime
achievement award was also given to Wonder on the same day, at France's
biggest music awards.[71] In June 2011, the Apollo Theater inducted Wonder into the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame.[72][73]
Legacy
A prominent figure in popular music during the latter half of the
20th century, Wonder has recorded more than 30 U.S. top ten hits and won
22 Grammy Awards[34] (the most ever won by a solo artist) as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award. He has also won an Academy Award for Best Song,[74] and been inducted into both the Rock and Roll[75] and Songwriters[76] halls of fame. He has also been awarded the Polar Music Prize.[77] American music magazine Rolling Stone named him the ninth greatest singer of all time.[78][79] In June 2009 he became the fourth artist to receive the Montreal Jazz Festival Spirit Award.[80]
He has had ten U.S. number-one hits on the pop charts as well as 20 R&B number one hits, and has sold over 100 million records, 19.5 million of which are albums;[81] he is one of the top 60 best-selling music artists with combined sales of singles and albums.[4]
Wonder has recorded several critically acclaimed albums and hit
singles, and writes and produces songs for many of his label mates and
outside artists as well. Wonder plays the piano, synthesizer, harmonica,
congas, drums, bass guitar, bongos, organ, melodica and Clavinet.
In his childhood, he was best known for his harmonica work, but today
he is better known for his keyboard skills and vocal ability. Wonder was
the first Motown artist and second African-American musician to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song, which he won for his 1984 hit single "I Just Called to Say I Love You" from the movie The Woman in Red.
Wonder's "classic period" is generally agreed to be between 1972 and 1977.[82][83][84] Some observers see in 1971's Where I'm Coming From
certain indications of the beginning of the classic period, such as its
new funky keyboard style which Wonder used throughout the classic
period.[84] Some determine Wonder's first "classic" album to be 1972's Music of My Mind,
on which he attained personal control of production, and on which he
programmed a series of songs integrated with one another to make a
concept album.[84] Others skip over early 1972 and determine the beginning of the classic period to be Talking Book in late 1972,[85] the album in which Wonder "hit his stride".[84]
His classic 1970s albums were very influential on the music world: the 1983 Rolling Stone Record Guide said they "pioneered stylistic approaches that helped to determine the shape of pop music for the next decade";[31] Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time included four of the five albums, with three in the top 90;[37] and in 2005, Kanye West said of his own work, "I'm not trying to compete with what's out there now. I'm really trying to compete with Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life. It sounds musically blasphemous to say something like that, but why not set that as your bar?"[86]
Personal life
Wonder has been married twice: to Motown singer/songwriter and frequent collaborator Syreeta Wright from 1970 until their amicable divorce in 1972; and since 2001 to fashion designer Kai Millard Morris.[87] In August 2012, Wonder filed for divorce from Kai Millard; they had been separated since October 2009.[88]
Wonder met Yolanda Simmons when she applied for a job as his secretary for his publishing company.[89] Simmons bore Wonder a daughter on February 2, 1975: Aisha Morris.[90][91] According to Wonder, the name Aisha is "African for strength and intelligence".[89] After she was born, Stevie said "she was the one thing that I needed in my life and in my music for a long time.[89]
It was this in mind, she was the inspiration for his hit single "Isn't
She Lovely". Aisha Morris is a singer who has toured with her father and
accompanied him on recordings, including his 2005 album, A Time 2 Love.
Wonder has two sons with Kai Millard Morris; the elder is named Kailand
and he occasionally performs as a drummer on stage with his father. The
younger son, Mandla Kadjay Carl Stevland Morris, was born on May 13,
2005, his father's 55th birthday.[87]
In May 2006, Wonder's mother died in Los Angeles, at the age of 76. During his September 8, 2008 UK concert in Birmingham, he spoke of his decision to begin touring again following his loss: "I want to take all the pain that I feel and celebrate and turn it around." [92]
Wonder is expecting his ninth child, and his first with Tomeeka
Bracy, in late December. Originally thought to be triplets, only a
daughter is expected. They plan on naming her Nia.[93]
Wonder was introduced to Transcendental Meditation through his marriage to Syreeta Wright.[94]
Wonder's Taxi Productions owns Los Angeles radio station KJLH.[citation needed]
Discography
Main article: Stevie Wonder discography
Studio albums
- The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie (1962)
- Tribute to Uncle Ray (1962)
- With a Song in My Heart (1963)
- Stevie at the Beach (1964)
- Up-Tight (1966)
- Down to Earth (1966)
- I Was Made to Love Her (1967)
- Someday at Christmas (1967)
- Eivets Rednow (1968)
- For Once in My Life (1968)
- My Cherie Amour (1969)
- Signed, Sealed & Delivered (1970)
- Where I'm Coming From (1971)
- Music of My Mind (1972)
- Talking Book (1972)
- Innervisions (1973)
- Fulfillingness' First Finale (1974)
- Songs in the Key of Life (1976)
- Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants" (1979)
- Hotter than July (1980)
- The Woman in Red (1984)
- In Square Circle (1985)
- Characters (1987)
- Jungle Fever (1991)
- Conversation Peace (1995)
- A Time to Love (2005)
Live albums
- Recorded Live: The 12 Year Old Genius (1963)
- Stevie Wonder Live (1970)
- Live at the Talk of the Town (1970)
- Natural Wonder (1995)
Awards and recognition
Wonder has won 22 Grammy Awards:[34] as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996.[95]
| [show]Grammy Awards |
|---|
Wonder has been given a range of awards for his music, and for his civil rights work, including induction into the Songwriters and the Rock and Roll halls of fame; gaining a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Civil Rights Museum, being named one of the United Nations Messengers of Peace, and earning a Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2014.
| [show]Awards and recognition |
|---|
See also
 |
- Harry Mendell, who collaborated musically with Stevie Wonder on two albums
- List of Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones
- List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)
References
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- "Stevie Wonder: Blind faith". The Independent. July 12, 2008. Retrieved July 29, 2008.
- Alex Dobuzinskis (June 20, 2008). "Stevie Wonder embarks on "magical" summer tour". Reuters. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
- James E. Perone (2006). The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music. Greenwood Publishing. p. 83. ISBN 0-275-98723-X.
- "Singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder designated UN Messenger of Peace". Un.org. December 1, 2009. Retrieved April 27, 2010.
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- Craig Werner (2004). Higher Ground. Crown Publishers.
- Bob Gulla (2008). Icons of R&B and Soul. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 313.
- Bob Gulla (2008). Icons of R&B and Soul. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 314.
- Sharon Davis (2006). Stevie Wonder: Rhythms of Wonder. Robson. p. 26.
- Bill Dahl (February 28, 2011). Motown: The Golden Years. Krause Publications. p. 194.
- Christopher Golden (1995). Sophomore slumps. Carol Pub. Group. p. 176.
- Tenley Williams (January 1, 2002). Stevie Wonder. Infobase Publishing. p. 27.
- Tenley Williams (January 1, 2002). Stevie Wonder. Infobase Publishing. p. 28.
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- Tenley Williams (January 1, 2002). Stevie Wonder. Infobase Publishing. p. 36.
- James E. Perone (January 1, 2006). The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 13.
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- Posner, Gerald Motown: Music, Money, Sex and Power, p. 254.
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- Zeth Lundy (2007). 331⁄3 Songs in the key of life. Continuum. p. 16. ISBN 0-8264-1926-7.
- David McNamee (September 28, 2009). "Hey, what's that sound: Sampler". The Guardian.
- Andy Stewart. "Name Behind the Name: Bruce Jackson – Apogee, Jands, Lake Technology". Audio Technology (40).
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- Jim Bessman (April 23, 1994). "Stars Kiss Up on Forthcoming Mercury Tribute Compilation". Billboard.
- Jennifer Frey (August 5, 1996). "A Curtain Call in Atlanta". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved November 17, 2008.
- Matthew C. Whitaker (2011). Icons of Black America: Breaking Barriers and Crossing Boundaries, Volume 1. ABC-CLIO. p. 995.
- "Brand New Day (Import) (CD)". Tower.com. Retrieved November 17, 2008.
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- "Opening Ceremony Kicks Off Paralympics". KSL.com. March 7, 2002. Retrieved October 12, 2008.
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- "List of Celebrities and Dignitaries attending the Special Olympics World Summer Games ATHENS 2011". Athens2011.org. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
- "Michael Jackson Memorial Service: The Live Blog". mtv.com. Retrieved July 7, 2009.
- Michael Martinez (January 28, 2012). "Etta James remembered as an authentic voice at funeral". CNN. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
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- Graff, Gary (June 24, 2008). "Stevie Wonder Pressing On With New Albums". Billboard.com
- Dodds, Dan (November 17, 2008) "Call me Stevie!" Raphael Saadiq talks to Soul Jones http://www.souljonespresents.com
- "Stevie Wonder confirms first new albums in eight years." The Guardian. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
- "Stevie Wonder Announces Thirteen-Date Tour". rollingstone.com. August 2, 2007.
- "Stevie Wonder – Tours/Appearances". steviewonder.org.uk.
- "Bamboozled – Overview". allmusic. Retrieved November 17, 2008.
- Celine Dion's new album; radio.com
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- Allen, Floyd. "Stevie Wonder joins list of Apollo Legends Hall of Fame recipients". International Business Times AU. Retrieved: February 4, 2011.
- Feeney, Michael J. "Stevie Wonder inducted into Apollo Theater hall of fame with star-studded celebration in Harlem"
- Academy Awards Database. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved on October 11, 2008.
- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – Inductee list. Retrieved on October 11, 2008.
- Songwriters Hall of Fame – Stevie Wonder. Retrieved on October 11, 2008.
- Polar Music Prize Retrieved on October 11, 2008
- Rolling Stone: The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
- Rolling Stone: The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time: #9 Stevie Wonder. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
- Spirit Award Retrieved on July 1, 2009
- "Top Selling Artists". http://riaa.com. January 2014.
- Emmett George Price (2011). Encyclopedia of African American Music, Volume 3. ABC-CLIO. p. 894. ISBN 9780313341991.
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- Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2001). All music guide: the definitive guide to popular music (4 ed.). Hal Leonard Corporation. pp. 447–448. ISBN 0-87930-627-0.
- Alfred William Cramer (2009). Musicians and composers of the 20th century 5. Salem Press. p. 1645. ISBN 1-58765-517-9.
- Jones, Steve (August 21, 2005). "West hopes to register with musical daring". USA Today.
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- Stephen M. Silverman (August 3, 2012). "Stevie Wonder Files for Divorce". People.
- Woman's Own magazine, July 1978, pp. 65–68. Book extract from "Stevie Wonder" by Constanza Elsner, published by Everest.
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- ""I Wish" – Stevie Wonder". Superseventies.com. October 16, 1976. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
- "Wonderful return for Stevie fans". BBC News. September 9, 2008. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
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- "Stevie Wonder can still find sunshine in his life". The Toronto Star: B2. May 23, 1989. "His marriage to former Motown secretary Syreeta Wright had introduced him to transcendental meditation, which Wright was qualified to teach."
- "Lifetime Achievement Award". GRAMMY.com. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
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- "MI Walk of Fame Announces First Inductees". Michigan Walk of Fame. March 14, 2006. Retrieved October 12, 2008.
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- "President Obama Announces the Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients". The White House. November 10, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
- Sources
- The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music, James E Perone, Greenwood Publishing, 2006
- Higher Ground: Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Curtis Mayfield, and the Rise and Fall of American Soul, Craig Hansen Werner, Crown Publishers, 2004
- Blind Faith: The Miraculous Journey of Lula Hardaway, Stevie Wonder's Mother, Dennis Love, Simon & Schuster, 2007
- Stevie Wonder, Tenley Williams, Infobase Publishing, 2002
- Songs in the Key of Life, Zeth Lundy, Continuum, 2007
- Motown: The Golden Years, Bill Dahl, Krause Publications, 2011
- Stevie Wonder: Musician, Jeremy K. Brown, Infobase Publishing, 2010
- Icons of R&B and Soul, Bob Gulla, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2008
External links
 |
Wikiquote has quotations related to: Stevie Wonder |
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Stevie Wonder. |
- Official website
- Stevie Wonder discography at Discogs
- Stevie Wonder at the Internet Movie Database
- Stevie Wonder collected news and commentary at The New York Times
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