"Hey Love" is a 1966 song by Stevie Wonder, from his album '' Down to Earth''. It was released as a B-side to "Travelin' Man," but it also reached the charts in its own right, peaking at number 90 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number nine on the

R&B Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart in the spring of 1967. It has been covered by other artists, including Bettye LaVette and

R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses. During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwi ...

Composition and recording

"Hey Love" is the closing track on Stevie Wonder's 1966 album '' Down to Earth''. Co-written with

Morris Broadnax Morris Ervin Broadnax (February 9, 1931 – February 17, 2009), sometimes credited as Luvel Broadnax (the name of his first wife), was an American songwriter for Motown in the 1960s, most notably working with Stevie Wonder with whom, along ...

and

Clarence Paul Clarence Otto Pauling (March 19, 1928 – May 6, 1995) better known and published as Clarence Paul, was an American songwriter, record producer and singer who was best known for his career with Detroit's Motown Records. Early life and career Bo ...

, it is the best-known of the four songs on the album for which Wonder received a writing credit. Ed Hogan of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

said the song's "dominant, looping rhythm echoes the tick-tock of a clock, which gives the down-tempo track a melancholy late-night vibe, emphasizing the feeling that the singer is giving his all in a one last chance to get the direct attention of the object of his affectations." In ''The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music,'' James E. Perone writes, "What is notable is Wonder's developing melodic sense over what is a fairly simple harmonic scheme that involves just the tonic, subdominant, and dominant chords... 'Hey Love' presents a hint of what was to come in his compositions and performances in the 1970s." "Hey Love" has been included on several Stevie Wonder greatest hits compilations, including ''Greatest Hits'' (1968), '' Looking Back'' (1977), ''Love Songs: 20 Classic Hits'' (1985), ''

At the Close of a Century ''At the Close of a Century'' is a box set album of Stevie Wonder's greatest hits from the 1960s through the 1990s. The box set spans four CDs and the songs are placed in chronological order. It features nearly all of his most critically acclaime ...

'' (1999), and '' The Definitive Collection'' (2002).

Chart performance

Cover versions and samples

* Bettye LaVette recorded a version of "Hey Love" that was released as a B-side to "

With a Little Help from My Friends "With a Little Help from My Friends" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, from their 1967 album ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and sung by drummer Ringo Starr (as Sgt. Pep ...

" in April 1969 on the Karen label. *

and

Public Announcement A public address system (or PA system) is an electronic system comprising microphones, amplifiers, loudspeakers, and related equipment. It increases the apparent volume (loudness) of a human voice, musical instrument, or other acoustic sound sou ...

covered the song as " Hey Love (Can I Have a Word)" on their 1992 album '' Born into the 90's''. The song features R. Kelly singing lyrics from the original and Mr. Lee rapping. It reached number one on Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart and number 15 on the R&B chart. * De La Soul sampled "Hey Love" for their song "Talkin' Bout Hey Love" from their 1991 album ''

De La Soul Is Dead ''De La Soul Is Dead'' is the second studio album by American hip-hop group De La Soul, released on May 14, 1991. The album was produced by Prince Paul, whose work on '' 3 Feet High and Rising'' was highly praised by music critics. The album w ...

''. As part of his #ThrowbackThursday Series in 2014,

Raekwon Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon The Chef, or simply Raekwon (), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream success ...

rapped over samples of "Hey Love."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hey Love 1966 songs 1966 singles Stevie Wonder songs Tamla Records singles Songs written by Clarence Paul Songs written by Stevie Wonder Songs written by Morris Broadnax