"Knocks Me Off My Feet" is a song written and performed by American recording artist

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

, from his 1976 album ''

Songs in the Key of Life ''Songs in the Key of Life'' is the eighteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter and musician Stevie Wonder. A double album, it was released on September 28, 1976, by Tamla Records, a division of Motown. It was recorded primarily at Crys ...

''. It was not released as a single, though it was released as a

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

to "

I Ain't Gonna Stand for It "I Ain't Gonna Stand for It" is the second single from Stevie Wonder's 1980 album, '' Hotter Than July''. It reached number four on the ''Billboard'' R&B singles chart and number 11 on the Hot 100. It also hit number 10 on the UK Singles Chart. ...

" four years later, in 1980. The song has also been covered by numerous artists, including R&B singer

Donell Jones Donell Jones (born May 22, 1973) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is most notable for the hits "U Know What's Up", " Where I Wanna Be", and his cover of Stevie Wonder's "Knocks Me Off My Feet". Jones' first studio alb ...

, who released his version as a single in 1996. Other notable recordings include those by

Tevin Campbell Tevin Jermod Campbell (born November 12, 1976) is an American singer and songwriter. He performed gospel in his local church from an early age. Following an audition for jazz musician Bobbi Humphrey in 1988, Campbell was signed to Warner Bros. Re ...

and

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

, both also released in 1996. It is a love song, in which the narrator tells his paramour that her love for him "makes me weak, and knocks me off my feet". Despite websites stating the song is in

F Major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consis ...

, the song was actually composed in the Key of

C Major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

Donell Jones version

released a cover of "Knocks Me Off My Feet" as the second single from his debut album, '' My Heart'', in 1996. This version hit #49 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and #14 on the ''Billboard''

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs 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.

Other covers

It was covered by

in 1996 for the soundtrack to ''

A Thin Line Between Love and Hate ''A Thin Line Between Love and Hate'' is a 1996 American comedy thriller film. It tells the story of Darnell Wright (Martin Lawrence), a ladies' man who finds himself stalked by one of his obsessed lovers: Brandi (Lynn Whitfield), an attractive ...

''. This version, though it was not released as a single, still managed to reach #75 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay (previously known as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay) is a chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the top R&B and hip hop songs in the United States, based on audience impressions from a panel of radio stations monitored ...

chart. The song was covered by

on his 1996 album ''

Your Secret Love ''Your Secret Love'' is the tenth studio album by American R&B recording artist Luther Vandross, released by Epic in October 1996. The album's title track won the Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and was nominated for Best R&B Song at the 39t ...

''. Other artists who have covered the song include

Jeffrey Osborne Jeffrey Linton Osborne (born March 9, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and lyricist. He is the former drummer and lead singer of the American R&B/soul group L.T.D., with whom he began his musical career in 1970. Biography Earl ...

Najee Jerome Najee Rasheed (born November 4, 1957, New York City), known professionally as Najee, is an American Jazz-Smooth jazz, Smooth Jazz saxophonist and flautist. Early life Najee was born in the lower west side of Manhattan in New York City and ...

and Marco Sison. The song has been performed by various contestants on singing competition television shows, including Adam Garner on ''

Pop Idol ''Pop Idol'' is a British music competition television series created by Simon Fuller which ran on ITV from 2001 to 2003. The aim of the show was to decide the best new young pop singer (or "pop idol") in the UK based on viewer voting and par ...

'', Andrew Boderick on ''

Canadian Idol ''Canadian Idol'' is a Canadian reality television competition show which aired on CTV, based on the British show ''Pop Idol''. The show was a competition to find the most talented young singer in Canada, and was hosted by Ben Mulroney. Jon Dore ...

'' and

Elliott Yamin Efraym Elliott Yamin ( he, אפרים אליוט ימין; born July 20, 1978) is an American singer known for his hit single " Wait for You" and for placing third on the fifth season of ''American Idol''. His self-titled album, released Marc ...

Sanjaya Malakar Sanjaya Joseph Malakar (born September 10, 1989) is an American singer, who was a finalist on the sixth season of ''American Idol''. He gained national attention on the series, controversially advancing to 7th place with public votes, despite bei ...

and Jermaine Jones on different seasons of ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

''. In a scene from the movie ''

Beauty Shop ''Beauty Shop'' is a 2005 American comedy film directed by Bille Woodruff. The film serves as a Spin-off (media), spin-off of the ''Barbershop (film), Barbershop'' film franchise, and stars Queen Latifah as Gina, a character first introduced in t ...

'', Joe (

Djimon Hounsou Djimon Gaston Hounsou (; ; born April 24, 1964) is a Beninese-American actor and model. He began his career appearing in music videos. He made his film debut in '' Without You I'm Nothing'' (1990) and earned widespread recognition for his role as ...

) is playing "Knocks Me Off My Feet" on the piano, capturing the attention of Gina (

Queen Latifah Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally as Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, actress, and singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, she signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released her debut album ''All Hail the Que ...

) and her piano prodigy daughter Vanessa (

Paige Hurd Paige Audrey-Marie Hurd (born July 20, 1992) is an American actress of mixed African American and Puerto Rican heritage. She is best known for her recurring role as Tasha Clarkson on the CW sitcom ''Everybody Hates Chris'', Samantha Grover in ...

) from Gina's salon beneath Joe's apartment.

Samples

The first two notes of the piano intro for "Knocks Me Off My Feet" were sampled by

Ol' Dirty Bastard Russell Tyrone Jones (November 15, 1968 – November 13, 2004), better known by his stage name Ol' Dirty Bastard (often abbreviated as ODB), was an American rapper. He was one of the founding members of the Wu-Tang Clan, a rap group primarily fr ...

on the 1995 song "

Shimmy Shimmy Ya "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" is the second single by Ol' Dirty Bastard, from the album '' Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version'' (1995). It was produced by fellow Wu-Tang Clan member RZA. The song was ranked number 59 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of ...

".The 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Beats of All Time: 45. Ol' Dirty Bastard "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" (1995)
''Complex'', November 9, 2012 The song's chorus was interpolated in the 2002 song " Thug Lovin'" by

Ja Rule Jeffrey Bruce Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule (), is an American rapper and actor. Born and raised in New York City, he debuted in 1999 with ''Venni Vetti Vecci'' and its lead single "Holla Holla". Durin ...

featuring

Bobby Brown Robert Barisford Brown (born February 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and dancer. Brown, alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, is noted as one of the pioneers of new jack swing: a fusion of hip hop and R&B. Brown started h ...

References

{{authority control 1976 songs 1996 singles Stevie Wonder songs Donell Jones songs Songs written by Stevie Wonder Song recordings produced by Stevie Wonder