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
Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...
,
pop,
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...
,
gospel
Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...
,
funk, and
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
. A virtual
one-man band, Wonder's use of
synthesizers and other
electronic musical instruments during the 1970s reshaped the conventions of
R&B. He also helped drive such genres into the
album era
The album era was a period in English-language popular music from the mid-1960s to the mid-2000s in which the album was the dominant form of recorded music expression and consumption. It was primarily driven by three successive music recording ...
, crafting his
LPs as cohesive and consistent, in addition to socially conscious statements with complex compositions.
Blind since shortly after his birth, Wonder was a
child prodigy who signed with
Motown's
Tamla
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...
label at the age of 11, where he was given the professional name Little Stevie Wonder.
Wonder's single "
Fingertips
"Fingertips" is a 1963 hit single recorded live by "Little" Stevie Wonder for Motown's then Tamla label.
Overview
Written and composed by Wonder's mentors, Clarence Paul and Henry Cosby, "Fingertips" was originally a jazz instrumental recorde ...
" was a No. 1 hit on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1963, at the age of 13, making him the
youngest artist ever to top the chart. Wonder's critical success was at its peak in the 1970s. His "classic period" began in 1972 with the releases of ''
Music of My Mind'' and ''
Talking Book
''Talking Book'' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on October 27, 1972, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. This album and '' Music of My Mind'', released earlier the same y ...
'', the latter featuring "
Superstition", which is one of the most distinctive and famous examples of the sound of the
Hohner Clavinet keyboard. His works ''
Innervisions
''Innervisions'' is the sixteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on August 3, 1973, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. A landmark recording of Wonder's "classic period", the album has bee ...
'' (1973), ''
Fulfillingness' First Finale'' (1974) and ''
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 ...
'' (1976) all won the
Grammy Award for Album of the Year, making him the tied-record holder for the most
Album of the Year wins, with three. He is also the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases. Wonder began his "commercial period" in the 1980s; he achieved his biggest hits and highest level of fame, had increased album sales, charity participation, high-profile collaborations (including
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
and
Michael Jackson), political impact, and television appearances. Wonder has continued to remain active in music and political causes.
Wonder is one of the
best-selling music artists of all time, with sales of over 100 million records worldwide. He has won 25
Grammy Awards (the most by a solo artist) and one
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
(
Best Original Song
This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
, for the 1984 film ''
The Woman in Red''). Wonder has been inducted into the
Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame,
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and
Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the her ...
. He is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
's birthday a
federal holiday
Federal holidays in the United States are the eleven calendar dates that are designated by the U.S. government as holidays. On U.S. federal holidays, non-essential federal government offices are closed and federal government employees are paid ...
in the U.S. In 2009, he was named a
United Nations Messenger of Peace, and in 2014, he was honored with the
Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Early life
Wonder was born Stevland Hardaway Judkins in
Saginaw, Michigan, on May 13, 1950, the third of five children born to
Lula Mae Hardaway
Lula Mae Hardaway (January 11, 1930 – May 31, 2006) was an American songwriter and the mother of soul musician Stevie Wonder. She spent her early adult life in Saginaw, Michigan, but from 1975 until her death in 2006, lived in Los Angeles, Cal ...
,
and the second of Hardaway's two children with Calvin Judkins.
[Ribowski, Mark (2010). ''Signed, Sealed, and Delivered: The Soulful Journey of Stevie Wonder''. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.]
Hardaway had her first child, Stevie's half-brother Milton, prior to her relationship with Judkins; following her split with Judkins, she rekindled her relationship with Milton's father, coincidentally named Paul Hardaway, who by now had another child of his own - Stevie's stepbrother Larry - and with whom she went on to have two more children, Stevie's half-sister Renee and half-brother Timmy He was born six weeks premature which, along with the oxygen-rich atmosphere in the hospital incubator, resulted in
retinopathy of prematurity, a condition in which the growth of the eyes is aborted and causes the
retina
The retina (from la, rete "net") is the innermost, light-sensitive layer of tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focused two-dimensional image of the visual world on the retina, which then ...
s to detach, so he became blind.
When Wonder was four, his mother divorced his father and moved with her three children to
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
, Michigan, where Wonder sang as a child in a choir at the Whitestone Baptist Church. She later rekindled her relationship with her first child's father (whose surname was also coincidentally Hardaway)
and changed her own name back to Lula Hardaway, going on to have two more children.
When Stevie was signed by Motown in 1961, his surname was legally changed to Morris, which (according to Lula Mae Hardaway's authorized biography) was an old family name. Berry Gordy was responsible for creating the stage name of "Little Stevie Wonder".
He began playing instruments at an early age, including piano, harmonica, and drums. He formed a singing partnership with a friend; calling themselves Stevie and John, they played on street corners and occasionally at parties and dances.
As a child, Wonder attended Fitzgerald Elementary School in Detroit. After his first album was released, ''
The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie'' (1962), he enrolled in
Michigan School for the Blind
The Michigan School for the Blind (MSB) was a state-operated school for blind children in Michigan.
Its former academic campus is at 715 W. Willow Street in Lansing, Michigan, and is now The Abigail, a senior apartment complex. The building was l ...
in
Lansing, Michigan.
Career
1961–1969: Singles as a youth
![Stevie Wonder 1967 (1)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Stevie_Wonder_1967_%281%29.jpg)
In 1961, at the age of 11, Wonder sang his own composition, "Lonely Boy", to
Ronnie White
Ronald Anthony White (April 5, 1939 – August 26, 1995), usually referred to as Ronnie White, was an American singer, best known as the co-founder of The Miracles and its only consistent original member. White was also known for bringing Stevi ...
of
the Miracles
The Miracles (also known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles from 1965 to 1972) were an American vocal group that was the first successful recording act for Berry Gordy's Motown Records, and one of the most important and most influential group ...
;
[ White then took Wonder and his mother to an audition at Motown, where CEO ]Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record l ...
signed Wonder to Motown's Tamla label. Before signing, producer 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 ...
gave him the name Little Stevie Wonder. 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. He and his mother would be paid a weekly stipend to cover their expenses: Wonder received $2.50 () per week, and a private tutor was provided when Wonder was on tour.
Wonder was put in the care of producer and songwriter Clarence Paul, and for a year they worked together on two albums. ''Tribute to Uncle Ray
''Tribute to Uncle Ray'' is the second studio album by Stevie Wonder. Released by Motown in October, 1962, shortly after '' The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie''. It had been recorded first, when Wonder was just 11 years old. The album was an atte ...
'' was recorded first, when Wonder was still 11 years old. Mainly covers of Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...
's songs, the album 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. 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; released summer 1962, it almost broke into the ''Billboard'' 100, spending one week of August at 101. Two follow-up singles, "Little Water Boy" and "Contract on Love", both 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.[
At the end of 1962, when Wonder was 12 years old, he joined the ]Motortown Revue
The Motortown Revue was the name given to the package concert tours of Motown artists in the 1960s. Early tours featured Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Mary Wells, The Marvelettes, Barrett Strong, and The Contours as headlining acts, and gave then ...
, 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''.[ A single, "]Fingertips
"Fingertips" is a 1963 hit single recorded live by "Little" Stevie Wonder for Motown's then Tamla label.
Overview
Written and composed by Wonder's mentors, Clarence Paul and Henry Cosby, "Fingertips" was originally a jazz instrumental recorde ...
", from the album was also released in May, and became a major hit. 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?", 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. The single was simultaneously No. 1 on the R&B chart, the first time that had occurred. 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.[ During 1964, Wonder appeared in two films as himself, '']Muscle Beach Party
''Muscle Beach Party'' is the second of seven beach party films produced by American International Pictures. It stars Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello and was directed by William Asher, who also directed four other films in this series.
...
'' and ''Bikini Beach
''Bikini Beach'' is a 1964 American teen film directed by William Asher and starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello. The film belongs to the beach party genre of movies, popular in the 1960s. This is the third in the series of seven film ...
'', but these were not successful either. Sylvia Moy persuaded label owner Berry Gordy to give Wonder another chance.[
Dropping the "Little" from his name, Moy and Wonder worked together to create the hit "]Uptight (Everything's Alright)
"Uptight (Everything's Alright)" is a 1965 hit single recorded by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder for the Tamla (Motown) label. One of his most popular early singles, "Uptight (Everything's Alright)" was the first hit single Wonder co-wrot ...
",[ 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
"Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan in 1962.
It was released as a single and included on his album '' The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan'' in 1963. It has been described as a protest song and poses a series of rhetorical questions abou ...
",[ a ]Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
song, co-sung by his mentor, producer Clarence Paul.[.] He also began to work in the Motown songwriting department, composing songs both for himself and his label mates, including "The Tears of a Clown
"The Tears of a Clown" is a song written by Hank Cosby, Smokey Robinson, and Stevie Wonder and originally recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles for the Tamla Records label subsidiary of Motown, first appearing on the 1967 album '' Make It H ...
", a No. 1 hit for Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
The Miracles (also known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles from 1965 to 1972) were an American vocal group that was the first successful recording act for Berry Gordy's Motown Records, and one of the most important and most influential groups ...
(it was first released in 1967, mostly unnoticed as the last track of their '' Make It Happen'' LP, but eventually became a major success when re-released as a single in 1970, which prompted Robinson to reconsider his intention of leaving the group).
In 1968, he recorded an album of instrumental soul/jazz tracks, mostly harmonica solos, under the title '' Eivets Rednow'', which is "Stevie Wonder" spelled backward. The album failed to get much attention, and its only single, a cover of Burt Bacharach's and Hal David's "Alfie
Alfie may refer to:
Theatre and film
* ''Alfie'' (play), a 1963 play by Bill Naughton
* ''Alfie'' (1966 film), a film based on the play starring Michael Caine
* ''Alfie'' (2004 film), a remake of the 1966 film
* ''Alfie'' (2013 film), an Indi ...
", only reached number 66 on the U.S. Pop charts and number 11 on the US Adult Contemporary charts. Nonetheless, he managed to score several hits between 1968 and 1970 such as "I Was Made to Love Her
"I Was Made to Love Her" is a soul music song recorded by American musician Stevie Wonder for Motown's Tamla label in 1967. The song was written by Wonder, his mother Lula Mae Hardaway, Sylvia Moy, and producer Henry Cosby and included on Wonder' ...
",[ "]For Once in My Life
"For Once in My Life" is a song written by Ron Miller and Orlando Murden for Motown Records' Stein & Van Stock publishing company, and first recorded in 1965.
It was written and first recorded as a slow ballad. There are differing accounts of ...
" and "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours
"Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)" is a soul song, by American musician Stevie Wonder, released in June 1970 as a single on Motown's Tamla label. It spent six weeks at number one on the U.S. R&B chart and peaked at number three on the U.S ...
". A number of Wonder's early hits, including " My Cherie Amour", "I Was Made to Love Her", and "Uptight (Everything's Alright)", were co-written with Henry Cosby
Henry R. "Hank" Cosby (May 12, 1928 – January 22, 2002) was an American songwriter, arranger, producer and musician who worked for Motown Records from its formative years. Along with Sylvia Moy, Cosby was a key collaborator with Stevie Wonder ...
. The hit single "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours
"Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)" is a soul song, by American musician Stevie Wonder, released in June 1970 as a single on Motown's Tamla label. It spent six weeks at number one on the U.S. R&B chart and peaked at number three on the U.S ...
" was his first-ever self-produced song.
In 1969, Wonder participated in the Sanremo Music Festival
The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival () and commonly known as just (), is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony, held annually in the city of Sanremo, Liguria. It is the longest-running annua ...
with the song "Se tu ragazza mia", in conjunction with Gabriella Ferri
Gabriella Ferri (18 September 1942 – 3 April 2004) was an Italian singer born in Rome.
Ferri's career began in a Milan nightclub in 1963. By 1965, she had broken into the Rome singing scene by singing popular Roman songs, thereby becoming ...
. Between 1967 and 1970, he recorded four 45 rpm singles and an Italian LP.
Wonder's appearance at the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival
The Harlem Cultural Festival was a series of events, mainly music concerts, held annually in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, between 1967 and 1969 which celebrated African American music and culture and promoted Black pride. The most successful ...
opens the 2021 music documentary, '' Summer of Soul''. Wonder plays a drum solo during his set.
1970–1979: Classic albums period
In September 1970, at the age of 20, Wonder married Syreeta Wright
Syreeta Wright (February 28, 1946 – July 6, 2004), who recorded professionally under the single name Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter, best known for her music during the early 1970s through the early 1980s. Wright's career heights we ...
, a songwriter and former Motown secretary. Wright and Wonder worked together on the next album, ''Where I'm Coming From
''Where I'm Coming From'' is the 13th album by Stevie Wonder. The album was released by Motown Records on April 9, 1971 and peaked on the Billboard Pop Albums at #62, and on the '' Billboard'' R&B Albums Chart at #7. All nine songs were writ ...
'' (1971), Wonder writing the music, and Wright helping with the lyrics. Around this time, Wonder became interested in utilizing synthesizers after hearing albums by electronic
Electronic may refer to:
*Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor
* ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal
*Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device
*Electronic co ...
group Tonto's Expanding Head Band
Tonto's Expanding Head Band was a British-American electronic music duo consisting of Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff. Despite releasing only two albums in the early 1970s, the duo were influential in the development of electronic music a ...
. Wonder and Wright wanted to "touch on the social problems of the world", and for the lyrics "to mean something".[ 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 contemporaneous review by ]Vince Aletti
Vince Aletti (born 1945) is a curator, writer, and photography critic.
Career
Music industry
Aletti was a contributing writer for ''Rolling Stone'' from 1970 to 1989. He was the first person to write about disco in an article published by the m ...
in ''Rolling Stone'', Gaye's was seen as successful, while Wonder's was seen as failing due to "self-indulgent and cluttered" production, "undistinguished" and "pretentious" lyrics, and an overall lack of unity and flow. Also 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. Reaching his 21st birthday on May 13, 1971, Wonder allowed his Motown contract to expire.
During this period, he independently recorded two albums and signed a new contract with Motown Records. The 120-page contract was a precedent at Motown and gave Wonder a much higher royalty
Royalty may refer to:
* Any individual monarch, such as a king, queen, emperor, empress, etc.
* Royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen regnant, and sometimes his or her extended family
* Royalty payment for use of such things as int ...
rate. He 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. Wonder's lyrics dealt with social, political, and mystical themes as well as standard romantic ones, while musically he began exploring overdubbing and recording most of the instrumental parts himself. ''Music of My Mind'' marked the beginning of a long collaboration with Tonto's Expanding Head Band
Tonto's Expanding Head Band was a British-American electronic music duo consisting of Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff. Despite releasing only two albums in the early 1970s, the duo were influential in the development of electronic music a ...
(Robert Margouleff
Robert Margouleff is an American record producer, recording engineer, electronic music pioneer, audio expert, and film producer.
Career The Birth of TONTO
Margouleff was an early customer, friend and collaborator of fellow New Yorker and music in ...
and Malcolm Cecil
Malcolm Cecil (9 January 193728 March 2021) was a British jazz bassist, record producer, engineer and electronic musician. He was a founding member of a leading UK jazz quintet of the late 1950s, the Jazz Couriers, ), and with lyricist Yvonne Wright
Yvonne Lowrene Wright (October 31, 1951 – January 26, 2016) was an American songwriter and vocalist best known for co-writing with Stevie Wonder in the 1970s. Their songs appear on the albums ''Music of My Mind'', ''Talking Book'', ''Fulfilli ...
.
Released in late 1972, Wonder's album ''Talking Book
''Talking Book'' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on October 27, 1972, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. This album and '' Music of My Mind'', released earlier the same y ...
'' featured the No. 1 hit " Superstition", which is one of the most distinctive and famous examples of the sound of the Hohner Clavinet keyboard. ''Talking Book'' also featured "You Are the Sunshine of My Life
"You Are the Sunshine of My Life" is a 1973 single released by Stevie Wonder. The song became Wonder's third number-one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and his first number-one on the Easy Listening chart. It won Wonder a Grammy Award f ...
", 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. Wonder's touring with the Stones was also a factor behind the success of both "Superstition" and "You Are the Sunshine of My Life". Between them, the two songs won three Grammy Awards. On an episode of the children's television show ''Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) ...
'' that aired in April 1973, Wonder and his band performed "Superstition", as well as an original called "Sesame Street Song", which demonstrated his abilities with television.
''Innervisions
''Innervisions'' is the sixteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on August 3, 1973, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. A landmark recording of Wonder's "classic period", the album has bee ...
'', released in 1973, featured " Higher Ground" (No. 4 on the pop charts) as well as the trenchant "Living for the City
"Living for the City" is a 1973 single by Stevie Wonder from his ''Innervisions'' album. It reached number 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and number 1 on the R&B chart. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked the song number 104 on their 2004 list of th ...
" (No. 8). 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. ''Innervisions'' generated three more Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. The album is ranked No. 34 on ''Rolling Stone'''s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Wonder had become the most influential and acclaimed black musician of the early 1970s.
On August 6, 1973, Wonder was injured in a serious automobile accident while on tour in North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...
, when a car in which he was riding hit the back of a truck.[ Rockwell, John, "Stevie Wonder", in Miller, Jim (ed.), ''The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll'', ]Random House
Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...
/Rolling Stone Press
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its c ...
, Revised Edition, 1980, pp. 364–368, . 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. Despite orders from his doctor to refrain from performing, Wonder performed at a homecoming benefit for Shaw University in Raleigh in November 1973. Shaw was facing financial difficulties, so Wonder, who was a member of the university's board of trustees, rallied other acts such as Exuma
Exuma is a district of The Bahamas, consisting of over 365 islands, also called cays.
The largest of the cays is Great Exuma, which is 37 mi (60 km) in length and joined to another island, Little Exuma, by a small bridge. The capital ...
, LaBelle, and the Chambers Brothers
The Chambers Brothers are an American psychedelic soul band, best known for their eleven-minute 1967 psychedelic soul hit " Time Has Come Today". The group was part of the wave of new music that integrated American blues and gospel traditions w ...
to join the concert, which raised over $10,000 for the school's scholarship fund.
Wonder embarked on a European tour in early 1974, performing at the Midem
Midem is the acronym for Marché International du Disque et de l'Édition Musicale, which is organised annually in and around the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France. The trade show, organized by Reed MIDEM, a subsidiary of Re ...
convention in Cannes
Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. T ...
, at the Rainbow Theatre in London, and on the German television show ''Musikladen
''Der Musikladen'' (german: The Music Shop) was a West German music television programme that ran from 13 December 1972 to 29 November 1984. The show continued the 1960s '' Beat-Club'' under a new name, and in turn was replaced by ''Extratour' ...
''. On his return from Europe, he played a sold-out concert at Madison Square Garden in March 1974, highlighting both up-tempo material and long, building improvisations on mid-tempo songs such as "Living for the City
"Living for the City" is a 1973 single by Stevie Wonder from his ''Innervisions'' album. It reached number 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and number 1 on the R&B chart. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked the song number 104 on their 2004 list of th ...
". 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'
"You Haven't Done Nothin" is a 1974 funk single by Stevie Wonder, taken from his album '' Fulfillingness' First Finale'' and featuring background vocals by The Jackson 5. The politically aware song became Wonder's fourth Number 1 pop hit and his ...
" and the Top Ten " Boogie on Reggae Woman". The Album of the Year was again one of three Grammys won.
The same year, Wonder took part in a Los Angeles jam session with ex- Beatles John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
and Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
, that would become known as the bootleg album ''A Toot and a Snore in '74
''A Toot and a Snore in '74'' is a bootleg album consisting of the only known recording session in which John Lennon and Paul McCartney played together after the break-up of the Beatles in 1970. First mentioned by Lennon in a 1975 interview, m ...
''. He also co-wrote and produced the 1974 Syreeta Wright album '' Stevie Wonder Presents: Syreeta''.
On October 4, 1975, Wonder performed at the historic " Wonder Dream Concert" in Kingston, Jamaica, a benefit for the Jamaican Institute for the Blind. In 1975, he played harmonica on two tracks on Billy Preston's album ''It's My Pleasure
''It's My Pleasure'' is the tenth studio album by Billy Preston, released in June 1975 (July in the UK) on A&M Records. The album shows the modernisation of Preston's music, placing a heavier emphasis on synthesizers. It was also his first colla ...
''.
By 1975, at the age of 25, Wonder had won two consecutive Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
s: in 1974 for ''Innervisions'' and in 1975 for ''Fulfillingness' First Finale''. In 1976, when Paul Simon won the Album of the Year Grammy for his ''Still Crazy After All These Years
''Still Crazy After All These Years'' is the fourth solo studio album by Paul Simon. Recorded and released in 1975, the album produced four U.S. Top 40 hits: " 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" (No. 1), " Gone at Last" (No. 23), " My Little Town" (No. ...
'', he wryly noted, "I'd like to thank Stevie Wonder, who didn't make an album this year."
The double album-with-extra- EP, ''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 ...
'', was released in September 1976. Sprawling in style 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. 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. Two tracks became No. 1 Pop/R&B hits: "I Wish
I WiSH was a Japanese pop group consisting of two members, Ai Kawashima and nao. Ai is responsible for the vocals and occasionally plays the piano also with nao on the keyboard or piano. Their most notable track is and was in the Oricon ranking ...
" and "Sir Duke
"Sir Duke" is a song composed and performed by Stevie Wonder from his 1976 album ''Songs in the Key of Life''. Released as a single in 1977, the track topped the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and Black Singles charts, and reached number two in the UK ...
". The baby-celebratory "Isn't She Lovely
"Isn't She Lovely" is a song by Stevie Wonder from his 1976 album, ''Songs in the Key of Life''. The lyrics celebrate the birth of his daughter, Aisha Morris. Wonder collaborated on the song with Harlem songwriter and studio owner Burnetta "Bunny ...
?" 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.[ The album ranks 4th on '']Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
''s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
Until 1979's '' Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"'', his only further 1970s release was the retrospective three-disc album '' Looking Back'' (1977), an anthology of his early Motown period.
1980–1990: Commercial albums period
The mainly instrumental soundtrack album '' Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"'' (1979), was composed using an early music sampler called a Computer Music Melodian. It was also his first digital recording
In digital recording, an audio or video signal is converted into a stream of discrete numbers representing the changes over time in air pressure for audio, or chroma and luminance values for video. This number stream is saved to a storag ...
, and one of the earliest popular albums to use the technology, which Wonder used for all subsequent recordings. Wonder toured briefly with an orchestra in support of the album, and used a Fairlight CMI
The Fairlight CMI (short for Computer Musical Instrument) is a digital synthesizer, sampler, and digital audio workstation introduced in 1979 by Fairlight.
— with links to some Fairlight history and photos
It was based on a commercial lic ...
sampler onstage. In this year Wonder also wrote and produced the dance hit " Let's Get Serious", performed by Jermaine Jackson
Jermaine La Jaune Jackson (born December 11, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter and bassist. He is best known for being a member of the Jackson family. From 1964 to 1975, Jermaine was second vocalist after his brother Michael of The Jackso ...
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 Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
's birthday as a national holiday. The album also included "Master Blaster (Jammin')
"Master Blaster (Jammin')" is a 1980 song by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released as the lead single from his nineteenth studio album, '' Hotter than July'' (1980). It was a major hit, spending seven weeks at number one on the U ...
", " 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
"Do I Do" is a song written and performed by American singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder, first released in 1982 on the compilation album, '' Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium I'' (1982). The single peaked at #2 on the US '' Billboard'' soul ...
" (which featured Dizzy Gillespie), "That Girl
''That Girl'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from September 8, 1966 to March 19, 1971. It starred Marlo Thomas as the title character Ann Marie, an aspiring (but only sporadically employed) actress, who moves from her hometown of Brewste ...
" (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
The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
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
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
in their paean to racial harmony, "Ebony and Ivory
"Ebony and Ivory" is a song that was released in 1982 as a single by Paul McCartney featuring Stevie Wonder. It was issued on 29 March that year as the lead single from McCartney's third solo album, ''Tug of War'' (1982). Written by McCartney ...
".
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
"I Just Called to Say I Love You" is a ballad written, produced, and performed by American R&B singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder. It was a major international hit, and remains Wonder's best-selling single to date, having topped a record 19 char ...
", 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
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...
in 1985. Wonder accepted the award in the name of Nelson Mandela and was subsequently banned from all South African radio by the Government of South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a parliamentary republic with three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a parliamentary system. Legislative authority is held by the Parliament of South Africa.
Executive authority ...
.
Incidentally, on the occasion of his 35th birthday, Stevie Wonder was honored by the United Nations Special Committee Against Apartheid
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1761 was passed on 6 November 1962 in response to the racist policies of apartheid established by the South African Government.
Condemnation of apartheid
The resolution deemed apartheid and the polici ...
for his stance against racism in South Africa that same year (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. Following the success of the album and its lead single, Wonder made an appearance on ''The Cosby Show
''The Cosby Show'' is an American television sitcom co-created by and starring Bill Cosby, which aired Thursday nights for eight seasons on NBC between September 20, 1984, until April 30, 1992. The show focuses on an upper middle-class Africa ...
'', in the episode "A Touch of Wonder", where he demonstrated his ability to sample.
The following year's ''In Square Circle
''In Square Circle'' is the twentieth studio album by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released in 1985. The album features the hit singles " Part-Time Lover" (No. 1), " Go Home" (No. 10), " Overjoyed" (No. 24), and "Land of La La" (No ...
'' 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
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock (streaming service), Peacock. ...
'' when he was the host. He was also featured in Chaka Khan's cover of Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...
's " I Feel For You", alongside Melle Mel
Melvin Glover (born May 15, 1961 in The Bronx), better known by his stage name Grandmaster Melle Mel (or simply Melle Mel) () is an American hip hop recording artist who was the lead vocalist and songwriter of Grandmaster Flash and the Furio ...
, 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)
"There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)" is a song by the British musical duo Eurythmics, released as the second single from their fifth studio album, '' Be Yourself Tonight'' (1985). It features a harmonica solo by American musician St ...
" and Elton John's "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues
"I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues" is a song by English musician Elton John, with music by John and Davey Johnstone and lyrics by Bernie Taupin. It is the first single from John's 17th studio album ''Too Low for Zero''. In the United ...
".
Wonder was in a featured duet with Bruce Springsteen on the all-star charity single for African Famine Relief, "We Are the World
"We Are the World" is a charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album '' We Are the World''. Wi ...
", and he was part of another charity single the following year (1986), the AIDS-inspired "That's What Friends Are For
"That's What Friends Are For" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager.
It was first recorded in 1982 by Rod Stewart for the soundtrack of the film '' Night Shift'', but it is better known for the 1985 cover version by Dionn ...
". He played harmonica on the album ''Dreamland Express
''Dreamland Express'' is the 18th studio album by American singer-songwriter John Denver released in June 1985. The singles from this album were "Dreamland Express" and "Don't Close Your Eyes, Tonight".
Track listing Side One
# "Dreamland Expr ...
'' 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
The Beach Boys are an American rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by the ...
' 1985 self-titled album; and played harmonica on " Can't Help Lovin' That Man" on ''The Broadway Album
''The Broadway Album'' is the twenty-fourth studio album by American singer Barbra Streisand, released by Columbia Records on November 4, 1985. Consisting mainly of classic show tunes, the album marked a major shift in Streisand's career. She had ...
'' by Barbra Streisand
Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers awar ...
.
In 1987, Wonder appeared on Michael Jackson's '' Bad'' album, on the duet "Just Good Friends". Jackson also sang a duet with him entitled "Get It" on Wonder's 1987 album ''Characters
Character or Characters may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk
* ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...
''. This was a minor hit single, as were "Skeletons" and "You Will Know". Wonder played harmonica on a remake of his own song, "Have a Talk with God" (from ''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 ...
'' in 1976), on Jon Gibson's album ''Body & Soul'' (1989).
1991–1999: ''Jungle Fever'' and 1996 Olympics
In the 1990s, Wonder continued to release new material, but at a slower pace. He recorded a soundtrack album for Spike Lee
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...
's film '' Jungle Fever'' in 1991. From this album, singles and videos were released for "Gotta Have You", "Fun Day" (remix only), "These Three Words" and "Jungle Fever". 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
''Natural Wonder'' is a live album by American musician Stevie Wonder, released in 1995 and recorded in Osaka, Japan and Tel Aviv, Israel. The tour featured different symphony orchestras at some venues, conducted by touring conductor Henry Panio ...
'' were released in the 1990s.
In 1992, Wonder went to perform at Panafest, a new international festival of music held biennially in Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
; it was during this trip that he composed many of the songs featured on ''Conversation Peace'', and he would describe in a 1995 interview the powerful impact his visit to that country had: "I'd only been there for 18 hours when I decided I'd eventually move there permanently." In 1994, as co-chair of Panafest that year, he headlined a concert at the National Theatre in Accra.
Among his other activities, Wonder played harmonica on one track for the 1994 tribute album '' Kiss My Ass: Classic Kiss Regrooved''; sang at the 1996 Summer Olympics closing ceremony
The Closing Ceremony of the 1996 Summer Olympics took place on August 4, 1996, at the Centennial Olympic Stadium in Atlanta, United States at approximately 8:00 PM EDT ( UTC−4). It was produced by Don Mischer.
The official motto of the closin ...
; collaborated in 1997 with Babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to:
Nicknames
* Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber
* Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician
* "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...
on "How Come, How Long
"How Come, How Long" is a song written, produced and performed by Babyface (Kenneth Edmonds). It was released as the third single from his fourth album, ''The Day'' (1996). It is a duet with American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder.
The lyrics d ...
", a song about domestic violence that was nominated for a Grammy award; and played harmonica on Sting's 1999 " Brand New Day". In early 1999, Wonder performed in the Super Bowl XXXIII halftime show.
In May 1999, Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
presented Wonder with an honorary doctorate degree in fine arts. In December 1999, Wonder announced that he was interested in pursuing an intraocular retinal prosthesis to partially restore his sight.
2000–present: Later career and collaborations
Into the 21st century, Wonder contributed two new songs to the soundtrack for Spike Lee
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...
's ''Bamboozled
''Bamboozled'' is a 2000 American satirical dark comedy-drama film written and directed by Spike Lee about a modern televised minstrel show featuring black actors donning blackface makeup and the resulting violent fallout from the show's success ...
'' album ("Misrepresented People" and "Some Years Ago"). 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''. In June 2006, Wonder made a guest appearance on Busta Rhymes' album ''The Big Bang
The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...
'', on the track "Been through the Storm". He sings the refrain and plays the piano on the Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
- and Sha Money XL
Sha or SHA may refer to:
Places
* Sha County, Fujian, China
* Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, (IATA code)
* Sia, Cyprus, also spelled ''Sha''
* Sagamihara Housing Area, an army installation in Japan
* Vehicle registration plates in t ...
–produced track. He appeared again on the last track of Snoop Dogg's album ''Tha Blue Carpet Treatment
''Tha Blue Carpet Treatment'' is the eighth studio album by West Coast hip hop recording artist Snoop Dogg. It was released on November 21, 2006, by Doggystyle Records and Geffen Records. It is also the final album to have Nate Dogg featured on ...
'', "Conversations". The song is a remake of "Have a Talk with God" from ''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 ...
''. In 2006, Wonder staged a duet with Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor and multi-instrumentalist. He was born visually impaired, with congenital glaucoma, and at the age of 12, Bocelli became completely blind, following a brain hemorrhage resulting fr ...
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
''A Capitol Fourth'' is an annual Independence Day concert special broadcast by PBS. It is presented from the west lawn of the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., and is also simulcast by NPR and the American Forces Network.
The ...
" celebration. His key appearances include performing at the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Paralympics
The 2002 Winter Paralympics, the eighth Paralympic Winter Games, were held in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, from March 7 to 16, 2002. A total of 416 athletes from 36 nations participated. They were the first Winter Paralympics in the Ameri ...
in Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...
, the 2005 Live 8 concert in Philadelphia, the pre-game show for Super Bowl XL
Super Bowl XL was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Seattle Seahawks and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion f ...
in 2006, the Obama Inaugural Celebration in 2009, and the opening ceremony of the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens, Greece.
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. The first single, "So What the Fuss
"So What the Fuss" is a song from Stevie Wonder's 2005 album '' A Time to Love''. The song features En Vogue and Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or fo ...
", 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
India Arie Simpson (born October 3, 1975), also known as India Arie (sometimes styled as india.arie), is an American singer and songwriter. She has sold over five million records in the US and ten million worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards ...
on the title track "A Time to Love".
Wonder did a 13-date tour of North America in 2007, starting in San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...
on August 23; this was his first U.S. tour in more than 10 years. On September 8, 2008, he 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 in the English Midlands
The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...
. During the tour, he played eight UK gigs; four at the O2 Arena O2 Arena may refer to:
*The O2 Arena (London)
*O2 Arena (Prague)
*The 3Arena
The 3Arena (originally The O2) is an indoor amphitheatre located at North Wall Quay in the Dublin Docklands in Dublin, Ireland. The venue opened as The O2 on 16 Decem ...
in London (filmed in HD and subsequently released as a live-in-concert release on DVD and Blu-Ray, ''Live At Last''), two in Birmingham and two at the M.E.N. Arena
Manchester Arena, currently referred to as the AO Arena for sponsorship reasons, is an indoor arena in Manchester, England, immediately north of the city centre and partly above Manchester Victoria station in air rights space. The arena has the ...
in Manchester.
Wonder's other stop in the tour's European leg also found him performing in the Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
(Rotterdam), Sweden (Stockholm), Germany (Cologne, Mannheim and Munich), Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
(Hamar), France (Paris), Italy (Milan) and Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
(Aalborg). Wonder also toured Australia (Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane) and New Zealand (Christchurch, Auckland and New Plymouth) in October and November. His 2010 tour included a two-hour set at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee
Manchester is a city in Coffee County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 12,213 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Coffee County. The city is located halfway between Nashville and Chattanooga on Interstate 24.
Manchester i ...
, a stop at London's Hard Rock Calling
Calling Festival (formerly Hyde Park Calling and Hard Rock Calling) was an annual music festival, formerly held in Hyde Park, London, from 2006 until 2012, and from 2013 in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London. In September 2013, Hard Rock In ...
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.
Wonder's harmonica playing can be heard on the 2009 Grammy-nominated "Never Give You Up", featuring CJ Hilton and Raphael Saadiq
Raphael Saadiq (; born Charles Ray Wiggins; May 14, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He rose to fame as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! In addition to his solo and group ...
.
Wonder sang at the Michael Jackson memorial service
A public memorial service for Michael Jackson was held on July 7, 2009, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, twelve days after his death. The event was preceded by a private family service at Forest Lawn Memorial Park's Hall of Li ...
in 2009, at Etta James' funeral, in 2012, a month later at Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed " The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston i ...
's memorial service, and at the funeral of Aretha Franklin in 2018.
Wonder appeared on singer Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
's studio album ''Loved Me Back to Life
''Loved Me Back to Life'' is the eleventh English-language and twenty-fifth studio album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released by Sony Music Entertainment on 1 November 2013. It was preceded by the lead single and title track, " Loved Me Back ...
'', performing a cover of his 1985 song "Overjoyed". The album was released in October 2013. He was also featured on two tracks on Mark Ronson
Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. He is best known for his collaborations with artists such as Duran Duran, Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lady Gaga, Lily Allen, R ...
's 2015 album ''Uptown Special
''Uptown Special'' is the fourth studio album by English record producer Mark Ronson. The album was released on 13 January 2015 in the US and 19 January 2015 in the UK. It is his first album in nearly five years, following '' Record Collection'' ...
''.
In October 2020, Wonder announced that he had a new vanity label
A vanity label (see related topic on vanity press) is an informal name sometimes given to a record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometim ...
released via Republic Records, So What the Fuss Records, marking the first time his music was not released through Motown Records. The announcement was paired with the release of two singles: " Can't Put It in the Hands of Fate", a "socially-conscious" funk track, and "Where Is Our Love Song", whose proceeds will go towards the organization Feeding America
Feeding America is a United States–based nonprofit organization that is a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks that feed more than 46 million people through food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and other community-based agencies. ...
.
In June of 2021, Wonder appeared in the documentary Summer of Soul, directed by Ahmir " Questlove" Thompson, showing the Harlem Cultural Festival
The Harlem Cultural Festival was a series of events, mainly music concerts, held annually in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, between 1967 and 1969 which celebrated African American music and culture and promoted Black pride. The most successful ...
of 1969. In never before seen footage, a young 19 year old Stevie Wonder is seen performing in front of thousands of people in Harlem. Wonder's performance shown in the documentary included “It’s Your Thing” by The Isley Brothers
The Isley Brothers ( ) are an American musical group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decade ...
and a drum solo. Wonder talks about the turning point made in his career during this time and how this helped him get out of being seen as just a child star.
In October of 2022, Wonder celebrated his 50th anniversary of his project Talking Book
''Talking Book'' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on October 27, 1972, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. This album and '' Music of My Mind'', released earlier the same y ...
. After 50 years the album is still being recognized for its timeless hits such as the No. 1 hit " Superstition" and "You Are the Sunshine of My Life
"You Are the Sunshine of My Life" is a 1973 single released by Stevie Wonder. The song became Wonder's third number-one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and his first number-one on the Easy Listening chart. It won Wonder a Grammy Award f ...
".
Future projects
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
Anthony Dominick Benedetto (born August 3, 1926), known professionally as Tony Bennett, is an American retired singer of traditional pop standards, big band, show tunes, and jazz. Bennett is also a painter, having created works under his birt ...
and Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
concerning a rumored jazz album. 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.
In 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
David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian musician, composer, arranger, record producer and music executive who chaired Verve Records from 2012 to 2016. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His music career spans mor ...
, to be released in 2014. The albums have not seen release.
In October 2020, while promoting his two recent singles, Wonder mentioned both ''Through the Eyes of Wonder'' and ''The Gospel Inspired by Lula'' as projects in development (the former as an album that may feature both singles, and the latter as a future album he may record with his former label Motown).
Legacy
Wonder is one of the most notable popular music
Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fu ...
figures of the second half of the 20th century. He is one of the most successful songwriters and musicians. Virtually a one-man band during his peak years, his use of synthesizers and further electronic musical instruments during the 1970s helped expand the sound of R&B. He is also credited as one of the artists who helped drive R&B into the album era
The album era was a period in English-language popular music from the mid-1960s to the mid-2000s in which the album was the dominant form of recorded music expression and consumption. It was primarily driven by three successive music recording ...
, by crafting his LPs as cohesive, consistent statements with complex sounds. His "classic period", which culminated in 1976, was marked by his funky keyboard style, personal control of production, and use of integrated series of songs to make concept albums. In 1979, Wonder used Computer Music Inc.'s early music sampler, the Melodian
Melodian Records was an Australian independent record label founded in 1988 by record producer and music journalist Ian Meldrum with Michael Gudinski and Amanda Pelman. The name ''Melodian'' is a combination of 'melody' and Meldrum and Ian.
B ...
, on his soundtrack album '' Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"''. This was his first digital recording
In digital recording, an audio or video signal is converted into a stream of discrete numbers representing the changes over time in air pressure for audio, or chroma and luminance values for video. This number stream is saved to a storag ...
and one of the earliest popular albums to use the technology, which Wonder used for all subsequent recordings.
He recorded several critically acclaimed albums and hit singles, and also wrote and produced songs for many of his label mates and outside artists as well. In his childhood, he was best known for his harmonica work, but today he is better known for his keyboard skills and vocal ability. He also plays the piano, synthesizer, harmonica, congas, drums, bongos
Bongos ( es, bongó) are an Afro-Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of small open bottomed hand drums of different sizes. They are struck with both hands, most commonly in an eight-stroke pattern called ''martillo'' (hammer). The ...
, organ, melodica
The melodica is a handheld free-reed instrument similar to a pump organ or harmonica. It features a musical keyboard on top, and is played by blowing air through a mouthpiece that fits into a hole in the side of the instrument. The keyboard usua ...
and Clavinet. Wonder has been credited as a pioneer and influence to musicians of various genres including pop, rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...
, soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...
, funk and rock.
Wonder's "classic period" is generally agreed to be between 1972 and 1976. Some observers see aspects of 1971's ''Where I'm Coming From
''Where I'm Coming From'' is the 13th album by Stevie Wonder. The album was released by Motown Records on April 9, 1971 and peaked on the Billboard Pop Albums at #62, and on the '' Billboard'' R&B Albums Chart at #7. All nine songs were writ ...
'' as certain indications of the beginning of Wonder's "classic period", such as its new funky keyboard style that Wonder used throughout the classic period. 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. Others skip over early 1972 and determine the beginning of the classic period to be in late 1972 with ''Talking Book
''Talking Book'' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on October 27, 1972, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. This album and '' Music of My Mind'', released earlier the same y ...
'', the album on which Wonder "hit his stride".
Wonder's albums during his "classic period" were considered very influential in the music world: the 1983 ''Rolling Stone Record Guide
''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...
'' said they "pioneered stylistic approaches that helped to determine the shape of pop music for the next decade"; In 2005, American recording artist Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...
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
''Innervisions'' is the sixteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on August 3, 1973, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. A landmark recording of Wonder's "classic period", the album has bee ...
'' and ''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 sounds musically blasphemous to say something like that, but why not set that as your bar?" ''Slate'' magazine's pop critic, Jack Hamilton, said: "Most Americans follow up their 21st birthdays with a hangover; Stevie Wonder opted for arguably the greatest sustained run of creativity in the history of popular music. Wonder's "classic period"—the polite phrase for when Stevie spent five years ferociously dunking on the entire history of popular music with the releases of ''Music of My Mind, Talking Book, Innervisions, Fulfillingness' First Finale,'' and ''Songs in the Key of Life'' ..We've never heard anything like it since, and barring another reincarnation, we never will again."
Wonder has recorded more than 30 U.S. top-ten hits, including ten U.S. number-one hits on the pop charts, well as 20 R&B number one hits. He has sold over 100 million records, 19.5 million of which are albums; he is one of the top 60 best-selling music artists with combined sales of singles and albums. Wonder was the first Motown artist and second African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...
musician to win an Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
for Best Original Song
This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
, which he won for his 1984 hit single "I Just Called to Say I Love You
"I Just Called to Say I Love You" is a ballad written, produced, and performed by American R&B singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder. It was a major international hit, and remains Wonder's best-selling single to date, having topped a record 19 char ...
" from the movie '' The Woman in Red''. Wonder won 25 Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
s (the most ever won by a solo artist), as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award
Lifetime achievement awards are awarded by various organizations, to recognize contributions over the whole of a career, rather than or in addition to single contributions.
Such awards, and organizations presenting them, include:
A
* A.C. ...
. His albums of the "classic period", ''Innervisions'' (1973), '' Fulfillingness' First Finale'' (1974) and ''Songs in the Key of Life'' (1976), all won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, making him the tied-record holder for the most Album of the Year wins, with three. He is also the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases. He has been inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, Rock and Rock Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the her ...
, and has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[Songwriters Hall of Fame – Stevie Wonder](_blank)
. Retrieved October 11, 2008. He has also been awarded the Polar Music Prize
The Polar Music Prize is a Swedish international award founded in 1989 by Stig Anderson, best known as the manager of the Swedish band ABBA, with a donation to the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. The award is annually given to one contemporar ...
.[Polar Music Prize](_blank)
Retrieved October 11, 2008. ''Rolling Stone'' named him the ninth greatest singer and fifteenth greatest artist of all time. In June 2009, he became the fourth artist to receive the Montreal Jazz Festival
The Festival International de Jazz de Montréal ( en, Montreal International Jazz Festival) is an annual jazz festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montreal Jazz Fest holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz fes ...
Spirit Award.
In 2003, ''Rolling Stone''s " 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" list included ''Innervisions
''Innervisions'' is the sixteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on August 3, 1973, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. A landmark recording of Wonder's "classic period", the album has bee ...
'' at number 23, ''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 ...
'' at number 56, ''Talking Book
''Talking Book'' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on October 27, 1972, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. This album and '' Music of My Mind'', released earlier the same y ...
'' at number 90, and '' Music of My Mind'' at number 284. In 2004, on their "500 Greatest Songs of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...
" list, ''Rolling Stone'' included " Superstition" at number 74, "Living for the City
"Living for the City" is a 1973 single by Stevie Wonder from his ''Innervisions'' album. It reached number 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and number 1 on the R&B chart. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked the song number 104 on their 2004 list of th ...
" at number 104, " Higher Ground" at number 261, and "You Are the Sunshine of My Life
"You Are the Sunshine of My Life" is a 1973 single released by Stevie Wonder. The song became Wonder's third number-one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and his first number-one on the Easy Listening chart. It won Wonder a Grammy Award f ...
" at number 281.
Wonder is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
's birthday a federal holiday
Federal holidays in the United States are the eleven calendar dates that are designated by the U.S. government as holidays. On U.S. federal holidays, non-essential federal government offices are closed and federal government employees are paid ...
in the United States. On October 21, 1974, with the Boston busing desegregation underway, Wonder spoke and led students in song at a lounge at the University of Massachusetts Boston
The University of Massachusetts Boston (stylized as UMass Boston) is a public research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the only public research university in Boston and the third-largest campus in the five-campus University of Massa ...
the day after he performed at the Boston Garden
The Boston Garden was an arena in Boston, Massachusetts. Designed by boxing promoter Tex Rickard, who also built the third iteration of New York's Madison Square Garden, it opened on November 17, 1928, as "Boston Madison Square Garden" (lat ...
.
Personal life
Marriages and children
Wonder has been married three times. He was married to Motown singer-songwriter and frequent collaborator Syreeta Wright
Syreeta Wright (February 28, 1946 – July 6, 2004), who recorded professionally under the single name Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter, best known for her music during the early 1970s through the early 1980s. Wright's career heights we ...
from 1970 until their amicable divorce in 1972. From 2001 until 2012 he was married to fashion designer Kai Millard. In October 2009, Wonder and Millard separated; Wonder filed for divorce in August 2012. In 2017 he married Tomeeka Bracy.
Wonder has nine children with five women. The mother of Wonder's first child is Yolanda Simmons, whom Wonder met when she applied for a job as secretary for his publishing company.['']Woman's Own
''Woman's Own'' is a British lifestyle magazine aimed at women.
Publication
''Woman's Own'' was first published in 1932 by Newnes. In its early years it placed women's rights and social problems firmly in the foreground. Its first "agony aunt" was ...
'' magazine, July 1978, pp. 65–68. Book extract from ''Stevie Wonder'' by Constanza Elsner, published by Everest. Simmons gave birth to Wonder's daughter Aisha Morris on February 2, 1975. After Aisha was born, Wonder said "she was the one thing that I needed in my life and in my music for a long time". Aisha was the inspiration for Wonder's hit single "Isn't She Lovely?" She is now a singer who has toured with her father and accompanied him on recordings, including his 2005 album '' A Time to Love''. Wonder and Simmons also had a son, Keita, in 1977.
In 1983, Wonder had a son named Mumtaz Morris with Melody McCulley. Wonder also has a daughter, Sophia, and a son, Kwame, with a woman whose identity has not been publicly disclosed. Wonder has two sons with second wife 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).
Wonder's ninth child, his second with Tomeeka Robyn Bracy, was born in December 2014, amid rumors that he would be the father to triplets.[Sierra Marquina]
"Stevie Wonder, 64, Welcomes Ninth Child, a Baby Girl Named Nia!"
''US Magazine'', December 17, 2014. This turned out not to be the case, and the couple's new daughter was given the name Nia, meaning "purpose" (one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa () is an annual celebration of African-American culture from December 26 to January 1, culminating in a communal feast called '' Karamu'', usually on the sixth day. It was created by activist Maulana Karenga, based on African harvest ...
).
The name of Wonder's first child with Bracy is not publicly known.
Family and health
On May 31, 2006, Wonder's mother Lula Mae Hardaway
Lula Mae Hardaway (January 11, 1930 – May 31, 2006) was an American songwriter and the mother of soul musician Stevie Wonder. She spent her early adult life in Saginaw, Michigan, but from 1975 until her death in 2006, lived in Los Angeles, Cal ...
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."
At a concert in London's Hyde Park on July 6, 2019, Wonder announced that he would be undergoing a kidney transplant
Kidney transplant or renal transplant is the organ transplant of a kidney into a patient with end-stage kidney disease (ESRD). Kidney transplant is typically classified as deceased-donor (formerly known as cadaveric) or living-donor transplantati ...
in September.
Religion and politics
Wonder was introduced to Transcendental Meditation
Transcendental Meditation (TM) is a form of silent mantra meditation advocated by the Transcendental Meditation movement. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi created the technique in India in the mid-1950s. Advocates of TM claim that the technique promotes ...
through his marriage to Syreeta Wright. Consistent with that spiritual vision, Wonder became vegetarian, and later a vegan
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. ...
, singing about it in October 2015 on ''The Late Late Show with James Corden
''The Late Late Show with James Corden'' (also known as ''Late Late'') is an American late-night talk show on CBS. It is the fourth and current iteration of '' The Late Late Show''. Airing in the U.S. from Monday to Friday nights at 12:37:28a ...
'' during the show's "Carpool Karaoke
Carpool Karaoke is a recurring segment on ''The Late Late Show with James Corden'', in which host James Corden invites famous musical guests to sing along to their songs with him whilst traveling in a car driven by Corden on a planned route usual ...
" segment.
Wonder joined Twitter on April 4, 2018, and his first tweet was a five-minute video honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
Dozens of famous personalities were rounded up in the video, which was titled "The Dream Still Lives". Each person involved shared their dream, calling back to King's popular speech in 1963. Wonder's first tweet took the Internet by storm, and he also encouraged viewers to share their own videos about their dreams with the hashtag #DreamStillLives.
Wonder has been a longtime Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
affiliated with black church
The black church (sometimes termed Black Christianity or African American Christianity) is the faith and body of Christian congregations and denominations in the United States that minister predominantly to African Americans, as well as their ...
es.
On August 31, 2018, Wonder performed at the funeral of Aretha Franklin at Detroit's Greater Grace Temple. He closed the ceremony with a rendition of the Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...
and his song " As".
Awards and recognition
Grammy Awards
Wonder has won 25 Grammy Awards, as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996. He is one of only two artists and groups who have won the Grammy for Album of the Year three times as the main credited artist, along with Frank Sinatra. Wonder is the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases.
, -
, rowspan="2", 1967
Events
January
* January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair.
* January 5
** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...
, rowspan="2", " Uptight"
, Best Rhythm & Blues Recording
,
, -
, Best Rhythm & Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Male or Female
,
, -
, 1969
This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon.
Events January
* January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco.
* January 5
**Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...
, "For Once in My Life
"For Once in My Life" is a song written by Ron Miller and Orlando Murden for Motown Records' Stein & Van Stock publishing company, and first recorded in 1965.
It was written and first recorded as a slow ballad. There are differing accounts of ...
"
, Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, rowspan="2", 1971
, rowspan="2", "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours
"Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)" is a soul song, by American musician Stevie Wonder, released in June 1970 as a single on Motown's Tamla label. It spent six weeks at number one on the U.S. R&B chart and peaked at number three on the U.S ...
"
, Best Rhythm & Blues Song
,
, -
, rowspan="3", Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
The Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance was awarded between 1968 and 2011. The award has had several minor name changes:
*In 1968 it was awarded as Best R&B Solo Vocal Performance, Male
*From 1969 to 1994 it was awarded as Best R&B V ...
,
, -
, 1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
, "We Can Work It Out
"We Can Work It Out" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. It was first issued as a double A-side single with "Day Tripper" in December 1965. It also appeared on the 1966 US release '' Yesterd ...
"
,
, -
, rowspan="6", 1974
, rowspan="2", " Superstition"
,
, -
, Best Rhythm & Blues Song
,
, -
, rowspan="3", "You Are the Sunshine of My Life
"You Are the Sunshine of My Life" is a 1973 single released by Stevie Wonder. The song became Wonder's third number-one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and his first number-one on the Easy Listening chart. It won Wonder a Grammy Award f ...
"
, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, Record of the Year
The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...
,
, -
, Song of the Year
,
, -
, ''Innervisions
''Innervisions'' is the sixteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, released on August 3, 1973, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. A landmark recording of Wonder's "classic period", the album has bee ...
''
, rowspan="2", Album of the Year
,
, -
, rowspan="6", 1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, rowspan="2", '' Fulfillingness' First Finale''
,
, -
, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, " Boogie On Reggae Woman"
, Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, "Living for the City
"Living for the City" is a 1973 single by Stevie Wonder from his ''Innervisions'' album. It reached number 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and number 1 on the R&B chart. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked the song number 104 on their 2004 list of th ...
"
, rowspan="2", Best Rhythm & Blues Song
,
, -
, "Tell Me Something Good
"Tell Me Something Good" is a song by Rufus and Chaka Khan, written by Stevie Wonder and released in 1974. The single was a hit in the United States, peaking at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and spent one week at number one on the ' ...
"
,
, -
, rowspan="2", Stevie Wonder
, rowspan="2", Best Producer of the Year
,
, -
, rowspan="7", 1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...
,
, -
, rowspan="2", "Contusion"
, Best Pop Instrumental Performance
The Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by m ...
,
, -
, Best Instrumental Composition
The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition (including its previous names) has been awarded since 1960. The award is presented to the composer of an original piece of music (not an adaptation), first released during the eligibility year. I ...
,
, -
, "Have A Talk With God"
, Best Inspirational Performance
,
, -
, rowspan="2", ''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 ...
''
, Album of the Year
,
, -
, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, "I Wish
I WiSH was a Japanese pop group consisting of two members, Ai Kawashima and nao. Ai is responsible for the vocals and occasionally plays the piano also with nao on the keyboard or piano. Their most notable track is and was in the Oricon ranking ...
"
, rowspan="2", Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, rowspan="4", 1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
, "Master Blaster (Jammin')
"Master Blaster (Jammin')" is a 1980 song by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released as the lead single from his nineteenth studio album, '' Hotter than July'' (1980). It was a major hit, spending seven weeks at number one on the U ...
"
,
, -
, '' Stevie Wonder's Journey Through The Secret Life Of Plants''
, Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special
,
, -
, Stevie Wonder
, Producer of the Year (Non-Classical)
,
, -
, " Let's Get Serious"
, rowspan="3", Best Rhythm & Blues Song
,
, -
, rowspan="7", 1983
The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning ...
, "That Girl
''That Girl'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from September 8, 1966 to March 19, 1971. It starred Marlo Thomas as the title character Ann Marie, an aspiring (but only sporadically employed) actress, who moves from her hometown of Brewste ...
"
,
, -
, rowspan="3", "Do I Do
"Do I Do" is a song written and performed by American singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder, first released in 1982 on the compilation album, '' Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium I'' (1982). The single peaked at #2 on the US '' Billboard'' soul ...
"
,
, -
, Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)
The Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by ...
,
, -
, rowspan="2", "Ebony and Ivory
"Ebony and Ivory" is a song that was released in 1982 as a single by Paul McCartney featuring Stevie Wonder. It was issued on 29 March that year as the lead single from McCartney's third solo album, ''Tug of War'' (1982). Written by McCartney ...
"
, Record of the Year
,
, -
, Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
Best or The Best may refer to:
People
* Best (surname), people with the surname Best
* Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer
Companies and organizations
* Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain
* Best Lock Corporation ...
,
, -
, " What's That You're Doing"
, Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal The Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1970 and 2011. From 1967 to 1969 and in 1971 the award included instrumental performances. The award had several minor name changes:
*From 1967 to 1968 the ...
,
, -
, rowspan="4", 1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...
, rowspan="2", "I Just Called to Say I Love You
"I Just Called to Say I Love You" is a ballad written, produced, and performed by American R&B singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder. It was a major international hit, and remains Wonder's best-selling single to date, having topped a record 19 char ...
"
, Song of the Year
,
, -
, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, "I Just Called to Say I Love You
"I Just Called to Say I Love You" is a ballad written, produced, and performed by American R&B singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder. It was a major international hit, and remains Wonder's best-selling single to date, having topped a record 19 char ...
(Instrumental)"
, Best Pop Instrumental Performance
,
, -
, '' The Woman In Red''
, rowspan="2", Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, rowspan="2", 1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
**Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal enter ...
, ''In Square Circle
''In Square Circle'' is the twentieth studio album by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released in 1985. The album features the hit singles " Part-Time Lover" (No. 1), " Go Home" (No. 10), " Overjoyed" (No. 24), and "Land of La La" (No ...
''
,
, -
, " Part-Time Lover"
, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, rowspan="2", 1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
, rowspan="2", "That's What Friends Are For
"That's What Friends Are For" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager.
It was first recorded in 1982 by Rod Stewart for the soundtrack of the film '' Night Shift'', but it is better known for the 1985 cover version by Dionn ...
"
, Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
,
, -
, Record of the Year
,
, -
, rowspan="2", 1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...
, rowspan="2", "Skeletons
A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of an animal. There are several types of skeletons, including the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside ...
"
, Best Rhythm & Blues Song
,
, -
, rowspan="3", Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
,
, -
, 1989
File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...
, ''Characters
Character or Characters may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk
* ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...
''
,
, -
, rowspan="3", 1992
, rowspan="2", " Gotta Have You"
,
, -
, rowspan="2", Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television
,
, -
, "Jungle Fever"
,
, -
, rowspan="2", 1996
, rowspan="2", "For Your Love
"For Your Love" is a rock song written by Graham Gouldman and recorded by English group the Yardbirds. Released in March 1965, it was their first top ten hit in both the UK and the US. The song was a departure from the group's blues roots ...
"
, Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance was awarded between 1968 and 2011. The award has had several minor name changes:
*In 1968 it was awarded as Best R&B Solo Vocal Performance, Male
*From 1969 to 1994 it was awarded as Best R&B V ...
,
, -
, Best Rhythm & Blues Song
,
, -
, 1997
File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...
, "Kiss Lonely Goodbye (Harmonica with Orchestra)
A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
"
, Best Pop Instrumental Performance
,
, -
, rowspan="2", 1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...
, rowspan="2", "How Come, How Long
"How Come, How Long" is a song written, produced and performed by Babyface (Kenneth Edmonds). It was released as the third single from his fourth album, ''The Day'' (1996). It is a duet with American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder.
The lyrics d ...
"
, Best Short Form Music Video
The Grammy Award for Best Music Video is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to performers, directors, and producers of quality short form music videos. Hon ...
,
, -
, rowspan="2", Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals
,
, -
, rowspan="3", 1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...
, "How Come, How Long" (Live)
,
, -
, rowspan="2", "St. Louis Blues"
, Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
,
, -
, Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)
,
, -
, rowspan="2", 2003
, "Love's In Need Of Love Today"
, Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
,
, -
, "Christmas Song"
, rowspan="3", Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals
,
, -
, 2005
, " Moon River"
,
, -
, rowspan="6", 2006
, "A Time To Love"
,
, -
, '' A Time To Love''
, Best R&B Album
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works on albums in the R&B music genre. Honors ...
,
, -
, "So What the Fuss
"So What the Fuss" is a song from Stevie Wonder's 2005 album '' A Time to Love''. The song features En Vogue and Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or fo ...
"
, Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
,
, -
, "How Will I Know"
, rowspan="2", Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
,
, -
, "So Amazing"
,
, -
, " From The Bottom Of My Heart"
, Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
,
, -
, 2007
, "For Once in My Life
"For Once in My Life" is a song written by Ron Miller and Orlando Murden for Motown Records' Stein & Van Stock publishing company, and first recorded in 1965.
It was written and first recorded as a slow ballad. There are differing accounts of ...
"
, Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals
,
, -
, 2009
, "Never Give You Up"
, Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
,
, -
, 2010
, " All About the Love Again"
, Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
,
Other awards and recognition
Wonder has been given a range of awards, both for his music and for his civil rights work, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Civil Rights Museum
The National Civil Rights Museum is a complex of museums and historic buildings in Memphis, Tennessee; its exhibits trace the history of the civil rights movement in the United States from the 17th century to the present. The museum is built aro ...
, being named one of the United Nations Messengers of Peace United Nations Messenger of Peace is a special post-nominal honorific title of authority bestowed by the United Nations to "distinguished individuals, carefully selected from the fields of art, music, literature and sports, who have agreed to help f ...
, and earning a Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
in 2014, presented at a ceremony in the White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
on 24 November that year.
In December 2016, the City of Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at the ...
recognized Wonder's legacy by renaming a portion of his childhood street, Milwaukee Avenue West, between Woodward Avenue and Brush Street, as "Stevie Wonder Avenue". He was also awarded an honorary key to the city, presented by Mayor Mike Duggan.
Honorary degrees
Stevie Wonder has received many honorary degrees in recognition of his music career. These include:
Discography
See also
* List of ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones
* List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)
This is a list of recording artists who have reached number one on '' Billboard'' magazine's weekly singles chart(s). This list spans from the issue dated January 1, 1955 to the present. Prior to the creation of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, ''Bil ...
References
External links
*
*
*
*
*
Stevie Wonder Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2016)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wonder, Stevie
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