"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 US '' Billboard'' R&B singles chart, reaching number five on ''Billboard's'' pop singles chart in the fall of 1980 and peaking at number two on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and number one in New Zealand.

History

The song, built on a heavy

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

feel, is an ode to reggae legend

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

; Wonder had been performing live with Marley (billing him as an opening act) on his US tour in the fall of that year. Lyrics mention "children of Jah", "Marley's Hot on the box" and the end of the civil war in Zimbabwe. The song has a similar feel to Marley's own song " Jamming," from his 1977 album '' Exodus.''

Personnel

* Stevie Wonder – vocals, Fender Rhodes, clavinet *

Nathan Watts Nathan or Natan may refer to: People *Nathan (given name), including a list of people and characters with this name *Nathan (surname) *Nathan (prophet), a person in the Hebrew Bible * Nathan (son of David), biblical figure, son of King David an ...

– bass * Benjamin Bridges – guitar *

Dennis Davis Dennis Davis (August 28, 1949 – April 6, 2016) was an American drummer and session musician best known for his work with David Bowie, playing on ten albums - including seven successive studio albums - during the singer's classic mid- and lat ...

– drums * Earl DeRouen – percussion * Isaiah Sanders – organ * Hank Redd – saxophone * Larry Gittens – trumpet * Rick Zunigar – guitar * Background vocals –

Angela Winbush Angela Lisa Winbush (born January 18, 1955) is an American R&B/soul singer-songwriter, musician and record producer who rose to fame first in the 1980s R&B duo René & Angela, also scoring hits as a solo artist. To date, Winbush has sold over ...

, Alexandra Brown Evans, Shirley Brewer, Marva Holcolm

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

DJ Luck & MC Neat version

"Master Blaster (Jammin')" was covered by

UK garage UK garage, abbreviated as UKG, is a genre of electronic dance music which originated in England in the early to mid-1990s. The genre was most clearly inspired by garage house, but also incorporates elements from dance-pop, R&B, and jungle. It ...

duo DJ Luck & MC Neat featuring singer JJ, initially titled as "On da Street" which was released on the ''Red Rose EP'' in 1999. The following year, on 15 May 2000, the song was released as a single and retitled as "Masterblaster 2000". This version was a top-five hit, peaking at number five on the

. It samples the All-Star Remix of "

No Diggity "No Diggity" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet as the first single for their second studio album, '' Another Level'' (1996), featuring Dr. Dre and Queen Pen. Released on July 29, 1996, the song reached number one on the US ''Billboard ...

" by

Blackstreet Blackstreet (often stylized as BLACKstreet) is an American R&B group founded in 1991 by record producers Chauncey "Black" Hannibal, and Teddy "Street" Riley. The group has released four albums with Interscope Records until 2003. They achieved ...

, which itself samples "As Long as I've Got You" by the Charmels. In November 2016, UK duo

Gorgon City Gorgon City are an English electronic music production duo consisting of two North London producers Kye "Foamo" Gibbon and Matt "RackNRuin" Robson-Scott. Their 2013 debut single " Real" peaked at number 44 on the UK Singles Chart. They are also w ...

compiled a list of their top UK garage songs for '' Billboard'', with "Masterblaster 2000" at number 29. In 2018, the House & Garage Orchestra together with MC Neat and Oggie recorded an orchestral version for the UK garage covers album ''

Garage Classics ''Garage Classics'' is the debut album by the House & Garage Orchestra, released on 30 November 2018 on the New State Music label. It was released on CD and as a digital download. The album was produced by Darren Tate and Alex Mereier (Shy Cookie ...

''.

Charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 1980 songs 1980 singles 2000 singles American reggae songs Cashbox number-one singles Motown singles Number-one singles in Austria Number-one singles in New Zealand Number-one singles in Sweden Number-one singles in Switzerland Number-one singles in Italy Stevie Wonder songs Songs about Bob Marley Songs written by Stevie Wonder Tamla Records singles Song recordings produced by Stevie Wonder