Stevie Wonder has been around the block. “Little” Stevie Wonder was only 12 years old when he signed on to Motown Records, and has been with them ever since. Wonder’s first hit was “Fingertips – Pt. 2” which rose to No. 1 as an R&B single and was compared with Ray Charles’ music. It was the golden age of Mowtown when Wonder came on the scene. Motown was pressing the best R&B records in the world from their factory in Detroit. Out of the golden age came a golden boy with an awe inspiring voice and musical skills that could only be attributed to a prodigy.
After his first hit single, Wonder moved toward ballads like “I Was Made to Love Her” (1967) and “For Once in My Life” (1968). When Wonder turned 20 he excised more control over his career within the Motown hit making machine and recorded “Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours”, which was the first single wonder produced on his own. The single was also the first to feature his female back up group comprised of Lynda Tucker Laurence,(who went on to become a member of The Supremes) Syreeta Wright, (who also co-wrote the song) and Vanetta Fields.
“Signed, Sealed, and Delivered” went on to be Wonder’s first Grammy nominated single. The Grammy that year went to Ronald Dunbar and General Johnson for writing the Clarence Carter song "Patches", which hasn’t withstood the test of time like Wonder’s single has.
More number one hits followed with “Superstition” was released in 1972, followed by “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” (1973), “I Wish” (1976) and “Sir Duke” (1977).
In the seventies Wonder wrote songs about politics and ghetto life. Wonder produced the album “Songs in the Key of Life” in this time, which was released in 1976. The album is considered by many to be Wonder’s magnum opus, and was highly ambitious and experimental at the time. “Songs in the Key of Life” became the best-selling album of Wonder’s career and the most critically acclaimed. The album earned a Diamond certification by the RIAA and was called “The best album ever made” by Elton John. Along with Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder is one of the greatest R&B artists that has ever lived.
The political nature of Wonder’s music changed when the eighties rolled around and he began to write sugary sweet tunes such as “I Just Called to Say I Love You” (1984).
Blind from birth, Wonder is at peace with himself: “I am glad that I am blind. I can see more of life this way.”
Wonder inspires people: “Because you are blind you can't? Because you're African-American you can't? Because you're poor you can't? I'm not feeling that and I never do, and I never will.”
Many people have said that Stevie Wonder is the kind of man who brings warmth to a room when he enters it.
Wonder once said: “There are people who nobody cares about. The trouble is many people take material things too seriously, thinking of themselves and nobody else.”
It is clear, through his songs, that Wonder thinks of the world when he composes music, writes, and sings. Wonder loves the world and the world loves him back.
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