Today is Stevie Wonder's 72nd birthday. Here are a few songs from the master. (All following notes are from the KEXP.org website.)
"This song, the only collaboration between Stevie Wonder and a solo David Ruffin, was recorded in 1970 and first intended for Gladys Knight & the Pips.
Wonder himself was at a personal crossroads at the time. Regarding this song, he told Rolling Stone in 1973:
"In the midst of all that, I was in the process of gettin’ my thing together and decidin’ what I was gonna do with my life. This was like I was 20, goin’ on 21, and so a lot of things were left somewhat un-followed-up by me. I would get the product there and nobody would listen and I’d say, “****it”…I wouldn’t worry about it."
Although this song would remain unreleased in Ruffin’s lifetime, it was finally issued on his 2006 set The Motown Solo Albums, Vol. 2."
"Bob Marley and Stevie Wonder first met during a concert in Jamaica on October 4th, 1975 - The Wonder Dream Concert was also called "The Wailers Reunion Show," as it was one of the few (and final) times that all three original Wailers (Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailers) performed on stage together since Peter and Bunny left the band after the Burnin' tour in 1973.
The event was organized as a benefit concert for Jamaican Institute for the Blind, featuring Stevie Wonder and Bob Marley & The Wailers as the headliners, with Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes and Third World as the openers. It took place at Jamaica's National Stadium in Kingston, and early bird tickets started at only $3! - Stevie donated half his earnings from the show to the Jamaican Society for the Blind. Bob was so inspired by this and took that energy into creating what later became the Smile Jamaica Concert in 1976."
"Another Stevie-penned gem for LaBelle's 1973 album Pressure Cookin'"
"The Jacksons with a Stevie-penned gem."
"Wonder performed this song on Sesame Street in 1973 during the show's fourth season. It was recorded at the show's New York studios at a time when Wonder and his band were playing lots of gigs, and they treated the Sesame Street performance just like any other, extending it to nearly 7 minutes, complete with intricate musical shifts directed by Wonder. Video of the performance shows kids and puppets having a blast on the set, but the band remained focused, since getting distracted by a monster would not be a valid excuse for missing a change.:"
