A Man of Value
STEVIE WONDER’S HIT SONGS FOR OTHERS
For a superstar who hasn’t had an album released in more than 20 years, Stevie Wonder sure keeps himself in the news, one way or another.
His appearance this past March 1 at the opening of a Marathon Burger branch in Long Beach, California, is just one example. The diner is a living memorial to the rapper, entrepreneur and community activist Nipsey Hussle, who was killed in 2019, and is operated by his brother. Wonder was among various music stars who showed up, including Snoop Dogg and YG. Presumably he had a burger.
Days later, Stevie spoke at a memorial service in Chicago for Rev. Jesse Jackson, emotionally recalling his longtime relationship with the civil rights leader, who died on February 17. Plus, he performed “They Won’t Go When I Go,” prefacing it by saying, “This song speaks the truth in my heart.”
A different take on the works of Wonder
Wonder obviously figures prominently in the just-published biography of Motown songwriter Sylvia Moy, and will doubtless do the same in the forthcoming memoir by music technologist and producer Robert Margouleff, who (with the late Malcolm Cecil) played a central role in the creation of Stevie’s most celebrated and influential albums of the 1970s.
Wonder continues to make guest appearances on new recordings by fellow musicians, such as Grammy-winning songwriter/producer Camper, whose latest album, Campilation, came out in January. And now there’s a new, uh, compilation which contains 20 of Wonder’s songs, as interpreted by some of his contemporaries during the last century.
Black America Sings Stevie Wonder is released on March 27 by Ace Records, featuring the likes of Aretha Franklin, LaBelle, Randy Crawford, the Main Ingredient, Lou Rawls, Sylvester, the Dixie Hummingbirds and more. The compact disc was compiled by Mick Patrick, who has played a central role in the U.K. independent label’s many Motown historical packages over the past couple of decades.
Ace has previously offered Black America Sings… albums, including those featuring the songs of Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Bob Dylan and the Beatles. Moreover, this new Wonder-sourced package has versions of five of the titles which figured in the top 20 of BBC Radio 2’s “Your Ultimate Stevie Wonder Song” poll, announced on January 1.
Top of that countdown was “Superstition,” and on Black America Sings Stevie Wonder, it’s Quincy Jones’ take on the song which has been selected by Mick Patrick. That was part of Q’s 1973 album, You’ve Got It Bad Girl, with backing vocals credited to “Three Beautiful Boys,” namely Billy Preston, Bill Withers and Wonder himself.
WANTING TO MARRY NANCY
That sort of detail is apparent throughout the Ace album’s comprehensive liner notes, written by Jamie Atkins. In the case of Betty Wright, for example, he notes that she sang on Wonder’s “All I Do” (from Hotter Than July) and he returned the favour by co-writing “What Are You Going To Do With It” with her, as well as producing the track and playing keyboards. It first appeared on 1981’s Epic Records album, Betty Wright.
Another quote accompanies Nancy Wilson’s 1966 interpretation of “Uptight (Everything’s Alright).” At a tribute to Wilson held in 2019, Wonder said, “From the moment I heard her voice, speaking and singing, and then having the pleasure of meeting her – after wanting to marry her since I was 13 – I knew that she was an angel in spirit.”
Black America Sings Stevie Wonder features four tracks by Motown acts, a couple of them being obvious choices: “Let’s Get Serious” by Jermaine Jackson and “Bad Weather” by the Supremes. Less well-known are Marvin Gaye’s “You’re The One For Me,” from his ’66 album, Moods Of Marvin Gaye, and the Four Tops’ “What Else Is There To Do (But Think About You),” from their Reach Out long-player.
Rufus: Stevie gave them something good
Unexpected (perhaps) inclusions are the Dixie Hummingbirds’ “Jesus Children Of America” and Lou Rawls’ “Evil.” The former features the legendary gospel group whose lead singer, Ira Tucker, was a musical force of nature – and the father of Ira Tucker Jr., who became one of Stevie Wonder’s career lieutenants during the 1970s. “Evil” comes from Rawls’ 1972 album, A Man Of Value, of which it is the closing track, as it is on Black America Sings Stevie Wonder.
According to the liner notes, Wonder wrote “Evil” during the Memorial Day weekend of 1971, when protests over the Vietnam War were raging across the United States. That same holiday weekend was when the Motown hitmaker met Bob Margouleff and Malcolm Cecil for the first time, going on to create his first “adult” album with them (just two weeks before that particular Memorial Day, Stevie had turned 21).
In conclusion, here follows a list of the ten most popular interpretations by black artists of Stevie Wonder compositions (some written with collaborators, of course), as ranked by their Billboard Hot 100 peaks. The tabulation does not include songs recorded and released by artists on Motown. When two titles have the same chart peak, the tie is broken by the number of weeks on the Hot 100.
Also, the list excludes recordings which sample Wonder works (both Monie Love and Born Jamericans sing verses from the original songs, rather than extract samples). Also omitted are Coolio’s “Gangsta's Paradise,” a rewrite of “Pastime Paradise,” and Bill Cosby’s “Little Ol’ Man,” a rewrite of “Uptight (Everything’s Alright).”
“Tell Me Something Good,” Rufus (1974) #3
“Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do),” Aretha Franklin (1974) #3
“Lately,” Jodeci (1993) #4
“I Think It’s Love,” Jermaine Jackson (1986) #16
“It’s A Shame (My Sister),” Monie Love (1991) #26
“To Know You Is To Love You,” B.B. King (1973) #38
“You Are My Heaven,” Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway (1980) #47
“Knocks Me Off My Feet,” Donell Jones (1996) #49
“Uptight (Everything’s Alright),” Ramsey Lewis (1966) #49
“Send My Love/Send One Your Love,” Born Jamericans (1998) #72
And for comparison, here’s a tabulation of the top 10 Wonder copyrights which were U.K. hits, according to the Official Charts Company there. As you’ll see, it includes quite a different line-up of artists, black and white.
“Isn’t She Lovely,” David Parton (1977) #4
“Master Blaster (Jammin’),” DJ Luck & MC Neat (2000) #5
“My Love,” Julio Iglesias featuring Stevie Wonder (1988) #5
“The Tears Of A Clown,” The Beat (1979) #6
“Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever,” Nick Kamen (1987) #16
“Don’t You Worry ’Bout A Thing,” Incognito (1992) #19
“Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do),” Aretha Franklin (1974) #26
“Try Jah Love,” Third World (1982) #47
“Lately,” Rudy Grant (1981) #58
“Superstition,” Clubhouse (1983) #59
Music notes: with so much of Stevie’s music by others to choose from, this WGB playlist can only be arbitrary. None of these tracks appear on Black America Sings Stevie Wonder, but all of them illustrate the depth of admiration for him, ranging from Ray Charles to Pink, from Miki Howard to Ramsey Lewis, from King Curtis to B.B. King. Enjoy.