stevie wonder tour 1969

Sundance 2021: Questlove takes us to forgotten 'Black Woodstock' in joyous concert doc 'Summer of Soul'

Imagine two free Coachellas happened in the middle of New York City and no one ever talked about them. 

That's how producer Joseph Patel described the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, the subject of transcendent new documentary  "Summer of Soul (…Or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)," which world-premiered at the virtual Sundance Film Festival Thursday night.

Colloquially known as the "Black Woodstock," the Harlem Cultural Festival was a series of free concerts over six weekends that drew more than 300,000 people. Staged in Harlem's Mount Morris Park in summer 1969, weeks before Woodstock festival in upstate New York, the event attracted trailblazing Black artists including Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Gladys Knight, The Fifth Dimension, and Sly and the Family Stone. 

Sundance 2021: 'CODA' star Marlee Matlin talks inclusion, calls on Hollywood to 'hire more deaf actors'

The festival was captured in its entirety by filmmaker Hal Tulchin, who tried to sell the footage to studios but was turned down. The reels sat in Tulchin's basement for a half century until his death in 2017, when producers David Dinerstein and Robert Fyvolent obtained the never-before-seen footage. They brought it to The Roots drummer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, who makes his directorial debut with "Summer of Soul." 

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

"I instantly kind of scoffed," Thompson said in a post-screening Q&A. "I was like, 'Wait a minute. I know everything that happened in music history. There's no way you're going to tell me this gathering happened and no one knew about it.' But sure enough, that was the case. Once they showed me raw footage, I just sat there with my jaw dropped, like, 'How has this been forgotten?'"

Thompson expertly places the festival in context of what was happening in the United States in 1969, with racial injustice and antiwar protests, and general ambivalence to the landing on the moon. ("Never mind the moon — let's get that cash to feed poor Black people in Harlem," one concertgoer says in a newsreel.) 

He also asks why so much of Black culture has been erased from the history books or considered insignificant by traditionally white gatekeepers. 

"Why was this not important? Why was this deemed as just 'meh?'" Thompson said. "For me, that was the biggest question of all." 

The two-hour "Summer of Soul" is edited together from roughly 45 hours of vibrant concert footage, which transports us back to pre-COVID times, when dancing with a sweaty crowd was a hobby and not a health hazard. The performances are jubilant and frequently profound, with highlights including a dynamic drum solo from a spry Wonder and a stirring set by Simone, who leads the audience in a hopeful yet melancholy rendition of "To Be Young, Gifted and Black." 

In new interviews, The Fifth Dimension members Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. recall how it felt to be welcomed and embraced by a majority Black audience for the first time, performing their No. 1 hit "Aquarius / Let the Sunshine In" from musical "Hair." And Mavis Staples fondly recounts singing "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" with gospel icon Mahalia Jackson, in a gut-wrenching tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. that will take your breath away.  

"It was the ultimate Black barbecue," one festival-goer says of the event overall. "But as soon as you heard the music, you knew it was something bigger." 

"Summer of Soul" will have a second virtual Sundance screening Saturday at 10 a.m. ET. The film is still seeking distribution. 

• Single Issues
• Digital Editions

When Stevie Wonder toured with The Rolling Stones: “The building was actually vibrating”

The momentous musical summit remembered in the latest Uncut

Trending Now

Bob dylan radically overhauls his set list for outlaw festival show 2, willie vlautin interviewed: “when my life got bad, i disappeared into records”, we’re new here – landless, the beach boys, joana serrat – big wave.

The latest issue of Uncut – in shops now or available to buy online by clicking here – includes a fascinating survey of Stevie Wonder’s early-’70s, during which he transformed from teen idol to the visionary auteur behind double-album masterpiece, Songs In The Key Of Life . The story begins at Madison Square Garden on July 26, 1972, the final date of The Rolling Stones’ STP Tour across America.

Stevie Wonder has just come on stage to play an encore with The Stones and to wish Mick Jagger a happy 29th birthday. Even the nosebleed seats stomp and cheer as the two groups tear through Wonder’s 1965 hit “Uptight (Everything’s Gonna Be Alright)” and then the Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction”.

“That’s when Stevie was really young and full of energy, jumping up and down on stage,” recalls Marshall Chess , the Stones’ executive manager. “He and Mick were dancing on stage together, then somebody came out and put a whipped cream pie in Mick’s face. It was crazy. The building was actually vibrating. You could feel it in the concrete.”

The STP jaunt was the Stones’ first American tour since their performance at Altamont Speedway in 1969. Wonder, as their opening act, was likewise trying to leave that decade behind, along with his image as the clean-cut teen phenomenon behind “I Was Made To Love Her” and “For Once In My Life”.

“Motown was trying to break Stevie bigger than he’d ever been,” says Chess. “It was a great thing for the Stones, because Mick and Keith just loved Stevie. It was a great thing for Stevie because it showed him to this whole other white audience, the Stones’ audience.”

Prior to the Stones tour, Wonder had faced some difficult audiences as he struggled to redefine himself, introducing longer, heavier, funkier songs to his setlist. “Sometimes we would get these gigs at supper clubs, and we’d show up in bellbottom jeans and fringe jackets,” recalls David Sanborn , who played saxophone in backing band Wonderlove . “Everybody else would be in tuxes and tails. Stevie was adamant about playing the new stuff, so it could get tense at times. Sometimes the audience was just not having it. They got restless because they weren’t hearing what they wanted to hear, what they had paid their money to hear. We understood that, so we did play ‘Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours’ and ‘If You Really Love Me’. We always played the shit out of them.”

Winning over Stones fans wasn’t much easier, but Wonder drew on 12 years of experience – more than half his life – working crowds as part of Motown package tours with The Temptations, The Supremes , and other label acts. When the Stones were arrested in Rhode Island after Richards assaulted a journalist, Stevie and Wonderlove played a double set in Boston that night to calm the audience – who grew rowdy when the Stones looked like no-shows.

The STP tour was such a success and the chemistry between the two acts so palpable that they collaborated on a joint double live album, with one LP devoted to Wonder’s set and the other to the Stones. Even though the record never materialised, the tour did exactly what he needed it to do. “That’s when his popularity just jumped,” confirms Deniece Williams, who toured as a member of Wonderlove .

The Stones tour helped usher in a new imperial phase in Stevie Wonder’s career, as he transformed himself over a string of bold and progressive albums beginning with 1972’s Music Of My Mind album and culminating in 1976’s Songs In The Key Of Life . Together, these albums are as much about Wonder’s creative development as they are, from another perspective, about his attempts to defy the Motown assembly-line approach to writing, recording, and touring. “At Motown, Stevie never really got a chance to be himself,” says Robert Margouleff , who played a crucial role in Wonder’s transformation from teen idol to visionary rock star. “He was on a quest to be his own man.”

• Tagged Topics
• Stevie Wonder
• The Rolling Stones

Latest Issue

Introducing uncut’s exclusive, ultra-collectible john lennon cd, introducing the new uncut… and our ultra-collectable john lennon cd, introducing the ultimate music guide: fleetwood mac, uncut – august 2024, introducing ultimate record collection: taylor swift, uncut – july 2024, introducing…pink floyd: a life in pictures.

Subscribe to Uncut today and never miss an issue.

Save up to 26% when you subscribe online

Invest in news coverage you can trust.

Donate to PBS News Hour by June 30 !

Lost to history, Questlove documentary brings iconic 1969 concert back to life

Jeffrey Brown Jeffrey Brown

Anne Azzi Davenport Anne Azzi Davenport

Alison Thoet Alison Thoet

Leave your feedback

• Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/lost-to-history-questlove-documentary-brings-iconic-1969-concert-back-to-life

In the summer of 1969 cameras captured a series of concerts in Harlem featuring artists who would go on to become musical legends, like Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone and Gladys Knight. But for decades no one was interested in the footage until musician Questlove took up the challenge in a documentary that brings history to life. Jeffrey Brown recently spoke with Questlove for our series, "CANVAS."

Read the Full Transcript

Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors.

Judy Woodruff:

It was the summer of 1969, and video cameras in New York captured a series of concerts in Harlem featuring artists who would go on to become musical legends, the likes of Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, and Gladys Knight.

But, for decades, no one was interested in the footage. The musician known as Questlove took up the challenge in a documentary that brings history to life. It's part of his ongoing work in music, and also now in a new book.

Jeffrey Brown talked with Questlove recently for our arts and culture series, Canvas.

Ladies and gentlemen, Gladys Knight!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

Jeffrey Brown:

The musicians, some all-time greats. The music, lifting you to the sky. The setting, the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, all of it stunning and amazing to see in 2021.

But even more mind-blowing, how close it came to being lost forever.

The moment you saw what happened here, you knew you were on to something? This was something big?

Questlove, Director, "Summer of Soul": Absolutely, yes. And even to be here and to see the structure, like, I definitely remember this shot.

The renowned musician Ahmir Thompson, better known as Questlove, made his directorial debut this year with the acclaimed documentary "Summer of Soul."

Are you ready, Black people? Are you ready?

But when we met recently in Marcus Garvey Park, the site of the original concerts 52 years ago, when it was still called Mount Morris Park, he told me he hesitated to take on the project when first shown the archival footage.

I was just like, no, this is too much responsibility. This is not just putting a concert together. This is correcting history. And I didn't know if I was worthy enough to be in the position to be the person that leads the charge.

A very specific time and place in history. Through a series of concerts attracting some 300,000 over six weekends in the hot summer of 1969, the film documents a musical revolution as it was taking place.

It also captures expressions of Black pride and power and demands for social justice that offered Thompson another way in.

It wasn't lost on us that, literally at the same time that we're in the editing process of the film, suddenly, there's a political charge in the air that was just like 50 years ago.

And then, once the knob started turning up a little bit more with the Black Lives Matter protests, then I was like, wow, like, the same exact things that we're editing right now is happening in real time.

Questlove, now 50, is a man who clearly loves to connect to different kinds of music, art forms, histories. He's been around music his whole life, joining his parents in soul and doo-wop bands even as a child.

He first came to fame as the drummer and co-founder of the Roots, the hip-hop band founded in Philadelphia in 1987. The Roots started as house band on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" in 2009, and have continued with "The Tonight Show."

He's a deejay, producer, songwriter, author. He even hosts a food program looking at love of cuisine and at equity issues.

And we even made Questlove into a little (INAUDIBLE) here.

I'm eating my own face.

And he's deep into a lifelong role as music educator and historian.

I'm one of those people that, when I learn something, I get excited, and I feel special. And I feel, like, smarter.

People want to feel enlightened. So, my thing is, like, I want to be the guy that throws the alley-oop shot, and then you put the ball in the hoop, and then you feel like, I did that. I helped a little bit. But that, to me, is — that's the important part.

His new book, "Music Is History," is a kind of playlist of songs that speak to events since 1971, the year he was born. But it's a Questlove-style playlist, lesser known songs matched with events in unexpected ways.

I personally believe that music is a Polaroid shot of life.

And the way that I remember history, I frame it through music.

You're not picking the best known or most loved.

Not even the best known. And, at that, I'm still trying to provide to — like, I'm trying to plant seeds.

Early hip-hop, he says, offered him a kind of education, learning about music through sampling from earlier recordings, while connecting to contemporary issues in the lyrics.

Hip-hop planted seeds. Between '88 and '92, I went to the library a lot to look up old articles that — to do those scroll things that they do at libraries. I mean, we have the Internet now, but, back then, you had to stay at the library for eight hours. That was my Internet.

And I kind of wanted to do the same thing. This time, I'm using history to drop seeds on music that people should discover.

But even the classics can fall off the map. Thompson told me of teaching at NYU and realizing how few of his students knew of an album he and many consider a milestone of popular music, Michael Jackson's 1982 "Thriller."

If there's a chance in time for people not to know, like Michael Jackson's "Thriller," was that a thing back in the day? Like, that's when I knew, oh, everything's up for grabs. Like, I can never take for granted that history will be remembered.

And it's not glamorous. Like, who gets in the rap game to want to be, like, your hall monitor teacher? OK, class, like that sort of thing.

Right. Time to remember history.

But I guess you could say I'm music's hall monitor.

There's another connecting thread in his work, one embedded in the "Summer of Soul" film project. 1969, of course, was also the year of Woodstock.

And the film that came out the following year helped define and enshrine an era and its music. The Harlem Cultural Festival was shot by a director named Hal Tulchin, with hopes it too would become a film. But he never found a distributor, and the footage sat in a basement for decades.

And I wondered, if this film were allotted the same path, like, would it have found me?

For a lot of not even African Americans, but just people in general that love music, I just thought like, instantly, this film could have changed lives.

It raises the question of sort of what gets remembered in American culture, what gets honored.

Woodstock did, . The Harlem Cultural Festival did not.

Right? Why has it been so hard to preserve this and other Black music?

I'm so in love with music. And just the passion that I have for it, I want people to see the magic that I see.

And, oftentimes, because Black creators aren't seen as artists or in importance, like, their canon isn't held up the same way, it's often seen as disposable. Our history's disposable. And that — to me, that's the true meaning of my definition of what Black Lives Matter means, is that even our creations, our art, our stories are just as important and life-changing.

Some very good news, Ahmir Thompson, Questlove, says, since the film came out, he's heard from archives all over the country telling him of other largely unknown treasures. That means there's more to come.

For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Jeffrey Brown in Marcus Garvey Park in Harlem, New York.

Listen to this Segment

Watch the Full Episode

In his more than 30-year career with the News Hour, Brown has served as co-anchor, studio moderator, and field reporter on a wide range of national and international issues, with work taking him around the country and to many parts of the globe. As arts correspondent he has profiled many of the world's leading writers, musicians, actors and other artists. Among his signature works at the News Hour: a multi-year series, “Culture at Risk,” about threatened cultural heritage in the United States and abroad; the creation of the NewsHour’s online “Art Beat”; and hosting the monthly book club, “Now Read This,” a collaboration with The New York Times.

Anne Azzi Davenport is the Senior Producer of CANVAS at PBS NewsHour.

Support Provided By: Learn more

Support PBS News:

More Ways to Watch

Educate your inbox.

Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else.

Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm.

Watch CBS News

"Summer of Soul": Rescuing a historic Harlem music festival

June 27, 2021 / 9:35 AM EDT / CBS News

In the summer of 1969, four-year-old Musa Jackson and 19-year-old Darryl Lewis attended a music festival. "Even now, when I think about it, I'm a little emotional about it, because it's something that I've had in my heart, in my head since I was four years old," Jackson said.

"There were some that thought I made it up!" laughed Lewis.

But he did not; he and Jackson were part of the crowd that gathered at Mount Morris Park in Harlem. "It really was like a sea of people," Jackson said.

They weren't at that other music festival in upstate New York: "I didn't see Woodstock; my parents would not let me go!" Lewis laughed.

It's said Woodstock defined a generation. But that summer's Harlem Cultural Festival, featuring stars like Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight and the Pips, and the Fifth Dimension, and attended by approximately 300,000 people, was left out of the history books. 

"This mythical, magical festival thrown in 1969, with all these great names, and I never heard about it?" said Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson. "When it was shown to me, I got humbled real quick!"

For Thompson, leader of "The Tonight Show" house band The Roots, that magical festival is now the basis of his documentary, "Summer of Soul," which opens this week. "This is not about just me having my first directorial debut," he said. "I've been given the responsibility to correct history, which, who'd a thought, you know?"

The festival, organized and hosted by singer Tony Lawrence, was filmed by television producer Hal Tulchin, but the 40 hours of footage remained largely unseen.

"Sunday Morning" contributor Hua Hsu asked, "What happened to it? Why hadn't we heard of this festival?"

"The #1 question I always had was, like, 'Wait a minute, you're trying to tell me that, for 50 years, no one was interested?'" Thompson said. "I know that Hal Tulchin tried very hard to find any and every one. Nobody would take it."

Until Thompson, who couldn't take his eyes off the footage. "I just pretty much kept this on constantly for five months in a row, no matter where I was in the world, like, on the plane watching my phone, in the bathroom, in the shower."

"What were you looking for?" Hsu asked. "What were the moments that would force you to sit down and take a note?"

"If I could find something shocking and jarring to someone visually, that would be my beginning," he replied.

A 19-year-old Stevie Wonder playing drums is pretty hard to forget. "He's really coming into his own," Hsu said.

Thompson said, "Yeah, he's no longer little Stevie Wonder. And this performance here is him realizing his powers."

Singer Marilyn McCoo, of The Fifth Dimenson, mesmerized young Musa Jackson: "I was in love!"

The festival, which ran throughout the summer, shows a community in transition. "Dashikis and sideburns and sunglasses," noted Jackson.

Sly and the Family Stone sang their counterculture anthem, "Everyday People," and wore styles to match. "They're some of the first groups that dressed like hippies!" said Lewis.

Thompson said, "The younger generation, people under, like, 23, are, like, losing their collective mind. Sly and the Family Stone were performing with a kind of freedom that you never saw before."

Others, like David Ruffin, who'd just left the Temptations, stuck with Motown standards – and weathered the record label's requisite buttoned-up look. "It's the middle of August, and David Ruffin has on a wool tuxedo and a coat!" Thompson said. "You know, you could clearly see the Motown charm school still coming to play. He could have had that same magic in his regular street clothes. But back then, you had to cross your T's and dot your I's to not upset or make, like, White people feel afraid."

That summer, Musa Jackson said, Harlem was a close-knit neighborhood ("Everybody was your mom, everybody was your dad. You felt really safe"), and in some ways it was excluded from history being made elsewhere.

Thompson said, "We did a lot of research, and at the time when Stevie's performing, that's when the actual Moon landing is happening, when Stevie's performing. And we were watching the footage and I was, like, 'Wait: Was that boos? Are they booing?'"

Apollo 11 landed on the Moon, but residents of Harlem had bigger concerns here on Earth. One concertgoer told CBS News' Bill Plante, "Gas gets wasted, as far as I'm concerned, in getting to the Moon. Could have been used to feed more Black people in Harlem and all over the place, all over this country."

Thompson said, "Pretty much everyone just expressed disdain for it, which I didn't realize it was that universal."

The previous year saw the Civil Rights Act expanded, but it came on the heels of unrest following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

Hsu said, "It's a film about music, but it's also a film about history."

"1969 was a paradigm shift, especially for Black people, you know, coming off the tail end of the civil rights period," Thompson said. "That was the first year that we referred to ourselves as Black. That's the first year that, you know, we acknowledged that Black is beautiful."

At a time when there's, again, a reckoning on race in America, Thompson said this film is important for what it doesn't contain. When asked what he hopes will resonate with audiences today, Thompson replied, It's Black joy. What I worry about is that there is a generation that just thinks that our history is being bashed on the head with billy clubs, or being sprayed with firehoses. But there's all also different facets to our lives that need to be shown as well."

For Musa Jackson and Darryl Lewis, it's about time.

"This is what I remember," Jackson said, "and to be validated, almost to, like, the letter. Like, to the letter!"

"In my memory, Woodstock is actually the White Harlem Cultural Festival," Lewis said.

Recently, Ahmir Questlove Thompson DJ'd a set at a celebration of his documentary with Harlem residents, including some of the same people, in the same park, where the Harlem Cultural Festival happened 50 years ago.

Hsu asked, "What do you think it would've been like had this [footage] actually been given this life at the time?"

"This film could have defined a generation as well," Thompson said. "We'll never get to know the answer, what the effect would have been. But I do believe that, even 50 years later, this is still as potent and powerful as Woodstock was, and can still work its magic for another generation."

To watch a trailer for "Summer of Soul (…Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)" click on the video player below:

      For more info:

• "Summer of Soul," in theaters and streaming on Hulu beginning July 2

       Story produced by Mary Raffalli. Editor: Carol Ross. 

More from CBS News

Top 40 Stevie Wonder songs – year by year

By Ian Wade | February 22, 2022

In this Top 40 list of Stevie Wonder songs we take a chronological slice through some of the very best of ‘Little Stevie”s work, spread across a remarkable six decades…  

H e’s one of the most successful artists of all time, nudging only Elvis for the most US Top 40 entries, and second only to The Beatles on combined album sales. This is a man who sold 33 million copies of one single, which is also the biggest-selling since charts began, a man who is fanatical about his own chart facts and stats – and, looking back over some 350 million album sales and 100 million singles and downloads, there really is nothing for him to be ashamed of here.  

An entire playlist could be made from his songwriting credits – It’s A Shame (The Spinners), Tears Of A Clown (Smokey Robinson & The Miracles), Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever (Four Tops), The Crown (Gary Byrd), Tell Me Something Good (Rufus & Chaka Khan).you could also do another where he’s popped up on other people’s records – I Feel For You (Chaka Khan), I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues ( Elton John ), Let’s Get Serious (Jermaine Jackson), State Of Independence (Donna Summer), There Must Be An Angel (Eurythmics), Nightingales (Prefab Sprout) and acts such as Minnie Riperton, Don Henley, Julio Iglesias, Snoop Dogg, Herbie Hancock, Rod Stewart and Mark Ronson.

There are also the collaborations to consider. We Are The World may have seen him collaborate with much of the American music scene, but it really isn’t that great. That’s What Friends Are For with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight and Elton John is too much of a four-way to be considered truly a Wonder number. However, one can’t ignore Ebony And Ivory with Paul McCartney , or even Babyface’s How Come How Long … yet whatever merits may exist in Blue’s version of Signed, Sealed Delivered I’m Yours are obliterated by the true majesty of Stevie’s original, so it would be wrong to include that.  

Here, then, is a list of the highlights and key singles – his novelty-based child star era (which could’ve been the end of him before he even got going), the wonky Easy Listening hit, the chart-toppers and the apparent failures that have grown in stature through the years, in the order in which they were released. Wonder ranked No.6 in the Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists list which celebrated the US singles chart’s 55th anniversary in 2013, and the owner of 25 Grammys. There are no signs of him stopping – sure, he may not tour as much, and his albums tend to be a few years apart, but Stevie remains constantly in demand as a musician and as a singer, continuing to inspire further generations.

And don’t forget, if you need more of a Stevie fix, you can still pick up our special Stevie Wonder issue of Classic Pop Presents .

Shop Stevie Wonder CDs & Vinyl on Amazon now

4 o   I CALL IT PRETTY MUSIC, BUT THE OLD PEOPLE CALL IT THE BLUES (PART 1),   1962

The very first single. It suits the narrative to say that Wonder was fully formed when he first arrived on Motown’s doorstep, yet he was treated little more than a novelty. There’s little sign that the singer is expected to have a career by the end of 1962, with the “aw, look at our blind genius child” song and packaging like he was a mini-Ray Charles. Peaking at No. 101 of the Hot 100, it didn’t bode well at all.

39   FINGERTIPS (PART 2), 1963

Written by Wonder’s mentors Clarence Paul and Henry Cosby, Fingertips originally appeared as a jazz instrumental on Stevie’s first album The Jazz Soul Of Little Stevie . This version was recorded in June 1962 at the Regal Theater in Chicago, Illinois. The “Part 2” happened when Stevie came back on stage, catching out the next band’s musicians who had been setting up. It became Motown’s second No. 1 single, and at 13 years old Wonder became the youngest act to top the Billboard album charts, too.

38   UPTIGHT (EVERYTHING’S ALRIGHT), 1965

The first Stevie Wonder hit to be co-written by himself, along with Sylvia Moy and Henry Crosby, Uptight proved to be a bit of a lifesaver: Motown were about to drop him, as Berry Gordy thought that the 15 year old’s voice breaking might put people off. Stevie was keen to rival the driving beat of the Stones’ Satisfaction , and on the day of recording Moy had to sing a line ahead to him, as they’d not had time to write the lyrics out in Braille.

Buy Uptight (everything’s alright) on Amazon now

37   A PLACE IN THE SUN, 1966

The first sign of Stevie growing up from his teen-pop ways and developing an interest in social commentary, this song by Ronald Miller and Bryan Wells yearns for a rest from everyday toil and speaks of a sun “for everyone”. It became his fourth US Top 10 hit, reaching No. 9 in December 1966. Stevie also recorded an Italian version entitled Il Sole è di Tutti . It was covered by fellow Motown turns the Four Tops and by Diana Ross & the Supremes & The Temptations on their joint album in 1968.

36   I WAS MADE TO LOVE HER, 1967

Stevie wrote this with Sylvia Moy and Henry Crosby, and – in possibly a pop first – his mother Lula Mae Hardaway. Backed by Motown’s in-house crack team of session musicians the Funk Brothers at Hitsville USA in Detroit, the distinctive riff features Eddie Willis on electric sitar, an exotic instrument used on many Motown songs of the period. With a few Wonder originals alongside covers of My Girl, Respect and Please Please Please , the titular LP was Stevie’s first proper ‘adult’ album.

Buy I was made to love her on Amazon now

35   ALFIE, 1968

A bit of a rum turn for the then-ascendant young man was this instrumental easy listening cover of the Bacharach and David song. Cilla Black, Cher and Dionne Warwick all had hits with it, but this became the lead track on the ‘Eivets Rednow’ album, which was released on the Gordy subsidiary of Motown. The album also saw the debut of songwriting credits to just Wonder himself. The single managed to get as far as No. 66, suggesting that Mr Rednow might be better off reversing his name back.  

34   FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE,   1968

For Once In My Life had already been a hit for Tony Bennett, recording in the more conventional ballad style. Originally written by songwriters Ron Miller and Orlando Murden for Motown’s Stein & Van Stock publishing company, Stevie’s uptempo take wasn’t liked by Berry Gordy, and so he shelved it, until Billie Jean Brown, head of Motown quality control, coerced Gordy to release it. It’s much loved by bassists as a perfect example of James Jamerson’s playing style, where no two bars are alike.  

33   MY CHERIE AMOUR,   1969

Stevie co-wrote this song with Cosby and Moy, which was originally entitled Oh, My Marsha , in honour of Wonder’s girlfriend who he’d dated at the Michigan School for the Blind in Lansing, Michigan. The backing was recorded on November 8 1967; Stevie’s vocal was recorded in January 1968, but the song wasn’t released for a year due to Stevie’s vocal issues. It became a UK and US Top 5 hit in 1969, and in 2014 British DJ Philip George sampled chunks of it for his single Wish You Were Mine .  

Read more: Jamiroquai albums – the complete guide

32 YESTER-ME YESTER-YOU YESTERDAY,   1969

This Ron Miller/Bryan Wells song became Stevie’s biggest UK hit yet, reaching No. 2 in 1969. With Stevie reflecting back on the old days at the grand old age of 20, it seemed like he might have gone a bit light-entertainment in an era of social commentary. Indeed, the accompanying album saw covers of standards such as Hello Young Lovers and At Last . He also recorded an Italian version, Solo Te, Solo Me, Solo Noi (“only you, only me, only us”).

31   NEVER HAD A DREAM COME TRUE, 1970

This lushly arranged song was augmented by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, some of whose members had previously formed the San Remo Golden Strings with members of The Funk Brothers and released a few albums in the late Sixties, with popular northern soul tracks such as San Remo Strings and Festival Time . Written with Cosby and Moy, this was the lead single from the Signed, Sealed & Delivered LP, and it did better in the UK than the US.

30 SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED I’M YOURS,   1970

In September 1970 Stevie married songwriter and former Motown secretary Syreeta Wright, who co-wrote this with Wonder, Lee Garrett and Lula Mae Hardaway. It was the first to feature his female backup singing group of Lynda Tucker Laurence, Syreeta Wright and Venetta Fields. It was covered by boyband gonks Blue featuring Wonder and Angie Stone on backing vocals in 2003, and also by a pre-fame Elton John for an early ‘soundalike’ album.

29   HEAVEN HELP US ALL,   1970

Stevie went gospel with this Ron Miller song that has gone on to become a modern spiritual. A departure from his pop-styled hits, this statement about brotherhood, peace, love and mortality showed a maturing artist. It was not a massive hit at the time, although it hit big on the R&B lists, but it did chime with the era’s more defining hits such as Oh Happy Day ,and is now considered one of Wonder’s finest songs. A version by Ray Charles and Gladys Knight won a Grammy in 2005.

28 WE CAN WORK IT OUT,   1971

A big Beatles fan, Stevie thought that the genius lay in their songwriting rather than their performance, and reckoned he could do them better. In fact, Stevie’s version has gone on to be considered one of the best Beatles covers of all time. He was wheeled out to play it in honour of McCartney when he was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Grammy, when Obama handed him the Gershwin Prize at the White House, and when they celebrated the 50th anniversary of The Beatles’ US invasion.

27   SUPERWOMAN (WHERE WERE YOU WHEN I NEEDED YOU),   1972

Released as the first single from Music of My Mind , the eight-minute Superwoman was definitely another step away from the machinations of the Motown machine for Stevie. Vaguely based on his and Syreeta’s relationship, it sees ‘Mary’ leaving her old life to become a star, and then the narrator wonders why she hadn’t come back to him as soon as he’d hoped. A modest success, it effectively marked Wonder becoming the captain of his own career.

26   SUPERSTITION,   1972

Hearing he was looking for a new challenge, Stevie invited Jeff Beck to the sessions for Talking Book . “I was sitting at the drum kit, which I love to play when nobody’s around, doing this beat,” recalled Beck in Annette Carson’s book Crazy Fingers . “Stevie came boogieing into the studio: ‘Don’t stop!’ ‘Ah, c’mon, Stevie, I can’t play the drums.’ Then the lick came out, Superstition .” Beck had planned to release his version first, but it only emerged after Stevie’s take had become a No. 1 and a global hit.  

25   YOU ARE THE SUNSHINE OF MY LIFE,   1973

The first two lines were actually sung by future Swing Your Daddy hitmaker Jim Gilstrap, who was then part of Stevie’s backing vocal combo Wonderlove, with the next sung by Lani Groves, which must have bristled slightly when it was Wonder who collected the Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for it. His third No. 1 single, it was also his first to top the Easy Listening hotlist, and also the second chart-topper from his Talking Book album.  

24   HIGHER GROUND,   1973

Wonder was involved in an accident that had left him in a coma, and in a later New York Times interview he revealed the song was about reincarnation. “I would like to believe in reincarnation, another life. I think that sometimes your consciousness can happen on this earth a second time around.” To aid his recovery, Stevie’s manager would hum the song to him at his bedside, and the artist would respond by moving his fingers. It was covered by the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1988, and it became one of their first hits.  

23   LIVING FOR THE CITY,   1973

Stevie tackles the subject of systemic racism through the prism of a young man who leaves the comfort of Mississippi for New York, where things don’t go well. “I think the deepest I really got into how I feel about the way things are was in Living For The City ,” he said. “I was able to show the hurt and the anger.” With street sounds, it was one of Wonder’s most cinematic numbers. Richard Pryor recorded the lyrics as a church sermon in Our Text For Today , and even Ray Charles released a cover of it.  

Read more: Top 1981 singles

Read more: Top 40 Pet Shop Boys songs

22   DON’T YOU WORRY ‘BOUT A THING,   1974

In this Latin-tinged number from Innervisions Stevie comforts a young lady after she’s been badmouthed by a boy. In his backing vocals he mimics a horn line with the phrase “Todo ‘stá bien chévere”, which sounds far more exotic than its loose translation of “Everything’s really great”. It’s been reignited with covers by UK soul act Incognito, John Legend and recently in a version by Tori Kelly as a singing elephant in the 2016 hit animated film Sing .

21   YOU HAVEN’T DONE NOTHIN’,   1974

Innervisions was proving be an album of hits, with the single of Misstra Know-It-All becoming a Top 10 hit in the UK. The tale of a conman was believed to be a reference to Richard Nixon, who would also be the target of Stevie’s first single from his next album Fulfillingness’ First Finale . With the Jackson 5 on backing vocals, the Superstition -flavoured You Haven’t Done Nothin’ saw Stevie at his most furious. Nixon did indeed resign from his presidency two days after it was released.

20   BOOGIE ON REGGAE WOMAN,   1974

Neither boogie nor particularly reggae, the bubbly Moog funk of Boogie On Reggae Woman sees Wonder describing a lady having a dance “right across the floor”, but fruitier intents are evident with the next line “I like to do it to you till you holla for more”. The cheeky lyric was a saucy counterpoint to the righteous anger of the previous single You Haven’t Done Nothin’ , and the song has been covered by the Grateful Dead and Phish. Rolling Stone readers voted it the tenth best Stevie Wonder song of all time.

19   I WISH,   1976

The first single from the epic Songs In The Key Of Life , which marked a return after no less than two years for Stevie, after seriously debating about retiring from the music business to go and help disabled children in Ghana. That decision change might have had something to do with him re-signing with Motown for a $37 million five-album deal. A reflection on his childhood, with his sister Renee Hardaway credited as saying the line “You nasty boy”, it became his fifth US No. 1 and a Top 5 hit in the UK.  

18   ISN’T SHE LOVELY,   1976

This number celebrating the birth of Stevie’s daughter Aisha was widely considered to have been one of his biggest hits, but Isn’t She Lovely was never officially a single, despite Motown wanting him to release it. Stevie played all the instruments bar one set of keyboards played by Greg Phillinganes, who went on to play for Michael Jackson and Eric Clapton. Thanks to downloads, it did eventually become a chart hit for Wonder in 2012, after Stevie performed it for the Queen at her Diamond Jubilee Concert.  

17   SIR DUKE,   1977

A horn-crammed tribute to jazz legend Duke Ellington, who died in 1974, with namechecks for Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Glenn Miller and Louis Armstrong. Stevie wanted to acknowledge his inspirations: “I knew the title from the beginning but wanted it to be about the musicians who did something for us,” he said. “So soon they are forgotten. I wanted to show my appreciation. They gave us something that is supposed to be forever.” It was a worldwide Top 3 hit.

16   AS,   1977

A love so vast and undiminishing that the impossible would have to come true before it ever fades. As is on one level a love song for another, and on another level an ode to the unconditional love that God inspires… or just Stevie saying how much he loves his fellow humans (the old hippy). Live versions have been known to go on a bit, with 20 minutes being the average length of it at recent concerts. George Michael had a singsong with Mary J Blige and took it to No. 4 in January 1999.

15   MASTER BLASTER (JAMMIN’),   1980

Bob Marley and Stevie met in 1975 when Wonder played a concert in Kingston to support the Jamaican Institute for the Blind (this would be the last time Marley performed with The Wailers). They became good friends and talked about holding a huge concert event where Marley would play his Survival album start to finish and Wonder would do the same with Journey Through The Secret Life Of Plants. The drumming comes from Dennis Davis, who’d play live with David Bowie and Wonder until his death in 2016.  

Buy Master Blaster (Jammin’) on Amazon now

14   I AIN’T GONNA STAND FOR IT,   1980

Imitating the drawl of a seasoned country singer, with even slight touches of slide guitar, Stevie invents pop country, or at least pre-empts it by a year or two, with this song of romantic turmoil. The second hit from what was seen as the return-to-form Hotter Than July was even playlisted on some country music stations. It also features backing vocals from Charlie and Ronnie Wilson of Ooops Upside Your Head hitmakers The Gap Band. Eric Clapton released a cover of it in 2001 on his album Reptile .  

13   LATELY,   1981

Stevie suspects his lover of cheating, noticing little tell-tale signs. A tiny hit in the US, it was bigger in the UK, reaching No. 3, and is now considered one of his finest ballads. With Wonder using minor 7th, 9th and 11th chords to make the song sound more heart-wrenching, the final key change in the chorus modulates from the original key up three keys higher. As the song ends on a minor key, you’re not sure whether the betrayed has decided to stay with their partner or not, but you’re too busy blubbing regardless.  

12   HAPPY BIRTHDAY,   1981

Within days of Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in 1968, congressman John Conyers proposed a bill to make the slain activist’s birthday a national holiday. Wonder picked up on this plan, and recorded Happy Birthday to lobby for the holiday to become a reality. Then-President Ronald Reagan approved the creation of the event, signing it into existence on November 2, 1983. The first one was held in 1986, and it has been celebrated on the third Monday of every January ever since.  

Buy Happy Birthday on Amazon now

11   EBONY AND IVORY,   1982

Stevie had yet to enjoy a UK No. 1, but with the help of Macca he managed that on this duet from McCartney ’s Tug Of War album . Stevie said of the song, “I won’t say it demanded of people to reflect upon it, but it politely asks people to reflect upon life in using the terms of music… this melting pot of many different people”. When it came to the video, each filmed their parts separately due to scheduling conflicts. Back then this was seen as some witchcraft modern trickery, but now it looks somewhat amateur.

1 o DO I DO,   1982

This 10-minute plus track was one of four new songs recorded for Stevie Wonder’s Original Musiquarium I best-of. Do I Do features a trumpet solo from Dizzy Gillespie and Stevie dabbling in a bit of rap towards the end. With a band of legendary jazzmen and Nathan Watts from Motown’s The Funk Brothers, recording took place at Wonderland Studios, in L.A.’s Koreatown. Having played the song for his band at a gig soundcheck, Wonder taught it to them that afternoon, and they recorded it at 3am the next morning.  

9   RIBBON IN THE SKY,   1982

Another new track recorded for Musiquarium, Ribbon In The Sky is a romantic piano-led ballad accompanied by Wonderlove member Benjamin Bridges on acoustic guitar. Although it bypassed the Top 50 on both sides of the Atlantic, Wonder was nominated for a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for it; the song was also one of Whitney Houston’s favourites, and Stevie sang it at her funeral in February 2012. It’s become quite popular at weddings, and has been covered by Diana Ross and Boyz II Men.  

Read more: Top pop songs of 1982

8   I JUST CALLED TO SAY I LOVE YOU,   1984

This topped the chart everywhere, and became his first solo No. 1 in the UK after 20 years. One of seven songs Wonder wrote for The Woman In Red , it has fared better than the Gene Wilder/Kelly LeBrock film, which opened to unanimously bad reviews. It won the Oscar for Best Original Song in 1985, beating a strong list of nominees including Against All Odds (Take A Look At Me Now), Footloose, Let’s Hear It For The Boy and Ghostbusters .

7   PART-TIME LOVER,   1985

Stevie had spent a whopping four years on his In Square Circle album. This song featured soul legend Luther Vandross on vocals, as well as backing supplied by Earth Wind & Fire’s Philip Bailey and ex-wife Syreeta Wright. According to Wonder, he drew on two songs by The Supremes ( You Can’t Hurry Love and My World Is Empty Without You ) as musical influences. He’d also claimed that he’d been in a similar position, with a guy calling his home and trying to disguise his voice when Stevie answered it.

6   OVERJOYED,   1986

Another In Square Circle track which managed to cross over and become No. 1 on more than one chart, Overjoyed stemmed back to 1979 and was originally recorded for The Secret Life Of Plants . In the liner notes, crickets, nightingale and additional bird sounds, ocean, pebbles in pond, stone dropped and crushing leaves are listed under “environmental percussion”, and the more conventional role of guitar was left to jazz legend Earl Klugh. It went on to be covered by the likes of Steps and Celine Dion.

5   GET IT,   1988

Stevie and Michael Jackson went back a long way; both had been child stars and grown up through the Motown machine, and Michael witnessed firsthand how Wonder created Songs In The Key Of Life . Michael had sung back up with his brothers on You Haven’t Done Nothin’ , as well as on Hotter Than July ’s All I Do ; Stevie had returned the favour by writing I Can’t Help It for Off The Wall and Just Good Friends for Bad . This track from 1988’s Characters didn’t scale the true heights, but made the Top 40 in the UK.

4   FOR YOUR LOVE,   1995

Wonder had written 40 songs in 1993 after being invited to stay in Ghana by President Jerry John Rawlings, which led to an optimistic Motown claiming a new Wonder album would be out that year. However, Stevie had different plans, and it would be another couple of years before the return-to-form Conversation Peace would emerge, with names such as Prince and Anita Baker on board. For Your Love hit No. 23 in the UK and eventually won Grammys for Best R&B Male Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song.

3   HOW COME, HOW LONG,   1997

Babyface, or Kenneth Brian Edmonds to give him his non-showbiz name, had been synonymous with hits for the likes of Mariah Carey, Madonna, Michael Jackson and TLC – to name literally four – from the late Eighties and through the Nineties, and occasionally would corral those names to feature on his own albums. 1997’s The Day featured Shalamar and Eric Clapton alongside his charges, and on this song about domestic abuse, inspired by the Nicole Brown Simpson case, Stevie Wonder.  

2   SO WHAT THE FUSS,   2005

Recorded for A Time For Love , this track features Prince on guitar and was mixed by his long-time engineer Femi Jiya, who is mentioned by name in the song. The track also features the reunion of the original four members of female R&B group En Vogue. “ So What The Fuss came from just a lot of things that we know are happening in the world and in this country and society in general. If we live in a time where every nation is fighting around the world and we can’t all agree that peace is the way, shame on us.”

1   FAITH, 2016

The first single released from the soundtrack to Sing , a film about a bunch of animals that enter a singing competition, Faith features Stevie with Ariana Grande. “Not only did I get to sing with him, but we were in the same booth, so it was me and Stevie Wonder arm in arm, holding hands, singing, laughing, having a good time,” marvelled Grande. “Every time I got comfortable with the fact that I was in a booth, arm in arm with Stevie Wonder, he would hit a Stevie run, and I’d be like, ‘Oh, shit, that’s Stevie Wonder.’”

Order yours: Classic Pop Presents Stevie Wonder

Want more from Classic Pop magazine? Get a free digital issue when you  sign up to our newsletter !

• Stevie Wonder

Adam Ant announces tour postponement

Dexys interview: “the pop thing was fun”, you may also like.

Top 40 80s pop artists

Top 40 Madonna songs

Talk Talk albums – the complete guide

Top 20 Remix Albums

Louise Wener interview: “It’s something we want to do for the pure joy of it”

Search classic pop.

Input your search keywords and press Enter.

Privacy Overview

RECENT POSTS

Donald sutherland tributes led by son, kiefer, paul mccartney adds dates to 2024 tour, ‘before the flood’—memorializing dylan and the band’s ‘tour ’74’, when the blues brothers’ ‘bluesmobile’ got pulled over.

• 11 Great Rock and Pop Summer Songs
• Journey and the Final Scene of The Sopranos
• Dead & Company at Las Vegas’ Sphere: Review
• The Number One Albums of 1971: 14 Stories
• Tributes to Willie Mays, Baseball’s ‘Say Hey Kid’
• Eagles Expand Sphere Residency in Las Vegas
• A New David Bowie Box Chronicles the Creation of ‘Ziggy Stardust’: Review
• Squeeze Adds Dates to 50th Anniversary Tour in 2024
• Classic Rock Concerts You’ve Attended: Poll
• ‘Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution’ Docuseries Airing on PBS
• Monterey Pop Festival—10 Killer Performances
• The Number One Albums of 1972: Each Has a Story
• Gregg Rolie Interview: Journey, Santana, Ringo & More
• David Gilmour Shares 2nd Song From New Studio LP, in Busy 2024
• Radio Hits June 1974: From ‘Sundown’ to ‘Midnight’
• Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers 40th Anniversary: 2017 Review

LATEST REVIEWS

• Supertramp’s ‘Breakfast in America’
• Bob Seger – Final Tour
• Janis Joplin Biography Review
• CSNY’s ‘Deja Vu’
• Rolling Stones – 2019 Concert Review
• Eric Clapton Celebrates at MSG
• Roger Waters ‘Us + Them’ Tour
• Warren Zevon’s ‘Excitable Boy’
• Tom Petty 40th Anniversary Concert
• 1971: Year That Rock Exploded – Book
• Steppenwolf’s Debut: Heavy Metal Thunder
• ‘Who’s Next’ – Album Rewind
• Privacy Policy

Stevie Wonder’s Higher Ground on ’72 Stones Tour

Wonder’s album, Music of My Mind, had been out for three months when the tour began

Longtime music industry writer, editor and executive Adam White authored the 2016 book, Motown: The Sound of Young America (via Thames and Hudson), with Barney Ales, for years the influential label’s #2 to its founder Berry Gordy.

White has since started a blog and he has allowed Best Classic Bands to publish this exclusive excerpt, “Stevie Reaches Higher Ground,” about Stevie Wonder’s opening slot on the Rolling Stones’ 1972 U.S. tour:

In music, careers can turn on a dime. In 1972, Stevie Wonder ’s career turned on a tour.

For $6.50, you got to see the Stones, Stevie Wonder and… free parking?

The Rolling Stones ’ fifth American tour, to be precise, and their first such excursion in three years: a summertime itinerary of rock ‘n’ roll, exhibitionism and excess, with a top ticket price of $6.50 and a new album by the band, Exile On Main Street , in tow.

That the Stones were interested in having Stevie join their caravan was no surprise. In their early years, they were under the thumb of American blues and R&B. Like the Beatles, they tackled Motown songs, “Can I Get A Witness” and “Hitch Hike” among them.

On June 3, 1972, Stevie Wonder joined the Rolling Stones’ roadshow, opening at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver. On July 26, he played his final date with the Britons at New York’s Madison Square Garden. In between, the 22-year-old from Saginaw, Michigan, was seen and heard across North America by more than half a million people. Nothing for him would ever be the same again.

At the New York Times , Don Heckman reported, “Spectacular as the Stones were…my most vivid memories are of the charged-up playing and singing of the blind soul singer/musician Stevie Wonder and his crisp little band, Wonderlove .” [MSG] was host to the tour for three dates, July 24-26, with a total of 60,000 tickets sold.

“Superstition” exploded in October and [on January 27, 1973] became Wonder’s first #1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 since 1963, and the accompanying Talking Book graduated into his first-ever Top 3 pop album, spending more than two years on the charts.

Stevie and Mick Jagger made music on the road, sharing the microphone for renditions of “Uptight (Everything’s Alright)” and “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.” In fact, these were to be a highlight of the “live” album of the tour, according to trade press reports of the time. Many of the performances were recorded; the Stones’ own label was due to release a double LP in November. It never materialized.

[Tickets to see the Stones tour are available here  and here .]

Watch Wonder and the Stones perform “Uptight (Everything’s Alright)” and “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” during the tour

No matter. As far as Stevie was concerned, those 40 shows in 30 cities during the summer of ’72 sealed a future of abundance and of a creative stature almost beyond measure. Talking Book sold 1.6 million copies in the U.S. on release – three times more than [its predecessor] Music Of My Mind – and its successors, Innervisions and Fulfillingness’ First Finale , claimed domestic sales of 2.1 million and 1.5 million, respectively. In the 1970s, these were impressive numbers. Moreover, two of the albums netted a total of 10 Grammy awards.

Watch the concert here

Read White’s complete account of the tour  here .

• Latest Posts

• Donald Sutherland Tributes Led By Son, Kiefer - 06/20/2024
• Paul McCartney Adds Dates to 2024 Tour - 06/20/2024
• 11 Great Rock and Pop Summer Songs - 06/19/2024

Stories We Want You to Read

13 Comments so far

No Refunds!

I took my (16) year old brother to this show. It was his first big concert and my first time seeing the Stones. There would be several more. It was such a great time; the doors were open at 4PM for an 8PM show so we plenty of time to kill. It was a very mellow atmosphere. I always liked what music I’d heard of Stevie Wonder but I had no idea of the depths of his talent. He performed a great sampling of his music but more than that was on display. He played every instrument on the stage. Just fantastic. And then we had the “world’s greatest rock ‘n roll band; the Rolling Stones” to entertain. This was when they used a giant inflatable penis for Mick to ride.

I saw this tour at RFK Stadium, Washington, DC July 4, 1972

Me too! My first Stones show. Amazing, right?

Me too. Stevie rocked it big time. The last Stones tour with Mick Taylor who absolutely played a bigger guitar roll than Keith did that day. Keith looked drunk. Taylor’s solo on Street Fighting Man was unreal, incendiary. The only downer was the idiots in the crowd shooting bottle rockets into the mass crowd.

The Stones’ entourage got into a fight with a photographer in Providence R.I. Jagger and Richards landed in jail. The mayor of Boston fearing a riot bailed them out that night the show went on about one a.m.

Thank you for reporting that the great Stevie Wonder is from right here in Saginaw,Mi…….most anything written about him always says hes from Detroit…..they do the same with other michigan artists also…..must sound better…….im 64,so i grew up on Stevies music

I remember this show in San Diego although to young to attend. There were 1000s of BOOTLEG TICKETS. The arena was already full when authorities stop letting ANYBODY IN! Valid ticket or not. The riot afterwards was not pretty.

Still got my ripped ticket from Madison Square Garden. Lot of excitement in Manhattan that night.

Lets not forget that Martha and The Vandellas were on the tour !!!

Not on any of the shows we know of. Can you verify that?

I’ve seen the Stones three times. They played well each time. The anomaly of it was each time I saw them, the opening act was better, often times way better than the Stones. Stevie Wonder, The Doobie Brothers, and Bryan Adams cooked them, especially Adams, he and his band absolutely blew them off the stage. From the opening cover of Dion’s “The Wanderer” to the closing of “It Cuts Like A Knife” Adams owned that dome. Having to follow him that night was a bad call.

I saw Stevie open for the Stones in that summer of ’72 tour in Denver, at the Denver Coliseum. Stevie played for 45 minutes and he played keyboards, Bass and Drums. He got three standing ovations from the crowd, estimated by the Denver Post at over 13,000 fans. He was so incredible that the Stones kept the audience waiting nearly an hour to cool down before they came out on stage. After Stevie, they were good, but not as good as Stevie had been. Mick did all of his schtick, crawling around on his hands and knees and whacking the stage floor with his gold lame’ belt during Midnight Rambler, etc., etc. Mick Taylor was great, Keith kept things moving, Charlie and Bill were excellent. Ian Stewart was great, too.

Click here to cancel reply.

Your data will be safe! Your e-mail address will not be published. Also other data will not be shared with third person.

Comment * -->

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Loading, Please Wait!

Stevie Wonder UK Tour March 1969

• Who's talking & News
• Featured Albums
• Stevie's Newsletter

Share on:    

LIFE FACTOID

Songs In The

Key Of Life

Wins Grammy

Album Of The Year

Your browser is out-of-date!

Update your browser to view this website correctly. Update my browser now

EUR Concert Review: Take 6 Gave Much More Than They Took + They Were Joined by Stevie Wonder!

*Acapella group Take 6 made a rare Los Angeles appearance, and anyone lucky enough to be among the diverse audience to witness them perform at the beautiful Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts ( The Wallis ), in Beverly Hills (CA), on Saturday, March 23, can attest that Take 6 is deserving of the slew of Grammy (10), Dove (10), NAACP Image (2) and Soul Train awards they have received, as well as their induction into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.

The virtuosic sextet, who have been around for nearly four decades, hit the ground running, all in white pants, but different jackets, with LTD's "Back In Love Again," and never looked back. The vocals were clear, crisp, harmonious, and melodious, the choreography was on point and the message that Take 6 came to bring it came through loud and clear, because they brought it, from start to encore to finish.

The setlist included Earth, Wind and Fire's, "Got to Get You Into My Life," "Spread Love," Sting's "Windmills of Your Mind," and Stevie Wonder's "Overjoyed." After "Overjoyed," we heard the story of being totally exhausted after a day of rehearsals and press obligations, only to be implored to take a picture with someone recently released from prison. Setting exhaustion and fatigue aside proved to be a good thing, because two years later, it was discovered that the ex-prisoner was the late Nelson Mandela. The crowd was told to look to our right and say, "Thank you, Game Changer," and was then admonished, "If you treat everyone you meet as a game changer, you will never miss your opportunity." The admonishment was capped off with, "Homeless," which was dedicated to Mandela. Take 6 shared the members must vote on all songs included on their recording, with four votes needed. The next song they performed, Christopher Cross' "Sailing," received all six votes.

Take 6 is celebrating their new 2024 partnerships in Music Cares with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and as part of the campaign, they previewed snippets of two songs from their brand-new recording, "Rhapsody." The songs, "Rhapsody in Blue" and "God Bless the Child," are so new, that one of the members, Claude McKnight, (Brian's big brother), needed to use his cell phone to recall the lyrics. The setlist also included, "Change the World," and "Family of Love," which was shared that it took 30 years to learn to live the lyrics to "Family of Love." Yep, there was testifying going on.

There were a couple of surprises for the evening. One was a group from Uganda referred to as the Take 6 of Uganda, who were recognized and given a healthy applause. Take 6 also acknowledged the large number of musicians and industry people in attendance. The evening rounded out with "Stand By Me," "Fly Away Home," and Al Jarreau's "Roof Garden." We learned three dance moves to use on "Stand By Me," and also that Al Jarreau was the first artist to bring Take 6 on tour.

Take 6 left the stage and returned for an encore with, Ambosia's "You're the Biggest Part of Me." Afterward, the audience got up to leave and was told someone was coming out and to give them a minute. That someone was … drumroll … Stevie Wonder !

Cell phones came out like crazy, even though the audience was told of the no photo and no audio policy beforehand. Not to worry, we were told to take out our phones and record it. Oh well, a little late, but whatever works. Stevie spoke of the message in his song being as relevant today as it was the day he wrote it. The song he was referring to was, "Love's in Need of Love Today," which he sang with Take 6, much to the audience's delight.

The entire night can only be described as magical. Someone said it was one of the best concerts he had ever attended. Praise does not get much higher.

Take 6 shared they will be doing a lot with St. Jude, and to keep up with their website Take6.com for information.

Claude McKnight, Mark Kibble, Joel Kibble, Dave Thomas, Alvin Chea, and Khristian Dentley, collectively known as Take 6, owe Los Angeles nothing!

Marilyn Smith is a Los Angeles-based writer/reviewer. Contact her via [email protected]

MORE NEWS ON EURWEB:  Ryan Coogler to Produce Feature Musical About Prince

The post EUR Concert Review: Take 6 Gave Much More Than They Took + They Were Joined by Stevie Wonder! appeared first on EURweb .

• Statistics Stats
• You are here:
• Wonder, Stevie
• March 21, 1969 Setlist

Stevie Wonder Setlist at Gaumont Theatre, Southampton, England

• Edit setlist songs
• Edit venue & date
• Edit set times
• Add to festival
• Report setlist

Sorry, there are no songs in this setlist yet, but ...

If you were there then add whatever song you remember!

And you might also get help in the setlist request forum

Edits and Comments

1 activity (last edit by QueenFan11 , 20 Feb 2019, 03:18 Etc/UTC )

Stevie Wonder

More from this artist.

• More Setlists
• Artist Statistics
• Add setlist

Related News

Setlist History: "Gangsta's Paradise" Meets Stevie Wonder

Setlist History: Elton John Retires For The First Time in 1977

Setlist History: 13-Year Old Stevie Wonder Records First Hit

Stevie wonder gig timeline.

• Mar 19 1969 Odeon Manchester, England Add time Add time
• Mar 20 1969 Capitol Theatre Cardiff, Wales Add time Add time
• Mar 21 1969 Gaumont Theatre This Setlist Southampton, England Add time Add time
• Mar 22 1969 Finsbury Park Astoria London, England Add time Add time
• Mar 23 1969 Coventry Theatre Coventry, England Add time Add time

Concert People

Share or embed this setlist.

Use this setlist for your event review and get all updates automatically!

<div style="text-align: center;" class="setlistImage"><a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/stevie-wonder/1969/gaumont-theatre-southampton-england-5392b785.html" title="Stevie Wonder Setlist Gaumont Theatre, Southampton, England 1969" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.setlist.fm/widgets/setlist-image-v1?id=5392b785" alt="Stevie Wonder Setlist Gaumont Theatre, Southampton, England 1969" style="border: 0;" /></a> <div><a href="https://www.setlist.fm/edit?setlist=5392b785&amp;step=song">Edit this setlist</a> | <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlists/stevie-wonder-13d6b955.html">More Stevie Wonder setlists</a></div></div>

Last.fm Event Review

[url=https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/stevie-wonder/1969/gaumont-theatre-southampton-england-5392b785.html][img]https://www.setlist.fm/widgets/setlist-image-v1?id=5392b785[/img][/url] [url=https://www.setlist.fm/edit?setlist=5392b785&amp;step=song]Edit this setlist[/url] | [url=https://www.setlist.fm/setlists/stevie-wonder-13d6b955.html]More Stevie Wonder setlists[/url]

Tour Update

Marquee memories: yard act.

• Jun 21, 2024
• Jun 20, 2024
• Jun 19, 2024
• Jun 18, 2024
• Jun 17, 2024
• Jun 16, 2024
• FAQ | Help | About
• Terms of Service
• Ad Choices | Privacy Policy
• Feature requests
• Songtexte.com