Stevie Wonder

Stevie Wonder was born Stevland Hardaway Judkins in Michigan on May 13th 1950. He was blind from infancy having received too much oxygen whilst in an incubator. This did not detract from a career in music however and he was signed to Motown records at just twelve years old.

Performing under the name Little Stevie Wonder he found success with the single Fingertips (pt. 2). This was followed by a string of hits including For Once in My Life as well as him stretching his talents to song writing, penning tracks such as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles’ Tears of a Clown.

He married a member of his backing group Wonderlove, Syreeta Wright in 1970 and although the marriage didn’t last the friendship endured and Wonder even produced her 1974 album Stevie Wonder Presents Syreeta.

Wonder had too much talent to simply fall into the recording patterns of most artists and he left Motown until he was able to renegotiate a deal that would allow him creative control over his work. The new agreement paid dividends as Wonder had a string of acclaimed albums; Music of My Mind, Talking Book, Innervisions, Fulfillingness’ First Finale and Songs in the Key of Love.

Wonder lost another sense in 1973 after being involved in a car accident. A piece of timber fell from a lorry, smashing through a passenger window and hitting him in the head. He was left in a coma and when he woke up he had lost his sense of smell.

Although Wonder remained political releasing tracks such as Happy Birthday which called for Martin Luther King’s birthday to become a national holiday, the eighties saw him release a number of collaborations working with the likes of Sting, Michael Jackson, Elton John and Paul McCartney. Always maintaining the respect of his peers and fans alike Wonder was called upon to perform at the Live 8 concerts of 2005.