Songs in the Key of Life is a landmark album by Stevie Wonder, released on September 28, 1976 (see 1976 in music), and is widely known and confirmed as Wonder's magnum opus. It was the last of five consecutive albums widely hailed as his "classic period", along with Music of My Mind, Talking Book, Innervisions, and Fulfillingness' First Finale. A highly ambitious and experimental double LP, Songs in the Key of Life became the best-selling and most critically acclaimed album of his career, even earning a rare 5-star rating from Rolling Stone Magazine. A studio album is a collection of previously unreleased, studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... Stevie Wonder (born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950, name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris),[1] is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. ... is the 271st day of the year (272nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Rhythm and blues (also known as R&B or RnB) is a popular music genre combining jazz, gospel, and blues influences, first performed by African American artists. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Motown Records, Inc. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Stevie Wonder (born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950, name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris),[1] is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links 5_stars. ... This article is about the music magazine. ... Image File history File links 5_stars. ... Robert Christgau (2007) Robert Christgau (sometimes abbreviated in print to Xgau), born April 18, 1942, is an American essayist, music journalist, and the self-declared Dean of American Rock Critics[1] His first reviews were published by Esquire in 1967. ... Stevie Wonder (born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950, name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris),[1] is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. ... Fulfillingness First Finale is a landmark album by Stevie Wonder, released on July 22, 1974 (see 1974 in music). ... Journey Through The Secret Life Of Plants was Stevie Wonders most confusing, under-rated and under-appreciated work, out of a nearly 20 year career up to that point. ... Stevie Wonder (born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950, name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris),[1] is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. ... is the 271st day of the year (272nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... See also: 1970s in music. ... Magnum opus (sometimes Opus magnum, plural magna opera), from the Latin meaning great work,[1] refers to the best, most popular, or most renowned achievement of an author, artist, or composer, and most commonly one who has contributed a very large amount of material. ... Music of My Mind is a landmark album by Stevie Wonder, released on March 3, 1972 (see 1972 in music). ... Talking Book is an album by Lindsay Hartley. ... Innervisions is an album by Stevie Wonder, released in 1973 (see 1973 in music). ... Fulfillingness First Finale is a landmark album by Stevie Wonder, released on July 22, 1974 (see 1974 in music). ... This article is about the magazine. ...

Songs in the Key of Life won a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal and Album of the Year. The album also topped Billboard's Pop Albums and Black Albums charts for a record breaking 14 weeks out its 44 week in the Top 40 alone, and was the first CD by a solo artist to debut at #1 in its first week of sales, since the album had been released, interestingly enough, around the time of that invention's patent. It has surpassed a total of 10 million units in the U.S. alone.^[1] It was voted as the best album of the year in The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics poll. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance has been awarded since 1966. ... The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category. ... Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry. ... The Village Voice is a weekly newspaper in New York City featuring investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts reviews and events listings for New York City. ... The Pazz & Jop critics poll is a highly influential poll of music critics run by The Village Voice newspaper. ...

In 2003, the album was ranked number 56 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Similarly, in 1998 Q magazine readers voted Songs in the Key of Life the 88th greatest album of all time; in 2001 the TV network VH1 placed it at number 7; in 2005 voters on the United Kingdom's Channel 4's poll placed it 74th. This article is about the magazine. ... The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time is the cover story of a special issue of Rolling Stone magazine published in November 2003. ... Q is a music and entertainment magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom. ... A television network is a distribution network for television content whereby a central operation provides programming for many television stations. ... VH1 (VH-1: Video Hits One until 1994) is an American cable television channel that was created in January 1985 by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communications and owners of MTV. VH1 and sister channel MTV are currently part of the MTV Networks division... Channel 4 is a public-service British television station, broadcast to all areas of the United Kingdom (and also the Republic of Ireland), which began transmissions in 1982. ...

Track listing

Disc one

1. "Love's in Need of Love Today" (Wonder) – 7:05
2. "Have a Talk with God" (Hardaway/Wonder) – 2:42
3. "Village Ghetto Land" (Byrd/Wonder) – 3:25
4. "Contusion" (Wonder) – 3:45
5. "Sir Duke" (Wonder) – 3:54
6. "I Wish" (Wonder) – 4:12
7. "Knocks Me Off My Feet" (Wonder) – 3:36
8. "Pastime Paradise" (Wonder) – 3:27
9. "Summer Soft" (Wonder) – 4:14
10. "Ordinary Pain" (Wonder) – 6:23

Sir Duke is a song composed and performed by Stevie Wonder. ... I Wish (1976) is a hit funk single song by Stevie Wonder and included on the album Songs in the Key of Life. ...

Disc two

1. "Isn't She Lovely" (Wonder) – 6:34
2. "Joy Inside My Tears" (Wonder) – 6:29
3. "Black Man" (Byrd/Wonder) – 8:29
4. "Ngiculela - Es Una Historia - I Am Singing" (Wonder) – 3:48
5. "If It's Magic" (Wonder) – 3:12
6. "As" (Wonder) – 7:08
7. "Another Star" (Wonder) – 8:28

Isnt She Lovely is a song by Stevie Wonder, from his 1976 album Songs in the Key of Life. ...

A Something's Extra

1. "Saturn" (Sembello/Wonder) – 4:53
2. "Ebony Eyes" (Wonder) – 4:08
3. "All Day Sucker" (Wonder) – 5:05
4. "Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call)" (Wonder) – 3:56

The A Something's Extra 7" EP was included with the special edition version of the original LP. These tracks are also on most CD versions of the album, either split between both discs, or appended to the end of the second disc.

Personnel

• Stevie Wonder - Harmonica, Arranger, Keyboards, Programming, Vocals, Drums
• Michael Sembello - Guitar
• Sneaky Pete Kleinow - Pedal Steel
• George Benson - Guitar, Vocals
• Ronnie Foster - Organ
• Herbie Hancock - Keyboards, Handclapping
• Dean Parks - Guitar
• Greg Phillinganes - Keyboards
• W.G. "Snuffy" Walden - Guitar
• Nathan Watts - Bass, Vocals, Handclapping
• Greg Brown - Drums
• Raymond Lee Pounds - Drums
• Hank Redd - Sax (Alto), Sax (Tenor)
• George Bohannon - Trombone
• Ben Bridges - Guitar, Sitar
• Dorothy Ashby - Harp
• Bobbi Humphrey - Flute
• Howard Buzzy Feiten - Guitar
• Steve Madaio - Trumpet
• Trevor Lawrence - Sax (Tenor)
• Glen Ferris - Trombone
• Jim Horn - Saxophone
• Deniece Williams - Vocals
• Minnie Riperton - Vocals
• Gary Byrd - Vocals
• Michael Wycoff - Vocals
• Larry Scott - Sound Effects
• Carol Cole - Percussion
• Bobbye Hall - Percussion
• Jay Boy Adams - Vocals
• Nathan Alford, Jr. - Percussion
• Henry America - Vocals
• Linda America - Vocals
• Baradras - Vocals
• Brenda Barnett - Vocals
• Khalif Bobatoon - Vocals
• Starshemah Bobatoon - Vocals
• Sudana Bobatoon - Vocals
• Charles Brewer - Percussion, Programming, Vocals
• Shirley Brewer - Percussion, Vocals, Speaking Part
• Berry Briges - Vocals
• Cecilia Brown - Vocals
• Eddie "Bongo" Brown - Percussion
• Jean Brown - Vocals
• Rodney Brown - Vocals
• Colleen Carleton - Percussion, Vocals
• Addie Cox - Vocals
• Agnideva Dasa - Vocals
• Duryodhana Guru Dasa - Vocals
• Jayasacinandana Dasa - Vocals
• Jitamrtyi Dasa - Vocals
• Vedavyasa Dasa - Vocals
• Cinmayi Dasi - Vocals
• Yogamaya Dasi - Vocals
• Carolyn Dennis - Vocals
• Bhakta Eddie - Vocals
• Doe Rani Edwards - Vocals
• Jacqueline F. English - Vocals
• Ethel Enoex - Vocals
• Al Jocko Fann - Vocals
• Barbara Fann - Vocals
• Melani Fann - Vocals
• Shelley Fann - Vocals
• Tracy Fann - Vocals
• John Fischbach - Percussion, Programming, Vocals, Engineer
• Susie Fuzzell - Vocals
• Carmelo Garcia - Percussion, Timbales
• Anthony Givens - Vocals
• Audrey Givens - Vocals
• Derrick Givens - Vocals
• Mildred Givens - Vocals
• Michael Lee Gray - Vocals
• Mimi Green - Vocals
• Susaye Greene Brown - Vocals
• Bhakta Gregory - Vocals
• Renee Hardaway - Percussion, Vocals
• John Harris - Sound Effects
• Jeania Harris - Vocals
• John Harris - Programming
• Troy Harris - Vocals
• Nelson Hayes - Percussion, Sound Effects, Vocals
• Terry Hendricks - Vocals
• H. David Henson - Assistant Engineer
• Don Hunter - Programming, Sound Effects
• Adrian Janes - Vocals
• Josie James - Vocals
• Calvin Johnson - Vocals
• Carol Johnson - Vocals
• Patricia Johnson - Vocals
• Madelaine Jones - Vocals
• Bhakta Kevin - Vocals
• Phillip Kimble - Vocals
• James Lambert - Vocals
• Linda Lawrence - Vocals,
• Irma Leslie - Vocals
• Kim Lewis - Vocals
• Carl Lockhart - Vocals
• Gail Lockhart - Vocals
• Raymond Maldonado - Percussion, Trumpet
• Carolyn Massenburg - Vocals
• Artice May - Vocals
• Charity McCrary - Vocals
• Linda McCrary-Campbell - Vocals
• Lonnie Morgan - Vocals
• Kim Nixon - Vocals
• Lisa Nixon - Vocals
• Larri Nuckens - Vocals
• Larry Latimer - Percussion, Vocals
• Amale Mathews - Percussion, Vocals
• Gary Olazabal - Engineer , Bass Sound
• Edna Orso - Percussion, Vocals
• Marietta Waters - Percussion, Vocals
• Josette Valentino - Percussion, Vocals, Handclapping
• Gwen Perry - Vocals
• Gregory Rudd - Vocals
• Rukmini - Vocals
• Yolanda Simmons - Vocals, Handclapping
• Keith Slaughter - Vocals
• Rosona Starks - Vocals
• Dennis Swindell - Vocals
• Sundray Tucker - Vocals
• Gary Veney - Vocals
• Sheryl Walker - Vocals
• Mary Lee Whitney - Vocals
• Syreeta Wright - Vocals
• Michael Gray - Vocals
• Susaye Greene - Vocals
• William Moore - Vocals
• Fountain Jones - Programming

Michael Sembello (born April 17, 1954 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American musician. ... Sneaky Pete Kleinow Sneaky Pete Kleinow (born August 20, 1934 in South Bend, Indiana, died January 6, 2007 in California) was an American country-rock musician, songwriter, and a motion picture special effects artist. ... Pedal steel guitar (also called Steel Guitar) is a type of guitar, and a method of playing the instrument. ... George Benson (b. ... Ronnie Foster is an American funk, jazz, and soul organist who was born on May 13, 1950 in Buffalo, New York. ... Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an Academy Award and multiple Grammy Award-winning jazz pianist and composer from Chicago, Illinois, U.S. Hancock is one of jazz musics most important and influential pianists and composers. ... Dean Parks is a musician and guitarist from Los Angeles, California. ... Greg Phillinganes (born Gregory Phillinganes in Detroit, Michigan) is an active session keyboardist in Los Angeles, California. ... William Garrett Walden (often credited as Snuffy Walden or W. G. Snuffy Walden) is an accomplished composer for television shows, having scored Ellen, Roseanne, My So-Called Life, Sports Night, thirtysomething, The Wonder Years and The West Wing. ... Nathan Watts American session Bass Guitar player, best known for his work with Stevie Wonder in the 1970s and 80s. ... Dorothy Ashby (born August 6, 1932 in Detroit, Michigan, died April 13, 1986 in Santa Monica, California) was an African American jazz harpist and composer. ... Bobbi Humphrey is a female jazz flautist whose music style cover fusion, jazz-funk and soul-jazz. ... Deniece Williams Deniece Williams is an American singer, songwriter and record producer who achieved success in the 1970s and 1980s. ... Minnie Julia Riperton (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979) was an American soul singer from Chicago, Illinois, most noted for her abilities in the whistle register and her 1975 hit single Lovin You. Possessing a rare five-octave vocal range, she displayed the ability to imitate instrumentation and even birds. ... Carolyn Dennis (born 1954), sometimes professionally known as Carol Dennis or Carol Dennis-Dylan is an African-American singer and actor, best known for her work with, and marriage to Bob Dylan. ... Syreeta Wright (August 3, 1946 – July 6, 2004), who recorded professionally under the single name Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter active from the 1960s. ...

Cover versions

Several songs of Songs in the Key of Life have been covered and sampled. In popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. ... Sampling may refer to: Sampling (signal processing), converting a continuous signal into a discrete signal Sampling (music), re-using portions of sound recordings in a piece Sampling (statistics), selection of observations to acquire some knowledge of a statistical population Sampling (case studies), selection of cases for single or multiple case...

"Love's In Need of Love Today" 

Later recorded by Dave Hollister in 2002; also by Joan Osborne on the cover album How Sweet It Is.

"Have A Talk With God" 

Sampled by Snoop Dogg for his 2006 song Conversations, which featured a re-recorded vocal by Stevie Wonder himself.

"Contusion" 

Later chopped up and melded with other jazz samples for the Venetian Snares song "Banana Seat Girl" (2002).

"I Wish" 

Later recorded, with different lyrics, by Will Smith as the theme song for the film Wild Wild West. Sampled and remixed by Ben Leibrand for inclusion on his 1990 album Styles and featuring the rapping talents of (Miss) Nasty Chat. Sampled by Digital Underground for their song "No Nose Job." Sampled by The Black Dog for their song "Ambience With Teeth".

"Isn't She Lovely" 

a UK top ten hit for David Parton in 1977.

"Pastime Paradise" 

Later recorded by Ray Barretto and reworked into "Gangsta's Paradise" by Coolio in 1995, whose version was parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "Amish Paradise" in 1996. Sampled again as the basis of "Curtain Falls" by the boy-band Blue on 2004. In 1999, the song was covered by the Finnish humppa band Elakelaiset as "Paratiisihumppa". Also recorded by Patti Smith on her 2007 cover album Twelve.

"Knocks Me Off My Feet" 

Later recorded by Luther Vandross in 1996 and then by Donnell Jones in 1996.

"Village Ghetto Land" 

Covered by George Michael. Later sampled on Warren G's "Ghetto Village", off his 2001 album Return of the Regulator; in this version, the melody is slightly accelerated and the song is retrofitted with Warren's signature brand of G-Funk.

"As" 

Later recorded by Michael Bolton in 2001, also a successful duet between George Michael and Mary J. Blige in 1998.

"Another Star" 

Covered by Kathy Sledge and included (twice) in the 1995 Ministry Of Sound Sessions 4 double CD. Later recorded by Caron Wheeler of Soul II Soul in 2002.

// Dave Hollister, cousin of music act K-Ci and JoJo, started developing fame as a musician in the early 1990s. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Joan Elizabeth Osborne (born July 8, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, known chiefly for her song One of Us. Originally from the Louisville suburb of Anchorage, Kentucky, she moved to New York City in the late 1980s, where Osborne formed her own record label, Womanly Hips, to release... Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays full 2006 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Venetian Snares is the performing name of Aaron Funk, an electronic music producer and performer from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. ... “W. S.” redirects here. ... Wild Wild West (1999) is a film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, starring Will Smith, Kevin Kline (in two roles, Artemus Gordon and President Ulysses S. Grant), Kenneth Branagh and Salma Hayek. ... Digital Underground is an alternative rap group hailing from Oakland, California. ... Black Dog Productions (or The Black Dog) were a musical trio that produced Spanners, a high point of the intelligent dance music genre. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Ray Barretto a. ... Coolio greatest rapper ever (born Artis Leon Ivey, Jr. ... This article is about the musician himself. ... Blue is the name of two bands: Blue, the 1970s rock group from Glasgow, Scotland. ... Eläkeläiset on stage in Germany spring 2004 Eläkeläiset (Finnish for pensioners) is a Finnish humppa band founded 1993. ... Patricia Lee (Patti) Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American musician, singer, and poet. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou (Greek: ) (born June 25, 1963), better known as George Michael, is an English [1] singer-songwriter who performs soul influenced pop, and who (as a solo artist and half of the duo Wham!) has enjoyed massive global success since 1982. ... Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970 in Long Beach, California) better known as Warren G, is an American West Coast rapper and hip hop producer. ... G-funk, an abbreviation of Gangsta-funk, is a type of hip hop music that emerged from West Coast gangsta rap in the early 1990s. ... Michael Bolotin (born February 26, 1953), better known as Michael Bolton, is an American singer-songwriter, known for his soft rock ballads and powerful singing vocals. ... Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou (Greek: ) (born June 25, 1963), better known as George Michael, is an English [1] singer-songwriter who performs soul influenced pop, and who (as a solo artist and half of the duo Wham!) has enjoyed massive global success since 1982. ... This article or section may contain excessive or improper use of copyrighted images and/or audio files. ... Kathy Sledge (b. ... Ministry of Sound (MoS) is a nightclub in Elephant and Castle, Southwark, South London. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Soul II Soul is a dance/funk/soul act that emerged at the end of the 80s from London. ...

Charting singles

• 1976: Another Star (Club Play Singles) - No. 2
• 1977: Sir Duke (Adult Contemporary) - No. 3
• 1977: I Wish (Adult Contemporary) - No. 23
• 1977: Isn't She Lovely (Adult Contemporary) - No. 23
• 1977: Another Star (Pop Singles) - No. 32
• 1977: I Wish (Pop Singles) - No. 1
• 1977: Sir Duke (Pop Singles) - No. 1
• 1977: Another Star (Black Singles) - No. 18
• 1977: Another Star (Adult Contemporary) - No. 29
• 1977: As (Black Singles) - No. 36
• 1977: I Wish (Black Singles) - No. 1
• 1977: Sir Duke (Black Singles) - No. 1
• 1977: As (Adult Contemporary) - No. 24
• 1978: As (Pop Singles) - No. 36
• 1978: Knocks Me Off My Feet (Pop Singles) - No. 11
• 1978: Knocks Me Off My Feet (Black Singles) - No. 4

External links

• [1] Audio streams: WBEZ program 'Extensions' broadcast a 3 hour special commemorating the album's 30th anniversary

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