Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2009

Stevie Wonder, Superstition

Discovered by the Motown machine in 1961 at the tender age of 11, Little Stevie Wonder (as he was called then) notched his first hit, "Fingertips, Pt. 2", in 1963. Then the well essentially went dry for almost a decade. In 1972, Wonder turned 21 and presented Motown with an ultimatum — give me control over my music or I'm leaving.

It's a good thing the label relented, as the next four years saw Wonder go on a creative tear, pumping out Talking Book (which contained this track, "Superstition" and "You Are the Sunshine of My Life") in 1972, Innervisions in 1973 and Songs in the Key of Life in 1976. In this video apparently filmed in Wonder's studio, we see him break free of Motown's very catchy, but very restrictive, sound standards.