Stevie Wonder’s 20 greatest songs ranked, from ‘I Wish’ to ‘Superstition’

As the soul legend turns 70, Graeme Ross says ‘Happy Birthday’ by choosing his top 20 songs from a storied career

Only Frank Sinatra can match Wonder’s tally of three album of the year Grammys, awarded for successive releases between 1973-76 (Getty)

Stevie Wonder, perhaps the greatest artist to grace the Motown label, celebrates his 70th birthday on 13 May. His precocious talent was clear for all to see when he rose to fame aged 11, as the child prodigy Little Stevie Wonder. Having signed to Motown’s Tamla label, he played a huge part in its success in the early Sixties. As he gained greater autonomy in the Seventies, his pioneering fusion of rock and soul, using synthesisers, clavinet, and jazz and blues-influenced rhythms within a pop framework, led to some of the finest music of the rock era.

Wonder continued to make great music well into the Eighties – if his output since hasn’t quite matched his earlier touchstone recordings, well, even a genius has to take the occasional day off. A compassionate humanitarian, Wonder’s contribution to worthy causes is legendary and, most of all, as the man himself might say, “He’s got soul.” This is my pick of Stevie Wonder’s 20 greatest songs

Happy birthday, Stevie.

Little Stevie Wonder, circa 1965 (Getty)

20) Happy Birthday, 1981

This glorious anthem, from the Hotter Than July album, soundtracked Wonder’s huge contribution to a campaign to designate Martin Luther King’s birthday a USA national holiday. Its sheer danceability and all-purpose birthday salutations ensured its popularity in the UK. But in its own way, “Happy Birthday” has carried on Dr King’s work.

19) For Once in My Life, 1968

Wonder transformed a much-covered song that had previously been given the cabaret treatment by Tony Bennett. Berry Gordy was reluctant to release it as a single but Motown’s famed quality control department won the day, and the record made the top three on both sides of the Atlantic.

18) You Haven’t Done Nothin’, 1974

This scathing indictment of President Richard Nixon landed just as the Watergate scandal hit, but its political message somehow resonates even more in these troubled times. Wonder plays every instrument except the bass on this fantastic funk-fest, and that’s the Jackson Five you can hear on backing vocals.

17) He’s Misstra Know-It-All, 1973

Another thinly disguised pop at Nixon, this time couched in a beautiful melody and resigned vocal. It’s one of four hit singles from the groundbreaking Innervisions album, with Stevie once again playing almost all the instruments.

16) I Wish, 1976

Wonder reminisces about his childhood pre-fame on this fantastically funky horn-driven outing, the first from his favourite album, Songs in the Key of Life. “I Wish” made it to No 5 in the UK and topped the Billboard charts as Wonder hit the peak of his artistic and commercial success.

‘Hello London!’: playing Hyde Park at 2019’s British Summer Time (Getty)

15) Never Dreamed You’d Leave in Summer, 1971

Employing the changing of the seasons as a metaphor has long been part of the songwriter’s armoury, but never so movingly as here. This is a beautiful torch song, capable of melting the flintiest of hearts, written by Wonder with his wife, Syreeta.

14) We Can Work It Out, 1970

Wonder took on The Beatles on this neglected gem. By dint of his trademark harmonica, innovative clavinet fills and the hint of desperation in his vocals, he knocks the original for six. It’s one of the best Lennon and McCartney covers, and deserves to be better known.

13) Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours, 1970

Notable as Wonder’s first production credit, this was a real step up in sophisticated songcraft and remains one of his most covered songs. In truth, apart from the striking sitar licks throughout, it doesn’t veer too much from the Motown template, and is therefore irresistible.

12) My Cherie Amour, 1969

Unusually for Motown, a troubled production led to a year-long delay in the release of this tribute to Wonder’s first love. The wait was worth it however, as a new and mature artist emerged on this sentimental ballad that reached No 4 on both sides of the Atlantic and quickly became a standard.

11) Isn’t She Lovely, 1976

This much-loved song is also one of the great singles that never was. Stevie refused to release it as a 45, as it would have meant shortening the seven-minute album track. He wasn’t about to edit a song celebrating the birth of (and featuring the voice of) his daughter, Aisha.

Perhaps the most recognisable harmonica in popular music (Getty) (Getty Images)

10) Master Blaster (Jammin’), 1980

Never shy in paying tribute to his heroes, Wonder lionised Bob Marley on this sparkling reggae-funk jam that also recognises his own place in the world as a black man. Only The Police’s “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” prevented “Master Blaster” from topping the UK charts.

9) As, 1976

One of the greatest winning streaks in popular music began with 1972’s Music of My Mind, and culminated in Wonder’s magnum opus, Songs in the Key of Life. “As”, with its theme of undying, limitless love, was one of many highlights: a great love song and one of Wonder’s most covered compositions.

8) You Are the Sunshine of My Life, 1972

Wonder became a free agent on his 21st birthday, but remained with Motown while enjoying full artistic control. Soon, he confirmed his emergence as a major artist with the superb Talking Book album, which included this beautifully crafted, impossibly romantic No 1 single.

7) Fingertips (Parts 1 and 2), 1963

One of the most exciting records of all time was recorded before a live audience when (“Little”) Stevie was just 12 years old. “Fingertips Part 2” topped the Billboard Hot 100 and launched the boy genius to stardom. Wonder’s harmonica skills and the improvised outro are simply sensational.

Stevie Wonder, The Supremes, The Temptations, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas and Smokey Robinson, pictured during rehearsals in London for the 1965 TV special ‘Sounds of Tamla Motown’ (Rex)

6) Uptight (Everything’s Alright), 1965

After his initial success with “Fingertips”, Wonder trod water until he was 15 and released the marvellous “Uptight” to remind everyone of his precocious talent. This exuberant single represents Motown in all its mid-Sixties pomp; it gave Stevie his first UK hit, as he began to find his own unmistakable sound.

5) Higher Ground, 1973

What caused the rush of creative genius that enabled Wonder to write and record this funky meditation on reincarnation in just three hours? He described it as “a feeling that something was going to happen”. And just days after its release on Innervisions, “Higher Ground” gained even more significance, when Wonder spent four days in a coma after a near-fatal car accident.

4) Sir Duke, 1976

A joyous, brassy paean to Wonder’s jazz heroes: Glenn Miller, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie and “the king of all”, Duke Ellington. The track gave Wonder his closest brush with a UK No 1, until he finally topped the UK charts with “I Just Called to Say I Love You” in 1984.

3) I Was Made to Love Her, 1967

Nothing demonstrated Wonder’s new-found maturity in the late Sixties better than his huge hit single “I Was Made to Love Her”. It’s a euphoric celebration of first love, sung with the passion and intensity that would soon become a Wonder trademark. And don’t you just love the harmonica intro

2) Living for the City, 1973

Wonder’s gritty, impassioned vocals and peerless musicianship illuminate this devastating tale of a poor black boy from Mississippi, as he endures racism and exploitation in New York City. A fantastic blast of social commentary, best heard for maximum effect in the full album version – but the edited single still packs a punch.

1) Superstition, 1972

Wonder found his funkiest groove on this groundbreaking US No 1. The revolutionary clavinet riff, thumping drumbeat and irrepressible horn section took studio techniques to a whole new level, with Wonder masterfully blurring and expanding the boundaries of rock and soul. Stevie Wonder’s greatest song remains a magnificent and hugely important recording.