Name	Higher Ground
Cover	Higher_Ground45.jpg
From album	Innervisions
B-side	"Too High"
Released	July 1973
Artist	Stevie Wonder
Format	7" 45 RPM
Genre	Funk
Length	3:42 (full-length version)
Label	Tamla
Writer	Stevie Wonder
Producer	Stevie Wonder
Last single	"You Are the Sunshine of My Life"(1973)
This single	"Higher Ground"(1973)
Next single	"Living for the City"(1973)

"Higher Ground" is a funk song written by Stevie Wonder and first appearing on his 1973 album Innervisions. The song reached #4 on the U.S. Pop Singles chart and #1 on the U.S. Hot Soul Singles chart. Stevie wrote and recorded the song in a three-hour burst of creativity in May, 1973. The album version of this song contains an extra verse and runs 30 seconds longer than the single version. The unique wah-Clavinet sound in the song was achieved with a Mu-tron envelope filter pedal. The bass is a Moog synthesizer. Via overdubs, Wonder played all instruments on the track, including drums.

Critical reception

In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked the song #261 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, offering the following explanation: "'Ground' was recorded just before Wonder was involved in a near-fatal accident in August '73 that left him in a coma. Early in Wonder's recovery, his road manager sang the melody of 'Ground' into the singer's ear; Wonder responded by moving his fingers with the music."

Live performances

Wonder, joined by Alicia Keys and Lenny Kravitz, performed it at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards. Wonder and Keys sang it again at the 2006 Grammy Awards.

Wonder performed it on January 18, 2009 at the Lincoln Memorial in honor of the inauguration of President Barack Obama along with Shakira and Usher.

Wonder performed it on October 29, 2009, at the 25th Anniversary of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Concert. It was performed with Sting. The song broke into "Roxanne" by The Police in the middle and concluded with a return to "Higher Ground".

Chart history

{| class="wikitable sortable" ! Chart (1973) ! Peak Position |- | UK Singles Chart | style="text-align:center;"|29 |- | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | style="text-align:center;"|4 |- | U.S. Billboard R&B; Singles

UK 1989 CD Single #"Higher Ground" #"Higher Ground" (munchkin mix) #"Millionaires Against Hunger" #"Mommy Where's Daddy?"

Other versions

Michael McDonald covered this song on his "Very Best Of" album.

A version was recorded by singer Ellen McIlwaine for her 1975 album The Real Ellen McIlwaine.

A version was also recorded by gospel group The Blind Boys Of Alabama for their 2002 album Higher Ground.

In 2006, American Idol contestant Chris Daughtry performed it on the show's fifth-season.

At the 2006 Montreux Jazz Festival, bassist Marcus Miller also performed this song. "Higher Ground" was later released on his 2007 album Free.

More recently in the 2007 run of Australian Idol, contestant Ben Mackenzie sung his own version, which was a mixture of a ballad and the hard rock from the version recorded by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

In 2009, funk/soul group Robert Randolph & The Clark Sisters, released a version of the song on the compilation album .

References

Category:1973 singles Category:1989 singles Category:Stevie Wonder songs Category:Red Hot Chili Peppers songs Category:Billboard Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs number-one singles Category:Songs written by Stevie Wonder

Name	Stevie Wonder
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Stevland Hardaway Judkins
Alias	Stevland Hardaway Morris, Little Stevie Wonder, Eivets Rednow
Born	May 13, 1950Saginaw, Michigan, United States
Origin	Detroit, Michigan, United States
Instrument	Vocals, synthesizer, piano, keyboards, guitar, harmonica, drums, bass guitar, congas, bongos, clavinet, melodica, keytar, accordion
Genre	R&B;, pop, soul, jazz, funk
Occupation	Singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, activist
Years active	1961–present
Label	Tamla, Motown
Url

Stevland Hardaway Judkins (born May 13, 1950), name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris, known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist. Blind since shortly after birth, Wonder is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday a holiday in the United States. In 2009, Wonder was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace. In 2008, Billboard magazine released a list of the Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists to celebrate the US singles chart's fiftieth anniversary, with Wonder at number five.

Early life

Stevie Wonder was born in Saginaw, Michigan in 1950, being the third of six children to Calvin Judkins and Lula Mae Hardaway. Owing to his being born six weeks premature, the blood vessels at the back of his eyes had not yet reached the front and their aborted growth caused the retinas to detach. The medical term for this condition is retinopathy of prematurity, or ROP, and while it may have been exacerbated by the oxygen pumped into his incubator, this was not the primary cause of his blindness.

When Stevie Wonder was four, his mother left his father and moved herself and her children to Detroit. She changed her name back to Lula Hardaway and later changed her son's surname to Morris, partly because of relatives. Morris has remained Stevie Wonder's legal name ever since. He began playing instruments at an early age, including piano, harmonica, drums and bass. During childhood he was active in his church choir.

Discovery and early Motown recordings

Ronnie White of The Miracles gives credit to his brother Gerald White for persistently nagging him to come to his friend's house in 1961 to check out Stevie Wonder. Afterward, White brought Wonder and his mother to Motown Records. Impressed by the young musician, Motown CEO Berry Gordy signed Wonder to Motown's Tamla label with the name Little Stevie Wonder.

In 1970, Wonder co-wrote, and played numerous instruments on the hit "It's a Shame" for fellow Motown act The Spinners. His contribution was meant to be a showcase of his talent and thus a weapon in his on-going negotiations with Gordy about creative autonomy.

Classic period: 1972–1976

Wonder independently recorded two albums, which he used as a bargaining tool while negotiating with Motown. Eventually the label agreed to his demands for full creative control and the rights to his own songs. The 120-page contract shattered precedent at Motown and additionally gave Wonder a much higher royalty rate.

Released in the fall of 1972, Talking Book featured the No. 1 hit "Superstition", The song features a rocking groove that garnered Wonder an additional audience on rock radio stations. Talking Book also featured "You Are the Sunshine of My Life", which also peaked at No. 1. During the same time as the album's release, Stevie Wonder began touring with the Rolling Stones to alleviate the negative effects from pigeon-holing as a result of being an R&B; artist in America. Between them, the two songs won three Grammy Awards. Wonder and his band performed "Superstition", as well as an original song called "Sesame Street Song", which demonstrated his abilities with the "talk box".

Political considerations were brought into greater focus than ever before on his next album, Innervisions, released in 1973. The album featured "Higher Ground" (#4 on the pop charts) as well as the trenchant "Living for the City" (#8). Innervisions generated three more Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. Wonder had become the most influential and acclaimed black musician of the early 1970s. This left him in a coma for four days and resulted in a partial loss of his sense of smell and a temporary loss of sense of taste.

Despite the setback, Wonder eventually recovered all of his musical faculties, and re-appeared in concert at Madison Square Garden in March 1974 with a performance that highlighted both up-tempo material and long, building improvisations on mid-tempo songs such as "Living for the City". He also co-wrote and produced the Syreeta Wright album .

On October 4, 1975, Wonder performed at the historical "Wonder Dream Concert" in Kingston, Jamaica, a benefit for the Jamaican Institute for the Blind.

By 1975, in his 25th year, Stevie Wonder had won two consecutive Grammy Awards: in 1974 for Innervisions and in 1975 for Fulfillingness' First Finale.

The double album-with-extra-EP Songs in the Key of Life, was released in September 1976. Sprawling in style, unlimited in ambition, and sometimes lyrically difficult to fathom, the album was hard for some listeners to assimilate, yet is regarded by many as Wonder's crowning achievement and one of the most recognizable and accomplished albums in pop music history. The album became the first of an American artist to debut straight at #1 in the Billboard charts, where it remained for 14 non-consecutive weeks. Two tracks, became #1 Pop/R&B; hits "I Wish" and "Sir Duke". The baby-celebratory "Isn't She Lovely?" was written about his newborn daughter Aisha, while songs such as "Love's in Need of Love Today" (which years later Wonder would perform at the post-September 11, 2001 telethon) and "Village Ghetto Land" reflected a far more pensive mood. Songs in the Key of Life won Album of the Year and two other Grammys. Rolling Stone Magazine's 2003 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time included four of the five albums, with three in the top 90.

In 1994, Wonder made a guest appearance on the KISS cover album , playing harmonica and supplying background vocals for the song "Deuce", performed by Lenny Kravitz.

In 1996, Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life was selected as a documentary subject for the Classic Albums documentary series. This series dedicates 60 minutes to one groundbreaking record per feature. The same year, he performed John Lennon's song "Imagine" in the closing ceremony of the Atlanta Olympic Games. The same year, Wonder performed in a remix of "Seasons of Love" from the Jonathan Larson musical Rent.

In 1997, Wonder collaborated with Babyface for a song about abuse (domestic violence) called "How Come, How Long" which was nominated for an award.

In December 1999, Wonder announced that he was interested in pursuing an intraocular retinal prosthesis to partially restore his sight. That same year, Wonder was featured on harmonica in the Sting song "Brand New Day".

In 2000, Stevie Wonder contributed two new songs to the soundtrack for Spike Lee's Bamboozled album ("Misrepresented People" and "Some Years Ago").

Current career: 2002–present

In March 2002, Wonder performed at the opening ceremonies of the 2002 Winter Paralympics in Salt Lake City.

On July 2, 2005, Wonder performed in the USA part of the Live 8 series of concerts in Philadelphia.

Wonder's first new album in ten years, A Time to Love, was released on October 18, 2005, after having been pushed back from first a May, and then a June release. The album was released electronically on September 27, 2005, exclusively on Apple's iTunes Music Store. The first single, "So What the Fuss", was released in April. A second single, "From the Bottom of My Heart" was a hit on adult-contemporary R&B; radio. The album also featured a duet with India.Arie on the title track "A Time to Love".

Wonder performed at the pre-game show for Super Bowl XL in Detroit in early 2006, singing various hit singles (with his four-year-old son on drums) and accompanying Aretha Franklin during "The Star Spangled Banner".

, Brazil in July 2006]]

In March 2006, Wonder received new national exposure on the top-rated American Idol television program. Wonder performed "My Love Is on Fire" (from A Time To Love) live on the show itself. In June 2006, Stevie Wonder made a guest appearance on Busta Rhymes' new album, The Big Bang on the track "Been through the Storm". He sings the refrain and plays the piano on the Dr. Dre and Sha Money XL produced track. He appeared again on the last track of Snoop Dogg's new album Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, "Conversations". The song is a remake of "Have a Talk with God" from Songs in the Key of Life.

In 2006 Wonder staged a duet with Andrea Bocelli on the latter's album Amore, offering harmonica and additional vocals on "Canzoni Stonate". Stevie Wonder also performed at Washington, D.C.'s 2006 "A Capitol Fourth" celebration.

On August 2, 2007, Stevie Wonder announced the A Wonder Summer's Night 13 concert tour — his first U.S. tour in over ten years. This tour was inspired by the recent passing of his mother, as he stated at the conclusion of the tour on December 9 at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Arizona.

in Denver, Colorado.]] On August 28, 2008, Wonder performed at the Democratic National Convention at Invesco Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado. Songs included were a previously unreleased song, "Fear Can't Put Dreams to Sleep," and "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours".

On September 8, 2008, Wonder started the European leg of his Wonder Summer's Night Tour, the first time he had toured Europe in over a decade. His opening show was at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, England. During the tour, Wonder played eight UK gigs; four at The O2 Arena in London, two in Birmingham and two at the M.E.N. Arena in Manchester. Stevie Wonder's other stops in the tour's European leg also found him performing in Holland (Rotterdam), Sweden (Stockholm), Germany (Cologne, Mannheim and Munich), Norway (Hamar), France (Paris), Italy (Milan) and Denmark (Aalborg). Wonder also toured Australia (Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane) and New Zealand (Christchurch, Auckland and New Plymouth) in October and November.

By June 2008, Wonder was working on two projects simultaneously: a new album titled The Gospel Inspired By Lula which will deal with the various spiritual and cultural crises facing the world, and Through The Eyes Of Wonder, an album which Wonder has described as a performance piece that will reflect his experience as a blind man. Wonder was also keeping the door open for a collaboration with Tony Bennett and Quincy Jones concerning a rumoured jazz album. If Wonder was to join forces with Bennett, it would not be for the first time; Their rendition of "For Once in My Life" earned them a Grammy for best pop collaboration with vocals in 2006.

.]]

Wonder performed on January 18, 2009 at the . On Inauguration Day, January 20, 2009, Wonder performed the song "Brand New Day" with musician Sting. He performed his new song "All About the Love Again" and, with other musical artists, "Signed, Sealed, and Delivered". On February 23, 2009, Wonder became the second recipient of the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize for pop music, honored by President Barack Obama at the White House.

On July 7, 2009, Wonder performed "Never Dreamed You'd Leave In Summer" and "They Won't Go When I Go" at the Staples Center for Michael Jackson's memorial service. On October 29, 2009, Wonder performed at the 25th anniversary concert for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Among performing songs with B.B. King, Wonder performed Michael Jackson's 'The Way You Make Me Feel', during which he became emotionally distraught and was unable to perform until he regained his composure.

On January 22, 2010, Wonder performed Bridge Over Troubled Water for the event to help victims of the earthquake in Port-au-Prince on January 12, 2010.

On March 6, 2010, Wonder was awarded the Commander of the Arts and Letters by French Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand. Wonder had been due to receive this award in 1981, but scheduling problems prevented this from happening. A lifetime achievement award was also given to Wonder on the same day, at France's biggest music awards.

His summer 2010 tour included a two-hour set at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, a stop at London's "Hard Rock Calling" in Hyde Park, and appearances at England's Glastonbury Festival, Rotterdam's North Sea Jazz Festival, and a concert in Bergen, Norway and a concert in Dublin, Ireland at the O2 Arena on June 24th.

Accomplishments

A prominent figure in popular music during the latter half of the 20th century, Wonder has recorded more than thirty U.S. top ten hits and won twenty-two Grammy Awards (the most ever won by a solo artist) as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award. He has also won an Academy Award for Best Song, and been inducted into both the Rock and Roll and Songwriters halls of fame. He has also been awarded the Polar Music Prize. American music magazine Rolling Stone named him the ninth greatest singer of all time. In June 2009 he became the fourth artist to receive the Montreal Jazz Festival Spirit Award.

He has ten U.S. number-one hits on the pop charts as well as 20 R&B; number one hits, and album sales totaling more than 100 million units. Wonder has recorded several critically acclaimed albums and hit singles, and writes and produces songs for many of his label mates and outside artists as well. Wonder plays the piano, synthesizer, harmonica, congas, drums, bass guitar, bongos, organ, melodica, and clavinet. In his childhood, he was best known for his harmonica work, but today he is better known for his keyboard skills and vocal ability. Wonder was the first Motown artist and second African American musician to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song for his 1984 hit single "I Just Called to Say I Love You" from the movie The Woman in Red.

Impact

Wonder's songs are renowned for being quite difficult to sing. He has a very developed sense of harmony and uses many extended chords utilizing extensions such as 9ths, 11ths, 13ths, b5s, etc. in his compositions. Many of his melodies make abrupt, unpredictable changes. Many of his vocal melodies are also melismatic, meaning that a syllable is sung over several notes. Some of his best known and most frequently covered songs are played in keys which are more often found in jazz than in pop and rock. For example, "Superstition", "Higher Ground" and "I Wish" are in the key of E flat minor, and feature distinctive riffs in the E flat minor pentatonic scale (i.e. largely on the black notes of the keyboard).

Wonder played a large role in bringing synthesizers to the forefront of popular music. He developed many new textures and sounds never heard before. In 1981, Wonder became the first owner of an E-mu Emulator.

Songs sampled by other musicians

Wonder has recorded with Jon Gibson, a Christian Soul musician, on a remake of his own song, "Have a Talk With God" (from the 1989 album Body & Soul), covered by Gibson in which Wonder plays harmonica. The two men met in the early 1980s through a shared music agent (Bill Wolfer).

Red Hot Chili Peppers covered "Higher Ground" in 1989 on their Mother's Milk album. Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble covered "Superstition" and Wonder made a cameo appearance in the official music video for the song.

"Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing" was rendered by English band Incognito in 1992 and John Legend covered this song for the 2005 film, Hitch. George Michael and Mary J. Blige covered "As" in the late 90's. In 1999, Salome De Bahia made a Brazilian version of "Another Star". Tupac Shakur sampled "That Girl" for his hit song "So Many Tears".

"Pastime Paradise" would become an interpolation for Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" while Will Smith would use "I Wish" as the basis for the theme song to his movie, Wild Wild West. The elements of "Love's In Need of Love Today" were used by 50 Cent in the song "Ryder Music", and Warren G sampled "Village Ghetto Land" for his song "Ghetto Village".

Mary Mary, did a cover of his song, "You Will Know" on their 2002 album, Incredible. Australian soul artist Guy Sebastian recorded a cover of "I Wish" on his Beautiful Life album. In 2003, Raven-Symoné recorded a cover of "Superstition" for the soundtrack to Disney's The Haunted Mansion. In 2005, Canadian singer Dave Moffatt, from the group The Moffatts, sang the song "Overjoyed" from the In Square Circle album on Canadian Idol. Clay Aiken performed "Isn't She Lovely?" in the episode "My Life in Four Cameras" of Scrubs.

Personal life

Wonder has been married twice: to Motown singer Syreeta Wright from 1970 until their divorce in 1972; and since 2001, to fashion designer Kai Milla Morris. He has seven children from his two marriages and several relationships. ! style="vertical-align:top; width:30px;"| US R&B; ! style="vertical-align:top; width:30px;"| US Dance ! style="vertical-align:top; width:30px;"| US AC ! style="vertical-align:top; width:30px;"| UK |- ||1963 |"Fingertips - Pt. 2" | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |rowspan="3"|1966 |"Uptight (Everything's Alright)" | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 14 |- |"Blowin' in the Wind" | style="text-align:center;"| 9 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 36 |- |"A Place in the Sun" | style="text-align:center;"| 9 | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 20 |- ||1967 |"I Was Made to Love Her" | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 5 |- |rowspan="2"|1968 |"For Once in My Life" | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 3 |- |"Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day" | style="text-align:center;"| 9 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |rowspan="2"|1969 |"My Cherie Amour" | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 4 |- |"Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday" | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| 5 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 2 |- |rowspan="3"|1970 |"Never Had A Dream Come True" | style="text-align:center;"| 26 | style="text-align:center;"| 11 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 5 |- |"Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 15 |- |"Heaven Help Us All" | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 29 |- |rowspan="2"|1971 |"We Can Work It Out" | style="text-align:center;"| 13 | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 27 |- |"If You Really Love Me" | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 20 |- |rowspan="2"|1972 |"Superwoman (Where Were You When I Needed You)" | style="text-align:center;"| 33 | style="text-align:center;"| 13 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |"Superstition" | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 11 |- |rowspan="3"|1973 |"You Are the Sunshine of My Life" | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 3 |- |"Higher Ground" | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 29 |- |"Living for the City" | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 15 |- |rowspan="3"|1974 |"He's Misstra Know It All" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 10 |- |"You Haven't Done Nothin'" ^{(with The Jackson 5)} | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 30 |- |"Boogie On Reggae Woman" | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 12 |- |rowspan="4"|1977 |"I Wish" | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 5 |- |"Sir Duke" | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 2 |- |"Another Star" | style="text-align:center;"| 32 | style="text-align:center;"| 18 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 29 |- |"As" | style="text-align:center;"| 36 | style="text-align:center;"| 36 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- ||1979 |"Send One Your Love" | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 5 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |rowspan="2"|1980 |"Master Blaster (Jammin)" | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 |- |"I Ain't Gonna Stand For It" | style="text-align:center;"| 10 | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 11 |- |rowspan="3"|1981 |"Lately" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 3 |- |"Happy Birthday" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 17 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 2 |- |"That Girl" | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 39 |- |rowspan="3"|1982 |"Do I Do" | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 10 |- |"Ebony and Ivory" (with Paul McCartney) | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 1 |- |"Ribbon in the Sky" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 9 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- ||1984 |"I Just Called to Say I Love You" | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 |- |rowspan="3"|1985 |"Part-Time Lover" | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 3 |- |"That's What Friends Are For" ^{(with Dionne Warwick, Elton John and Gladys Knight)} | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 16 |- |"Love Light In Flight" | style="text-align:center;"| 17 | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 6 | style="text-align:center;"| 10 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |rowspan="3"|1986 |"Go Home" | style="text-align:center;"| 10 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |"Land Of La La" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 19 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |"Overjoyed" | style="text-align:center;"| 24 | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 17 |- ||1987 |"Skeletons" | style="text-align:center;"| 17 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 20 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |rowspan="3"|1988 |"Get It" (with Michael Jackson) | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 37 |- |"My Eyes Don t Cry" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 6 | style="text-align:center;"| 12 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |"You Will Know" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- ||1989 |"With Each Beat Of My Heart" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 28 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- ||1990 |"Keep Our Love Alive" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 24 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |rowspan="2"|1991 |"Fun Day (From "Jungle Fever")" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 6 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |"Gotta Have You (From "Jungle Fever")" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- ||1992 |"These Three Words" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- ||1995 |"For Your Love" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 11 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 30 | style="text-align:center;"| 23 |- |rowspan="2"|2005 |"So What The Fuss" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 34 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 40 | style="text-align:center;"| 19 |- |"From The Bottom Of My Heart" | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 25 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| - |}

U.S. and UK albums

{|class="wikitable" |- ! style="width:28px;" rowspan="2"| Year ! style="width:250px;" rowspan="2"| Album ! colspan="3"| Chart positions |- ! style="vertical-align:top; width:30px;"| US ! style="vertical-align:top; width:30px;"| US R&B; ! style="vertical-align:top; width:30px;"| UK |- |1963 | | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1966 |Up-Tight | style="text-align:center;"| 33 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1966 |Down to Earth | style="text-align:center;"| 72 | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1967 |I Was Made to Love Her | style="text-align:center;"| 45 | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1968 |For Once in My Life | style="text-align:center;"| 50 | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1969 |My Cherie Amour | style="text-align:center;"| 34 | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 17 |- |1970 |Signed, Sealed, and Delivered | style="text-align:center;"| 25 | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1971 |Where I'm Coming From | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1972 |Music of My Mind | style="text-align:center;"| 21 | style="text-align:center;"| 6 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1972 |Talking Book | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 16 |- |1973 |Innervisions | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 6 |- |1974 |Fulfillingness' First Finale | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 5 |- |1976 |''Songs in the Key of Life | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 |- |1979 |Journey through the Secret Life of Plants | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 7 |- |1980 |Hotter than July | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 |- |1982 |''Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 8 |- |1984 |The Woman in Red | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 |- |1985 |In Square Circle | style="text-align:center;"| 5 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 5 |- |1987 |Characters | style="text-align:center;"| 17 | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 33 |- |1995 |Conversation Peace | style="text-align:center;"| 17 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 8 |- |1996 |Natural Wonder | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 88 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |1997 |Song Review A Greatest Hits Collection | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 100 | style="text-align:center;"| 19 |- |2000 |At the Close of a Century | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 100 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |2002 |The Definitive Collection | style="text-align:center;"| 35 | style="text-align:center;"| 28 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |2004 |Best Of Stevie Wonder: 20th Century Masters Christmas Collection | style="text-align:center;"| - | style="text-align:center;"| 90 | style="text-align:center;"| - |- |2005 |A Time To Love | style="text-align:center;"| 5 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 24 |- |2007 |Number 1's | style="text-align:center;"| 171 | style="text-align:center;"| 40 | style="text-align:center;"| 23 |}

Awards and recognition

Grammy Awards

Wonder has received 25 Grammy Awards: |- |1976 || Best Producer of the Year* || N/A |- |1976 || Album of the Year || Songs in the Key of Life |- |1985 || Best Male R&B; Vocal Performance|| In Square Circle |- |1986 || Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal ''(awarded to Dionne Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight, and Wonder) || "That's What Friends Are For" |- |1995 || Best Rhythm & Blues Song || "For Your Love" |- |1995 || Best Male R&B; Vocal Performance || "For Your Love" |- |1996 || Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award || General |- |1998 || Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s) ''(awarded to Herbie Hancock, Robert Sadin, and Wonder)|| "St. Louis Blues" |- |1998 || Best Male R&B; Vocal Performance || "St. Louis Blues" |- |2002 || Best R&B; Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals ''(awarded to Wonder and Take 6)|| "Love's in Need of Love Today" |- |2005 || Best Male Pop Vocal Performance || "From the Bottom of My Heart" |- |2005 || Best R&B; Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals ''(awarded to Beyoncé and Wonder)|| "So Amazing" |- |2006 || Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals ''(awarded to Tony Bennett and Wonder) || "For Once In My Life" |}

Between 1965 and 1980, a self-produced artist won an additional Grammy as a producer as well as an artist.

Other awards and recognition

1983: inducted to the Songwriters Hall of Fame. 1999: received the Polar Music Prize 2002: received the George and Ira Gershwin Lifetime Achievement Award at UCLA's Spring Sing. The same year, Wonder received the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. 2004: received the Billboard Century Award. Also in 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him #15 on their list of the 100 Greatest Rock and Roll Artists of All Time. 2006: was inducted, as one of the first inductees, into the Michigan Walk of Fame. The same year, Wonder received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. 2008: Ranked at number five on "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists", making him as the third most successful male artist in the history of Billboard Hot 100 chart. 2009: Recipient of the second Gershwin Prize For Popular Song.

2009: Recipient of the Montreal Jazz Festival Spirit Award. This special award underlines a popular artist’s extraordinary contribution to the musical world. The Montreal Jazz Festival Spirit Award is in bronze.

2009: Named a Messenger of Peace by the United Nations.

See also

Best selling music artists

List of number-one hits (United States)

List of Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones

List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)

References

External links

Official Site

Stevie Wonder Website Coming Soon

IMDB Profile

Category:1950 births Category:1960s singers Category:1970s singers Category:1980s singers Category:1990s singers Category:2000s singers Category:2010s singers Category:African American drummers Category:African American singer-songwriters Category:African American pianists Category:African American record producers Category:African Americans' rights activists Category:American child singers Category:American composers Category:American funk drummers Category:American funk keyboardists Category:American funk singers Category:American harmonica players Category:American male singers Category:American multi-instrumentalists Category:American rhythm and blues keyboardists Category:American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters Category:American soul keyboardists Category:American soul singers Category:Best Song Academy Award winning songwriters Category:Blind musicians Category:Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Category:Frank Farian artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Living people Category:Motown artists

Category:Musicians from Detroit, Michigan Category:Musicians from Michigan Category:People from Saginaw, Michigan

Category:Rhythm and blues pianists Category:Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees‎ Category:Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees Category:Soul drummers Category:United Nations Messengers of Peace

Name	Tony Rich
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Antonio Jeffries
Alias	The Tony Rich Project
Born	November 19, 1971
Origin	Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Instrument	Guitar, mandolin, keyboard
Genre	Contemporary R&B;
Years active	1995–present
Occupation	Singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, record producer
Label	LaFace, Hidden Beach
Url	WhereIsTonyRich.com

Tony Rich (born Antonio Jeffries; November 19, 1971, in Detroit, Michigan, U.S.) is a contemporary R&B; singer-songwriter.

Biography

Early career

Rich first attracted attention through the production team of Tim & Bob. The duo convinced Perri "Pebbles" Reid (then the wife of L.A. Reid, co-founder of LaFace Records) to listen to Rich over the phone. Rich eventually became a staff writer at LaFace Records, where he wrote songs for recording artists including Boyz II Men, Johnny Gill, TLC, and Toni Braxton. Later, Rich mixed elements of jazz, rock and soul music into his own tracks.

The Tony Rich Project

In January 1996 Rich released the hit single, "Nobody Knows", which made it to number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Under the moniker "The Tony Rich Project", he released his debut album Words in early 1996. Both the album and single went platinum and in 1997, Rich won a Grammy Award for the Best R&B; Album. The song was covered by country music artist Kevin Sharp in 1997, also as his debut single. The song "Like a Woman" was also nominated for a Grammy Award.

The album was followed up in 1998 by Birdseye, which, while critically praised, failed to generate much commercial success. Rich seemingly disappeared from the music world for several years after this album's release.

In 2003, Rich returned with the album The Resurrected. Carrying a very different style, the album featured Rich rocking out on the guitar, as well as singing smooth ballads.

By 2006, Rich released a fourth album, Pictures. The album contains snapshots of a relationship, and is a return in style to his earlier works.

In 2008, he released his fifth album, Exist, through Hidden Beach Recordings. Originally it was set for release on September 16, however it was pushed back to September 23, 2008. The album features the download-only single, "Part the Waves".

Film

Rich portrayed the legendary Edward Duke Ellington in the 1997 crime drama Hoodlum.

Discography

Singles

1996: "Nobody Knows" #2 U.S.

1996: "Like a Woman"

1996: "Leavin'"

1998: "Silly Man"

2008: "Part the Waves"

Albums

1996: Words #31 U.S., #18 U.S. R&B;

1998: Birdseye #66 R&B;

2003: The Resurrected

2005: Nobody Knows: The Best of the Tony Rich Project

2006: Pictures

2008: Exist

Collaboration albums

2006: A New Understanding of Peace (with Sheila Evans)

References

External links

Official site

[ Allmusic]

Category:1971 births Category:American male singers Category:American record producers Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Living people Category:American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters Category:People from Detroit, Michigan

Name	Sergei Govorkov
Caption
First	His Nickname Is 'Beast' (1989)
Last	Return of the Furious (2005)
Nickname	30th
Alias	Beast, Rex, Furious
Title	Sergeant
Portrayer	Igor Livanov (1992 film)Dmitry Pevtsov (1989 film)
Creator	Victor Dotsenko

Sergeant Sergei (Rex) Govorkov (nicknamed Furious) is a fictional character in the 1992 Soviet action/adventure film Terminate the Thirtieth!, played by Igor Livanov. He is arguably a breakout character. The movie is based on the same-titled novel by Victor Dotsenko. Govorkov, created by Victor Dotsenko in 1980s, is a main protagonist in the novels of other well-known Russian writers including Yuri Nikitin, Anton Pervushin, Valery Roschin, Kirill Vorobyev. Novels about his adventures made Victor Dotsenko the most published and highest paid Russian writer in 1995. In them his character got to know many prominent Russian politicians and officials, who later became personal friends of Dotsenko in reality (for example, the mayor of Moscow, Yury Luzhkov). Overall Dotsenko has written 25 books about Govorkov or about gaps in his fictional biography (for instance, An Appeal to Furious). Dotsenko even calles himself Furious's Father (). Today, the total number of books sold about Govorkov's adventures remains unknown. The approximate number is 20,000,000 from 1991 to 2001, which includes books with different covers and by other authors as well as unlicensed books. Some of them have been translated into English.

Short description

Sergei Govorkov is a fictional character, created by Victor Dotsenko, returnee of the Afghan war, who fights the Mafia in the manner of a superhero or Rambo. He fights mafia criminals, corrupt politicians, Chechen terrorists, and foreign enemies, saving President Yeltsin and receives a Purple Heart from US authorities.

In the novels his name is Savely – a rare Russian name, which was changed to relatively sounding, more common and catchy. He appeared in more than twenty novels, all of them became a bestsellers.

Fictional character biography

Sergei was brought up in an orphanage, VDV and Spetsnaz Sergeant, martial arts sensei's best trainee, Afghan vet, after being retired he was convicted for a crime he didn't commit, became a prisoner, then an escapee and fugitive from justice, later considered not guilty, back in the Afghan, MIA, then became a POW, during his escape he came into a copter crash, badly wounded and healed by some Pakistani Zoroastrian sect which later initiated him as adept. And by the time depicted in the beginning of "Terminate the Thirtieth!", he's just a lonely drifter in some oriental country , completely out of money, applying for any kind of job and attempting to sold his war decorations to prevent himself from starvation death. His friend Cpt. Voronov (or '11th'), which also became missing in action during the Afghan campaign, is his only relative - they grew up together in the orphanage.

Complicated tangle, eh? And there is no wonder that KGB, Russian mob and Mujahideen wants him dead or alive. Finally he came back in the USSR, but now it's not the same Country he had left a years ago. New trends, new ideas, new liberties are in the air.

Meaning of the "30th"

30th is a chest-badge number, which is a heritage from his previous owner, killed in the beginning of the novel "Terminate the Thirtieth!"

Victor Dotsenko "Terminate the Thirtieth!":

Other facts

Unlike the novel, the film contains no sex scenes, which are frequent in the novel. Despite, its having been shot shortly after the 'Glasnost' period, sexploitation on the screen was widespread and encouraged. A vast majority of the initiated audience, mostly VDV and Spetsnaz servicemen considered the movie quieter, more interesting and related to reality. This is because Dotsenko, who was Director as well, has used military consultants. Also, actor Igor Livanov, who portrayed the '30th', served active duty in Soviet marine troops, and was well-experienced in martial arts. A "Kill the Thirtieth" novel took the 9th position in the 1992' The Economist chart. After the 1992' film, there were events, when people change their original name to character's one.

See also

VDV

Spetsnaz

Further reading

Adele Marie Barker "Consuming Russia: popular culture, sex, and society since Gorbachev". Durham, N.C. : Duke University Press, 1999 - 473 p. ISBN 0822323133, 9780822323136 (Page 188)

Birgit Beumers "Pop culture Russia!: media, arts, and lifestyle". Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2005 - 399 p. ISBN 1851094598, 9781851094592 (Page 300)

Eliot Borenstein "Overkill: sex and violence in contemporary Russian popular culture". Ithaca : Cornell University Press, 2008 - 265 p. ISBN 0801474035, 9780801474033

Michael L. Bressler "Understanding contemporary Russia". Boulder : Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2009 - 423 p. ISBN 1588265862, 9781588265869 (Page 371)

Anna Brodsky, Mark Naumovich Lipovetskiĭ, Marina Kanevskaya, Sven Spieker "The imprints of terror: the rhetoric of violence and the violence of rhetoric in modern Russian culture". Gesellschaft zur Förderung slawistischer Studien, 2006 - 290 p. ISBN 3876909791, 9783876909790 (Page 121)

Anthony Olcott "Russian pulp: the detektiv and the Russian way of crime". Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, 2001 - 207 p. ISBN 0742511405, 9780742511408 (Pages 33,145,191,202)

"Russian studies in literature", vol. 36. Periodical. Armonk, NY : M.E. Sharpe, Inc., 2000. ISSN: 1061-1975

"The Soviet and post-Soviet review", vol. 29. Periodical. Salt Lake City, UT : College of Humanities, University of Utah, 2002. ISSN: 1075-1262

References

Category:Fictional sergeants Category:Fictional Spetsnaz personnel Category:Fictional war veterans Category:Fictional mercenaries Category:Fictional private military members Category:Characters in Russian novels of the 20th century Category:Russian characters in written fiction