Songs in the Key of Life  

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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.

Contents

Track listing

Side one

  1. "Love's in Need of Love Today" (Wonder) – 7:06
    • Eddie “Bongo” Brown—Collinga
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
  2. "Have a Talk with God" (Calvin Hardaway, Wonder) – 2:42
    • All Instruments Stevie Wonder
  3. "Village Ghetto Land" (Gary Byrd, Wonder) – 3:25
    • All Instruments Stevie Wonder
  4. "Contusion" (Wonder) – 3:46
    • Mike Sembello—Lead Guitar
    • Raymond Pounds—Drums
    • Nathan Watts—Bass
    • Ben Bridges—Rhythm Guitar
    • Gregory Phillinganes—Keyboard
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
    • Michael Gray, Josie James, Shirley Brewer, Artece May—Vocals
  5. "Sir Duke" (Wonder) – 3:52
    • Raymond Pounds—Drums
    • Nathan Watts—Bass
    • Mike Sembello—Lead Guitar
    • Ben Bridges—Rhythm Guitar
    • Hank Redd—Alto Saxophone
    • Raymond Maldonado—Trumpet
    • Trevor Laurence—Tenor Saxophone
    • Steve Madaio—Trumpet
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder

Side two

  1. "I Wish" (Wonder) – 4:12
    • Nathan Watts—Bass
    • Hank Redd—Alto Saxophone
    • Raymond Maldonado—Trumpet
    • Trevor Laurence—Tenor Saxophone
    • Steve Madaio—Trumpet
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
  2. "Knocks Me Off My Feet" (Wonder) – 3:36
    • All Instruments Stevie Wonder
  3. "Pastime Paradise" (Wonder) – 3:27
    • Raymond Maldonado, Bobbye Hall—Percussion
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
    • Hare Krishna, West Angeles Church Choir—Background Vocals
  4. "Summer Soft" (Wonder) – 4:14
    • Ben Bridges—Rhythm Guitar
    • Ronnie Foster—Organ
    • Larry “Nastyee” Latimer—Percussion
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
  5. "Ordinary Pain" (Wonder) – 6:16
    • Mike Sembello—Lead Guitar
    • Hank Redd—Alto Saxophone
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
    • Minnie Riperton, Mary Lee Whitney, Deniece Williams, Syreeta Wright—Background Vocals
    • Shirley Brewer—Reply
    • Linda Lawrence, Terri Hendricks, Sundray Tucker, Charity McCrary, Madelaine Jones—Reply's Background Vocals

Side three

  1. "Isn't She Lovely?" (Wonder) – 6:34
    • Gregory Phillinganes—Keyboard
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
  2. "Joy Inside My Tears" (Wonder) – 6:30
    • Gregory Phillinganes—Keyboard
    • Susaye Green—Background vocals
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
  3. "Black Man" (Byrd/Wonder) – 8:27
    • Hank Redd—Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone
    • Steve Madaio—Trumpet
    • George Bohanon—Trombone
    • Glen Ferris—Trombone

Side four

  1. "Ngiculela - Es Una Historia - I Am Singing" (Wonder) – 3:48
    • Charles Brewer, Shirley Brewer, Renee Hardaway, Nelson Hayes, Marietta Waters, Nathan Watts, John Fischbach, Amale Mathews, Josette Valentino—Background percussion
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
  2. "If It's Magic" (Wonder) – 3:12
  3. "As" (Wonder) – 7:08
    • Nathan Watts—Bass, Handclaps
    • Dean Parks—Guitar
    • Herbie Hancock—Keyboards, Handclaps
    • Greg Brown—Drums
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
    • Mary Lee Whitney—Background Vocals
    • Dave Hanson, Yolanda Simon, Josette Valentino—Handclaps
  4. "Another Star" (Wonder) – 8:08
    • Bobbi Humphrey—Flute
    • George Benson—Guitar & Background Vocals
    • Hank Redd—Alto Saxophone
    • Raymond Maldonado—Trumpet
    • Trevor Laurence—Tenor Saxophone
    • Steve Madaio—Trumpet
    • Nathan Alford, Jr.—Percussion
    • Carmello Hungria Garcia—Timbales
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
    • Josie James—Background Vocals

A Something's Extra

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.

Side one
  1. "Saturn" (Michael Sembello, Wonder) – 4:54
    • Mike Sembello—Lead Guitar
    • Ben Bridges—Rhythm Guitar
    • Gregory Phillinganes—Keyboard
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
  2. "Ebony Eyes" (Wonder) – 4:11
Side two
  1. "All Day Sucker" (Wonder) – 5:06
    • Ben Bridges—Rhythm Guitar
    • Mike Sembello—Rhythm Guitar
    • W. G. "Snuffy" Walden—Lead Guitar
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder
    • Carolyn Denis—Background Vocals
  2. "Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call)" (Wonder) – 3:55
    • Nathan Watts—Bass
    • All Other Instruments Stevie Wonder




Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Songs in the Key of Life" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.

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