Wonder's single "Fingertips" was a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963, at the age of 13, making him the youngest artist ever to top the chart. Wonder's critical success was at its peak in the 1970s. His "classic period" began in 1972 with the releases of Music of My Mind and Talking Book, the latter featuring "Superstition", which is one of the most distinctive and famous examples of the sound of the Hohner Clavinet keyboard. His works Innervisions (1973), Fulfillingness' First Finale (1974) and Songs in the Key of Life (1976) all won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, making him the tied-record holder for the most Album of the Year wins, with three. He is also the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases. Wonder began his "commercial period" in the 1980s; he achieved his biggest hits and highest level of fame, had increased album sales, charity participation, high-profile collaborations (including Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson), political impact, and television appearances. Wonder has continued to remain active in music and political causes.
Wonder is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with sales of over 100 million records worldwide. He has won 25 Grammy Awards (the most by a solo artist) and one Academy Award (Best Original Song, for the 1984 film The Woman in Red). Wonder has been inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame. He 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 federal holiday in the U.S. In 2009, he was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace, and in 2014, he was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Wonder was born Stevland Hardaway Judkins in Saginaw, Michigan, on May 13, 1950, the third of five children born to Lula Mae Hardaway, and the second of Hardaway's two children with Calvin Judkins. He was born six weeks premature which, along with the oxygen-rich atmosphere in the hospital incubator, resulted in retinopathy of prematurity, a condition in which the growth of the eyes is aborted and causes the retinas to detach, so he became blind.
Blowin
Stevie Wonder Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Blowin' (blowin')
It's blowin' (yes it is now)
Whoa, yeah yeah, mhm, mmh-mhm
How many roads must a man walk down
Before they call him a man?
And how many seas must a white dove sail
And how many times must those cannon balls be fired
'Fore they're forever banned?
Whoa, yeah, let me tell you that the
Answer, my friend
Is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind, whoa yeah
(Well how many years?)
Well how many years
How many years can a mountain exist (yeah before)
Before it's washed to the sea?
(I wanna know how many years?)
Now how many years
Can a man exist? (Ahh before)
Before he's allowed to be free? Yeah
(Too many years have by already now, Stevie)
Now how many times
Can a man turn his head
(He turn his head and pretend)
And he pretends that he just doesn't see?
Whoa yeah
You know the answer
Is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Whoa you know that
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Uh-huh, let me tell you
It's blowin' (blowin')
Blowin' (blowin')
It's blowin' (yes it is now)
Whoa, the answer is blowin' in the wind
And it's blowin'
Yeah, yeah, yeah
The answer is blowin'
La, la, la, la, la, la, la-la
You know that
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Stevie Wonder's version of "Blowing In The Wind" is a cover of Bob Dylan's iconic protest song, laced with heartfelt and soulful vocals. It's a song that has become synonymous with the civil rights movement, and it deals with fundamental questions of social justice and equality. The song begins by questioning how many roads a man must walk down before society truly acknowledges him as a man, and how many seas a white dove must sail before it is allowed to rest in the sand. The next verse questions the use of military force and how long it will be until humanity truly learns to put an end to war.
In the final verse, Wonder moves beyond questions to a declaration that the answer is blowing in the wind. The imagery of wind blowing suggests the idea of change - change that is unpredictable, yet inevitable. The answer to the questions raised in the song cannot be found by any one person, institution, or ideology. Instead, it is something that is in the air and needs to be collectively grasped by the society and incorporated in the system to make a positive change.
Line by Line Meaning
You know it's blowin' (blowin')
Stevie Wonder is stating that the wind is blowing.
How many roads must a man walk down
Before they call him a man?
Stevie Wonder is asking how many difficult paths does a person has to take in their life before society calls them a matured and responsible adult.
And how many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Stevie Wonder is asking how many times should someone attempt something, and fail, before they eventually quit or succeed.
And how many times must those cannon balls be fired
'Fore they're forever banned?
Stevie Wonder is questioning how many times should people endure violence and war before governments work together to eliminate these violent means of resolving conflicts.
Answer, my friend
Is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind, whoa yeah
Stevie Wonder suggests that the answer to the questions he's asked throughout the song is not a straightforward one; it's intangible, elusive, and constantly changing like the wind.
Well how many years?
How many years can a mountain exist (yeah before)
Before it's washed to the sea?
Stevie Wonder is questioning the durability of all natural formations and their relationship with the elements that surround them.
Now how many years
Can a man exist? (Ahh before)
Before he's allowed to be free? Yeah
Stevie Wonder questions societal norms that restrict individuals' freedoms based on race, gender, or any other factors.
Now how many times
Can a man turn his head
(He turn his head and pretend)
And he pretends that he just doesn't see?
Stevie Wonder is criticizing the human tendency to ignore societal problems and injustices until they affect them directly.
You know the answer
Is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Stevie Wonder emphasizes that the answer to the song's questions is not found in fixed, concrete solutions, but rather in a constantly changing, ever-shifting reality.
Whoa you know that
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Uh-huh, let me tell you
It's blowin' (blowin')
Stevie Wonder reiterates that the answer to these questions is elusive and ever-changing.
Blowin' (blowin')
It's blowin' (yes it is now)
Whoa, the answer is blowin' in the wind
And it's blowin'
Yeah, yeah, yeah
The answer is blowin'
La, la, la, la, la, la, la-la
You know that
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Stevie Wonder concludes that the answer to life's most significant questions is elusive and fleeting, like the wind.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, O/B/O CAPASSO
Written by: Bob Dylan
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jerome Winder
This is truly a song for all times, especially right now.
Sunflower Empress
This is when years of ancestral and collective pain gets turned in to something more beautiful than I can describe ❤️🙌🎶
Michael Latora
That comment is as serendipitous as the song. Well done.
Rock and Roll Geerage
This was one of my favorite performances of all time!!! Thank you for posting.
fumusfumus
Brought tears. One of the greatest covers of all time. Stevie still owns it Just missed Clarence Paul singing “tell me Stevie......”
Art Moss
Long after Dylan had become too hardened to sing this song with the sincerity of his youth, the great Stevie Wonder gave it new life with his effervescent soulfulness. This is just fantastic.
D B
Watch the one of Sam Cooke :)
Art Moss
@D B Thanks for the recommendation; I'll look that up.
John Rae Guimbungan
@Art Moss i love how you reply to a reply to your 6yearold comment
Art Moss
@John Rae Guimbungan Thanks for the recommendation, I'll look that one up.