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.
Too Shy Too Say
Stevie Wonder Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You make me sing
You make me feel good everything
You bring me up
When I've been down
This only happens when you're around
And I can't go on this way
But being too shy to say
That I really love you
I want to fly
Away with you
Until there's nothing more for us to do
I want to be
More than a friend
Until the end of an endless end
And I can't go on this way
With it stronger every day
But being too shy to say
That I really love you
And I can't go on this way
Feelin' it stronger every day
But being too shy to say
That I really love you
Oh, ooh
I do
In the song "Too Shy to Say" by Stevie Wonder, the lyrics describe how the presence of a particular someone in the singer's life brings unwavering happiness and joy. The person makes them feel good and is always there to lift them up when they are feeling down. The singer then goes on to express their love for this person, but acknowledges that they have been too shy to say it out loud. They dream of flying away together and being more than just friends until the end of time.
The song speaks to the fear and vulnerability that often comes with expressing one's love for another, and the struggle to find the courage to do so. It captures the feeling of being hopelessly in love with someone but unable to express it due to fear of rejection or loss.
One interesting aspect of this song is the use of chord changes to reflect the emotions expressed in the lyrics. The song begins in a minor key, reflecting the singer's initial feelings of sadness and vulnerability. Then, as the song progresses and the singer expresses their love, the key shifts to a major key, reflecting a change to a more positive emotional state.
Line by Line Meaning
You make me smile
Your presence brings joy and happiness into my life
You make me sing
My heart sings with joy when I am around you
You make me feel good everything
You have a positive impact on every aspect of my life
You bring me up
You lift me up when I am feeling down
When I've been down
During the times when I have been sad or feeling low
This only happens when you're around
Your presence makes all the difference in my life
And I can't go on this way
I cannot continue living my life in this way
With it stronger every day
My feelings for you are getting stronger with each passing day
But being too shy to say
I am too timid to express my true feelings to you
That I really love you
That I have deep feelings of love for you
I want to fly
I desire to be with you
Away with you
To go on an adventure with you
Until there's nothing more for us to do
Until we have experienced everything there is to experience together
I want to be
I aspire to become
More than a friend
I desire to have a deeper, more intimate relationship with you
Until the end of an endless end
Until the end of time itself
Feelin' it stronger every day
My feelings for you are intensifying every single day
Oh, ooh
Expressing a feeling of love and affection
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Stevie Wonder
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
nitedrive
The chords in this song always give me chills. Man, he came up with some gorgeous tunes. Deep.
Ayanna Uhuru
yesssssssss
Noel Wells
Stevie is an angel placed on earth for a very specific purpose. He uplifts and taps into raw emotion like no other talent has, period. STEVIE = GENIUS
dee t
Agreed
Mona Lisa Washington
Ultimate musical genius!!❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥
Alice Scott
GOD GIVEN
Alice Scott
Yes
T. Bone
Yes and Yes and Yes to Infinity
Anthony Ferguson
The brother is pure, unadulterated genius, hands down!
Derrick Crawford
Facts!!!