Born Steveland Morris or Steveland Judkins in Detroit, Stevie Wonder has been blind since birth and was a musical prodigy. He was a skilled musician, playing piano, harmonica, and drums while still in grade school, and was signed to
Motown. His first hit was "Fingertips (Part 2), recorded when he was 12 years old.
Over the following decades, Wonder established himself as one of the most influential musicians of the twentieth century. He enjoyed his greatest success in the seventies, though he did have success in the sixties, cowriting with Smokey Robinson the classic "The Tears of a Clown," and recording "My Cherie Amour".
During the seventies, he recorded hits such as "Superstition," "You are the Sunshine of My Life, and the classic album, "Songs in the Key of Life, a work which contained such soul classics as "As," "Sir Duke," "Knocks me off my Feet," and "Isn't She Lovely." His works since this 1976 masterpiece have not been nearly so revolutionary, but he has had occasional hits such as 1984's "I Just Called to Say I Love You."