♫ Superstition ♫

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, History, music

The last Stevie Wonder post I did went over rather like a lead balloon, so I thought I’d try again.  I asked our friend Ali for her favourite, and while she named several, this one seemed to stand out for her, and it has the added advantage of not having been featured here on Filosofa’s Word since May 2020!

This was intended for Jeff Beck, who was brought in to play some guitar parts on the album in exchange for a song. At one of the sessions, Stevie came up with the riff and wrote some lyrics, and they recorded a rough version of the song that day for Beck. It took Beck a while to record the song, and by the time he released it, Wonder’s version had been out for a month and was a huge hit. Beck felt shortchanged, and made some statements in the press that Wonder didn’t appreciate. In 1975, Beck released an instrumental version of Wonder’s “Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers” on his album Blow By Blow. The album was a hit and helped solidify Beck’s reputation as an elite guitarist.

When Wonder turned 21, he was no longer obligated to Motown Records, and used his clout to sign a deal with the label giving him unprecedented control of his music. He got a large share of royalties and publishing rights, and Motown was not allowed to alter the albums once they were delivered. One thing Motown did control, however, were what songs they released as singles. Knowing Jeff Beck was about to record his version, Motown head Berry Gordy made sure this was the first single and released it before Beck could get his out.  A bit of dirty pool there, it seems.

Several artists besides Jeff Beck have covered this. None made much of an impact until Stevie Ray Vaughan released a live version as a single in 1986 on his album Live Alive. His version is still played on Classic Rock radio, and has grown even more popular since Vaughan’s death in 1990.

Wonder performed this song on Sesame Street in 1973 during the show’s fourth season. It was recorded at the show’s New York studios at a time when Wonder and his band were playing lots of gigs, and they treated the Sesame Street performance just like any other, extending it to nearly 7 minutes, complete with intricate musical shifts directed by Wonder. Video of the performance shows kids and puppets having a blast on the set, but the band remained focused, since getting distracted by a monster would not be a valid excuse for missing a change.

The song made #1 in the U.S., #6 in Canada, and #11 in the UK

Superstition
Stevie Wonder

Very superstitious
Writing’s on the wall

Very superstitious
Ladder’s ’bout to fall

13-month-old baby
Broke the looking glass
Seven years of bad luck
The good things in your past

When you believe in things
That you don’t understand
Then you suffer
Superstition ain’t the way, yeah

Ooh, very superstitious
Wash your face and hands
Rid me of the problem
Do all that you can

Keep me in a daydream
Keep me going strong
You don’t want to save me
Sad is my song

When you believe in things
You don’t understand
Then you suffer
Superstition ain’t the way, yeah

Very superstitious
Nothing more to say
Very superstitious
The devil’s on his way

13-month-old baby
Broke the looking glass
Seven years of bad luck
Good things in your past

When you believe in things
That you don’t understand
Then you suffer
Superstition ain’t the way

No, no, no

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Stevie Wonder

Superstition lyrics © Black Bull Music, Jobete Music Co Inc, Jobete Music Co., Inc.

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16 thoughts on “♫ Superstition ♫”

  1. Another of those ‘I can see why folk like it,’ songs (I must have a few hundred of them).

    It was the Jeff Beck bit that caught my eye and the instrumental “Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers”.
    Jeff Beck back in the 1970s/80s was disbelieving of the British all-woman rock band Girlschool because he didn’t think ‘girls’ could play rock (he must have missed out on ‘Fanny’).
    Flash forward to 2007 with Tal Wilkenfeld* on bass and Jeff digging it!)

    Later in the same concert she was laying down the bass for Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page on Zeppelin’s ‘Immigrant Song’
    *
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tal_Wilkenfeld

    Like

  2. I do love this one! Thanks, Jill!
    I remember the Sesame St. performance, too; watched with a niece and nephew, though I’m not ashamed to say it’s a darn good show. I’ve loved how so many artists went on that show and treated the audience-both there with them and we in TV land-as if we’d paid for tickets to see the performance. Stevie Wonder is one of those.

    Liked by 1 person

    • ‘Twas my pleasure, Ali!!! I’m glad you enjoyed it! Indeed, I have done two posts, I think, with musical artists visiting Sesame Street … one was Billy Joel, and I can’t remember the other. Like you, I LOVE Sesame Street … I watched many an episode with my own kids, then my granddaughter! Love Bert ‘n Ernie, and most of all Kermit! And another was Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood … gee, all this makes me want to go back to watching those old shows! My granddaughter is now 28, so I doubt she’d have any interest, but you never know!

      Liked by 1 person

          • He is one of the examples I used when I was working with the after school program. He really came in handy so many times!😉 Also when that fussy child is ahead of us in the grocery line! 🤯🙂

            Liked by 1 person

            • I can only imagine!!! Especially the fussy kid in the grocery line … we’ve all had experience with those! I loved the way he helped kids understand the world around them, all the while showing them their own value.

              Liked by 1 person

  3. “Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you.”
    ― Joseph Heller, Catch-22
    So I’m outside Katz Lounge thursday talking to the smokers and the trividots and Chicago comes up. Now this group is largely from 1980 is way back generation so when I was able to correct their history with the deep well of detail gathered at Jill’s music club from like tuesday. Somehow they got the impression that I in the sound room during sessions. OLD! Better than all of the alternatives.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. A great song, from one of his best albums. Did you know that Jeff Beck died earlier this year? To be honest, though I’m a big fan of rock music I always preferred Stevie’s version of this one.

    Liked by 3 people

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