Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing

"Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing"
Single by Stevie Wonder
from the album Innervisions
B-side "Blame It on the Sun"
Released March 5, 1974
Genre Latin soul
Length 4:44 (album version)
3:40 (single edit)
Label Tamla-Motown
Writer(s) Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder singles chronology
"Living for the City"
(1973)		 "Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing"
(1974)		 "He's Misstra Know-It-All"
(1974)
Innervisions track listing
Side One
  1. "Too High"
  2. "Visions"
  3. "Living for the City"
  4. "Golden Lady"
Side Two
  1. "Higher Ground"
  2. "Jesus Children of America"
  3. "All in Love Is Fair"
  4. "Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing"
  5. "He's Misstra Know-It-All"

"Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing" is a hit single by Stevie Wonder, taken from his 1973 album Innervisions; it reached #16 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart, #10 on the Cash Box chart,[1] and #2 on the R&B chart. The song's lyrics convey a positive message, focusing on taking things in one's stride and accentuating the positive.

It begins with a dialogue, partly in mock-Spanish, in which Wonder portrays a slick character trying to impress a woman with his worldliness. "'Cause like I been to, y'know, Paris, Peru, y'know, I mean, uh, Iraq, Iran, Eurasia... y'know I speak very, very, um fluent Spanish ... 'Todo 'stá bien chévere' .... you got that?"

The tune is in E♭ minor, starting with a Latin piano intro. The song's second chorus begins with Stevie taking the vocals up an octave with two vocal overdubs singing the same line. He also sings two other background overdub vocals, mimicking a horn line with the Spanish phrase 'Todo 'stá bien chévere' which, loosely translated, means "Everything's really cool."

Covers

In 1974 it was covered by Roy Ayers in his "Change Up the Groove" and in the same year by The Main Ingredient on their LP Euphrates River. In 1975 it was covered, in Swedish, as a duet between Lill-Babs and Marie Bergman on the LP "Det våras för Barbro". In 1992, it was covered by British acid jazz band Incognito, who took it to #19 in the UK Singles Chart. Also in 1992, it was covered by the group First Call on their album "Human Song". In 1995 Al Jarreau covered it live at various evenings of Night Of The Proms, as well in Belgium as in the Netherlands. This version has been recorded twice for a CD-release in both countries. In 1997, it was covered by Hiram Bullock on his Carrasco CD. In 2005, it was covered by John Legend, produced by will.i.am of The Black Eyed Peas.

In 2005, American smooth jazz saxophonist Nelson Rangell released a rendition on his album My American Songbook, Vol. 1.[2][3]

Soundtrack appearances

Wonder's rendition has been featured in the films Holy Man, Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins and Silver Linings Playbook in addition to the tv show Scandal.

The John Legend version was included on the soundtrack to Hitch.

References

  1. ↑ http://50.6.195.142/archives/70s_files/19740601.html
  2. ↑ "My American Songbook, Vol. 1 overview". Allmusic.com.
  3. ↑ "Nelson Rangell - My American Songbook, (Vol. 1)". SmoothViews.com.

External links