| "Overjoyed" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Stevie Wonder | ||||
| from the album In Square Circle | ||||
| B-side | "Instrumental" | |||
| Released | 1985[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1985 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:41 | |||
| Label | Tamla | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Stevie Wonder | |||
| Producer(s) | Stevie Wonder | |||
| Stevie Wonder singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Overjoyed" is a hit single written and performed by American R&B singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder on the Tamla (Motown) label from his 1985 album In Square Circle. The single peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in April 1986, remaining in the Top 40 for six weeks. In addition, "Overjoyed" was a No. 1 hit on the adult contemporary chart, the eighth (and, to date, last) of his career.[3] An alternate single release featured an instrumental version on the B-side.[4]
The song was written for the 1979 album Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants", but was left off the album and re-recorded for the 1985 album In Square Circle. In the liner notes for the song, "crickets, nightingale & additional bird sounds, ocean, pebbles in pond, stone dropped, crushing leaves" are listed under "environmental percussion". The song was first performed live on the May 7, 1983, episode of Saturday Night Live, where Wonder was the host and musical guest.
Billboard said that it "dresses Wonder's usual wordplay in unusual audio effects."[5]
- ^ "Readers' Poll: The 10 Greatest Stevie Wonder Songs". Rollingstone.com. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
- ^ Harvey, Eric (May 19, 2012). "The Quiet Storm". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 263.
- ^ "Discogs: Stevie Wonder – Overjoyed". Discogs.com/. February 1986. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
- ^ "Reviews". Billboard. February 15, 1986. p. 71. Retrieved 2022-08-03.