Songoftheday 10/3/14 - Over time I've building my castle of love, just for two though you never knew you were my reason...

Stevie Wonder - "Overjoyed"
from the album In Square Circle (1985)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #24 (two weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 6

Today's Song of the Day is by musical genius Stevie Wonder, whose In Square Circle album returned him to the top of the pop charts with the cheating ditty "Part Time Lover" and went top-10 with the exponentially better "Go Home". The third single from the project was a breezy ballad that shined through my headphones in its original "Full Digital Recording" that brought out the water drips and nature sounds. "Overjoyed", originally meant for his Journey Through The Secret Life Of Plants soundtrack, is like an organic respite of the cold synths that dominate the album...

"Overjoyed" became the third top-40 pop hit from In Square Circle in April of 1986. The single went all the way to #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart (his seventh AC #1) and #8 on the R&B chart. The track also did well in England, climbing to #17 on that country's singles chart. It remains my favorite ballad of his, outshining even "Ribbon in the Sky" for its lush yet simple expression of love.

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Here's Stevie performing "Overjoyed" live in London in 1995...

Many artists have covered the song, including Diana Ross on her 1994 holiday album A Very Special Season...

Mary J. Blige also sung "Overjoyed" on the Japan-only version of her Ballads album in 2000...

British vocal group Steps released a version in 2012...


Celine Dion brought Stevie Wonder along for her cover from her Loved Me Back To Life album in 2013...

Lastly, here's Stevie from the Library Of Congress when he accepted the Gershwin Prize...

Up Tomorrow: American Heavy Metal juggernauts get a new captain with a question to ask.