Stevie Wonder Releases Four Previously Unreleased SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE Tracks

Stevie Wonder is celebrating the 50th anniversary of Songs in the Key of Life with a four-song EP featuring previously unreleased recordings from the album's original sessions: 'It's Easier,' 'My Life Story of Love,' 'I Can See the Sun In Late December,' and 'I'm Into Livin'.'

The release opens a new chapter in the story of a landmark album that reshaped modern music, offering listeners a deeper look into the imagination and musical exploration behind one of Wonder's defining creative periods. Personally curated by Stevie Wonder, the recordings were recently mixed for this EP by the album's original recording and mixing engineers, John Fischbach and Gary O Adante. Adante was credited on the original LP as Gary Olazabal.

At 4:54 a.m., as the final studio session for Songs in the Key of Life came to a close, Nathan Watts, Stevie's longtime bassist, exclaimed, 'Fo'FiftyFo'!' From then on, the phrase signaled the end of a session and became an inside joke for anyone in Stevie's circle. Now, that hour marks a new beginning as four previously unreleased recordings reach the world, connecting the album's creation with its next chapter.

'We've lived with Songs in the Key of Life for fifty years, but there's still more to hear,' says Wonder. 'We didn't add these songs to the album, but they were part of what I was feeling and discovering as we made it. They bring me back to that time in my life, and now they get to become part of yours.'

Across its portraits within cultures, expressions of love and calls for a more compassionate world, Songs in the Key of Life places everyday experience alongside larger questions of faith, inequality and possibility. Its music makes room for celebration and protest, private tenderness and collective hope. These newly shared recordings extend that conversation, inviting listeners to discover more of the work behind an album they have made their own.

Originally released on September 28, 1976, Songs in the Key of Life earned Wonder the third of his three GRAMMY Awards for Album of the Year. The album achieved Diamond certification and was inducted into the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. Songs including 'Love's in Need of Love Today,' 'Sir Duke,' 'Isn't She Lovely' and 'As' continue to inspire artists and audiences around the globe.

The celebration continues with the Songs in the Key of Life Performances - 50th Anniversary Tour, promoted by Live Nation and produced by Wonder Productions, Inc. The 25-time GRAMMY Award-winning artist will perform the album in its entirety, beginning Oct 13 at Utilita Arena Birmingham before crossing Europe with stops in Paris, Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, Hannover, Cologne, Amsterdam and Dublin, then returning to the UK for shows in London, Manchester and Glasgow. The U.S. leg kicks off Nov 19 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, followed by stops in Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Detroit, before closing Dec 19 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles.

EP Track Listing

01 It's Easier (5:09)

02 My Life Story of Love (3:59)

03 I Can See the Sun In Late December (4:37)

04 I'm Into Livin' (5:45)

About Songs in the Key of Life EP

Released in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Songs in the Key of Life, the four-song EP brings together previously unreleased recordings from the album's sessions: 'It's Easier,' 'My Life Story of Love,' 'I Can See the Sun In Late December' and 'I'm Into Livin'.' The recordings expand the story of an album whose themes of love, joy, social consciousness and shared humanity continue to reach new generations. Curated by Stevie Wonder, these newly released tracks feature the range of his genius - songs of contemplation, songs of the pain and joy of life, and songs of the beauty of love.

All four tracks were recorded during the Songs in the Key of Life sessions and written and produced by Wonder, with lyrics for 'My Life Story of Love' co-written by Susaye Greene, the former Supreme and Motown artist who also co-wrote Michael Jackson's 'I Can't Help It' with Wonder. The tracks were recently mixed for this EP by the album's original recording and mixing engineers, John Fischbach and Gary O Adante. Adante was credited on the original LP as Gary Olazabal.

Featured musicians include keyboardist Gregory Phillinganes, at the beginning of his professional career with Wonderlove; guitarists and Wonderlove members Michael Sembello, co-writer of 'Saturn,' and Ben Bridges; saxophonist Jim Horn; drummer Raymond Pounds, then taking part in his first major recording sessions; and bassist Nathan Watts, whose first recording sessions with Wonder followed their time on the road and began a partnership that continues today.

'I'm Into Livin'' features background vocals by Shirley Brewer, heard on the original album's 'Ordinary Pain'; Thelma Houston, soon to score a No. 1 with 'Don't Leave Me This Way'; and longtime Wonderlove vocalist Deniece Williams, on the cusp of her own solo stardom.

About Stevie Wonder