In 1970, Stevie Wonder had a No. 1 hit with “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours”. The song was written by Wonder, along with his mother, Lula Mae Hardaway, Syreeta Wright (who he was married to from 1970 to 1972), and Lee Garrett. The title track of a record Wonder also released in 1970, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours” became a six-week No. 1 hit for Wonder.
Seven years later, Peter Frampton surprisingly put his own spin on “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours”. When Frampton released the song, his career was still relatively new. By 1977, Frampton had a handful of Top 10 hits, including “I’m In You” and a live version of “Do You Feel Like We Do”.
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Frampton released “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours” as part of his I’m In You record. Frampton’s take on this Wonder hit did reach the Top 20. Mick Jagger sings background vocals on a few of the songs on Frampton’s I’m In You, including “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours”. Interestingly, Wonder actually also appears on I’m In You, although not on this song. Instead, Wonder plays harmonica on a song called “Rocky’s Hot Club”.
The Story Behind “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours” by Stevie Wonder
“Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours” says, “Here I am, baby, oh, oh / Signed, sealed, delivered, I’m yours / You got my future in your hands / Ah, here I am, baby, ah, ah / Signed, sealed, delivered, I’m yours / You got my future in your hands, hey.”
Wonder later praised Wright for her contribution to this song, which remains one of his biggest hits.
“Syreeta has a unique ability to express exactly what I want to say with a lyric,” Wonder boasts. “I write the melody and music, and might come up with the main idea. I would also come up with the rhythm music. On ‘Signed, Sealed, Delivered’, for example, I came up with the music, and Syreeta came up with the lyric. And my mother came up with some ideas on that one, too.”
Frampton is one of many artists who covered “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours”. But one artist who struggled with this song is Elton John.
“Along with Ray Charles, [Wonder is] the greatest R&B singer who ever lived,” John tells Rolling Stone. “Nobody can sing like he does. I know. I actually recorded a version of ‘Signed, Sealed, Delivered’ when I was young, and I really had to squeeze my balls to get those high notes.”
Wonder received two Grammy nominations for “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours”.
Photo by PL Gould/IMAGES/Getty Images
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