"Superstition" is a song by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder. It was released on October 24, 1972, as the first single from his fifteenth album, Talking Book (1972), by Tamla. The lyrics describe common superstitions and their harmful effects.

The song reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in January 1973 and on the soul singles chart. This was Wonder's first number-one single since "Fingertips, Pt. 2" in 1963. It reached number eleven on the UK Singles Chart in February 1973. In November 2004, Rolling Stone listed the song as number 74 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It was ranked number 73 in 2010 and number 12 in 2021. At the 16th Grammy Awards, the song won two Grammy Awards: "Best Rhythm & Blues Song" and "Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male." In 1998, the song was added to the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Writing and recording

In the early 1970s, Wonder played most of the instruments on his songs by himself. However, he preferred to let other guitarists play on his records. After learning that Jeff Beck admired his work, they quickly agreed for Beck to join the sessions that created the Talking Book album, in exchange for Wonder writing Beck a song.

During the album sessions, Beck created the opening drum beat. Wonder asked Beck to keep playing while he made up the rest of the song on the spot. Beck and Wonder made a rough version of the song that day.

For the recording, Wonder sang and played the funky clavinet riff on a Hohner Clavinet model C. Co-producers Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff used a Moog synthesizer for the bass. Steve Madaio played the trumpet, and Trevor Lawrence played the tenor saxophone. Although Wonder is credited for drums on the track, Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos said that Cozy Powell, the drummer of The Jeff Beck Group from 1970 to 1972, suggested the final drum track might have been his.

After finishing the song, Wonder allowed Beck to record "Superstition" as part of their agreement. Originally, Beck was to release his version first with his new band, Beck, Bogert & Appice. However, when the band's debut album was delayed and Motown CEO Berry Gordy predicted "Superstition" would be a big hit that would help sell Talking Book, Wonder released the song as the lead single from Talking Book on October 24, 1972. Beck's version was later released in March 1973 on the Beck, Bogert & Appice album.

Reception

Cash Box called it "one of [Wonder's] most impressive work so far" with a "focus on funk." James Perone noted that the clavinet riff was "probably [Wonder's] most memorable" use of the minor pentatonic scale.

Personnel

From the album's notes:

• Stevie Wonder – lead vocals, Hohner Clavinet, drums, Moog bass
• Malcolm Cecil – creating sounds on the Moog synthesizer
• Robert Margouleff – creating sounds on the Moog synthesizer
• Trevor Lawrence – tenor saxophone
• Steve Madaio – trumpet, arranging the horn parts

Chart performance

The song "Superstition" first appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at position 82 on November 18, 1972. Ten weeks later, on January 27, 1973, it reached the top of the chart, replacing "You're So Vain" by Carly Simon. This was Stevie Wonder's second number one single on the Billboard Hot 100 and his first since "Fingertips, Pt. 2" reached the top in August 1963. The song remained on the chart for a total of 16 weeks.

On November 25, 1972, the song debuted at number 28 on the Hot Soul Singles chart. Seven weeks later, on January 6, 1973, it reached the top of that chart, becoming the first new number one R&B single of 1973. It replaced "Me & Mrs. Jones" by Billy Paul and stayed at the top for three consecutive weeks. This was Stevie Wonder's sixth number one single on the Hot Soul Singles chart.

Other recorded versions

In 1973, Stevie Wonder recorded a live studio version of "Superstition" for Sesame Street episode 514. This recording was released in 2003 on the album Songs from the Street: 35 Years in Music.

In popular culture

Stevie Wonder appeared in Bud Light commercials that were first shown during Super Bowl XLVII in 2013. These commercials were part of the "It's only weird if it doesn't work" campaign, which showed fans performing superstitious actions to help their teams win. In the commercials, Wonder was dressed as a witch doctor in New Orleans, the location of the Super Bowl game. Fans in the commercials asked him for symbols of good luck. The beginning part of the song "Superstition" plays before Stevie Wonder starts singing in the commercials.

Stevie Wonder and Sting performed the song on January 30, 2025, at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, for FireAid. This event helped raise money for relief efforts after the January 2025 Southern California wildfires.