Steve Winwood

Steve Winwood is a British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born on May 12, 1948 in Birmingham, England. A precocious talent, he began playing piano, drums and guitar as a child, influenced by jazz, rhythm and blues and rock 'n' roll. He made a name for himself at the age of 15 as the voice and keyboardist of the Spencer Davis Group, with whom he scored his first big hits in the 1960s with songs like "Keep on Running ", "Gimme Some Lovin' " and "I'm a Man" . In 1967, he left the group to co-found the psychedelic supergroup Traffic alongside Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason. Traffic became one of the leading bands of British progressive and psychedelic rock, blending rock, jazz, folk and improvisation. Their most memorable albums include Mr. Fantasy (1967), John Barleycorn Must Die (1970) and The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (1971). During a brief hiatus from Traffic, Winwood joined Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and Ric Grech in 1969 to form the supergroup Blind Faith, which released a single, acclaimed self-titled album, including "Can't Find My Way Home " and P "Presence of the Lord " . After Traffic gradually disbanded in the 1970s, Steve Winwood embarked on a solo career that really took off in the 1980s. In 1980, he released the album Arc of a Diver (No. 3 in the U.S.), from which the hit "While You See a Chance " (No. 7) was taken. This album, entirely recorded by himself, marked his artistic independence. He followed this up with Talking Back to the Night (1982, UK no. 6), then reached a commercial peak with Back in the High Life (1986, UK no. 8, US no. 3), featuring the hits "Higher Love " (US no. 1, with backing vocals by Chaka Khan), "Freedom Overspill " (no. 20), "Back in the High Life Again" (no. 13) and "The Finer Things " (no. 8). In 1988, he confirmed his success with Roll with It (UK #4, US #1), whose title track stayed at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for several weeks, while "Don't You Know What the Night Can Do?" reached #6 and "Holding On" #11. Winwood also recorded acclaimed duets with James Brown, Tom Petty and Eric Clapton. Over the decades, he maintained a steady activity, alternating solo albums, occasional reformations of Traffic or Blind Faith, and appearances at prestigious concerts, including the Crossroads Guitar Festival or the George Harrison tribute concert. His albums Refugees of the Heart (1990), Junction 7 (1997), About Time (2003) and Nine Lives (2008) all charted on both sides of the Atlantic. 2009 saw the release of Live from Madison Square Garden with Eric Clapton, followed eight years later by the double live album Greatest Hits Live (2017), exploring his vast repertoire built up over the decades.