Stephen Winwood was born May 12, 1948, in England. In 1963 Steve (then 15) and his brother Muff joined guitarist Spencer Davis to form the Spencer Davis Group. Although he was only 15, Steve’s vocals were astoundingly soulful and mature, and his skills at the piano were also advanced beyond his years. The Spencer Davis Group released a handful of classic R&B-styled singles, including “Keep on Running,” “I’m a Man,” and the monumental “Gimme Some Lovin’”. Steve left in 1967 to form Traffic with guitarist Dave Mason, horn player Chris Wood, and drummer Jim Capaldi, all of whom had played on “Gimme Some Lovin’.” Winwood broke up that band at the beginning of 1969, due to internal conflicts.
Winwood subsequently hooked up with old friend Eric Clapton, who’d recently parted ways with Cream. The debut of Blind Faith (1969) was a hit, but the extreme pressure on the group led to their breakup even before the end of the year. Winwood began work on what was slated to be his first solo LP, but he gradually brought in more ex-Traffic members to help him out, to the point where the album simply became a band reunion. They released several albums until they broke op in 1974.
Steve returned in late 1980 with the little-heralded ‘Arc of a Diver’, a much stronger effort on which he played every instrument himself. It was a platinum-selling hit in the U.S., helped by the hit single “While You See a Chance”. The extremely similar 1982 follow-up ‘Talking Back to the Night’ sounded rushed to some reviewers, and it wasn’t nearly as big a hit. Taking more time to craft his next album, Winwood didn’t return until 1986, with ‘Back in the High Life’. It was a smash hit. Winwood’s hot streak continued with his first album for Virgin, 1988’s Roll With It.
- “Valerie”
- Eric Prydz: Call On Me
- “Rainmaker” (with Traffic)
- Souls of Mischief: Anything Could Happen
- “Do What You Like” (with Blind Faith)
- Buck 65: Square One
- Controller 7: LHS Track 5
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