Steve Winwood

Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician and songwriter whose work incorporates blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Primarily known as a keyboardist, guitarist, and vocalist, he is recognised for his high tenor singing voice and also plays instruments including mandolin, electric bass, saxophone, flute, drums, and percussion. Winwood gained prominence during the 1960s and 1970s as a member of the Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, and Blind Faith. Read more on Last.fm

Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician and songwriter whose work incorporates blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Primarily known as a keyboardist, guitarist, and vocalist, he is recognised for his high tenor singing voice and also plays instruments including mandolin, electric bass, saxophone, flute, drums, and percussion. Winwood gained prominence during the 1960s and 1970s as a member of the Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, and Blind Faith. During the 1980s, he achieved commercial success as a solo artist with hit singles including "While You See a Chance" (1980) from the album "Arc of a Diver" and "Valerie" (1982) from "Talking Back to the Night". The latter became a major hit after being re-released in a remix version in 1987 on the compilation album "Chronicles". His 1986 album "Back in the High Life" became his most commercially successful release and produced several hit singles, including "Back in the High Life Again", "The Finer Things", and "Higher Love", which reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. He achieved another US number one single with "Roll with It" (1988), the title track from the album "Roll with It". Other successful singles from this period included "Don't You Know What the Night Can Do?" and "Holding On". Although he did not achieve similar chart success after the 1980s, he continued releasing albums, with his most recent studio album being "Nine Lives" (2008). In 2004, Winwood was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Traffic. He has received two Grammy Awards, an Ivor Novello Award, and has been named a BMI Icon. In 2008, Rolling Stone ranked him 33rd on its list of the greatest singers. In 2025, Winwood was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the King's Birthday Honours. Winwood was born on 12 May 1948 in Handsworth, Birmingham. His father, Lawrence Winwood, was a foundryman and semi-professional musician who played saxophone and clarinet. Winwood began playing piano at the age of four, influenced by swing and Dixieland jazz, and later learned drums and guitar. He was a choirboy at St John the Evangelist Church in Perry Barr. The family later moved to Kingstanding, Birmingham, and Winwood attended Great Barr School, one of the first comprehensive schools in England. He also studied at the Birmingham and Midland Institute to develop his piano skills. At the age of eight, Winwood performed with his father and older brother Muff Winwood in the Ron Atkinson band. As he was underage for many of the venues where the group performed, the piano was sometimes positioned with its back facing the audience to conceal his age. While still attending school, Winwood became involved in Birmingham's blues rock scene. He played Hammond organ and guitar while supporting touring American blues and rock musicians, including Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Howlin' Wolf, B. B. King, Chuck Berry, and Bo Diddley, who were often accompanied by local backing musicians during UK tours. His vocal style was influenced by Ray Charles. In 1963, Winwood, then known as "Stevie" Winwood, joined the Spencer Davis Group as lead vocalist and keyboardist. The group also included his brother Muff Winwood on bass, Spencer Davis on guitar, and Pete York on drums. The group signed with Island Records in 1964, and released their first single, "Dimples", shortly after Winwood's 16th birthday. The Spencer Davis Group achieved UK number one singles with "Keep on Running" and "Somebody Help Me" in 1965 and 1966. Winwood co-wrote the group's internationally successful songs "Gimme Some Lovin'" and "I'm a Man", both of which reached the top 10 in the United States and United Kingdom. He left the group in April 1967. After leaving the Spencer Davis Group, Winwood formed Traffic with Jim Capaldi, Dave Mason, and Chris Wood. The band developed its material while living and rehearsing in a cottage near Aston Tirrold, Berkshire. Winwood and Capaldi formed the band's main songwriting partnership, with Winwood composing music for Capaldi's lyrics. Their songs included "Paper Sun", "No Face, No Name, No Number", "Dear Mr. Fantasy", and "The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys". Winwood performed most of Traffic's lead vocals and played keyboards and guitar. Traffic released their debut album "Mr. Fantasy" in 1967, followed by "Traffic" in 1968. The group disbanded in 1969, with the album "Last Exit" being released later that year. Following Traffic's initial breakup, Winwood formed Blind Faith with Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, and Ric Grech. The band released one self-titled album, "Blind Faith" (1969), which reached number one in the United Kingdom and United States and included the song "Can't Find My Way Home". Blind Faith ended after their 1969 tour. In 1970, Winwood began recording material for a solo album, but the sessions developed into a Traffic reunion project. The resulting album, "John Barleycorn Must Die" (1970), reunited Winwood with Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood. Traffic continued with the albums "Welcome to the Canteen" (1971), "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys" (1971), "Shoot Out at the Fantasy Factory" (1973), "On the Road" (1973), and "When the Eagle Flies" (1974). Winwood left the group in 1974 after becoming dissatisfied with the demands of touring and recording. During the 1960s and 1970s, Winwood also worked with other artists. In 1966, he performed with Eric Clapton in the short-lived group Eric Clapton and the Powerhouse, contributing to the compilation album "What's Shakin'". In 1968, he played organ on Jimi Hendrix's song "Voodoo Chile" from the album "Electric Ladyland". Following Blind Faith, Winwood worked with Ginger Baker's Air Force, appearing on the group's first album "Ginger Baker's Air Force" (1970). In 1972, he provided the voice of Captain Walker for the orchestral recording of "Tommy" by The Who. He later collaborated with Remi Kabaka and Abdul Lasisi Amao on the album "Aiye-Keta" (1973), released under the name Third World before later being credited to the individual musicians. In 1976, he contributed vocals and keyboards to Stomu Yamashta's concept album "Go" and played guitar on the Fania All Stars album "Delicate and Jumpy". Winwood released his self-titled debut solo album, "Steve Winwood", in 1977. In 1979, he played keyboards and synthesizer on Marianne Faithfull's album "Broken English". His solo career reached a new level of success with the release of "Arc of a Diver" in 1980, which featured "While You See a Chance". He followed it with "Talking Back to the Night" in 1982. Both albums were recorded at his home in Gloucestershire, with Winwood performing all instruments. For the 1986 album "Back in the High Life", Winwood worked with musicians in New York City and achieved major international success. The album was certified triple platinum in the United States, and "Higher Love" earned him Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. He subsequently toured North America extensively. Winwood moved from Island Records to Virgin Records during the height of his commercial success and released "Roll with It" (1988) and "Refugees of the Heart" (1990). "Roll with It" and its title track both reached number one on the US album and singles charts. In 1994, Winwood and Jim Capaldi reunited Traffic for the album "Far from Home". The band toured that year, including an appearance at Woodstock '94. In 1995, Winwood released "Reach for the Light" for the animated film "Balto". His final Virgin Records album, "Junction Seven", was released in 1997. In 1998, Winwood joined Tito Puente, Arturo Sandoval, Ed Calle, and other musicians in the group Latin Crossings for a European tour. He also appeared in the film "Blues Brothers 2000" as a member of the Louisiana Gator Boys. Winwood released the album "About Time" in 2003 through his own label, Wincraft Music. In 2004, Eric Prydz sampled Winwood's song "Valerie" for the track "Call on Me". Winwood later re-recorded vocal samples for the release, which reached number one on the UK Singles Chart. In 2005, Winwood released the DVD "Soundstage Performances" and appeared on Ashley Cleveland's album "Men and Angels Say". In 2006, he contributed piano and organ to Christina Aguilera's song "Makes Me Wanna Pray" from the album "Back to Basics". Winwood performed at a 2007 concert supporting the Countryside Alliance and later reunited with Eric Clapton at the Crossroads Guitar Festival. The two musicians performed together again at Madison Square Garden in 2008. Winwood's album "Nine Lives" was released in 2008 and became his highest-charting US album debut, entering the Billboard 200 at number 12. That year, he and Clapton released the collaborative EP "Dirty City" and later toured together. Winwood received an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music in 2008, in addition to an honorary degree from Aston University. In later years, Winwood continued performing live. In 2012, he appeared as a guest musician at "An Evening with Roger Daltrey and Friends" in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust. In 2013, he toured North America with Rod Stewart as part of the "Live the Life" tour, and in 2014 he toured with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers. In 2020, Winwood participated in "A Tribute to Ginger Baker" at the Eventim Apollo in London. In 2023, he performed "Higher Love" at the Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle. In 2024, he toured North America with The Doobie Brothers. Winwood appears on "Foreign Tongues", the twenty-fifth studio album by The Rolling Stones, released on 10 July 2026. Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Winwood Studio albums Steve Winwood (1977) Arc of a Diver (1980) Talking Back to the Night (1982) Back in the High Life (1986) Roll with It (1988) Refugees of the Heart (1990) Junction Seven (1997) About Time (2003) Nine Lives (2008) Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.