If there’s anything that James Corden deserves credit for, it’s for reminding us of why we love certain artists so much.
Although we always see singers, actors and performers in their professional, manicured state on television, we don’t always get to see what they’re like behind the scenes. In another sense, when newer artists and entertainers come on the scene, they can tend to crowd out the old favorites and make us forget why we fell in love with them in the first place.
For these reasons and others, one edition of Corden’s Carpool Karaoke stood above the rest.
While anyone who grew up with his music knows just how good he is, Stevie Wonder has faded somewhat from the spotlight.
Still, that’s understandable considering just how long Wonder has been active in the music scene. For anyone who doesn’t know, Wonder was born in 1950 and signed a deal with a division of Motown Records when he was only 11 years old. Since then, he’s released classic albums including Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life. To date, he’s gotten 25 Grammy nominations and has sold more than 100 million albums.
Above all, though, he has an incredible, soulful voice that was a perfect addition to Carpool Karaoke.
As the clip begins, Corden says he’s a little bit worried… because Wonder is behind the wheel!
When it starts, the two are laughing about how Wonder can’t drive. Shortly after, Wonder starts making fun of Corden’s accent. After they switch seats, they start off singing Wonder’s hit song “Superstition”—and Wonder’s voice is as smooth and funky as it has ever been. Needless to say, Wonder and Corden have a blast jamming along with each other.
Still, the two are only just getting started.
After that, Wonder and Corden start into the very funky “Sir Duke.”
After a clip of that, Corden calls his wife to make sure she sees exactly what’s going on. Shortly after that, Wonder serenades his wife with her own custom love song that brings Corden to tears.
To add to it, Wonder has even brought his own harmonica with him in the car that he starts blowing on. Without missing a beat, the two set into “Isn’t She Lovely”.
A moment after that, Corden asks Wonder how he might learn to play harmonica like he does. After that, Wonder shakes his head. “Put that down,” he says in a deadpan.
Still, the two are not quite done.
After that, they round it out with a heartfelt rendition of “Signed, Sealed, Delivered.”
What’s perhaps the most incredible about all of this is that Wonder sounds exactly like he does on all the records, as if he hasn’t aged a day. Towards the end of the clip, Wonder and Corden discuss starting their own supergroup called the Wondercats. After watching this clip, we’ve gotta say that we would definitely be open to that!
After all of that, there’s still one song left.
After thanking Wonder for taking the time out of his schedule, the two men sing “For Once In My Life.”
Although it goes without saying, the last song is just as good as all of the others. Although Carpool Karaoke is always pretty amusing, its clips like this one that really make it shine beyond some of the others. Though we see artists like Ariana Grande or Lady Gaga on television all the time, we forget about some of the people who came before and paved the way. By bringing Stevie Wonder on the show, Corden can help introduce his music to a new generation and remind us all why we thought Stevie was a musical genius in the first place.
Congratulations to Stevie and to James on another successful karaoke session! Check out the full video below:
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