Steve Winwood hits his milestone 75th birthday today. Steve made a name for himself with The Spencer Davis Group and Traffic followed by solo success in the 80’s.
Born on May 12th, 1948 in Birmingham, England, Steve became well known a member of The Spencer Davis Group, which he joined when he was 14. He co-wrote and sang lead vocals on "Gimme Some Lovin'," recorded 10 days after his 16th birthday, and on the classic "I'm a Man."
He later formed Traffic in 1967 and Blind Faith with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker in 1969, followed by Ginger Baker's Air Force (Traffic without Clapton) before Traffic made a big comeback in 1970.
Winwood’s first big solo album was Arc of a Diver in 1980, which featured his first solo hit, "While You See a Chance." Steve talked about why that song was so important to him.
He said, "That was a very significant song, I think, because it was the first song that we wrote on that Arc of a Diver album and I think that gave me an idea exactly where I was going musically with my own career. Punk rock had been very much in evidence before that. I felt I didn't quite fit into that, because I was always mainly interested in music, whereas punk rock is not so much about music, more social statement and so on."
His solo career really took off with the release of the 1986 album Back in the High Life, featuring "Higher Love" which topped the Billboard Hot 100 and earned two Grammy Awards -- Record of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
Other 80’s hits include "Valerie," "Back in the High Life," "The Finer Things" and "Roll With It."
Happy 75th birthday to Steve Winwood.
[Source: Classic Hits Today]