Today I’m playing Stevie Wonder’s Happy Birthday for my son who turns 14 today. I had no idea about the origins of this song until I did my usual research before posting the song. Stevie Wonder was one of the main figures to campaign for the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. to become a national holiday in the US and he wrote and released this song in 1981 to help promote the cause. Ronald Reagan approved the national holiday in 1983 and the first Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was held on 20 January 1986. The day was marked with a concert where Stevie Wonder performed the song in celebration. There’s more information in this video and to see the amazing, all-star performance from the concert, watch this video from 5:02.

To hear more August songs, click here. If it’s your first time on the site, find out more about why I’m trying to record a piano tune every day here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/happy-birthday