Fulfillingness' First Finale

Fulfillingness' First Finale is the seventeenth studio album by American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer Stevie Wonder, released on July 22, 1974 by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. It is the fourth of five albums from what is considered Wonder's "classic period".

The album was Wonder's second to top the Billboard Top LPs & Tapes chart, where it remained for two weeks, and also reached number one on the Billboard Soul LPs chart, where it spent nine non-consecutive weeks. At the 17th Annual Grammy Awards, it won in three categories: Album of the Year (Wonder's second consecutive win in this category), Best Male Pop Vocal, and Best Male Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance (for "Boogie On Reggae Woman") at the ceremony held in 1975. Retrospectively, the album was voted number 413 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000) and included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Recording
Following the epic scope and social consciousness themes of Innervisions, Fulfillingness' First Finale, in contrast, projected a more reflective, personal, and somber tone. The musical arrangements used in several songs, especially the bleak "They Won't Go When I Go" and the understated "Creepin'", were sparse compared to those of some of Wonder's other 1970s tracks. Wonder had not completely foregone social commentary, as evidenced by the Billboard Hot 100 number-one single "You Haven't Done Nothin'", which launched a pointed criticism of the Nixon administration bolstered by clavinet, drum machine, and a cameo by the Jackson 5.

Track listing
All songs written by Stevie Wonder, except "They Won't Go When I Go", written by Wonder and Yvonne Wright.


 * Side one
 * 1) "Smile Please" – 3:26
 * 2) "Heaven Is 10 Zillion Light Years Away" – 5:01
 * 3) "Too Shy to Say" – 3:31
 * 4) "Boogie On Reggae Woman" – 4:54
 * 5) "Creepin'" – 4:17


 * Side two
 * 1) "You Haven't Done Nothin'" – 3:27
 * 2) "It Ain't No Use" – 3:58
 * 3) "They Won't Go When I Go" – 5:59
 * 4) "Bird of Beauty" – 3:46
 * 5) "Please Don't Go" – 4:06

Personnel
"Smile Please" "Heaven Is 10 Zillion Years Away" "Too Shy to Say" "Boogie On Reggae Woman" "Creepin'" "You Haven't Done Nothin" "It Ain't No Use" "They Won't Go When I Go" "Bird of Beauty" "Please Don't Go"
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Fender Rhodes, drums
 * Michael Sembello – electric guitar
 * Reggie McBride – electric bass
 * Bobbye Hall – congas, bongos
 * Jim Gilstrap – background vocals
 * Deniece Williams (credited as Denise) – background vocals
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Hohner clavinet, drums, Moog bass
 * Paul Anka – background vocal
 * Syreeta Wright – background vocal
 * Shirley Brewer – background vocal
 * Larry "Nastyee" Latimer – background vocal
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, piano
 * James Jamerson – acoustic bass
 * Sneaky Pete Kleinow – pedal steel guitar
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, Fender Rhodes, piano, harmonica, drums, Moog bass
 * Rocky Dzidzornu – congas
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Fender Rhodes, harmonica, drums, Moog bass, T.O.N.T.O. synthesizer
 * Minnie Riperton – background vocal
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, Hohner clavinet, bass drum, hi-hat, cymbal
 * Reggie McBride – electric bass
 * The Jackson 5 – background vocals
 * Robert Margouleff and Malcolm Cecil – synthesizers
 * Horns, drum machine – uncredited
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, Fender Rhodes, drums, Moog bass
 * Lani Groves – background vocal
 * Minnie Riperton – background vocal
 * Deniece Williams – background vocal
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, background vocal, piano, T.O.N.T.O. synthesizer
 * Bob and Malcolm – programming Moog
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, Fender Rhodes, Hohner clavinet, drums, percussions, Moog bass
 * Bobbye Hall – cuíca
 * Shirley Brewer – background vocal
 * Lani Groves – background vocal
 * Deniece Williams – background vocal
 * Sérgio Mendes – Portuguese lyrics
 * Drum machine – uncredited
 * Stevie Wonder – lead vocal, piano, Fender Rhodes, harmonica, handclaps, drums, hi-hat, Moog bass
 * Michael Sembello – acoustic guitar
 * The Persuasions – background vocal
 * Shirley Brewer – background vocal
 * Deniece Williams – background vocal

Selected cover versions

 * "Too Shy to Say" – recorded by Diana Ross in 1978.
 * "Too Shy to Say" – George Michael performed the song in his Faith Tour.
 * "Creepin'" – Recorded by Luther Vandross for The Night I Fell in Love in 1985.
 * "They Won't Go When I Go" – recorded by George Michael for Listen Without Prejudice, Vol 1 in 1990.
 * "Too Shy to Say" – recorded by Jody Watley for Intimacy in 1993. Released as single in the Philippines.
 * "They Won't Go When I Go" – recorded by Kevin Max for The Blood in 2007.
 * "They Won't Go When I Go" – recorded by Stefon Harris on the album Urbanus in 2009.
 * "Boogie On Reggae Woman" – covered that same year by Jamaican reggae singer Pat Rhoden, released as a single only in the UK, produced by Webster Shrowder.
 * "Boogie On Reggae Woman" – recorded by Stanley Turrentine on his 1987 album Wonderland.
 * "Boogie On Reggae Woman" – recorded by Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders on Legion of Mary: The Jerry Garcia Collection, Vol. 1.
 * "Boogie On Reggae Woman" – regularly performed live by Phish and featured on Hampton Comes Alive (1999), among other concert recordings.
 * "Boogie On Reggae Woman" – recorded by Marcus Miller on Silver Rain in 2005.
 * "Boogie On Reggae Woman" – recorded by Vulfpeck, featuring singer Antwaun Stanley in 2015
 * "You Haven't Done Nothing" – recorded by Curumin for Achados e Perdidos in 2005.