"As" is a song written, performed and produced by Stevie Wonder, who is credited as both composer and lyricist. It was recorded in 1976 for the album Songs in the Key of Life (Tamla/Motown), Wonder's eighteenth album. The album version runs 7:08, while the single edit runs 3:27. The single, released in October 1977 with "Contusion" as its B-side, reached number 36 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and on the Black Singles chart. The song takes its name from the first word of its lyrics. Wonder sings lead and backing vocals and plays Fender Rhodes, joined by Nathan Watts on bass, Dean Parks on guitar, Herbie Hancock on Fender Rhodes, Gerry Brown on drums, and backing vocals by Mary Lee Whitney and Yolanda Simmons. The track is associated with soul, funk and jazz, and it has been recognised in disco contexts. Covers include versions by Blue Mitchell, Elkie Brooks and Sister Sledge, and a 1998 version by George Michael and Mary J. Blige, produced by Babyface, which was a top-ten hit in several European countries and in the UK, where it received Silver certification.
