Stevie Wonder brings Songs in the Key of Life to Birmingham on Tuesday

Stevie Wonder will play Birmingham's Utilita Arena on Tuesday 13 October, performing his landmark album Songs in the Key of Life in full to mark 50 years since its release.

Birmingham is the first of four UK dates. He goes on to play the O2 in London on 3 November, Co-op Live in Manchester on 8 November and the OVO Hydro in Glasgow on 11 November.

The album

Released in 1976, Songs in the Key of Life is widely regarded as one of the greatest albums ever made. It won Stevie Wonder the third of his three Grammy Awards for Album of the Year, and its songs include Sir Duke, I Wish, Isn't She Lovely and As, which have been covered and sampled countless times.

The double album was the peak of an extraordinary run of records in the 1970s, and Stevie Wonder has won 25 Grammy Awards over his career, which began when he was signed by Motown as a child.

Tickets

The show is almost sold out. Birmingham Live found a small number of last-minute tickets on Ticketmaster, the arena's ticketing partner, at £270 each. Fans are warned that tickets bought on resale sites may be invalid if the original terms prohibit resale, and should check before buying.

On the night

• Doors open at 6pm, and the concert starts at 8pm.
• All bags are searched. The arena prefers people not to bring a bag, and any bag must be no bigger than A4 with no more than two compartments.
• Under-14s in seated areas must be with an adult aged 18 or over. Under-14s are not allowed on the standing floor, and 14 and 15-year-olds must be with an adult there.

Getting there

The arena, on King Edwards Road near Brindleyplace, is a short walk from New Street, Moor Street, Snow Hill and Five Ways stations, and the nearest tram stops are Brindleyplace and Library. It is inside the city's Clean Air Zone, so drivers of older, more polluting vehicles may have to pay a daily charge. The arena has its own car parks, and there are others at Brindleyplace and Five Ways.

A Birmingham connection

Birmingham has long had a close relationship with soul, reggae and rhythm and blues. The city has produced artists who drew on those traditions, including the singer-songwriter Joan Armatrading, who grew up in Birmingham, and the reggae band UB40. Beverley Knight, the soul singer from nearby Wolverhampton, ends her run in the musical Sylvia at the Hippodrome this weekend.

A busy autumn for live music

The concert is one of the biggest of the autumn in the city, which has a strong live music scene, from arenas to small independent venues. Earlier this month, venues in Digbeth formed an alliance to campaign against plans that could see several of them demolished for a rail project, warning that grassroots spaces are where tomorrow's stars begin.