Among the most moving performances at Michael Jackson's memorial service was Stevie Wonder's emotional renditions of two songs: “Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer” and “They Won't Go When I Go.” Media reports seemed baffled by these two choices, as they are somewhat obscure to casual Wonder fans. To clarify the often misidentified tracks, the following details the songs' backgrounds.

“Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer” derives from his 1971 album Where I'm Coming From, which departed from his previous pop-oriented work. Here he gained full control of his material, co-writing every track with then-wife Syreeta Wright.

Two successful singles emerged from the album: “If You Really Love Me,” which nodded toward his “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” sound, and “Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer.” The track encompasses some of Wonder's best songwriting, likening the end of a relationship to the changing of seasons. Shifting from spring to summer to autumn, the lyrics track his lover's changing feelings: “You said there would be warm love in springtime/That was when you started to be cold,” he sings; he hopes that “the cold would leave by summer” and that she would be “the life in autumn.” When Wonder, accompanying himself on piano, holds the final note on the line “why didn't you stay?” it clearly emphasizes his grief and longing.

At the memorial service, Wonder then segued into “They Won't Go When I Go,” a spiritual tune from 1974's Fulfillingness' First Finale. This album shows his further progression into sophisticated songwriting and arranging, although the overall sound is more intimate and stripped down. Virtually every track on this work demonstrates his vast artistry, although “You Haven't Done Nothin'” (featuring backup vocals by the Jackson 5) and “Boogie on Reggae Woman” experienced the greatest chart success. But “They Won't Go When I Go” contains some of the most somber lyrics Wonder ever wrote, backed by heavily classical-influenced piano. A sampling of the lyrics illustrates the song's somber tone:

Unclean minds mislead the pure
The innocent will leave for sure
For them there is a resting place
People sinning just for fun
They will never see the sun

Article Author: Kit O'Toole

Kit O'Toole is a lifelong music enthusiast who maintains a music blog, Listen to the Band. In addition, she is the internet columnist and a contributing editor for Beatlefan magazine. She also holds an Ed.D. in Instructional Technology.

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