What Were Those Songs Stevie Wonder Sang at Michael Jackson's Memorial Service? - Page 2

Fleeing from “the greed of man,” “lying friends,” and “hopeless sinners,” the narrator longs for his soul to be released to the “kingdom” where no evil can touch him. Despite these dark images, the song ends on a strong, defiant note: "No one can keep me/From my destiny,” Wonder sings, holding the last syllable. While the track may deviate from Wonder's typical themes of optimism and desire to change the world, it represents his continual exploration of spirituality. Perhaps it can be seen as a bookend to another Fulfillingness' First Finale song, “"Heaven Is 10 Zillion Light Years Away," where he responds to those who doubt God's existence. Quite simply, “They Won't Go When I Go” is a quiet masterpiece that, until now, received less attention than it deserved.

Before performing “Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer,” Wonder seemed to state that Michael Jackson covered this song. However, discography searches reveal no such recording (if anyone knows where such a recording exists, I'd love to hear it). But Wonder and Jackson recorded together several times, such as on the aforementioned “You Haven't Done Nothin'.” One of their most notable collaborations exists on Jackson's Off the Wall album, with the Wonder composition “Can't Help It.” Wonder occasionally performed the song live, but never issued a studio recording. The duo went on to record two duets: “Just Good Friends” from Jackson's Bad, and “Get It” from Wonder's Characters album. Of course they also performed together on the all-star “We Are the World” single.

Both “Never Thought You'd Leave in Summer” and “They Won't Go When I Go” can be found on the excellent four-CD collection At the Close of a Century. However, Fulfillingness' First Finale in particular is a valuable addition to any music collection, as it shows an artist expanding his creative horizons lyrically, thematically, and musically. If anything positive can emerge from Jackson's death, it's that these two often overlooked songs have finally earned some much-deserved acclaim.

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.

Visit Kit O'Toole's author page — Kit O'Toole's Blog