Farewell My Summer Love

Farewell My Summer Love (originally titled Farewell My Summer Love 1984 and later re-issued as Here I Am (Come and Take Me) in Germany) is a compilation of archived Michael Jackson recordings in January and September 1973. The album was released by Motown Records in the U.S. on May 15, 1984.[2]
The nine songs featured on the album were originally recorded in January and September 1973 but had not been previously released. Motown says that these tracks were "lost" and were re-found in 1984.[3] To give the album a more 1980s sound, Motown remixed the songs and added all new musical overdubs. The task of playing the updated sound was given to musicians Tony Peluso, Michael Lovesmith and Steve Barri. Together with drummer Mike Baird, they recorded new guitar, keyboard, percussion drum parts for the songs. The album reached #46 on Billboard's pop album chart and #9 on the UK albums chart and sold over three million copies worldwide.[4]
The title track was released as a single in May, 1984. It became a Top 40 hit in the US, reaching #38, and a Top 10 hit in the United Kingdom, reaching #7. At the time, Jackson was riding high on the success of his best-selling Thriller album. A follow-up single, "Touch the One You Love," was released in the US and backed by "Girl You're So Together," but it failed to chart. In the UK, however, "Girl You're So Together" was released as a single, with "Touch the One You Love" on the B-side, and became a top 40 hit.[5]
Like One Day in Your Life, Farewell My Summer Love has never seen a re-release, although the title track is available on several of Jackson's greatest hits collections. In particular, Motown's comprehensive Michael Jackson Anthology features the song "Farewell My Summer Love" in its 1984 remix, as well as "Don't Let It Get You Down", "Call on Me" and "To Make My Father Proud" in their original 1973 versions.[6] All nine undubbed versions, as well as the 1984 mixes, were released on Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection in June 2009.

Track Listing


No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "Don't Let It Get You Down" (Recorded August 31, 1973) Mel Larson, Jerry Marcellino, Deke Richards 3:02
2. "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" (Recorded June 13, 1973) Smokey Robinson, Ronald White, Robert Rogers 3:30
3. "Melodie" (Recorded January 15, 1973) Mel Larson, Jerry Marcellino, Deke Richards 3:24
4. "Touch the One You Love" (Recorded June 14, 1973) Artie Wayne, George S. Clinton 2:48
5. "Girl You're So Together" (Recorded August 31, 1973) Keni St. Lewis 3:12
6. "Farewell My Summer Love" (Recorded August 31, 1973) Keni St. Lewis 4:24
7. "Call on Me" (Recorded September 4, 1973) Fonce Mizell, Larry Mizell 3:39
8. "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)" (Recorded June 6, 1973) Al Green, Mabon Hodges 2:56
9. "To Make My Father Proud" (Recorded April 11, 1973) Bob Crewe, Larry Weiss 4:04

Charted Hits


"Farewell My Summer Love" - #38 Pop Singles Chart; #37 Black Singles Chart; #7 United Kingdom
"Girl You're So Together" - #33 United Kingdom