♫ Yester-me, Yester-you, Yesterday ♫ (Redux)

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Tonight, I am re-playing one that I played three years ago, a Stevie Wonder tune.  It’s not that I don’t have any ideas for new songs — I have a list as long as my arm!  And it’s not that I’m too tired or lazy to do a new post — sleep is a long way off yet.  Rather, it is that I’ve been in a rabbit hole for days now, and tonight I thought to myself, “I want me some Stevie Wonder!”  I thought Stevie would bring a bit of a smile to this tired, empty heart.  Yet, rather than a smile, it brought tears.  But nonetheless, it is a beautiful song and I do love me some Stevie, even when he makes me cry. 

It would be difficult to choose a single favourite musician, but if you held my feet to the fire, it would most likely be Stevie Wonder.  Just watching this man perform gives me chills, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard music by him that I did not like.  Not too long ago I did a post with one of my absolute favourites pairing Stevie Wonder with Paul McCartney in Ebony and Ivory — one that I am likely to repeat from time-to-time, for the meaning of the song should never be forgotten.

Blind since birth, Stevie Wonder was considered a child prodigy and signed with Motown at age 11.  He has recorded more than 30 U.S. top ten hits and received 25 Grammy Awards, one of the most-awarded male solo artists.  He is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday a holiday in the United States. In 2009, Wonder was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace.

This song, Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday, was released in 1969.  It reached #7 on the pop singles chart and become Wonder’s ninth Top 10 single of the 1960s. The single fared even better on the UK singles chart where it reached #2 in November 1969, and at that time, it was Wonder’s biggest UK hit.

Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday
Stevie Wonder

What happened to the world we knew
When we would dream and scheme
And while the time away

Yester-me yester-you yesterday
Where did it go that yester glow
When we could feel

The wheel of life turn our way
Yester-me yester-you yesterday
I had a dream so did you life
Was warm and love was true
Two kids who followed all the rules
Yester fools and now
Now it seems those yester dreams
Were just a cruel

And foolish game we used to play
Yester-me yester-you yesterday
When I recall what we had
I feel lost I feel sad with nothing but
The memory of yester love and now
Now it seems those yester dreams
Were just a cruel

And foolish game we had to play
Yester-me yester-you yesterday
Yester-me yester-you yesterday
Sing with me
Yester-me yester-you yesterday
One more time

Songwriters: Bryan Wells / Ronald Miller / Ronald N. Miller
Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

25 thoughts on “♫ Yester-me, Yester-you, Yesterday ♫ (Redux)”

  5. He didn’t write this, but he could have done. Meaningful lyrics that might be overlooked in a simple pop song. His output from Talking Book onwards contains many songs with deep meanings, and it’s easy to forget that his earlier work did, too. Love this one 👍

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  6. oh yeah…. Stevie is it – still!
    Actually, I liked Stevie before I realised that all those English songs had a meaning – at that time I just ‘liked’ them – when I listen now (for the past, let’s say 30 years or so) I HEAR the lyrics and not only the vibe, the energy and the beat. Thanks for this beautiful and only too real song!

    Liked by 2 people

    • How could anybody not love Stevie? I’m so glad you love him and this song! Being nearly deaf, I never hear the lyrics to a song quite as they are sung, but it makes it fun. That’s part of the fun of doing these music posts … I learn what I’ve been singing wrong all these many years!

      Liked by 1 person

    • It’s not in my top 5 either, but once I hear it, I want to hear it again and I wonder why I haven’t thought of it for a while. But then, I have a secret crush on Stevie 😉

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