Leaving Here

Album: Motown Classic Hits, Vol 2. (1963)
Charted: 76
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Before he became one-third of Motown's premier songwriting and production trio Holland-Dozier-Holland, Eddie Holland had several minor hits as a solo artist. However, due to stage fright he preferred working behind the scenes. Holland recorded this song shortly after he teamed up with his brother and Lamont Dozier. He recalled to Mojo magazine February 2009: "My brother Brian and Lamont Dozier handed me the rhythm track, Lamont gave me the title and while I gave it a listen I just thought, I want to get a hit on this myself. So I just said, 'Let me sing.' They were fine with that. What attracted me was the feeling, the emotion of the instrumentation, and the gospel backgrounds.

    The lyrics came to me immediately. When you're in your teens and early twenties, the females the same age around you, they're always complaining about their guys. 'He doesn't understand me! He's not sensitive enough! He ignores me!' And the guys just don't think. I was addressing what could happen if the girls decided to leave. The recording worked like if we recording any other artist. I went into the booth, sang the song, Lamont and Brian were producing. Does it really convey what I want to say? I knew it did but listening to it now, it needed to be slower. They cut it way too fast on me. Maybe they were having a joke! (laughs)."
  • A number of Rock bands have covered this song, including The Who, The Byrds, Motorhead and Pearl Jam. Motorhead's version, which was inspired by the Byrds cover, was their debut single release. It didn't chart at the time, but a live recording was the lead track on their 1980 EP The Golden Years, which reached #8 in the UK.

Comments: 1

  • Stefanie from Rock Hill, ScWhile he may have thought the song was too fast, I think that may work for the urgency of the lyrics. Leving Here is a good song imo.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")Song Writing

Director Mark Pellington on Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," and music videos he made for U2, Jon Bon Jovi and Imagine Dragons.

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions Answered

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions AnsweredSong Writing

10 Questions for the author of Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Greg talks about writing songs of "universal truth" for King Crimson and ELP, and tells us about his most memorable stage moment (it involves fireworks).

Paul Williams

Paul WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

He's a singer and an actor, but as a songwriter Paul helped make Kermit a cultured frog, turned a bank commercial into a huge hit and made love both "exciting and new" and "soft as an easy chair."

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine Band

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine BandSongwriter Interviews

Harry Wayne Casey tells the stories behind KC and The Sunshine Band hits like "Get Down Tonight," "That's The Way (I Like It)," and "Give It Up."

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And Hell

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And HellSongwriter Interviews

Guitarist Tony Iommi on the "Iron Man" riff, the definitive Black Sabbath song, and how Ozzy and Dio compared as songwriters.