The love of James Wong Jim's life broke her silence last night after his public memorial at Hong Kong Stadium, saying the lyricist died fearing his talents were not respected.
'To me, he was always number one in writing lyrics,' Eunice Lam Yin-nei said in an interview broadcast on Cable TV hours after the father of Canto-pop's service.
Lam and Wong lived together for 14 years, from 1976 to 1990, but never married. He later described her as the great love of his life.
She recalled that before they separated, Wong grew very upset as the once-frequent requests to write songs started to dry up.
'He was very, very unhappy, complaining why no album company or singers, young or old, came to ask him to write lyrics any more,' Lam said. Wong was irritated by the many lyrics in the market he described as rubbish.
Lam said Wong's self-confidence was shaken. 'I comforted him and told him, 'Your position in lyrics writing will never been overtaken, even in the next generation',' Lam said.