Roger Penzabene was a songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

 for the Motown label. Among his most notable compositions are "The End of Our Road" by Gladys Knight & the Pips

Gladys Knight & the Pips

Gladys Knight & The Pips were an R&B/soul family musical act from Atlanta, Georgia, active from 1953 to 1989. The group was best known for their string of hit singles on Motown's "Soul" record label and Buddah Records from 1967 to 1975, including "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Midnight...

 and Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye

Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....

, and a trilogy of hits for the Temptations

The Temptations

The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...

: "You're My Everything

You're My Everything (The Temptations song)

"You're My Everything" is a 1967 hit single recorded by The Temptations for the Gordy label. It is the first of three singles to be co-written for the group by Motown songwriter Roger Penzabene. It reached number three on the U.S. R&B chart and number six on the U.S. Pop chart...

", "I Wish It Would Rain

I Wish It Would Rain

"I Wish It Would Rain" is a 1967 song recorded by the Temptations for the Motown label and produced by Norman Whitfield.-Background:...

", and "I Could Never Love Another (After Loving You)

I Could Never Love Another (After Loving You)

"I Could Never Love Another " is a single recorded by The Temptations and released on Motown Records' Gordy label during the spring of 1968...

".

The mournful break-up song "I Wish It Would Rain" in particular drew from Penzabene's real-life pain & suffering. The songwriter found out that his wife was cheating

Adultery

Adultery is sexual infidelity to one's spouse, and is a form of extramarital sex. It originally referred only to sex between a woman who was married and a person other than her spouse. Even in cases of separation from one's spouse, an extramarital affair is still considered adultery.Adultery is...

 on him, but could not bring himself to leave her, and his emotions on the situation are present in both of his final compositions, "I Wish It Would Rain" and "I Could Never Love Another". However the lyrics to the song were changed from the original one. On New Year's Eve 1967, a week after the release of "I Wish It Would Rain", Penzabene committed suicide

Suicide

Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

.