Post 5 Marvin Gaye & What's Going On

Marvin Gaye was initially a common Motown recording artist, among what were, most likely hundreds of artists. Seeing his brother return from Vietnam after the war changed him. “The collision of these images of horror and injustice with the sense of righteousness that had been instilled in (or beaten into) him as a child produced an activism of the imagination that, when it found the proper musical context, would move untold millions of people. This new song that had fallen from heaven was just the creative jumpstart he needed.” ²  http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2001/dec/08/extract He had a new sound and a new look that he was developing. It was more down to earth.

The album exudes a deep sense of something being wrong. The drugs—that everyone was on—never  allowed that to emotionally set in. The lyrics are not reflective of the mood at all. It’s as if it numbs them. “The chatter of happy voices imparts a party-time flavour to a song that is deadly serious. The lyric expresses extreme hurt and anger, yet the song never gives in to either.”* ³  http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2001/dec/08/extract  The studio was recording what everyone was doing in a live atmosphere. This is very different from the controlled environment of studios up to this recording. It was a little rougher because of this also. The lyrics of this new album were also rougher to give it a different feel than the common Motown feel before this.

Marvin had released enough successful albums that there was an anticipation by the public for another one. There were several studio musicians that had played for musical giants prior to this, which were used in recording this record. His brother-in-law heard What’s Going On and hated it. He held off on the record company releasing it. Marvin decided to play professional football because he was determined to have the studio release the album, or he didn’t want to do music. Finally, someone on the inside, Harry Balk, got the record by accident and sneaked it through. Marvin was there for the final mix. “In the final mix, just as the record was about to fade out, he grabbed the fader and pushed the track back up for a couple of seconds before it ebbed away for good. "It wasn't planned," says Steve Smith, the engineer on the session. "It was something that just happened.”* ⁵  http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2001/dec/08/extract1

I have the ability to relate greatly to Marvin in my life. I have similarities where this statement is issued: “Seeing a man walk on the moon when there was economic desperation within two miles of his own home was surreal and depressing.”* ¹  http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2001/dec/08/extract I have seen others thrive, doing little more than having fun, and I have had struggles not near home, but at home. Finally, here is a quote that seems to resonate with my life, concerning a lot of very significant moments for me: “What's Going On was a record in which absolutely nothing could have worked, but everything. For once, the singer's conflicts and contradictions worked to his musical advantage.”*⁴ http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2001/dec/08/extract