History Project

                 History Project on the album       

              ‘What’s Going On’ by Marvin Gaye. 

                                        by Georgia Ferguson

          

                 Early life and background

Born in 1939, in Washington, D.C., Marvin Gaye sang in his father's church and in the Moonglows before signing with Motown. He recorded songs by Smokey Robinson before becoming his own producer on the protest album What's Going On (1971). Gaye's later records developed his production style and yielded several hits, including "Let's Get It On," "Sexual Healing" and "I Heard it Through the Grapevine." Gaye was killed in 1984 during a domestic dispute with his father.

Early Life

Singer Marvin Pentz Gaye, Jr., also known as the "Prince of Soul," was born in Washington, D.C., on April 2, 1939. Gaye was raised under the strict control of his father, Reverend Marvin Gay Sr.—Marvin Gaye Jr. added the "e" on the end of his name later in life—the minister at a local church, against a bleak backdrop of widespread violence in his neighborhood.

Throughout his childhood, Gaye often found peace in music, mastering the piano and drums at a young age. Until high school, his singing experience was limited to church revivals, but soon he developed a love for R&B and doo-wop that would set the foundation for his career. In the late 1950s, Gaye joined a vocal group called The New Moonglows.

The talented singer had a phenomenal range that spanned three vocal styles and he soon impressed the group's founder, Harvey Fuqua. It wasn't long before Gaye and Fuqua both came to the attention of Detroit music impresario Berry Gordy and were signed to Gordy's legendary Motown Records.

            About the album

         What’s Going On is the eleventh studio album by soul musician Marvin Gaye, released May 21, 1971, on the Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records. Recording sessions for the album took place in June 1970 and March–May 1971 at Hitsville U.S.A., Golden World and United Sound Studios in Detroit and at The Sound Factory in West Hollywood, California. What's Going On was the first album on which Motown Records' main studio band, the group of session musicians known as the Funk Brothers, received an official credit.

              

          The first Marvin Gaye album credited as being produced by the artist himself, What's Going On is a unified concept album consisting of nine songs, most of which lead into the next. It has also been categorised as a song cycle the album ends on a reprise of the album's opening theme. The album is told from the point of view of a Vietnam war veteran returning to the country he had been fighting for, and seeing only hatred, suffering, and injustice. Gaye's introspective lyrics discuss themes of drug abuse, poverty, and the Vietnam War. He has also been credited with criticising global warming before the public outcry against it had become prominent.

What's Going On was an immediate success upon release, both commercially and critically. Having endured as a classic of 1970s soul, a deluxe edition set was released on February 27, 2001, and featured a rare recording of a May 1972 concert shot at Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Centre Worldwide surveys of critics, musicians, and the general public have shown that What's Going On is regarded as one of the landmark recordings in pop music history, and one of the greatest albums of the 20th century. The album was ranked number 1.                 

Album Cover

The album cover was not designed by an artist but is a photograph of Marvin Gaye. It is a photograph of personal copy and it comes from Motown record corporation. The photograph is used as the album cover in order to illustrate the front and also to give a face and body to the passionate music that comes from the album. 

   

Set List

 Disc one 

   1 "What's Going On"  – 3:53

2 "What's Happening Brother"  – 2:43

   3 "Flyin' High (In the Friendly Sky)"  – 3:49

4 "Save the Children"  – 4:03

5 "God Is Love"  – 1:41

6 "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"  – 3:16

7 "Right On"  – 7:31

8 "Wholy Holy"  – 3:08

9 "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)"  – 5:26

10 "What's Going On" (Detroit Mix) – 4:08

11 "What's Happening Brother" (Detroit mix) – 2:43

12 "Flyin' High (In the Friendly Sky)" (Detroit mix) – 3:49

13 "Save the Children" (Detroit mix) – 4:02

14 "God Is Love" (Detroit mix) – 1:47

15 "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (Detroit mix) – 3:08

16 "Right On" (Detroit mix) – 7:32

17 "Wholy Holy" (Detroit mix) – 3:08

18 "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (Detroit mix) – 5:46

19 "What's Going On" (Rhythm and strings mix) – 3:50

Disc two

1 Sixties Medley (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 13:23

2 "Right On" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 7:33

3 "Holy Holy" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 3:32

4 "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 9:06

5 "What's Going On" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 5:42

6 "What's Happening Brother" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 2:54

7 "Flying' High (In the Friendly Sky) (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 3:51

8 "Save the Children" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 4:22

9 "God Is Love" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 1:43

10 "Stage Dialogue" (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 2:34

11 "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (Reprise) (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 5:12

12 "What's Going On" (Reprise) (Live at the Kennedy Centre) – 4:07

13 "What's Going On" (Single Version) – 3:56

14 "God Is Love" (Single version) – 2:56

15 "Sad Tomorrows" – 2:27

16 "Head Title (AKA "Distant Lover")" – 4:07

Historic Events that happened when this album was released. 

1970

• U.S. President Richard Nixon orders an invasion of Cambodia, widening the war in Vietnam. ...

• The U.S. Senate repeals the Gulf of Tonkin resolution that had given Presidents Johnson and Nixon sweeping powers in the Vietnam War.

• The Beatles break up.

• Egyptian president Gamal Abdel-Nassar dies.

            Marvin Gaye’s death

           Marvin Gaye was an American musician who gained worldwide fame for his work with Motown Records. He was fatally shot by his father, Marvin Gay, Sr. on April 1, 1984 at their house in the West Adams district of Los Angeles. Gaye was shot twice following an altercation with his father after he intervened in an argument between his parents. The wounds were fatal and he was pronounced dead on arrival at the California Hospital Medical Center. Gaye's death inspired several musical tributes over the years including recollections of the incidents leading to his death. Gaye was given a burial plot at Forest Lawn Cemetery and was later cremated and his ashes spread around the Pacific Ocean. Gaye's death was listed at No. 8 on VH-1/VH-1 Classic's 100 Most Shocking Moments in Music.  

  

  The     End