What's Going On
by Marvin Gaye

From corenfro TOP 100 COMMENTER 05/11/2016 23:33 | #165762 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

“In the morning, I’ll be alright my friend, but soon the night will bring the pain. Flying high in the friendly sky”

What do you get when you combine the smoothest voice in the history of music with the greatest bass lines in the history of music, and hotbox a Motown studio full of marijuana? An album that is better than anything in its genre and in its decade - which is saying a lot when you consider all that happened in the 1970’s.

If heroin could sing, it still wouldn’t sound as good as Marvin Gaye. I stand very firmly behind my opinion that Marvin Gaye possessed the greatest voice of all time. There are countless things to love about this album musically, the tight bass lines, the smooth aesthetic, the jazz feel, liberal use of assorted wind and stringed instruments, and the variety of percussion the crystal clear production that sounds as incredible in 2015 as it did in 1971. However, it’s Marvin’s show, and it’s his voice that carries the listener through the album. The man clearly had enormous talent, and it is displayed in its entirety on “What’s Going On”.

Listening to Marvin Gaye perform live was akin to watching Michael Jordan make the final shot of the 1998 NBA finals, except better by several orders of magnitude because music is clearly a domain of excellence far superior to sports. One of his studio assistants was questioned at one point what the most difficult thing was when working with Marvin Gaye. The response was that it was so difficult to select which takes of his voice to keep and which to discard, because they were all so beautiful that it felt wrong to delete anything that he recorded.

“What’s Going On” is about discontent - with culture, with politics, with discrimination, with the imperfect self. It came at a time when the Barry Gordy’s Motown record label was interested only in pumping out radio hits for profit and wasn’t interested in any of this introspective, challenging music. Gaye demanded it be released as he envisioned it and was nearly close to breaking ties with the record label.

Marvin Gaye had a wild and remarkable career, plagued by the internal conflict which is was clear from his art, as well as his ongoing struggle with depression and multiple suicide attempts and drug addiction. It’s this struggle that fuels the beauty that is his music. His angelic voice carries just enough of a painful undertone to send shivers down the listener’s spine. That’s “What’s Going On” (Edited)

I had heard it a few times before, but only now did I notice a ton of details.

It’s like three things are happening at once: a voice reflecting on the social situation from a subjective and emotional perspective; a journey through an entire sociocultural identity and a rhythmic vitality (all the soul and jazz intertwining with the voice) playing in the background, accompanying and easing that individual anguish; and, in the distance, a layer of ambient sounds that makes us feel like we’re moving through the chaos of the city (like in a film). When that layer fades a bit, it amplifies the inner voice, only to come back and remind us that the experience is, in fact, collective.

Really impressive. I get why some people sense it as a continuum and feel it lacks variations, but I think it grows on you—it's a whole trip from beginning to end. (Edited)

Amazing album start to finish. No filler, whatsoever telefunker. It's a prime example of an album with no filler - just a one-of-a-kind groove that maintains strong through 9 thematically-related songs. Even the title is genius - What's Going On - question, or answer? Inner City Blues is untouchable.

Marvin Gaye is a great singer with a voice rich, sweet, sensuous. This album was the center of 70's in concept: ecology, war, human rights, hope in world.... but today, stands by lustful sound and, of course, the voice ¡what voice!

From KingNoCrown 07/10/2015 07:23 | #145435 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Simply my favorite album of all time and the album that introduced me to my favorite artist. This album completely revolutionized soul music and music completely really. The orchestral arrangements are absolutely beautiful, as Marvin's blissful voice takes us on a journey through the world, filling us with concern and hope for what is to come. Each track is a separate piece, but when put together, creates one of the most beautiful and fluent music experiences I have ever heard.