'What's Gog On' at 50 – Marv Gaye's Motown classic is as relevant today as was 1971

Contents:

• MARV GAYE’S ‘WHAT’S GOG ON’ IS AS RELEVANT TODAY AS IT WAS 1971
• MARV GAYE’S H SGLE “WHAT’S GOG ON?” RELEASED
• REMEMBERG MARV GAYE'S INIC 'WHAT'S GOG ON'
• REWDG THE CHARTS: IN 1971, MARV GAYE HAD TO ASK, ‘WHAT’S GOG ON’
• MARV GAYE’S DEATH
• MARV GAYE 1971
• THE STORY OF MARV GAYE'S 'WHAT'S GOG ON'

MARV GAYE’S ‘WHAT’S GOG ON’ IS AS RELEVANT TODAY AS IT WAS 1971

"What’s Gog On" was a turng pot for Marv Gaye. Released on May 21, 1971, at the height of the Vietnam War, Marv Gaye’s album beme a monster, spawng three h sgl on s way to beg Motown’s bt-sellg album to date. The album also marked a turng pot for Motown and for Marv Gaye as an artist.

And the host of the weekly rad show “Soul Stori, ” I am stck by how many of the them Gaye explor rema as relevant today as they were when he first wrote about them 50 years ago. Gaye’s evolutn.

MARV GAYE’S H SGLE “WHAT’S GOG ON?” RELEASED

But the song provis an sight to the evolutn of Gaye’s mic to enpass overtly polil them. For example, “Soldier’s Plea, ” the first sgle om Gaye’s send album, “That Stubborn Kda Fellow” 1962, offers a cidly romantic view of war:.

REMEMBERG MARV GAYE'S INIC 'WHAT'S GOG ON'

Gaye produced “What’s Gog On” himself – a revolutnary act at Motown.

REWDG THE CHARTS: IN 1971, MARV GAYE HAD TO ASK, ‘WHAT’S GOG ON’

“Can’t fd no work, n’t fd no job, my iend, ” Gaye laments on “What’s Happeng Brother.

Gaye repeats the affirmatn “right on” – a phrase distctly ground black urban vernacular – throughout the album and on a song bearg that name.

MARV GAYE’S DEATH

” Gaye affirms “Right on, brother” to men who rpond kd at different pots the song.

The ll and rponse munit a sense of shared ncern, shared stggle, and shared remptn – an ethos Gaye took om the gospel tradn that rms his mily.

This ll and rponse is repeated “Wholy Holy, ” wh Gaye utilizg a multrackg technique to layer two versns of his own vols:. Gordy was ially reluctant to embrace Gaye’s new directn. Gaye’s classic album still ronat wh dienc on s 50th anniversary.

MARV GAYE 1971

Amerin soul sger Marv Gaye’s tle track om his 1971 album, “What’s gog on” is a glowg example.

Although the 47-year-old song was wrten at the height of the Vietnam and Cold Wars and ultimately viewed as an Amerin social anthem of the time, do not tract om the fact that the issu unrlyg rema as relevant today as they were back the time Gaye, and Motown lleagu, Renaldo “Obie” Benson and Al Cleveland, wrote the song. Marv Gaye’s classic ‘What’s gog on?

He scribed the cint to mic wrer Ben Edmonds the 2001 book, What’s Gog On: Marv Gaye and the Last Days of The Motown Sound:. Fortunately, Gaye was very keen.

THE STORY OF MARV GAYE'S 'WHAT'S GOG ON'

Inspired by the harrowg stori told to him by his younger brother Frankie over his Vietnam war experienc, Gaye would eventually make the song his own. The label’s boss, Berry Gordy, was on holiday the Bahamas when an exced Gaye phoned him about the new prott song.

However, Motown was sperate for new mic om Gaye and released to massive cril and mercial acclaim.

Born Washgton DC, on 2 April 1939, Marv Pentz Gay Jr grew up a relig hoehold.