Marvin Gaye

The music of Marvin Gaye I think is something everyone can relate to on some level. He has such a smooth and soothing voice that together with the Motown and soul music he sang over is just plain great. His image was one of a man who was searching for something in his life. Having changed his appearance from that of a sixties artists type to that of a “ladies man” he was able to gather a new audience for what would later help define his career. During the time he was recording what’s going on there were many things that Gaye would be concerned about, such as the civil rights movement and the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. At this time there seemed to be a huge rift in American culture with almost a young vs. old war going on. This must have had a huge impact on Gaye’s music. What’s going on is clearly a statement on the war in Vietnam that was going on. He felt as if there was just too much pointless killing. Also I think that the line “don’t push me with brutality” even stands true in today’s world with the protests of last year. One thing that really sets this album apart from other soul records of the time in my opinion is the quality of the studio musicians that Gaye used for it. He used a really tight sounding band that you can clearly hear have been playing together for a long time. Other soul records of the time don’t have terrible bands but Gayes seemed to be just a cut above the rest. I think that this can go a long in production of a song because you wont have to do as much editing therefore keeping the emotion and grove of the original performance. Another thing that I really thought was exceptional of the record is simply the great songwriting. Gaye actually had things to say unlike other bands (especially nowadays). As just a listener I really enjoyed the record, great songs and exceptional musicianship. It was not to repetitive like other soul records and it was something that I could just put on and listen to in the background. As an industry professional I really like the overall clarity of the songs other records of the time sometimes sound muddy or they were just recorded poorly. What’s going on really sounds great through and through