{"id":3604,"date":"2021-05-30T12:36:08","date_gmt":"2021-05-30T17:36:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/read.streamapse.com\/?p=3604"},"modified":"2024-12-31T19:21:28","modified_gmt":"2025-01-01T00:21:28","slug":"marvin-gayes-motown-classic-whats-going-on-at-50-is-as-relevant-today-as-it-was-in-1971","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/?p=3604","title":{"rendered":"Marvin Gaye\u2019s Motown Classic \u2018What\u2019s Going On\u2019 At 50 Is As Relevant Today As It Was In 1971"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Motown wasn\u2019t really known for its politically conscious music. Then came \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Released on May 21, 1971, at the height of the Vietnam War, Marvin Gaye\u2019s album became a monster, spawning three hit singles on its way to becoming Motown\u2019s best-selling album to date. The album also marked a turning point for Motown and for Marvin Gaye as an artist.<\/p>\n<p>As a <a href=\"https:\/\/history.arizona.edu\/people\/tyina-steptoe\">scholar of race and culture in the U.S.<\/a> and the host of the weekly radio show \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/kxci.org\/programs\/soul-stories\/\">Soul Stories<\/a>,\u201d I am struck by how many of the themes Gaye explores remain as relevant today as they were when he first wrote about them 50 years ago.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/emporium.guizable.xyz\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2804\" src=\"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Emporium-Banner2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"770\" height=\"114\" srcset=\"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Emporium-Banner2.jpg 770w, http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Emporium-Banner2-300x44.jpg 300w, http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Emporium-Banner2-768x114.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 770px) 100vw, 770px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Gaye\u2019s evolution<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3614\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3614\" style=\"width: 700px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3614\" src=\"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Whats-Going-On.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"700\" srcset=\"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Whats-Going-On.jpeg 700w, http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Whats-Going-On-300x300.jpeg 300w, http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Whats-Going-On-150x150.jpeg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3614\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/top-albums-to-watch\/marvin-gaye-whats-going-on\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>#StreamWhat&#8217;sGoinOn<\/strong><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Some of the songs on the album speak directly to the state of the world in the early 1970s.<\/p>\n<p>The title track, with its timeless lyric \u201cwar is not the answer, for only love can conquer hate,\u201d condemned the nation\u2019s involvement in Vietnam. But the song provides an insight into the evolution of Gaye\u2019s music to encompass overtly political themes.<\/p>\n<figure><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Y9KC7uhMY9s?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0\" width=\"440\" height=\"260\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cWhat\u2019s Going On\u201d contrasts with his earlier work from the Vietnam War era that presents a different perspective. For example, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=45z3vf4_b2o\">Soldier\u2019s Plea<\/a>,\u201d the first single from Gaye\u2019s second album, \u201cThat Stubborn Kinda Fellow\u201d in 1962, offers a decidedly romantic view of war:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>While I\u2019m away, darling how often do you think of me?<br \/>\nRemember, I\u2019m over here, fighting to keep us free<br \/>\nJust be my little girl and always be true<br \/>\nAnd I\u2019ll be a faithful soldier boy to you<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cSoldier\u2019s Plea\u201d fits neatly into Motown\u2019s early business model. Both <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motownmuseum.org\/legacy\/berry-gordy\/\">Berry Gordy<\/a> \u2013 who founded Tamla Records in 1959 and then incorporated it as the Motown Record Co. a year later \u2013 and the songwriters he brought in mostly avoided political content.<\/p>\n<p>Motown singers such as Mary Wells, The Supremes and The Temptations were to be, as the label liked to say, the \u201cSound of Young America,\u201d not political activists. Gordy <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/5783939\/mlk-jr-dream-speech-motown\/\">told Time magazine in 2020<\/a>, \u201cI never wanted Motown to be a mouthpiece for civil rights.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While song lyrics did not explicitly mention the ongoing civil rights protests emerging across the nation in the 1960s, Motown didn\u2019t entirely ignore racial politics. The label released the spoken-word album \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.udiscovermusic.com\/stories\/motown-martin-luther-king-i-have-a-dream-speech\/\">The Great March to Freedom<\/a>\u201d on the same day as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.history.com\/topics\/black-history\/march-on-washington\">March on Washington<\/a> \u2013 Aug. 28, 1963. The release commemorated the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michiganradio.org\/post\/i-have-dream-there-was-great-walk-freedom-detroit\">Walk to Freedom<\/a>, a Detroit mass march from earlier that summer, and featured a speech by Martin Luther King Jr.<\/p>\n<p>Motown also created the <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2021\/music\/news\/motown-black-forum-martin-luther-king-1234901927\/\">Black Forum label<\/a>, which released other political speeches by King, such as his 1967 \u201cWhy I Oppose the War in Vietnam,\u201d and Stokely Carmichael\u2019s song \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=cLB6dq2uioc\">Free Huey!<\/a>\u201d pleading for the release of fellow Black Power leader Huey Newton in 1970. The label also released albums of poetry by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryfoundation.org\/poets\/amiri-baraka\">Amiri Baraka<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wgbh\/americanexperience\/features\/eyesontheprize-woman-black-panther\/\">Elaine Brown<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/poets.org\/poet\/langston-hughes\">Langston Hughes<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryfoundation.org\/poets\/margaret-danner\">Margaret Danner<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>By and large, though, early releases on the Motown label were restricted to the apolitical.<\/p>\n<p>But the world had changed by 1971. The freedom struggle had taken a more radical turn with the emergence of the Black Power movement, the Chicano Movement, the Young Lords and the American Indian Movement. The first <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/history\/epa-history-earth-day#:%7E:text=The%20First%20Earth%20Day%20in%20April%201970&amp;text=Because%20there%20was%20no%20EPA,issue%20onto%20the%20national%20agenda.\">Earth Day, April 22, 1970<\/a>, focused attention on the emerging U.S. environmental movement. Meanwhile, anti-war activists protested the draft, escalating violence, and the sight of body bags returning from Vietnam.<\/p>\n<figure><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uxMRgponxD0?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0\" width=\"440\" height=\"260\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/figure>\n<p>The U.S. musical soundscape shifted alongside these political, social and economic transformations. Art and politics merged through 1969\u2019s Woodstock festival. Meanwhile, Black Power-driven messages started to emanate from the soul and gospel music distributed by the <a href=\"https:\/\/staxrecords.com\/\">Stax label<\/a> in Memphis and a host of other musicians who offered searing critiques of U.S. imperialism such as <a href=\"https:\/\/lithub.com\/young-gifted-and-black-on-the-politicization-of-nina-simone\/\">Nina Simone<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/life\/nation-now\/2018\/02\/22\/black-history-curtis-mayfield-voice-civil-rights\/1005396001\/\">Curtis Mayfield<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/faroutmagazine.co.uk\/gil-scott-heron-guide-six-best-songs\/\">Gil Scott-Heron<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Hollering love across the nation<\/h2>\n<p>Alongside this political shift came internal pressure in Motown to give artists more agency over their own output. As Motown performers matured artistically, some felt stifled by Gordy\u2019s model and demanded more artistic control.<\/p>\n<p>Gaye produced \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On\u201d himself \u2013 a revolutionary act at Motown. The result is a painfully beautiful protest album from first track to last.<\/p>\n<p>The opening lines of the album are sung softly, yet urgently: \u201cMother, mother, there\u2019s far too many of you crying\/ Brother, brother, brother, there\u2019s far too many of you dying.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lyrics grapple with the effects of the war on families and the lives of young men sent overseas. The next song follows one of those young men home to a nation grappling with an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/unemployment-rate-by-year-3305506\">unemployment rate of 6%<\/a>. \u201cCan\u2019t find no work, can\u2019t find no job, my friend,\u201d Gaye laments on \u201cWhat\u2019s Happening Brother.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The album\u2019s final track conveys frustration: \u201cMakes me wanna holler how they do my life \u2026 this ain\u2019t living, this ain\u2019t living.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/llvPvemz00o?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0\" width=\"440\" height=\"260\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/figure>\n<p>In between, we have everything from an exploration of faith to the environmentalist anthem \u201cMercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)\u201d concluding with the refrain \u201cHow much more abuse from man can she [the earth] stand?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yet \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On\u201d expresses hope. Gaye repeats the affirmation \u201cright on\u201d \u2013 a phrase distinctly grounded in black urban vernacular \u2013 throughout the album and on a song bearing that name. We first hear this phrase on the title track, \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On.\u201d Gaye affirms \u201cRight on, brother\u201d to men who respond in kind at different points in the song. The call and response communicates a sense of shared concern, shared struggle, and shared redemption \u2013 an ethos Gaye took from the gospel tradition that informs his musicality.<\/p>\n<p>This call and response is repeated in \u201cWholy Holy,\u201d with Gaye utilizing a multitracking technique to layer two versions of his own vocals:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>We can conquer (yes we can) hate forever (oh Lord)<br \/>\nWholy (wholy holy, wholy holy)<br \/>\nWe can rock the world\u2019s foundation<br \/>\nEverybody together, together in wholy (wholy holy)<br \/>\nWe\u2019ll holler love, love, love across the nation<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h2>Still a hit<\/h2>\n<p>Gordy was initially <a href=\"http:\/\/abcnewsradioonline.com\/music-news\/2016\/11\/18\/berry-gordy-says-marvin-gaye-had-to-convince-him-to-release.html\">reluctant to embrace Gaye\u2019s new direction<\/a>. But Motown could not ignore the album\u2019s success. The title track reached the top spot on Billboard\u2019s R&amp;B chart and peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100. The album remained on the charts for 58 weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Gaye\u2019s classic album still resonates with audiences on its 50th anniversary. The environmental messages of \u201cMercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)\u201d are just as germane today as 1971, as are the powerful statements on race, war and poverty on other tracks.<\/p>\n<p>As someone who teaches courses on the history of music in the United States, I\u2019ve noticed that most of my students immediately recognize songs from \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On\u201d \u2013 an album released decades before they were born. In a nation where people continue to protest <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/5949926\/black-asian-solidarity-white-supremacy\/\">white supremacy<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenation.com\/article\/world\/endless-war-afghanistan\/\">endless wars<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/04\/22\/us\/politics\/climate-protests-go-virtual-on-earth-day-but-still-have-a-voice.html\">environmental damage<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2020\/jun\/06\/police-violence-protests-us-george-floyd\">police brutality<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.poorpeoplescampaign.org\/\">and poverty<\/a>, \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On\u201d remains as relevant as ever.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;\" src=\"https:\/\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/155262\/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic\" alt=\"The Conversation\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https:\/\/theconversation.com\/republishing-guidelines --><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/tyina-steptoe-1126370\">Tyina Steptoe<\/a>, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/university-of-arizona-959\">University of Arizona<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/tyina-steptoe-1126370\">Tyina Steptoe<\/a>, Associate Professor of History, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/university-of-arizona-959\">University of Arizona<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>This article is republished from <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\">The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/whats-going-on-at-50-marvin-gayes-motown-classic-is-as-relevant-today-as-it-was-in-1971-155262\">original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Motown wasn\u2019t really known for its politically conscious music. Then came \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On.\u201d Released on May 21, 1971, at the height of the Vietnam War, Marvin Gaye\u2019s album became a monster, spawning three hit singles on its way to becoming Motown\u2019s best-selling album to date. The album also marked a turning point for Motown [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3616,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,159],"tags":[524,525,526,527,528,149],"class_list":["post-3604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-streamapse-reports","category-videos","tag-classic","tag-going","tag-marvin","tag-motown","tag-relevant","tag-today"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3604"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5750,"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3604\/revisions\/5750"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3616"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}