Marvin Gaye--What's Going On

Listening to What’s Going On (while putting groceries away) as a commemoration of sorts for its 50^th anniversary.

While listening, I had an epiphany—or maybe I just think it’s an epiphany. Maybe I actually heard it or read it somewhere and now I believe it to be an original theory. Anyway, the album starts with Marvin (or the character Marvin is portraying) greeting friends (Mel Farr and Lem Barney of the Detroit Lions) before launching into the title track. “What’s Going On” is a summation of the sad state of affairs in 1971 (which may as well be 2021). We can also hear conversation and laughter in the background, as if we’re at a get-together or party.

The second song, “What’s Happening Brother,” is told from the perspective of a returning Vietnam vet, asking how everyone else is doing and relating his struggles. We are still at the party. And then one of them (the vet?) starts “flying high in the friendly sky…without ever leaving the ground.” The next five songs are the most orchestral and “floating” songs on the album. They range from the spiritual, philosophical, ecological, and a plea to “save the babies.” (I admit to once finding these songs a bit corny, but now I find them deeply moving). Basically, these are the musings of a person who is high, feeling philosophical, and picturing a better world (probably under the influence of some drug or other).

The reverie ends when the longest song, “Right On,” concludes. The final track, “Inner City Blues (make we wanna holler)”, returns the listener to harsh, stark reality. The high has worn off, and the folks at the party must face the cruel world again.

What’s Going On envisions a better planet, but is well aware of what a mess humanity is in reality.