An absolute must-have for every Marvin Gaye fan!

I really believe that Marvin Gaye was speaking to the Black community when he co-wrote the songs and released the album. The music and the messages are timeless; the issues that he addresses on this album are clearly as important and prevalent today as they were 34 years ago.



Therefore, I believe everyone should listen to the album but I also think every Black man should have a copy of the album just to remind us how far we've come and how far we still have to go.



February marks Black History Month here in Canada. This is one of the best ways to celebrate our Black heritage and the obstacles we have overcome...take a listen to songs like What's Going On, What's Happening Brother, Inner City Blues (Makes Me Wanna Holler), Mercy Mercy Me, Right On and my all-time favourite, God Is Love.



The album is realistic and paints a true picture of what we face in society but also has several inspirational moments. I like to listen to the CD on my way home from a busy day at work. It reminds me of how fortunate I am to have what I have and to acknowledge my blessings when others have not been as fortunate. Peace..

An All-Time Classic

Any barebones Marvin Gaye collection should include a good compilation of his 60's hits as well as Let's Get It On and this one. What's Going On found Gaye breaking free from the Motown hit-making apparatus to produce an artistic statement that has since become a cornerstone of R&B and one of the all time great records. It's instructive that only an artist of Gaye's stature was allowed to get away with something like this at the time on Motown.



The title track is one of his greatest and has rightfully become an R&B standard. Gaye's gritty, streetwise lyrics set the tone for what's to come. "What's Happening Brother" concerns a dazed and confused returning Vietnam War vet while "Flyin' High (In The Friendly Sky)" is about the dangers of drugs. Considering his own habit and circumstances of his sad demise, it's eerie to hear him sing lines like "I go crazy when I can't get it...the pain, oh the pain."



"Mercy Mercy Me" is another of Gaye's best songs and for me is the high point of the album as Gaye welds a classic and hypnotic beat to ecology-minded lyrics. Another classic hit, "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" closes out the set. Despite it's fair share of hits, this record was sequenced so that each song flows into each other, with a singular purpose of music and lyrics that makes it best heard from beginning to end in one sitting.



What's Going On not only pushed the boundries wide open on R&B subject matter, but experimented musically as well. Starting with background "party" sounds and adding bongos, congas and other percussion, full horn and string sections and lush backing vocals make this an almost symphonic form of R&B.



A truly remarkable recording, and quite possibly the best R&B album ever. A must for any comprehensive collection.

The best album of the 70s

What's Going On catapulted Marvin Gaye into superstardom. Three number one singles were pulled from the album: the title song, "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)," and "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)." This was the first album where Marvin overdubbed his voice multiple times, creating a one-man vocal group. The result was a level of timbral integration in the harmonies that became a Gaye trademark.