Line #10 Music/WhatsGoingOn


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/whats_going_on_3424.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:''Talk to me, so you can see, [[TitleDrop what's going on]]''.]]
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4	''What's Going On'' is the eleventh studio album by Music/MarvinGaye, released in 1971 through Tamla Records. It's a socially conscious ConceptAlbum with a lot of songs addressing both political and social issues, as well as more general topics such as love.
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6	The album was created as a response to Creator/{{Motown}}'s business practices at the time, in which they only focused on singles sales and completely cut their artists out of the album-creating process; their albums were essentially GreatestHits after GreatestHits before Gaye released this album, proving the viability of the album format to the label. Berry Gordy was obsessed with quality control; he [[ExecutiveMeddling tried to veto]] the release of successful songs like "What's Going On" and "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" because he thought they wouldn't cross over well enough. Gaye and Music/StevieWonder both ended up threatening to stop recording unless their demands were met. This album was also the very first to give official credits to the Motown backing band, the Funk Brothers.
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8	----
9	!! Tracklist:
10	[[AC:Side One]]
11	# "What's Going On" (3:53)
12	# "What's Happening Brother" (2:43)
13	# "Flyin' High (in the Friendly Sky)" (3:49)
14	# "Save the Children" (4:03)
15	# "God Is Love" (1:41)
16	# "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (3:16)
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18	[[AC:Side Two]]
19	[numlist:7]
20	# "Right On" (7:31)
21	# "Wholy Holy" (3:08)
22	# "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (5:26)
23	[/numlist]
24	----
25	!! ''Inner City Tropes''
26	* AccidentalDiscovery: The famous [[SelfBackingVocalist self-backing vocals]] were a result of two separate vocal takes of the title track being mixed together by accident. Gaye liked the effect so much he opted to record the album this way.
27	* AlbumFiller: [[AvertedTrope Averted]]. The album was created out of Gaye's frustration that most albums released by Creator/{{Motown}} were basically hit singles surrounded by filler.
28	* AlliterativeTitle: "'''M'''ercy '''M'''ercy '''M'''e".
29	** ZigZagged by "'''Wh'''oly '''H'''oly", which is alliterative as spoken/sung but not as written.
30	* AsTheGoodBookSays: "Wholy Holy"
31	--> ''Jesus left a long time ago, said he would return''
32	--> ''He left us a book to believe in''
33	--> ''In it we've got an awful lot to learn''
34	* {{Bookends}}: The album's closing track, "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)", ends with a slower piano rendition of lyrics from the title track. Also applies to the first LP side by itself; "Mercy Mercy Me" ends with a reprise of an instrumental segment of the title track as well.
35	* ConceptAlbum: The album addresses many social issues, such as poverty, the economy, and social injustice, from the perspective of a Vietnam veteran who has just returned home.
36	* DrunkenMaster: Funk Brother James Jamerson played the {{title track}}'s bass parts on his back on the studio floor after turning up too drunk and tired to sit.
37	* EpicRocking: "Right On" runs for seven and a half minutes, although all of the songs after the title track could be considered an example as, apart from the fadeout of "What's Going On" and the vinyl side gap, the entire album is gapless. Gaye seems to have intended the songs as movements of a longer suite rather than as individual songs.
38	* FaceOnTheCover: Marvin Gaye in close-up.
39	* FadingIntoTheNextSong[=/=]SiameseTwinSongs: Nearly all of the songs lead into one another. The only song that stands on its own is the title track, which fades out entirely. There's also a gap between "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" and "Right On" due to vinyl side limitations, as well as a more subtle gap that makes "Wholy Holy" and "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" distinct from each other..
40	* TheFutureWillBeBetter: Gaye makes a plea to do something and save the future of our children.
41	* GodIsGood: "God Is Love".
42	--> ''God is my friend, Jesus is my friend''
43	--> ''For when we call Him for mercy, Mercy Father''
44	* GodIsLoveSongs: "God Is Love" and "Wholy Holy". In the latter song Gaye sings:
45	--> ''Wholy holy we believe in one another''
46	--> ''Wholy holy we believe in Jesus''
47	--> ''Jesus left a long time ago, said he would return''
48	--> ''He left us a book to believe in''
49	--> ''In it we've got an awful lot to learn''
50	* GreenAesop: "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" is a ProtestSong about environmental degradation. It's not at all subtle, but it doesn't need to be so.
51	* LastNoteNightmare: "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" ends with a long instrumental section concluding with a haunting chorus, a dissonant horn, and some drumming. At least one station actually cuts it short.
52	* LyricalDissonance: Gaye sings about social problems, but he does it with such a smooth voice and wonderful arrangements that you actually find yourself ''enjoying'' listening to what he sings.
53	* MoodWhiplash: The album's two GodIsLoveSongs are followed up by two of the darkest songs on the album, each going into depth about one of the era's most pressing problems (the environment and poverty, respectively, both of which remain major problems today). The juxtaposition can be looked at as Gaye's way of saying that while faith can be a major source of emotional comfort, we shouldn't allow it to blind us to real-world suffering.
54	* OdeToIntoxication: "Flyin' High (in the Friendly Sky)" takes this form, although it's not hard to suss out the DrugsAreBad message.
55	* ThePowerOfLove: A major theme.
56	* ProtestSong: More like a Protest Album: songs such as "What's Going On", "What's Happening Brother", "Save the Children", "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)", and "Inner City Blues" all address issues like war, poverty, racism and pollution.
57	* QuestioningTitle: "What's Going On" and "What's Happening, Brother", although the official versions of the titles don't actually include the question marks.
58	* RealLifeWritesThePlot[=/=]RippedFromTheHeadlines: Many of the songs address contemporary social issues, and the album was in large part inspired by Gaye's brother's military service in Vietnam and difficulty reintegrating into society after returning home.
59	* SelfBackingVocalist: Most notably during "Save the Children".
60	* SomethingBlues: "Inner City Blues".
61	* SpokenWordInMusic: The album starts with chattering people. "Save the Children" has a parlando where Gaye talks, backed by his own singing voice.
62	* ThinkOfTheChildren: "Save the Children"
63	--> ''You see, let's save the children''
64	--> ''Let's save all the children''
65	--> ''Save the babies, save the babies''
66	--> ''If you wanna love, you got to save the babies''
67	--> ''All of the children''
68	* TitleTrack: "What's Going On".
69	* WarIsHell: "What's Going On"
70	--> ''War is not the answer, for only love can conquer hate''

Context Music / WhatsGoingOn