Post by Motorcity on Sept 17, 2005 14:48:48 GMT -5
RARE IS THE ALBUM that captures the spirit and crystallizes the sensibilities of an entire generation; or that alters the shape and extends the scope of an established genre; or that rewrites the policies and redefines the practices of a successful record company. Rarer still is the album that accomplishes all of that.
On February 27, Motown/UME will release What’s Going On - Deluxe Edition, commemorating the 30th anniversary of the release of Marvin Gaye’s undisputed masterpiece. The 24-bit remastered two-CD set features a recently unearthed alternate mix of the album, dating from April 1971; a previously unreleased 1972 concert, in which Gaye performs the bulk of What’s Going On (and then some); original single versions of "What’s Going On," "God Is Love" and "Sad Tomorrows"; a newly remixed version of the title track sans vocals; and an early, improvisatory rendition of the Let’s Get It On hit "Distant Lover." The Deluxe Edition also includes a 28-page booklet with an introduction by Motown legend Smokey Robinson, a historical essay by Gaye chronicler Ben Edmonds, restored lyrics and the artist’s original liner notes, detailed track annotations and commentary by compilation producer Harry Weinger, and a treasury of never-before-seen archival photos.
Gaye aficionados will recognize that this is the second time What’s Going On has been released on compact disc as a "deluxe edition." As Weinger tells ICE, "In 1994, there was a need to create a premium package for What’s Going On, since the budget CD version of the album was a real embarrassment, made from third-generation tapes and with minimal graphics. That deluxe edition, which has been deleted in order to clear the decks for this new package, had 20-bit remastering and an additional essay by [Gaye biographer] David Ritz. What it didn’t have, though, was any additional music, maybe because at the time it was felt that What’s Going On was kind of a sacred text, one you didn’t want to mess with. Six years later, I felt we ought to take another look at the album, especially since 2001 marks its 30th anniversary."
What’s Going On - Deluxe Edition bears the fruits of Weinger’s reinvestigation. In addition to a newly remastered version of the classic album, derived from the first-generation stereo, analog two-track tapes, Disc One features the "original Detroit mix" of What’s Going On.
"As I was doing the archival research for this project," Weinger explains, "I came upon a tape box dated April 5, 1971, which said ‘Do Not Use.’ Some of the songs listed were ‘Live and Let Live,’ ‘The Junkie’ and ‘What’s Happening Bro’ — the working titles of ‘Save the Children,’ ‘Flyin’ High (In the Friendly Sky)’ and ‘What’s Happening Brother,’ respectively. Because the tape had been assigned a master number, I thought it might be the original mix of What’s Going On, the one Marvin did in Detroit more than a month before he remixed the album in Los Angeles, after adding some overdubs.
"Sure enough, it was, and it sounds dramatically different; the performances are the same, but this master has a whole different vibe. Marvin’s vocal tracks, which are combined on the final album, are in different speakers — the high voice in one, the low voice in the other, as if Marvin were doing a duet with himself. The percussion and bass are more prominent in this mix, and the well-known ‘party chatter’ from ‘What’s Going On’ filters in and out of various songs, including ‘Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler).’" Attentive listeners, moreover, will note that the original Detroit mix contains a handful of lyrical stanzas excised from the official release.
The first disc concludes with a vocal-less "Rhythm & String Mix" of the title track, done by engineer Kevin Reeves, under Weinger’s supervision, in 2000. "The remix came about because, upon hearing the multitracks, Kevin and I were inspired by the band’s performance, especially [Motown session man] James Jamerson’s amazing bass part on ‘What’s Going On,’" Weinger enthuses. "The remix leads with the bass line and each verse builds in layers, like a stack of tracks. The rhythm section and [conductor and arranger] David Van DePitte’s strings take the lead role, with Marvin’s piano at the center, playing the melody."
Disc Two commences with more than an hour’s worth of live material recorded on May 1, 1972, at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.. The track list in sequence: "Sixties Medley (That’s the Way Love Is / You / I Heard It Through the Grapevine / Little Darling / You’re All I Need to Get By / Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing / Your Precious Love / Pride and Joy / Stubborn Kind of Fellow)," "Right On," "Wholy Holy," "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)," "What’s Going On," "What’s Happening Brother," "Flyin’ High (In the Friendly Sky)," "Save the Children," "God Is Love" and "Stage Dialogue," plus full-length reprises of "Inner City Blues" and "What’s Going On." As for the conspicuous absence of "Mercy Mercy Me [The Ecology]," Weinger acknowledges that the sixth song on What’s Going On was indeed performed that evening, but, alas, only a few seconds of it made it onto tape.
As Weinger indicates in his liner notes, the concert proved a trying, though by no means unredeemed, homecoming for the D.C. native: "This is the sound of an artist growing into new skin. It bears witness to an extraordinary transition. . . . It opens a window to the man himself in a vulnerable place. . . . He hasn’t performed in nearly four years. . . . A hectic schedule means there is little rehearsal. The show gets a cruelly late start. Marvin is tired, scared — and stoned. . . . In all its ragged honesty, Marvin’s return to the stage affirms he preferred the studio, where control and even perfection were possible. . . . Yet despite the chaos and the pain and the time away, Marvin is sweet and supple. Marvin is real."
The second disc ends with the mono mix of "What’s Going On"; a ballad version of "God Is Love," which uses a backing track from 1968 and vocals recorded in 1970; "Sad Tomorrows," which, in 1969, set the lyrics to the tune we know as "Flyin’ High" against doo-wop harmonies sung by The Originals; and "Head Title," an extemporized prototype of "Distant Lover" recorded in 1970.
Like its deluxe-edition predecessors, Blind Faith and Frampton Comes Alive!, What’s Going On - Deluxe Edition is housed in a tri-folded digipak with a translucent slipcase. The package includes previously unpublished shots from the personal archives of photographer Jim Henden, the man responsible for the famous color images of Gaye on the front and back covers of the original album.
–Greg Siegel
(C) 2000 Howard Communcations, Inc.
All rights reserved.
On February 27, Motown/UME will release What’s Going On - Deluxe Edition, commemorating the 30th anniversary of the release of Marvin Gaye’s undisputed masterpiece. The 24-bit remastered two-CD set features a recently unearthed alternate mix of the album, dating from April 1971; a previously unreleased 1972 concert, in which Gaye performs the bulk of What’s Going On (and then some); original single versions of "What’s Going On," "God Is Love" and "Sad Tomorrows"; a newly remixed version of the title track sans vocals; and an early, improvisatory rendition of the Let’s Get It On hit "Distant Lover." The Deluxe Edition also includes a 28-page booklet with an introduction by Motown legend Smokey Robinson, a historical essay by Gaye chronicler Ben Edmonds, restored lyrics and the artist’s original liner notes, detailed track annotations and commentary by compilation producer Harry Weinger, and a treasury of never-before-seen archival photos.
Gaye aficionados will recognize that this is the second time What’s Going On has been released on compact disc as a "deluxe edition." As Weinger tells ICE, "In 1994, there was a need to create a premium package for What’s Going On, since the budget CD version of the album was a real embarrassment, made from third-generation tapes and with minimal graphics. That deluxe edition, which has been deleted in order to clear the decks for this new package, had 20-bit remastering and an additional essay by [Gaye biographer] David Ritz. What it didn’t have, though, was any additional music, maybe because at the time it was felt that What’s Going On was kind of a sacred text, one you didn’t want to mess with. Six years later, I felt we ought to take another look at the album, especially since 2001 marks its 30th anniversary."
What’s Going On - Deluxe Edition bears the fruits of Weinger’s reinvestigation. In addition to a newly remastered version of the classic album, derived from the first-generation stereo, analog two-track tapes, Disc One features the "original Detroit mix" of What’s Going On.
"As I was doing the archival research for this project," Weinger explains, "I came upon a tape box dated April 5, 1971, which said ‘Do Not Use.’ Some of the songs listed were ‘Live and Let Live,’ ‘The Junkie’ and ‘What’s Happening Bro’ — the working titles of ‘Save the Children,’ ‘Flyin’ High (In the Friendly Sky)’ and ‘What’s Happening Brother,’ respectively. Because the tape had been assigned a master number, I thought it might be the original mix of What’s Going On, the one Marvin did in Detroit more than a month before he remixed the album in Los Angeles, after adding some overdubs.
"Sure enough, it was, and it sounds dramatically different; the performances are the same, but this master has a whole different vibe. Marvin’s vocal tracks, which are combined on the final album, are in different speakers — the high voice in one, the low voice in the other, as if Marvin were doing a duet with himself. The percussion and bass are more prominent in this mix, and the well-known ‘party chatter’ from ‘What’s Going On’ filters in and out of various songs, including ‘Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler).’" Attentive listeners, moreover, will note that the original Detroit mix contains a handful of lyrical stanzas excised from the official release.
The first disc concludes with a vocal-less "Rhythm & String Mix" of the title track, done by engineer Kevin Reeves, under Weinger’s supervision, in 2000. "The remix came about because, upon hearing the multitracks, Kevin and I were inspired by the band’s performance, especially [Motown session man] James Jamerson’s amazing bass part on ‘What’s Going On,’" Weinger enthuses. "The remix leads with the bass line and each verse builds in layers, like a stack of tracks. The rhythm section and [conductor and arranger] David Van DePitte’s strings take the lead role, with Marvin’s piano at the center, playing the melody."
Disc Two commences with more than an hour’s worth of live material recorded on May 1, 1972, at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.. The track list in sequence: "Sixties Medley (That’s the Way Love Is / You / I Heard It Through the Grapevine / Little Darling / You’re All I Need to Get By / Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing / Your Precious Love / Pride and Joy / Stubborn Kind of Fellow)," "Right On," "Wholy Holy," "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)," "What’s Going On," "What’s Happening Brother," "Flyin’ High (In the Friendly Sky)," "Save the Children," "God Is Love" and "Stage Dialogue," plus full-length reprises of "Inner City Blues" and "What’s Going On." As for the conspicuous absence of "Mercy Mercy Me [The Ecology]," Weinger acknowledges that the sixth song on What’s Going On was indeed performed that evening, but, alas, only a few seconds of it made it onto tape.
As Weinger indicates in his liner notes, the concert proved a trying, though by no means unredeemed, homecoming for the D.C. native: "This is the sound of an artist growing into new skin. It bears witness to an extraordinary transition. . . . It opens a window to the man himself in a vulnerable place. . . . He hasn’t performed in nearly four years. . . . A hectic schedule means there is little rehearsal. The show gets a cruelly late start. Marvin is tired, scared — and stoned. . . . In all its ragged honesty, Marvin’s return to the stage affirms he preferred the studio, where control and even perfection were possible. . . . Yet despite the chaos and the pain and the time away, Marvin is sweet and supple. Marvin is real."
The second disc ends with the mono mix of "What’s Going On"; a ballad version of "God Is Love," which uses a backing track from 1968 and vocals recorded in 1970; "Sad Tomorrows," which, in 1969, set the lyrics to the tune we know as "Flyin’ High" against doo-wop harmonies sung by The Originals; and "Head Title," an extemporized prototype of "Distant Lover" recorded in 1970.
Like its deluxe-edition predecessors, Blind Faith and Frampton Comes Alive!, What’s Going On - Deluxe Edition is housed in a tri-folded digipak with a translucent slipcase. The package includes previously unpublished shots from the personal archives of photographer Jim Henden, the man responsible for the famous color images of Gaye on the front and back covers of the original album.
–Greg Siegel
(C) 2000 Howard Communcations, Inc.
All rights reserved.