Post by timmy84 on Mar 4, 2006 13:56:23 GMT -5
Midnight Love[/i]
Primary Artist: Marvin Gaye
Record Label: Columbia/CBS Records (Sony Music)
Release Date: November 6, 1982
Genre: R&B/Soul/Funk
Tracklisting
1.) Midnight Lady (Gaye) 5:17
2.) Sexual Healing (Gaye/Brown/Ritz) 3:59
3.) Rockin' After Midnight (Gaye) 6:04
4.) 'Til Tomorrow (Gaye) 4:57
5.) Turn On Some Music (Gaye) 5:08
6.) Third World Girl (Gaye) 4:36
7.) Joy (Gaye) 4:22
8.) My Love is Waiting (Banks) 5:07
The Story
They called him 'The Prince of Motown', 'The Philosopher of Soul', 'M.P.G.' and 'The Son of the Chocolate City (a/k/a Washington, D.C.) but Marvin Gaye looked at himself as 'The Midnight Man'. For those wondering how much of Marvin's later material put a more electro-funk ethos than his earlier work, it's because Marvin had the feeling for the beats that captivated him after midnight.
In short, 'Midnight Love' can be looked on as his last concept album though it doesn't talk about social issues or even about romance of one woman per se or even the pathological thoughts that peeked Marvin's brain and interest especially with the prior two records he released before 'Midnight Love'. It was a great album that peaked at what captivated the man, called 'The Midnight Man', into the primal nature of his actual being.
The story of Midnight Love goes back to 1981. It was the year of so many changes for the Washington, D.C.-born singer-songwriter. He had been divorced twice, the IRS was on the lookout for him because he hadn't paid his back taxes, and living in Europe, Marvin also slowly broke out of his long-standing addiction to cocaine. At 42, he was also re-finding his musical voice and in the middle of all of that, he was angered over the news that Motown, his only label that he had recorded as a solo artist for 22 years, had released his cryptic In Our Lifetime album without his permission and consent. Gaye thought Motown - and record founder Berry Gordy - had violated his contractual agreements which had allowed Marvin creative control of every one of his solo projects for the rest of his career. Motown had demanded Gaye to release an album for God knows how long when this came up. It was the final blow to one of the most celebrated stories in rock & roll. Marvin negotiated with his lawyer and attorney Curtis Shaw to get out of Motown finally terminating ties in the beginning of 1982. On his own, Marvin then met with Columbia/CBS president of Urban Music, Larkin Arnold, to work on signing him to the same label that was home to megastars Billy Joel and Michael Jackson (though the duo recorded for Epic and not Columbia).
Signing with Columbia in the spring of 1982, Marvin began working on the project and had a few songs on the shelf when he invited his friend and supposed co-biographer David Ritz to his Ostend, Belgium haunt to see what he was up to. Marvin and his drummer Odell Brown were going over a song that hadn't yet had a title but a song that had reggae overtones over a pre-New Jack Swing funk beat. What was missing was the lyrics. Marvin had written some of the lyrics when he showcased David the song. David had also been to Marvin's apartment and complexed that the singer had had so much smut in his room, he looked at his friend and told him "you need some sexual healing, man." Marvin then responded saying "hey, that's a good title for the song we're working on". After a few suggestions from Ritz, Gaye wrote a complete song that had so much poetic and lyrical prowess that it was hungry for Gaye's vocals to clench to. The final result was a mixture of electro funk, new wave, reggae, blues, gospel, doo-wop and soul all into one beautiful format. "Sexual Healing" was the name of the song and would cement Marvin Gaye's place in music history as more than just a leader of the Motown sound but the leader of his own unique soul genesis.
The rest of the songs on this album also were works in progress. Having been inspired by the likes of Bob Marley, the Talking Heads, Bryan Eno, and John Lennon after listening to their albums, Marvin wanted to do a very spiritual inward view in this album though CBS wanted Marvin to go commercial with it. Marvin and his longtime friend Harvey Fuqua tried to figure out how to sell the music as commercial as possible though songs like "Rockin' After Midnight", "Midnight Lady" and "'Til Tomorrow" remained the same, songs like "Turn On Some Music" and "Third World Girl" were retooled with different lyrics. Finally by the late summer, Marvin had finally completed his so-called "comeback" album and presented the final work from Belgium to Larkin Arnold in Los Angeles. Arnold was impressed by the work and announced to a press conference a month later that Gaye was "back".
In September, the first Marvin Gaye song in over a year hit American radio. It was indeed "Sexual Healing", a song he worked so hard to make it a lasting song, that would catapult Gaye back from obscurity and make him a superstar all over again. "The Comeback Kid" had re-emerged in the face of new wave, Prince, Michael Jackson and hip-hop with a song so funky and sophisticated that you couldn't do nothing but groove to it. "Sexual Healing" became Marvin's biggest hit since 1977's "Got to Give It Up" and soon became the biggest R&B hit of the 1980s staying at #1 on the R&B charts for a stellar 10 weeks and becoming the fastest-selling and rising single in over 5 years.
In November, Midnight Love was released. By 1983, the album and "Sexual Healing" returned Gaye to the top of the pop world. The album peaked at #7 pop and #1 R&B while the song reached #3 that January. Marvin would win countless awards for "Sexual Healing" and the entire album was getting good reviews just because they were happy to hear from Marvin. The album would go on to become Marvin's biggest-selling album to date selling over 6 million copies worldwide.
If only the magic continued. Just a year and a half later after a sold-out U.S. tour and performances at the Grammy's, Motown 25 and the NBA All Star Game, the comeback came to a tragic end when Gaye was shot and killed by his father after an argument in Los Angeles. The demons Marvin wanted to rid of, he couldn't do so in the end. As the years go on, the thrilling last album of Marvin's life and career proves to be another lasting testament to the legacy of the legend.
Primary Artist: Marvin Gaye
Record Label: Columbia/CBS Records (Sony Music)
Release Date: November 6, 1982
Genre: R&B/Soul/Funk
Tracklisting
1.) Midnight Lady (Gaye) 5:17
2.) Sexual Healing (Gaye/Brown/Ritz) 3:59
3.) Rockin' After Midnight (Gaye) 6:04
4.) 'Til Tomorrow (Gaye) 4:57
5.) Turn On Some Music (Gaye) 5:08
6.) Third World Girl (Gaye) 4:36
7.) Joy (Gaye) 4:22
8.) My Love is Waiting (Banks) 5:07
The Story
They called him 'The Prince of Motown', 'The Philosopher of Soul', 'M.P.G.' and 'The Son of the Chocolate City (a/k/a Washington, D.C.) but Marvin Gaye looked at himself as 'The Midnight Man'. For those wondering how much of Marvin's later material put a more electro-funk ethos than his earlier work, it's because Marvin had the feeling for the beats that captivated him after midnight.
In short, 'Midnight Love' can be looked on as his last concept album though it doesn't talk about social issues or even about romance of one woman per se or even the pathological thoughts that peeked Marvin's brain and interest especially with the prior two records he released before 'Midnight Love'. It was a great album that peaked at what captivated the man, called 'The Midnight Man', into the primal nature of his actual being.
The story of Midnight Love goes back to 1981. It was the year of so many changes for the Washington, D.C.-born singer-songwriter. He had been divorced twice, the IRS was on the lookout for him because he hadn't paid his back taxes, and living in Europe, Marvin also slowly broke out of his long-standing addiction to cocaine. At 42, he was also re-finding his musical voice and in the middle of all of that, he was angered over the news that Motown, his only label that he had recorded as a solo artist for 22 years, had released his cryptic In Our Lifetime album without his permission and consent. Gaye thought Motown - and record founder Berry Gordy - had violated his contractual agreements which had allowed Marvin creative control of every one of his solo projects for the rest of his career. Motown had demanded Gaye to release an album for God knows how long when this came up. It was the final blow to one of the most celebrated stories in rock & roll. Marvin negotiated with his lawyer and attorney Curtis Shaw to get out of Motown finally terminating ties in the beginning of 1982. On his own, Marvin then met with Columbia/CBS president of Urban Music, Larkin Arnold, to work on signing him to the same label that was home to megastars Billy Joel and Michael Jackson (though the duo recorded for Epic and not Columbia).
Signing with Columbia in the spring of 1982, Marvin began working on the project and had a few songs on the shelf when he invited his friend and supposed co-biographer David Ritz to his Ostend, Belgium haunt to see what he was up to. Marvin and his drummer Odell Brown were going over a song that hadn't yet had a title but a song that had reggae overtones over a pre-New Jack Swing funk beat. What was missing was the lyrics. Marvin had written some of the lyrics when he showcased David the song. David had also been to Marvin's apartment and complexed that the singer had had so much smut in his room, he looked at his friend and told him "you need some sexual healing, man." Marvin then responded saying "hey, that's a good title for the song we're working on". After a few suggestions from Ritz, Gaye wrote a complete song that had so much poetic and lyrical prowess that it was hungry for Gaye's vocals to clench to. The final result was a mixture of electro funk, new wave, reggae, blues, gospel, doo-wop and soul all into one beautiful format. "Sexual Healing" was the name of the song and would cement Marvin Gaye's place in music history as more than just a leader of the Motown sound but the leader of his own unique soul genesis.
The rest of the songs on this album also were works in progress. Having been inspired by the likes of Bob Marley, the Talking Heads, Bryan Eno, and John Lennon after listening to their albums, Marvin wanted to do a very spiritual inward view in this album though CBS wanted Marvin to go commercial with it. Marvin and his longtime friend Harvey Fuqua tried to figure out how to sell the music as commercial as possible though songs like "Rockin' After Midnight", "Midnight Lady" and "'Til Tomorrow" remained the same, songs like "Turn On Some Music" and "Third World Girl" were retooled with different lyrics. Finally by the late summer, Marvin had finally completed his so-called "comeback" album and presented the final work from Belgium to Larkin Arnold in Los Angeles. Arnold was impressed by the work and announced to a press conference a month later that Gaye was "back".
In September, the first Marvin Gaye song in over a year hit American radio. It was indeed "Sexual Healing", a song he worked so hard to make it a lasting song, that would catapult Gaye back from obscurity and make him a superstar all over again. "The Comeback Kid" had re-emerged in the face of new wave, Prince, Michael Jackson and hip-hop with a song so funky and sophisticated that you couldn't do nothing but groove to it. "Sexual Healing" became Marvin's biggest hit since 1977's "Got to Give It Up" and soon became the biggest R&B hit of the 1980s staying at #1 on the R&B charts for a stellar 10 weeks and becoming the fastest-selling and rising single in over 5 years.
In November, Midnight Love was released. By 1983, the album and "Sexual Healing" returned Gaye to the top of the pop world. The album peaked at #7 pop and #1 R&B while the song reached #3 that January. Marvin would win countless awards for "Sexual Healing" and the entire album was getting good reviews just because they were happy to hear from Marvin. The album would go on to become Marvin's biggest-selling album to date selling over 6 million copies worldwide.
If only the magic continued. Just a year and a half later after a sold-out U.S. tour and performances at the Grammy's, Motown 25 and the NBA All Star Game, the comeback came to a tragic end when Gaye was shot and killed by his father after an argument in Los Angeles. The demons Marvin wanted to rid of, he couldn't do so in the end. As the years go on, the thrilling last album of Marvin's life and career proves to be another lasting testament to the legacy of the legend.