There can’t be many households that don’t own at least one Marvin Gaye compilation, but in case yours doesn’t (or if you need another), here’s a great new collection released to tie in (I guess) with the wonderful commercial love fest that is Valentine’s Day. What we have here is a double album with a massive 40 tracks that cover all aspects and eras of the maestro’s career (solo and as a duettist) … and yes we already have ’em all (somewhere) but when you hear them again – in a different context – you realize (again) that the ‘maestro’ word I’ve just used is totally justified. The 40 cuts are in no particular order – with stuff like ‘I Want You’ cheek by jowl with ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’ and big hits like ‘Grapevine’ sequenced with album cuts like a version of ‘My Girl’. There’s also a smattering of tracks from Marvin’s early days (‘Unforgettable’ and ‘I’ll Be Around’ for instance) when he aspired to be the next Frank Sinatra… that is, of course, till father-in-law took him in hand! Father-in-law wasn’t too happy with ‘What’s Going On’ either… that’s included, of course, and that’s where harsher critics might take issue with the compilation’s concept. Clearly ‘What’ Going On’ isn’t a love song (neither is ‘Mercy, Mercy Me’ for that matter and I’ve always been puzzled by that damn ‘Onion Song’!) but they do create a certain mood and you can never have too much ‘What’s Going On’ anyway. Here, it still sounds as perfect as it did back in 1971 and the same holds good for all the tracks… all as fresh and as essential as on first release. Because of who they were and what they achieved it’s easy to take artists like Marvin Gaye for granted; playing through this set will reaffirm the man’s artistry anew. To win a copy of this album go to our news pages and enter our special competition… closing date is February 14th
(BB) 4/5
