Marvin Gaye has been gone for 27 years, but the soul legend's music still lives on, most notably thanks to his 1971 classic What's Going On. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the politically minded song cycle, Motown/UMe will issue a jam-packed box set on May 31.
The package includes two CDs, a vinyl LP and extensive liner notes. In addition to the remastered album, the first CD contains a handful of demos, alternate mixes, single versions and B-sides. As for disc two, it has 18 unheard studio tracks. Most of these were instrumentals recorded in Detroit while Gaye was hesitant about touring. There's also the non-LP single "You're the Man," described in a press release as "a sequel of sorts" to What's Going On.
The LP contains the Detroit Mix of What's Going On -- the "original, darker mix of the entire album" made prior to final overdubs in Los Angeles. The set will be rounded out by a LP-sized booklet with photos from the sessions, lyrics, recording annotations and two essays by Marvin Gaye historians.
The 40th anniversary will also be celebrated with two shows: Rickey Minor, Stevie Wonder, Janelle Monáe and more at the Hollywood Bowl on July 24; and a performance by John Legend, the Roots and the National Symphony Orchestra at Washington, DC's Kennedy Centre in May 2012 (the 40th anniversary of Gaye's own performance at that venue).
What's Going On:
CD 1:
1. "What's Going On"
2. "What's Happening Brother"
3. "Flyin' High (in the Friendly Sky)"
4. "Save the Children"
5. "God Is Love"
6. "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"
7. "Right On"
8. "Wholy Holy"
9. "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)"
10. "What's Going On" (unreleased original single mix)
11. "Head Title a.k.a. Distant Lover" (demo version, original master)
12. "Symphony" (demo version)
13. "I Love the Ground You Walk On" (instrumental)
14. "What's Going On" (mono single version)
15. "God Is Love" (mono single version)
16. "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (mono single version)
17. "Sad Tomorrows" (mono single version)
18. "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (mono single version)
19. "Wholy Holy" (mono single version)
CD 2:
1. "Checking Out (Double Clutch)"
2. "Chained"
3. "Country Stud"
4. "Help the People"
5. "Running From Love" (version 1)
6. "Daybreak"
7. "Doing My Thing"
8. "'T' Stands for Time"
9. "Jesus Is Our Love Song"
10. "Funky Nation"
11. "Infinity"
12. "Mandota"
13. "Struttin' the Blues"
14. "Running From Love" (version 2 with strings)
15. "I'm Going Home" (Move)
16. "You're the Man Parts 1 and 2" (original mono single version)
17. "You're the Man" (alternate version 1)
18. "You're the Man" (alternate version 2)
The package includes two CDs, a vinyl LP and extensive liner notes. In addition to the remastered album, the first CD contains a handful of demos, alternate mixes, single versions and B-sides. As for disc two, it has 18 unheard studio tracks. Most of these were instrumentals recorded in Detroit while Gaye was hesitant about touring. There's also the non-LP single "You're the Man," described in a press release as "a sequel of sorts" to What's Going On.
The LP contains the Detroit Mix of What's Going On -- the "original, darker mix of the entire album" made prior to final overdubs in Los Angeles. The set will be rounded out by a LP-sized booklet with photos from the sessions, lyrics, recording annotations and two essays by Marvin Gaye historians.
The 40th anniversary will also be celebrated with two shows: Rickey Minor, Stevie Wonder, Janelle Monáe and more at the Hollywood Bowl on July 24; and a performance by John Legend, the Roots and the National Symphony Orchestra at Washington, DC's Kennedy Centre in May 2012 (the 40th anniversary of Gaye's own performance at that venue).
What's Going On:
CD 1:
1. "What's Going On"
2. "What's Happening Brother"
3. "Flyin' High (in the Friendly Sky)"
4. "Save the Children"
5. "God Is Love"
6. "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"
7. "Right On"
8. "Wholy Holy"
9. "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)"
10. "What's Going On" (unreleased original single mix)
11. "Head Title a.k.a. Distant Lover" (demo version, original master)
12. "Symphony" (demo version)
13. "I Love the Ground You Walk On" (instrumental)
14. "What's Going On" (mono single version)
15. "God Is Love" (mono single version)
16. "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (mono single version)
17. "Sad Tomorrows" (mono single version)
18. "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (mono single version)
19. "Wholy Holy" (mono single version)
CD 2:
1. "Checking Out (Double Clutch)"
2. "Chained"
3. "Country Stud"
4. "Help the People"
5. "Running From Love" (version 1)
6. "Daybreak"
7. "Doing My Thing"
8. "'T' Stands for Time"
9. "Jesus Is Our Love Song"
10. "Funky Nation"
11. "Infinity"
12. "Mandota"
13. "Struttin' the Blues"
14. "Running From Love" (version 2 with strings)
15. "I'm Going Home" (Move)
16. "You're the Man Parts 1 and 2" (original mono single version)
17. "You're the Man" (alternate version 1)
18. "You're the Man" (alternate version 2)
