Saturday, October 26, 2019

Day 0421 - Here, My Dear

Marvin Gaye "Here, My Dear" (1978) - got it


Possibly one of the more whiny and passive-aggressive break-up albums of all time.

Marvin had divorced his wife, Anna Gordy (the sister of Motown owner Berry Gordy... in hindsight, not the smartest career move) having met and fallen for another woman.  After failing to pay his alimony, Marvin was taken to court and reluctantly agreed to pay Anna the advance and half of the earnings for his next album.

Instead of just making any old record and getting it out of the way, Marvin set about airing their dirty laundry (with the narrative slanted firmly in his favour). Lamenting his situation, railing against Anna for dragging him through court and tarnishing his image with the press, and then eventually gushing about his new love and how much happier he was.

The album was not loved by critics, fans... or Anna. It is a lengthy ride, but Marvin's mix of funk, soul, jazz, doowop and some more modern (at the time) production, would create a sound picked up on by artists like Michael Jackson, Jamiroquai, Justin Timberlake and other purveyors of funky RnB.

No comments:

Post a Comment