Marvin the magnificent
An unreleased 1972 album shows Tamla Motown’s master of smooth soul near the top of his game . . .
MARVIN GAYE: You’re The Man (Motown) Verdict: Lost gems from a soul Titan KEITH RICHARDS: Talk Is Cheap (BMG) Verdict: Speaks volumes
Marvin GaYE wasn’ t exactly idle in the three years between his two outstanding albums of the early Seventies.
Between 1970’s socially aware What’s Going On and 1973’s romantic Let’s Get it On, he worked on a film score and weighed up his options as the Motown label left Detroit for Los angeles. The Prince Of Soul was, in the words of an early hit, a stubborn kind of fellow. ambivalent about moving permanently to La, he divided his time between California and his old base in Motor City and recorded dozens of songs with a string of producers.
His plan was to release an album to illustrate his burgeoning artistry and showcase a heart-melting voice that veered from a rasp to a falsetto.
The LP, You’re The Man, even had a catalogue number — Tamla 316 — and was fuelled by his desire to progress. ‘When you’re at the top there’s nowhere to go but down, so i needed to keep going up,’ he said.
But, when its title track flopped as a single, You’re The Man was unceremoniously dumped, leaving most of its tracks languishing in the Hitsville vaults for almost half a century.
The ‘lost’ 1972 record is finally seeing daylight today on vinyl (£29) and streaming services, with the CD (£10) next month.
next week marks what would have been Marvin’s 80th birthday. More poignantly, it’s 35 years since he was shot dead by his father after trying to break up a fight between his parents.
The album opens with songs cut from the same cloth as What’s Going On. The mid-tempo title track is an acerbic treatise on fickle politicians.
The World is rated X is equally pointed, echoing 1971’s inner City Blues as it laments ‘fighting, killing and drug dealing’.
Fuelled by Marvin’s concern at his brother’s experiences in vietnam, i Want To Come Home For Christmas is illuminated by his smooth tenor.
More initimately, the love song i’m Gonna Give You respect would slot comfortably onto Let’s Get it On, while piano ballad Piece Of Clay opens, eerily, with the line: ‘Father, stop criticising your son.’
The latter’s gospel harmonies are a reminder of Marvin’s church roots. You’re The Man doesn’t flow with quite the same ease as the song suites of What’s Going On. But it’s refreshingly diverse. Checking Out features Marvin gently rapping over beats by disco producer Hamilton Bohannon. We Can Make it Baby sees Motown arranger Willie Hutch falling back on tight hooks similar to those used in co-writing i’ll Be There for The Jackson 5.
The album occasionally loses focus. a second take on the title track feels unnecessary and Christmas in The City is a superfluous instrumental. Three tracks have also been given a makeover, but the new mixes — by amy Winehouse’s producer Salaam remi — are stylish and unobtrusive. The strangest thing about You’re The Man is that it stayed hidden for so long: it’s a striking addition to the soul canon. WHEn Keith richards made his first solo album in 1988, it reinvigorated not just the guitarist known as The Human riff, but also breathed fresh life into The rolling Stones. By focusing on solo activity, richards and Mick Jagger found their mojo and reunited for 1989’s Steel Wheels. Keith’s detour involved an impressive band, the X- Pensive Winos, and an album that mixed blues, funk and soul. Talk is Cheap has now been repackaged and is out today on CD (£13), vinyl (£20), a deluxe box (£137) and via streaming services. The six bonus tracks are all engaging. Blues Jam has former Stone Mick Taylor on spellbinding form, while blues standards My Babe and Big Town Playboy are tight but tumbledown in the style Keith has been perfecting for decades.