The Man Who Would Be Soul

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It's impossible to talk about the evolution of soul music without crediting Marvin Gaye as a prime exponent of its development. He wasn't necessarily the funkiest or the smoothest of the Motown stable, but he was unequivocally the most rebellious. Not content to churn out surefire radio singles in the Motown mode, he was often at odds with the label's founder Barry Gordy. In fact, his groundbreaking What's Going On almost wasn't released because Gordy didn't want to put the label in potentially controversial territory. After the album's phenomenal success. Gordy rethought his position, of course.

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Soul wasn't just a stance with Gaye--it was his lifeblood, and nobody infused the genre with more conviction than he did. In fact, he did more than sing his songs-- he ushered the listener into a place where words and music melded into a sphere that transcended vocabulary to reside in a universal emotion. He took soul music into a new frontier, making it relevant to what was happening to American society at large. It didn't matter what he sang about-- it could be anything from a simple proclamation of love to a a clarion call to social activism--when Gaye sang it, you believed it. He had a voice that sounded like silk soaked in cognac, and it transported you from gritty streets to silk sheets, all hinging on his mood.

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Marvin Gaye #1's is the latest addition to the everflowing well of "greatest hits" collections paying tribute to (or cashing in on, depending on your measure of cynicism) to Marvin Gaye's genius. In that regard, it doesn't really offer a lot that's new--since Gaye's untimely death in 1984, everybody and their dog has jumped on that bandwagon. A couple of things, however, make this release stand out from the gazillions of Marvin Gaye collections.

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Firstly, this album plays more like a soundtrack for an as yet-to-be-made biopic of Gaye's life, played out in flashbacks. It opens with some of his later work, the period when he was grappling with the dichotomies between spirituality and sensuality. He slithers through "Let's Get It On" and walks us through the animus of relationships with "Sexual Healing." Then we go back a few years, when social activism was his torch to bear, with the jazzy anti-war ballad "What's Going On," only to be whiplashed to his more innocent days, with "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing," one of his early duets with the ill-fated Tammi Terrell.

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It goes like that, skirting between timeframes, flashing from different personnae and different emotions-- seventeen songs in all and not a stinker among them. There are the obligatory tracks, like "I Heard it Throuth the Grapevine" and "Inner City Blues(Makes Me Wanna Holler)" counterpointed with innocent romps like "Ain't That Peculiar" and "I'll Be Doggone."

Admittedly, there's nothing here that's not on other collections, but as an introduction to the diverse stylings of Marvin Gaye, this is a nice package.

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The other thing that makes this set stand out has nothing to do with the music, but it bears mentioning. This is part of the Number 1's series by Universal Music Enterprises, and what makes them stand out is the packaging. Touted as "eco-friendly," the releases in this series are packaged, both sleeve and tray, in completely recyclable paperboard replacing the traditional jewel case and plastic tray. I'm all for it--it's a bit retro, considering vinyl was always packaged that way, but it's more environmentally friendly-- and it reduces consumer costs. However, I'm not buying the company's argument that they've eliminated the liner booklet to save trees thereby further helping the environment.

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Still, I'd like to see the industry as a whole adapt this sort of packaging. In the meantime, give Marvin Gaye #1's a listen. It's a perfect driving CD. And it works pretty well for late night listening.