What's Going On

Motown head Berry Gordy told Marvin he was throwing his career away when he handed in these tapes. He refused to release it. He called the title track the worst thing he’d ever heard. Marvin had to hold the album hostage, refusing to record another note until it dropped. The Funk Brothers didn't even get credit on the original sleeve. Listen to those drums. That's Bob Babbitt on bass and Uriel Jones on kit. They were just jamming in the studio after a session for a different project. Pure magic. Your Thorens is going to love the warmth on this one. It's the only record in your crate that sounds like a fever dream and a social manifesto all at once. You’ve got two copies of *Talking Book* on the shelf, so you’ve already got the Motown DNA. This just fills in the history lesson. Throw it on. Don't touch the volume until the B-side. Just let it soak into the room.

source: the clerk