What's Going On Live is a live album recorded in 1972 by American soul singer Marvin Gaye and released posthumously in 2019 by Motown.[1] The album documents a live performance of his album What's Going On and has received mixed feedback from critics.
Recording and release
The songs on this album were recorded at Washington D.C.’s John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on May 1, 1972 as part of a Marvin Gaye Day celebration; it was the first live performance he had done in four years, since the death of his singing partner Tammi Terrell.[1] Gaye was very hesitant about the performance and had to be talked into it by his mother: he was still grieving Terrell and disliked performing live anyway.[2] The recording was previously released on the 2001 Deluxe Edition of What's Going On but this is the first edition of the concert as a standalone album and has a new mix;[3] it comes shortly after Motown's release of You're the Man, a studio album intended to follow What's Going On but shelved for decades.[1] Gaye resumed touring in 1974 but this was the only time that he performed the entire album live in one show. However the recording misses his performance of “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)”, which was missed due to a technical error.[4]
Reception
The editorial staff of AllMusic Guide gave What's Going On Live three out of five stars, with reviewer Andy Kellman noting that the performance is generally tentative and that it is "basically a rehearsal in front of a rapt and vocal audience" but praising Gaye by writing that his "voice sounds unaffected by years away from the stage".[3]
