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Was Marvin Gaye a libertarian?

07 Jul 2008 01:22 pm

No, seriously. Me and Kenyatta spent much of last week hanging with Megan and the Atlantic crowd, so maybe I've been reprogrammed. But on the flight back from Denver, between reading Paula Giddings incredible biography of Ida B. Wells, I was banging three Marvin albums on random play. No surprise here--the albums were What's Going On, Let's Get It On and the vastly underrated Trouble Man. Anyway, I noticed that Marvin's politics were marked by a strong aversion to taxes ("natural fact is/Honey, that I can't pay my taxes" and "There's only three things that's for sure, taxes, death and trouble"),  a disdain for foreign occupation("Father, father we don't need to escalate."),  and a strong belief in the right to privacy ("I want to get it on/You don't have to worry that it's wrong." or "There's nothing wrong with love/If you want good loving, just let yourself go.")

Indeed there is way of listening to "Let's Get It On" as anthem for gay--or interracial--marriage. I mean think about lyrics like, "There's nothing wrong with me loving you/Giving yourself to me could never wrong, if the love is true." Give a good listen to "Right On" which has an almost laissez-faire acceptance of the natural order of things ("Some of us born with money to spend/Some of us were born with races to win/Some of us are aware that is good for us to care/Some of us feel the icy wind of poverty in the air.") At the end, Marvin addresses  those who live "where peace is craved," those who "live a life surround by good fortune and wealth," those who are simply "enjoying ourselves" and those who "got crowned in the sea of happiness, " with a simple, "right on." Or think of the title cut to Trouble Man where Marvin says that "I come up hard, but that's OK/Trouble man, don't get in my way" or "I come up hard, but never cruel/I didn't make it sugar, playing by the rules." The song is clearly a meditation on the limits of the state and the power of individual will.

Come on, give me my props. You thought I was there was nothing to me but Autobot and Zooey Deschanel love. But I just blew your mind. Admit it. I'm deep. OK, so maybe not. But while you consider my analysis, check out the last great song from arguably the greatest black artist of our time.

UPDATE: Props to Adina for the shout-out to another underrated classic, Here My Dear.

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Comments (17)

Me and Kenyatta spent much of last week hanging with Megan and the Atlantic crowd, so maybe I've been reprogrammed.

Maybe? Let's just call it subliminal osmosis or some shit like that.

And for the record, "What's Goin' On" is the greatest single in American music.

Posted by KevDog | July 7, 2008 2:05 PM

No love for Big Media Matt?

Posted by Joe Klein's conscience | July 7, 2008 2:37 PM

KevDog, you may be right, but I'm kinda partial to the full version of "Gotta Give It Up" myself.

And the Trouble Man soundtrack must be in the air today;
Dan Love at From Da Bricks was just writing about it today, too. What a great record.

Posted by Levi Stahl | July 7, 2008 2:38 PM

Maybe in his heart he was a libertarian, but he didn't get involved in politics, and I can think of one good reason:

Anger, can make you old, yes it can
I said anger, can make you sick, children... oh Jesus
Anger destroys your soul
Rage, there's no room for rage in there
There's no room for rage in here
line up some place to go to be mad
It's a sin to treat your body bad

Posted by Adina | July 7, 2008 2:51 PM

Marvin's Star Spangled Banner at the NBA all-star game is still the best rendition of the National Anthem I've ever heard.

Posted by Joel W | July 7, 2008 5:09 PM

You know, if you would have thrown "I Want You" into that mix you wouldn't have even made this blog entry.

Posted by Leon Rogers | July 7, 2008 7:36 PM

There is another way of listening to "lets get it on" which would seem to speak for his relationship with at least one underage girl, too. I aint hatin on the man, I'm just speaking a truth that seems a little closer to reality than the gay rights/interacial marriage interpretation.

Posted by Kai of Rebelology | July 7, 2008 8:06 PM

Levi,

I know where you're coming from on "Gotta Give It Up". But like all things artistic, my love of "What's Goin On" is personal.

When I was a child, I listened to the song as a child. I loved the grove and the voice. Didn't listen much to the lyrics. Then sometime in my freshman year (1982) I was listening to the song on a lazy afternoon and had my mind fucking blown open by this tune. The radicalism in the song that had been sliding by me for a decade or more cracked me across the jaw.

I still love the groove, as does nearly every rational being, but the added layers continue to amaze me. There's no other protest song like it.

Posted by KevDog | July 7, 2008 11:22 PM

Don't forget his most explicity political song, You're the Man:

"We don't wanna hear no more lies
About how you planned a compromise
We want our dollar value increased
Employment to rise
The nation's taxation
Is causin' all, all this inflation"

Posted by Mike D. | July 8, 2008 7:20 PM

You don't know me from Adam but I'm going to throw down and say the greatest artist of our time (black, white or purple) is Stevie Wonder. I mean, come on. How can there even be a discussion? Most R&B #1's, three octave vocal range, plays at least two instruments at virtuoso level (keys and harmonica) and rips the hell out the drums. What's Going On is awesome, don't get me wrong, makes me tear up it's so good...but, where do you even start with Stevie Wonder? I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever)...They Won't Go When I Go? Smile Please? As?

"We all know sometimes life's hates and troubles
Can make you wish you were born in another time and space.
But you can bet you life times that and twice its double
That God knew exactly where he wanted you to be placed.
So make sure when you say you're in it but not of it
You're not helping to make this earth a place sometimes called Hell.
Change your words into truths and then change that truth into love
And maybe our children's grandchildren
And their great-great grandchildren will tell."

Oh man.

Posted by bakum | July 8, 2008 7:53 PM

True libertarians favor a balanced budget. No "no taxes" without "no spending". That means no social security, public schools, etc. Lots of people who gripe about taxes are not true libertarians. If he wanted to cut taxes but not government, he was a Bushie, not a libertarian.

Posted by LiberalGoodman | July 8, 2008 8:33 PM

True libertarians favor a balanced budget. No "no taxes" without "no spending". That means no social security, public schools, etc. Lots of people who gripe about taxes are not true libertarians. If he wanted to cut taxes but not government, he was a Bushie, not a libertarian.

Posted by LiberalGoodman | July 8, 2008 8:33 PM

As a huge Marvin Gaye fan I got a kick out of this. And yeah, Here, My Dear is probably my underrated favorite (followed by In Our Lifetime

Posted by j. brotherlove | July 8, 2008 11:31 PM

Here My Dear was payment to his first wife as part of the divorce settlement. Although the word genius is used more than it should be, Marvin was, through and through.

Posted by Timbo | July 9, 2008 12:32 AM

Uh, Marvin was against taxes because he was hopelessly in debt to the IRS after a series of costly divorces. And he sang against escalation because his father was a psychopath who later murdered him, not because he's Bob Barr.

He was also extremely insecure about his masculinity and accordingly added the 'e' on to the end of his name. So, no, I wouldn't call 'Let's Get It On' a homosexual anthem either.

Posted by Dan | July 9, 2008 3:53 AM

Dear Dan,

It's a joke.

Posted by Ta-Nehisi Coates | July 9, 2008 8:33 AM