Here, My Dear

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Here, My Dear
Studio album by Marvin Gaye
Released	December 15, 1978
Recorded	1976-1977 Marvin's Room
Genre	Soul/funk
Length	72:56
Label	Tamla T-364LP2
Producer	Marvin Gaye, Ed Townsend
Professional reviews
Original Album: All Music Guide link iTunes (favorable) [1] Robert Christgau (B+) link Rolling Stone (favorable) link Expanded Edition: All Music Guide link Blender link PopMatters link VIBE (favorable) link
Marvin Gaye chronology
Live at the London Palladium (1977) Here, My Dear (1978) In Our Lifetime (1981)

Here, My Dear is a 1978 double album recorded by Marvin Gaye for Motown Records' Tamla label. A deeply personal and controversial album, it is notable for autobiographing Gaye's ill-fated first marriage to Anna Gordy. In 2003, the album was ranked number 462 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

[edit] Overall

[edit] Background

By 1976, the relationship between Marvin Gaye and his first wife, Anna Gordy, had become estranged and was far from being repaired. Marvin, who was now carrying on an open relationship with singer Janis Hunter, and Anna often accused each other of infidelity over the years before his relationship with Hunter. Shortly after Marvin and Janis welcome the second of their two children, Frankie, in November 1975, Anna filed for divorce. At this time, Marvin was running low on money because of an extravagant spending habit to support his lifestyle which included, among other things, a fleet of cars, several homes in and outside the country, and an increasing cocaine habit. Marvin's spending habits had made it impossible for the singer to pay Anna money for alimony and child support for the couple's only son, Marvin III. Marvin's attorney Curtis Shaw came up with a solution to Marvin to give Anna half the royalties he would earn from his next project to Anna.

[edit] Recording

After agreeing to the deal, the singer went into his recording studio in an effort to give Motown a "lazy, bad" album starting sessions in the spring of 1976. However, as Marvin set on making the "lazy" album, the singer's deep emotions and bittersweet feelings for his soon-to-be former wife took over the music. Songs included in the album didn't just deal with the singer's troubling marriage ("I Met a Little Girl", "Anna's Song", "You Can Leave, But It's Going To Cost You") but with other deep issues including anger management ("Anger"), Jesus ("Everybody Needs Love", "Time to Get It Together"), solace ("Sparrow"), space (the loosely funky "A Funky Space Reincarnation") and new love ("Falling In Love", the one song dedicated to Marvin's new wife, Janis). The project was worked on for a year and was initially held back by Marvin, fearing that the project was too personal to be released. However, because of Motown's demands for Marvin to put out an album, as he had often delayed releases and it had been over two years since his last record, the sensually erotic I Want You, the singer decided to put out the album as promised in December of 1978.

[edit] Release and reaction

When Here, My Dear was released in the end of 1978, it was panned by consumers and critics alike, who called the album "bizarre" and "un-commercial". The album's lack of success angered Gaye to the point that he refused to promote it any further. Motown stopped promoting Here, My Dear in early 1979, by which point Gaye had gone in to self-imposed exile. Ironically, around the same time, Marvin's relationship with second wife Janis had also fallen apart and the couple separated sometime in 1979. Upon hearing the album, a visibly upset Anna Gordy had the option of suing Marvin for invasion of privacy but according to PEOPLE magazine later on, she recanted that decision. In 1994, the album was re-released due to increased attention on Marvin's life to commemorate the singer's tenth anniversary since his untimely death, and reached number-one on Billboard's R&B catalog chart. The original album peaked at number four R&B and number twenty-six pop becoming the lowest-charted studio album for Gaye in the 1970s.

[edit] Legacy

The album was re-evaluated in the years following its original release, and is today seen as a landmark in Gaye's career. It is voted as one of the greatest albums in music history including Mojo Magazine (1995) and Rolling Stone magazine's critics poll (500 Greatest Albums of All-Time) (2003), among others.

[edit] 2008 Expanded Edition

On February 15, 2008, Hip-O Select re-released the album as a two-disc Expanded Edition including a song cut from the original album, "Ain't It Funny How Things Turn Around", which was remixed by funk legend Bootsy Collins. Disc two featured remastered and alternate versions of the songs from the album remixed by contemporary soul producers such as Salaam Remi, ?uestlove, Prince Paul, DJ Smash and others.

[edit] Track listing

All songs written by Marvin Gaye except where noted.

[edit] Side one

1. "Here, My Dear" – 2:48
2. "I Met a Little Girl" – 5:03
3. "When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You" – 6:17
4. "Anger" (Ashby/Gaye) – 4:04

[edit] Side two

1. "Is That Enough" – 7:47
2. "Everybody Needs Love" (Townsend/Gaye) – 5:48
3. "Time to Get It Together" – 3:55

[edit] Side three

1. "Sparrow" (Townsend/Gaye) – 6:12
2. "Anna's Song" – 5:56
3. "When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You (Instrumental)" – 6:03

[edit] Side four

1. "A Funky Space Reincarnation" – 8:18
2. "You Can Leave, But It's Going to Cost You" – 5:32
3. "Falling in Love Again" – 4:39
4. "When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You (Reprise)" – 0:47

[edit] References

• Here, My Dear album liner notes by David Ritz & Harry Weinger. UMG Recordings, Inc..