You're the Man is the fourth posthumous studio album by American singer Marvin Gaye, originally intended to be released in 1972 as the follow-up to What's Going On. It was released on March 29, 2019, through Motown, Universal Music Enterprises, and Universal Music Group to celebrate what would have been Gaye's 80th birthday on April 2, 2019. The album includes the single of the same name, as well as the intended original album in full and other songs Gaye recorded at the time.[1]
| You're the Man | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 29, 2019 | |||
| Recorded | 1972 | |||
| Studio | Golden World, Detroit & Hitsville West, Los Angeles, California | |||
| Genre | Soul, funk | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | Marvin Gaye, Hal Davis, Gloria Jones, Pamela Sawyer, Fonce Mizell, Freddie Perren, Willie Hutch | |||
| Marvin Gaye chronology | ||||
| ||||
Salaam Remi's mix of "My Last Chance" was released in promotion of the album on February 8, 2019.[1]
Motown followed this release a few months later with the digital Expanded Edition of the album, which included three bonus tracks; "Head Title a.k.a. Distant Lover", "My Last Chance" (7" Single Version), and "You're the Man" (Alternate Version 1).
Background and release
editYou're the Man was intended as another socially conscious record like What's Going On (1971), but following the release of its lead single, the title track "You're the Man", Gaye cancelled its release.[1] This was in part due to the reception of the song, as well as the fact that Gaye's political views were different from those of Motown founder Berry Gordy.[1] For these reasons, You're the Man was long considered a "lost" album.[1]
Fifteen of the songs were not released on vinyl in the 1970s,[1] but most were made available on CD compilations over the years.[2] A longer take of "I Want to Come Home for Christmas" was first made available in 1990 after being recorded in 1972.[2] The album includes liner notes written by David Ritz.[3]
Reception
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You're the Man received positive reviews from critics noted at review aggregator Metacritic. It has a weighted average score of 74 out of 100, based on eight reviews.[4] With 11 critics, Album of the Year considered the critical consensus a 75 out of 100[5] and AnyDecentMusic? summed up 12 reviews as a 7.5 out of 10.[6]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You're the Man" | Marvin Gaye, Kenneth Stover | 5:46 |
| 2. | "The World Is Rated X" (alternate mix) | Ezra Bolton, Marilyn McLeod, Mel Bolton and Robert Gordy | 3:52 |
| 3. | "Piece of Clay" | Gloria Jones, Pamela Sawyer | 5:11 |
| 4. | "Where Are We Going?" (alternate mix 2) | Larry Mizell, Larry Gordon | 3:51 |
| 5. | "I'm Gonna Give You Respect" | Willie Hutch | 2:56 |
| 6. | "Try It, You'll Like It" | Willie Hutch, Kathy Wakefield | 3:57 |
| 7. | "You Are That Special One" | Willie Hutch | 3:38 |
| 8. | "We Can Make It Baby" | Willie Hutch | 3:24 |
| 9. | "My Last Chance" (Salaam Remi LP mix) | Marvin Gaye | 3:40 |
| 10. | "Symphony" (Salaam Remi LP mix) | Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson | 2:53 |
| 11. | "I'd Give My Life for You" (Salaam Remi LP mix) | Marvin Gaye | 3:31 |
| 12. | "Woman of the World" | Larry Mizell, Larry Gordon | 3:30 |
| 13. | "Christmas in the City" | Marvin Gaye | 3:48 |
| 14. | "You're the Man" (Alternate Version 2) | Marvin Gaye, Kenneth Stover | 4:41 |
| 15. | "I Want to Come Home for Christmas" | Marvin Gaye, Forest Hairston | 4:46 |
| 16. | "I'm Going Home" | Marvin Gaye | 4:42 |
| 17. | "Checking Out (Double Clutch)" | Marvin Gaye | 4:53 |
Charts
edit| Chart (2019) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[7] | 57 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[8] | 77 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] | 46 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[10] | 30 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] | 80 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[12] | 52 |
| US Billboard 200[13] | 168 |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f Roffman, Michael (February 8, 2019). "Marvin Gaye's lost 1972 album You're the Man to receive official release". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
- ^ a b Blistein, Jon (February 8, 2019). "Marvin Gaye's Lost 'What's Going On' Follow Up, 'You're the Man,' Set for Release". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
- ^ Monroe, Jazz (February 8, 2019). "Marvin Gaye's Lost 1972 Album You're the Man Set for Release". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
- ^ "You're the Man by Marvin Gaye". Metacritic. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- ^ "Marvin Gaye – You're the Man". Album of the Year. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- ^ "You're the Man by Marvin Gaye". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Marvin Gaye – You're the Man" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Marvin Gaye – You're the Man" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Marvin Gaye – You're the Man" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Marvin Gaye – You're the Man". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
- ^ "Marvin Gaye Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2019.