Portal:R&B and Soul Music
 R&B and Soul MusicShowcasing the finer articles and information on Wikipedia's R&B, soul, and funk singers, musicians, bands, songs, and record labels.
Selected articleWhat's Going On is a studio album by soul musician Marvin Gaye, released May 21, 1971 on the Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records.[2] Recording sessions for the album took place in June of 1970 and March–May of 1971 at Hitsville U.S.A., Golden World and United Sound Studios in Detroit, Michigan and at The Sound Factory in West Hollywood, California. The first Marvin Gaye album for it to be credited as produced solely by the artist himself, What's Going On is a unified album consisting of nine songs, most of which lead into the next. It has also been categorized as a song cycle, since the album ends on a reprise to the album's opening theme. The album is told from the point of view of a Vietnam War veteran returning to the country he had been fighting for, and seeing nothing but injustice, suffering and hatred. What's Going On was the first album on which Motown Records' main studio band, The Funk Brothers, received an official credit. Featuring introspective lyrics about drug abuse, poverty and the Vietnam War, the album was also the first to reflect the beginning of a new trend in soul music. What's Going On was an both an immediate commercial and critical success and has endured as a classic of early-1970s soul. In worldwide critics/artists and public surveys, it has been voted as one of the landmark recordings in pop music history and is considered to be one of the greatest albums ever made.[3] In March of 1970, Marvin Gaye had fallen into a deep depression after the death of his singing partner Tammi Terrell. He refused to record and perform, and went as far as to attempt a career in football with the Detroit Lions. After an unsuccessful Lions tryout, Gaye came in contact with Al Cleveland and the Four Tops' Renaldo "Obie" Benson, who were working on a politically conscious song called "What's Going On". Gaye helped Cleveland and Benson complete the composition, and planned to produce it as a recording for Motown act The Originals. Cleveland and Benson persuaded Gaye to record the song himself, and in June 1970 Gaye recorded "What's Going On" and his own composition, "God Is Love". Selected picture
Selected biographyEunice Kathleen Waymon, better known by her stage name Nina Simone (IPA: ninɐ sʌmɞnɑ) (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), was a Grammy Award-nominated American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger and civil rights activist. Although she disliked being categorized, Simone is generally classified as a jazz musician. She preferred the term "Black Classical Music" herself. Simone originally aspired to become a classical pianist, but her work covers an eclectic variety of musical styles besides her classical basis, such as jazz, soul, folk, R&B, gospel, and pop music. Her vocal style (with a rich alto vocal range[4]) is characterized by intense passion, breathiness, and tremolo. Sometimes known as the High Priestess of Soul, she paid great attention to the musical expression of emotions. Within one album or concert she could fluctuate between exuberant happiness or tragic melancholy. These fluctuations also characterized her own personality and personal life, worsened by a bipolar disorder with which she was diagnosed in the mid-sixties, but was kept secret until 2004.[5] Simone recorded over 40 live and studio albums, the biggest body of her work being released between 1958 (when she made her debut with Little Girl Blue) and 1974. Songs she is best known for include "My Baby Just Cares for Me", "I Put a Spell on You", "I Loves You Porgy", "Feeling Good", "Sinner Man", "To Be Young, Gifted and Black", "Strange Fruit", "Ain't Got No-I Got Life" and "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl". Her music and message made a strong and lasting impact on African-American culture[6], illustrated by the numerous contemporary artists who cite her as an important influence (among them Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, Jeff Buckley, and Lauryn Hill), as well as the extensive use of her music on soundtracks and in remixes. Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina, one of eight children. She began playing piano at her local church and showed prodigious talent on this instrument. Her concert debut, a classical piano recital, was made at the age of ten. During her performance, her parents, who had taken seats in the front row, were forced to move to the back of the hall to make way for white people. Simone refused to play until her parents were moved back.[7][8] This incident contributed to her later involvement in the civil rights movement. Selected soundFeatured Articles Featured articles: "Baby Boy" · "Déjà Vu" · "Irreplaceable" · Janet Jackson · Michael Jackson · Mariah Carey · Sly & the Family Stone · The Supremes · Thriller Good articles: Afrodisiac · "Burn" · "Caught Up" · Christina Milian · Confessions · "Forgive Me" · FutureSex/LoveSounds · "Get Me Bodied" · "Green Light" · "Halo" · House of Music ·I Want You · LeToya Luckett · Let's Get It On · "Lose My Breath" · Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite · Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music · "My Boo" · My World · "Naughty Girl" · Nina Simone · Off the Wall · "Ring the Alarm" · Soul Food Taqueria · There's a Riot Goin' On · "Untitled (How Does It Feel)"· Voodoo · "We Belong Together" · "What Goes Around.../...Comes Around" · Winter in America · "Yeah!" Things to do
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