Marvin Gaye – One More Heartache
Marvin Gaye
Listen/Download – Marvin Gaye – One More Heartache
Greetings all.
The end of the week is upon us (like a lion on an impala) and in the spirit of great forces of nature, I bring you one of my favorite 45s by the mighty Marvin Gaye.
The first time I heard the song ‘One More Heartache’ was probably 25 years ago at the height of the mod/garage revival, when it arrived in my ears via a cover version by UK R&Beatsters the Artwoods.
Remembered as much for what their members went on to do (Jon Lord, Keef Hartley) as their fantastic music, the Artwoods (named for their singer Art Wood, brother of Face/Rolling Stone Ron) layed down some serious transitional heat, updating American R&B for a modernist audience. It was on the greatest hits lp ‘100 Oxford Street’ that I first heard a number of amazing songs that I would later discover to be covers of artists like Solomon Burke (‘Keep Looking’), Benny Spellman (‘I Feel Good’) and of course Marvin Gaye.
Though I loved the song ‘One More Heartache’, and was aware that it had been done originally by Gaye, it was another 20 years before I actually got my hands on a copy of the original.
When I did, and the needle hit the wax my mind was good and truly blown.
This, my friends is because Marvin Gaye’s recording of ‘One More Heartache’ is nothing less than a monument to the greatness of soul music. Recorded in 1965, ‘One More Heartache’ – written by Warren ‘Pete’ Moore, Smokey Robinson, Marv Tarplin, Robert Rogers and Ronald White – was a minor hit in the spring of 1966, scraping the outer limits of the Pop Top 40. Why it wasn’t a bigger hit may have as much to do with its dark message as it does with the huge surplus of musical competition at the time. A quick look at a chart (see below) from almost exactly 44 years ago reveals pop and soul classics jamming up the charts so thickly that even a record as mighty as ‘One More Heartache’ was unable to fight its way closer to the top.
It may also have something to do with the record sounding oddly familiar.
The day I got my hands on this particular 45 I digi-ma-tized it, and then proceeded to listen to it at least a dozen times on the old MP3 delivery device, during which time it dawned on me that ‘One More Heartache’ is something of a musical restructuring of Gaye’s hit from the previous year ‘Ain’t That Peculiar’. The framework of the song is similar and at times ‘One More Heartache’ sounds as if the composers of both songs (who by the way are the same, and were also all members of the Miracles) took the bright, upbeat ‘Ain’t That Peculiar’ and rewrote it as a darker, minor key, mirror version of itself.
Musically, the record (produced by Robinson) is incredible, built – like a James Brown side – on interlocking bits of musical clockwork, with a chiming guitar riff (played by Marv Tarplin) over a pulsing organ (the master Earl Van Dyke), snapping snare drum, finger snaps, tambourine and eventually saxophone. Gaye’s vocal is a masterpiece of soulful pleading, with a lyric that at times sounds like a not too distant cousin of Titus Turner’s ‘All Around the World’.
No matter how you slice it, ‘One More Heartache’ is a heavy record. If you know someone who’s concept of soul is lacking, you need only lock them in a room with this record and a turntable, refusing to let them out until they ‘get it’.
I know you’ll dig it, and I’ll be back on Monday.
Peace
Larry
WMCA Countdown Survey for Week of February 10, 1966
FABULOUS 57
1. Lightnin’ Strikes – Lou Christie
2. Uptight – Stevie Wonder
3. A Well Respected Man – The Kinks
4. Don’t Mess With Bill – Marvelettes
5. These Boots Are Made For Walking – Nancy Sinatra
6. My Love – Petula Clark
7. No Matter What Shape – T-Bones
8. My World Is Empty Without You – Supremes
9. Barbara Ann – The Beach Boys
10. Working My Way Back To You – Four Seasons
11. We Can Work It Out/Day Tripper – Beatles
12. Going To A Go-Go – Miracles
13. Lies – Knickerbockers
14. Ballad Of The Green Berets – Sgt. Barry Sadler
15. Love Makes The World Go Round – Dean Jackson
16. Listen People – Herman’s Hermits
17. Hurt Yourself – Frankie Valli
18. Cryin’ Time – Ray Charles
19. Stop! – The Moody Blues
20. Homeward Bound – Simon & Garfunkel
21. 634-5789 – Wilson Pickett
22. In My Room – Verdelle Smith
23. Husbands And Wives – Roger Miller
24. Elusive Butterfly – Bob Lind
25. I Fought The Law – Bobby Fuller Four
26. Batman Theme – The Marketts
27. Little Bit Of Soap – The Exciters
28. Call Me – Chris Montez
29. Take Me For What I’m Worth – Searchers
30. The Duck – Jackie Lee
31. Like A Baby – Len Barry
32. Night Time – Strangeloves
33. When Liking Turns To Loving – Ronnie Dove
34. At The Scene – Dave Clark V
35. Just Like Me – Paul Revere & The Raiders
36. Since I Lost The One I Love – The Impressions
37. Somewhere There’s A Someone – Dean Martin
38. This Golden Ring – The Fortunes
39. It’s Too Late – Bobby Goldsboro
40. Up And Down – The McCoys
41. It Won’t Be Wrong – The Byrds
42. This Can’t Be True – Eddie Holman
43. My Baby Loves Me – Martha & The Vandellas
44. Keep On Running – Spencer Davis Group
45. Whenever She Holds You – Patty Duke
46. Promise Her Anything – Tom Jones
47. Why Can’t You Bring Me Home – Jay & The Americans
48. This Old Heart Of Mine – Isley Brothers
49. One More Heartache – Marvin Gaye
50. The Cheater – Bob Kuban
51. California Dreamin’ – Mamas & Papas
52. Baby Scratch My Back – Slim Harpo
53. Custody – Patti Page
54. You’ll Be Needin’ Me – Lettermen
55. Shake Me, Wake Me – Four Tops
56. My Prayer – Johnny Thunder
57. Daydream – The Lovin’ Spoonful
Buy The Complete Motown Singles Vol 6 at Amazon.com
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PS Head over to Iron Leg for some pop by Paul Williams
PSS Check out Paperback Rider too.
Themocracy
A great tune. I have the stereo version and a (sorry) better vinyl version. I checked the list and found out I don’t have 10 songs (I do have Dean Martin and Tom Jones). Now I’ll have to hunt them down.
Damn you Larry! :^)