Meet Me At The Copa

Marvin Gaye: How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)
from Marvin Gaye at the Copa (Hip-O Select 2005)

Marvin Gaye: Georgia Rose
from Marvin Gaye at the Copa (Hip-O Select 2005)

Marvin Gaye: Strangers In The Night
from Marvin Gaye at the Copa (Hip-O Select 2005)

Marvin Gaye: Laia Ladaia (Reza)
from Marvin Gaye at the Copa (Hip-O Select 2005)


Marvin Gaye was never your traditional R&B singer. His was a sound that transcended the genre which he was placed in and the formulaic Motown songs that charted for him and he was truthfully soulful whereas others simply presented soul on a superficial level. And even though he recorded mainly R&B songs, he was no stranger to the traditional standards and early on in his career even aspired to be a jazz vocalist in the tradition of Nat "King" Cole. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that during the 60's when Motown owner Berry Gordy wanted to take the Motown sound uptown to conquer the one venue that epitomized show biz tradition, he would bring his roster of established artists like Diana Ross & the Supremes (1965), Marvin Gaye (1966) and the Temptations (1968) to New York's Copacabana. What is a surprise is that while the Supremes, and the Temptations both released their Copa albums, Gaye's album was shelved before it could be released (the liner notes say that Gordy wasn't satisfied with Gaye's concerts and their emphasis on ballads over his established hits).

Fast forward some forty years as Hip-O Select finally releases Marvin Gaye at the Copa in a limited edition package with a handsome and detailed cd jacket and liner notes. Listening to the songs on this album it's hard not to second guess Gordy's reasoning regarding not releasing it. Even though there is an abundance of ballads, each one is endearing and sounds so natural and fits in so well with the flow of the album that it can be said with confidence that Gordy made a big mistake never releasing it.

The album is balanced between some of his hits and Motown's hits, popular standards from Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, Broadway songs and current (at that time) songs. His hit song How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You is swinging and playful with a nice call and response break towards the end. Gerogia Rose is a song that I was unfamiliar with. Sounding a lot like Hoagy Carmichael's Georgia On My Mind, a fact that doesn't escape Marvin or conductor Maurice King as they flip the song halfway through, slowing it down for a bar before returning to the original. At the time of this recording, the song was a controversial single for Tony Bennett.

Strangers In The Night is Marvin's rendition of the Sinatra classic and he does it justice. Speeding up the tempo and paying homage to his old group the Moonglows during the break (the Shoo Be Doo directly references one of their old singles) Gaye gets to show off his jazz vocal aspirations and he handles it aptly proving that he had the vocal chops to make it as a standards singer, something he explored throughout his recording career but never finding success with. And then there is the one anomaly in the album but also one of the best songs, Laia Ladaia (Reza). The simmering piano and horns work together with the bass and complement Marvin's seductive crooning so well that one very vocal woman can be heard ready to give it up in the first verse and when the tempo speeds up to a dizzying frenetic pace, it makes you wish that there was a video-recording of this performance because it's easy to picture Marvin and his backup dancers, the Gayettes (seriously) busting out a smooth choreographed dance number. This song alone is worth the purchase of the album, and you can consider the other cuts as some damn good bonuses.

If you're a fan of Marvin Gaye, Motown or renditions of pop standards I strongly suggest you pick this album up. Hell, if you're just a casual fan of Marvin Gaye pick this up as it will give you a greater appreciation of him as a singer and performer. Plus, it is a limited edition album, although a print run of 20,000 seems to ensure it will be around for a while. In the end, this is an essential must own album for all music lovers.