What's Happening Brother

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“What's Happening Brother”
Song by Marvin Gaye
Album What's Going On
Released 1971
Recorded May 1-10, 1971, Hitsville USA (Studio A)
Golden World (Studio B)
Hitsville West
Genre Soul
Length 2:44
Label Tamla
Writer James Nyx
Marvin Gaye
Producer Marvin Gaye
What's Going On track listing
"What's Going On"
(1)		 “What's Happening Brother”
(2)		 "Flying High (In The Friendly Sky)"
(3)


"What's Happening Brother" is a song written by James Nyx, Jr. and Marvin Gaye, produced by Gaye and issued on the soul singer's acclaimed 1971 album, What's Going On. The song started off the song cycle that began with a man returning home from fighting in the Vietnam War only to discover that his world is abstractly different from what it used to be before he left for duty. In Marvin's case, the song was dedicated to his younger brother, Frankie, who was returning back from a three-year duty at Vietnam, in essence, Marvin later told interviews that Frankie's experience in Vietnam inspired him to collaborate on the songs for the What's Going On project. Throughout this song, Marvin mentions in his brother's third person about the nightclub, about whether or not his baseball team would "win the pennant" and wonders how his friend has been which brings upon the question, "what's happening brother?" Musically the song follows the same path as "What's Going On" and features The Andantes as background vocalists.

[edit] Credits