Save the Children (song)
"Save the Children" is a 1971 song written by Al Cleveland, Renaldo Benson and Marvin Gaye and issued on Marvin's 1971 album, What's Going On. While not issued as a single in the United States, the song was issued as a single by the Tamla-Motown label in the United Kingdom where it peaked at No.41 on the charts in December 1971, whereas the other major US single releases initially failed to chart in Europe.[1]
| "Save the Children" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Marvin Gaye | |
| from the album What's Going On | |
| B-side | "Little Darling I Need You"; 'Seek And You Shall Find' |
| Released | November 11, 1971 |
| Recorded | August–October 1970 Hitsville USA (Studio A) Golden World (Studio B) Hitsville West |
| Genre | Soul |
| Length | 4:03 |
| Label | Tamla |
| Songwriter(s) | |
| Producer(s) | Marvin Gaye |
The song was a continuation of the message "What's Going On" delivered, about love, this time, for the children. Marvin later joked on the liner notes of the album "not let (this song) influence anyone". Marvin recorded both a spoken word recitation of the song and a vocal version mixing the two vocals together featuring Marvin's soft-spoken vocals on one side and his expressive tenor on the other.[2] The song would later be covered by Diana Ross in a medley featuring the jazz song, "Brown Baby", on her 1973 album, Touch Me in the Morning. Marvin sung this song briefly while touring Europe in 1976 including the song as part of his What's Going On medley.
Personnel
- Lead vocals and spoken verses by Marvin Gaye
- Background vocals by The Andantes
- Instrumentation by The Funk Brothers
- Produced by Marvin Gaye
References
- "The Official Charts–Marvin Gaye". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 2014-04-21.
- Guarisco, D.A. "Save the Children". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-04-21.
