Inner City Blues 

Inner City Blues is no. 02 of the Helden/Heroes B- Side series 

Digital manipulated photo collage print op canvas 120/80cm

Number 02 of the A-sides series was a portrait of Marvin Gaye titled What’s Going On. What’s Going On, a marvellous song and the title of the eponymous album. This album is known as one of his most engaged albums. This is what soul is al about, if you asked me. The last number of the B-sides of the album is Inner City Blues and also the title of my B-sides portrait no. 02. It is a penetrating and stunning song covered by many artists. Thematically seen it might as well be a Black Lives Matter anthem as well, in those days but definitely in our age too. The song is about the struggle in the American Inner city ghettos, about economic malaise and police violence.  Back than situated against a backdrop of under privileged young men who were send to the Vietnam War to fight a senseless war. 

“Inflation no chance
To increase finance
Bills pile up sky high
Send that boy off to die”

These days the question: what is the best way to address problems’ comes to mind. If I believe that Marvin Gaye was a good ambassador for the black cause. Given his intelligent, splendour and social awareness poetry that he brought into the world. 

“Oh, make me wanna holler
And throw up both my hands
Yea, it makes me wanna holler
And throw up both my hands
Crime is increasing
Trigger happy policing
Panic is spreading
God know where we're heading”

Bizarre how contemporary these lines are still now.

But his poetry wasn’t just about black issues but addressed more social issue like pollution for instance  (Mercy Me) 

Music that is so intense and rich that it touches the entire colour pallet that mankind beholds. His music is connecting and pure love. 

In my artwork I placed Marvin Like the young soul god he was at the beginning of his career surrounded by a golden glow. The double shade of his father in the background and a banner of his later sensual loaded album ‘I Want You’