I took a chance on this one at my visit to Amoeba Records last week, and it paid off.
This 1978 double studio LP from Marvin Gaye turns out to be soul's entry in the "greatest break-up albums of all time" category alongside Dylan's Blood on the Tracks, Springsteen's Tunnel of Love, Beck's Sea Change, and El Perro Del Mar's Love is Not Pop.

The album is the sound of divorce on record, with titles like "When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I stop Loving You" (3 versions!), "Anger", and today's post "You Can Leave, but its Going to Cost You". It's quite literal and direct...its long grooves peppered with lines like "Somebody tell me please/Why do I have to pay attorney fees?"

At the time of its release the album was poorly received, accused of being bizarre and uncommercial by fans and critics alike. In retrospect, though, its considered by many to be landmark in Gaye's career, one of the most intimate and personal artistic statements on record.

You Can Leave,but its Going to Cost You