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In 1971 Marvin Gaye released the album, " What's Going On".  All of the songs were written by him and addressed contemporary problems such as war (the seemingly interminable Vietnam war, now carried out by the Nixon administration, had entered its ugliest phase), racism, poverty, pollution and political corruption. The work arose from Gaye's disillusionment with what was happening in the world and, especially, in the United States. In particular, Gaye had been greatly upset by the killing of four students at Kent State University in 1970 (who were protesting America's invasion of Cambodia) and he was troubled about the horrific details about the Vietnam war after his brother, Frankie, returned from a tour of duty.