Review: Ain't No Mountain High Enough – Il Divo, Marvin Gaye
- by Nicholas Gaudet
- in Reviews
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough is a beautiful celebration of one of the greatest time periods in music, sung by one of the most prominent figures in the genre; beloved Marvin Gaye. Supergroup Il Divo decided to have their own take on the classic, in a wonderful dynamic and eccentric reimagining of the classic.
If there’s one musical name that almost everyone who grew up in the 60s-70s know is Motown. It’s a record label so popular, so important in today’s music, there’s a whole genre associated with the name. Sure, you can call Marvin Gaye’s music soul, R&B, pop, but any musician will smile and proudly call it “Motown”. It’s a time period so incredibly celebrated, and gave a career to some of the greatest talents in the world. Marvin Gaye. Diana Ross. Michael Jackson. Gladys Knight. Stevie Wonder. It has such a particular sound, so it’s no wonder that Il Divo dedicated a whole album to celebrate it.
Il Divo’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough is a wonderful, modern yet traditional approach to the classic track. The drums are snappier, the strings are even louder than before, and the marriage of all four voices from the supergroup make for a wonderful, almost theatrical take on the classic. They all complement each other so wonderfully. One of the greatest moments of the song, by far, is the classic half-step key change that occurs about half-way through the song during the bridge. It’s such a staple of that time period, and to me the most prominent homage to Motown. Those kind of door-breaking key changes really bring so much life to the composition, as cheesy as they can sometimes be. The implementation of the choirs, especially by the end of the song, really make it as special as it is. Of course, the most beautiful part of this whole tune is the line sung by Marvin Gaye himself at the beginning of the very beginning of the song. It’s tear-jerkingly beautiful, hearing Marvin’s voice again so long after he passed. To me, this felt like a blow-kiss from Il Divo straight to the legend that inspired this reimagined recording. His vocals also seem to be sprinkled throughout the tune, singing along with the group.
It takes a lot to properly pay homage to Motown, as the sound was already so refined and gorgeous as is when it was recorded back in the day. Sure, the recordings might sound a bit dated, but it adds to the charm. Instead of opting for that same vintage feel from the original song, Il Divo did the right call to completely reimagine while adding their own twists to the classic, feeling both fresh and nostalgic.
