Songs

Marvin Gaye’s real name was Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. Gaye was an American singer-songwriter and instrumentalist. He was born on April 2, 1939 and died on April 1, 1984. "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" is the second single from Marvin Gaye's legendary 1971 album, What's Going On. This song, written solely by Gaye, became one of his most poignant message of sorrow at the world dealing with the environment. Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) soon became one of Gaye's most famous songs in his extensive catalog.

Suggested activities

1. The song deals with world ecological problems. Here's a list of environmental problems, talk to a partner and guess which ones will be mentioned in the song, and predict the words or phrases that may appear in the lyrics.

• destruction of rain forests
• air pollution
• water pollution
• radiation
• destruction of ozone layer
• overpopulation
• sewage waste
• chemicals
• malnutrition
• species in extintion

2. Listen to the song and fill in the blanks. Oh, mercy mercy me Oh, things ain't* what they _____________ ______________ ______________ No, no Where _____________ all the blue sky ______________________? _________________ is the wind that blows From the north, east, south, and sea Oh, mercy mercy me Oh, things ain't what they _____________ _______________ _______________ No, no ___________ wasted on the _____________ and upon our _________________ Fish full of _________________ Oh, mercy mercy me Oh, things ain't what they ____________ ______________ _________________ No, no ______________ in the ground and in the sky _____________ and __________________ who live nearby are dying Oh, mercy mercy me Oh, things ain't what they ______________ ______________ ______________ What about this overcrowded land? How much more ___________ __________ ____________ can you stand? My sweet Lord My sweet Lord My sweet Lord * Informal of aren't 3. Highlight the problems our planet is enduring. Were they the same you thought of? 4. With the help of the list in activity one, write 2 or 3 more lines to the song lyrics. To express your ideas, work with the on line dictionaries you have available in this blog. I would like to thank Andrea Giorno, who designed these activities to share with us.