Son of a Preacher Man

In my previous postings, I wrote about my times playing with rock bands in the late sixties and early seventies. Now, I will salute and recommend artists that I like. Their music will be featured in my Amazon widget at the top of the page. Please click on it for samples of the music.

Forget about the fact that Marvin Gaye spent his last three days on earth,holed up in his parent's house, wearing a maroon bathrobe, carrying a gun. We are here to celebrate his incredible body of work.

His father was a strict minister. He did not allow singing, dancing, or listening to modern music. Marvin was allowed to sing in church. When of age, Marvin joined the Air Force. In 1957, when he got out, formed a band, called "The Marquees". Bo Diddly was his mentor.
In 1961, he signed with Motown, where he would later marry Barry Gordy's daughter. Spent his early time with Motown as a session drummer, working on early Smokey Robinson recordings. Soon, he would record as a singer. 1962 brought his first hit, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow". Later came, "Hitchhike", which the Rolling Stones covered, and "Can I Get a Witness. Followed by collaborations with Tami Terell, Mary Wells, and Kim Weston. 1968 brought his first No. 1 hit, with "I Heard it Through the Grapevine". His paranoia was evident here.
Marvin then went into his social, political, civil rights mode with, "What's Going On", "Mercy Mercy Me", "Inner City Blues". 1973, he slid into eroticism. Along with his growing cocaine habit, Marvin was also quite the ladies man. Having been through a divorce, he was recording "Sexual Healing" and " Let's Get it On".
Marvin Gaye was a "Troubled Man", conflicted by his early strict religious upbring, and for his sexual adventures, and drug use.In 1983, trying to reconcile this, he returned from Europe, and moved into his parent's home in California. Instead of helping, he grew increasingly paranoid, detached from reality. In an ironic twist, he gave his father the gun, who shot him, in 1984, after a violent argument.

1983, Marvin received his only Grammy award.
He was elected to the Rock and Hall of Fame in 1987.