Marvin Gaye - The Best of Marvin Gaye (Motown Anthology Series)

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Music reviews of The Best of Marvin Gaye (Motown Anthology Series)

Music Review: The Diary of a Motown and Soul Music Legend
Rating: 5 Stars

Anyway, this 2-CD (or 2-tape) collection of 67 songs, 40-some known hit singles and some album cuts, b-sides and rarities is the PERFECT album for a true artist like Marvin Gaye was. Many cats can only wish that they can have the hit catalogue that this brotha from the Chocolate City had! I mean, he was not only just a popular singer who recorded some of the 20th century's greatest songs and albums known to mankind, but he was also a great writer, producer, arranger, mixer, musician and instrumentalist not to mention he already had a career as a lead singer of two R&B groups in the late-'50s before signing with Motown in 1961 to be a jazz singer (his original intention of rebelling against what people were telling him how he should be).

And then you can't forget his LEGENDARY and AMAZING duets with classic R&B female legends like Mary Wells (the first female superstar of Motown), Kimberly Weston, the wonderful and memorable Tammi Terrell and last but not least the Motown Queen, Diana Ross. So not only has his career spread four decades but in the middle of it, he was able to be in a couple of groups, be a legendary duet partner and he even played in a couple of movies or three.

But anyway back to the anthology set of Marvin! The man's hit career spreads into three or four or even five different periods at a time:

Suave Gentleman (1962-67)
Soul Loverman (1967-70)
Patriotic Ghetto Warrior (1971-1972)
Romantic and Erotic Ladies' Man (1973-1977)
Confessional Ghetto Preacher (1978-1981)

The first CD (full of 20 solo hits and 7 wonderful duets) may be the most interesting of the anthology set. It shows Marvin at first reaching his inner Sam Cooke in the early portion of his career going from "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" to "Baby Don't U Do It" and then finding his own voice slowly from "How Sweet It Is" and then finally finding his vocal POWER in songs like "You" (check out the HIGH note near the middle of the song!) and "Grapevine". And then there's the memorable duets with Tammi Terrell that are the essence of true soul. Marvin & Tammi should both be inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame just for the five songs listed on the album.

But then again, the second CD of the anthology set can be the most complex! I mean, this is when Marvin Gaye took FULL ARTISTIC CONTROL and gave us the legendary albums WHAT'S GOING ON, TROUBLE MAN, LET'S GET IT ON, MARVIN GAYE LIVE, I WANT YOU, HERE, MY DEAR, and IN OUR LIFETIME (which was Marvin's first entry into the '80s). You would fall in love with the different production of "What's Going On", without so much of the people talking and just the music, it also shows more of Marvin's vocal backings in its beautiful pitch. "God Is Love", even with its short time, is classic MOTOWN with a gospel-soul feel to it. You had a feeling R. Kelly was listening closely to this album while making Step In The Name of Love. "Sad Tomorrows" with its different feel of a bluesy and classical feel and with that soul is different from the album version (Flying High) from What's Going On and it's also breathtaking that you have to play it over and over. "The World Is Rated X" and "You're The Man" is the brotha's finest work as a political preacher as he sung about the social ills of the world and the political administration. And of course songs from the wonderful "Let's Get It On" album is produced brilliantly here. "Just to Keep U Satisfied" is classic doo-wop!

Then you get into the live recording of "Distant Lover" even while edited (for album purposes) and well it's still a masterpiece. "I Want You" and "After the Dance" are classics and of course "Got to Give It Up" is a blue-light in the basement party anthem that is still hot even after all these years. Finally Marvin's later work with "Here, My Dear" and "In Our Lifetime" are produced and helps brings a climatic ending to the entire 2-CD set.

From "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" in 1962 where he was in love with a girl but somehow stubborn to his or his woman's feelings to when he was looking for love in 1981's funky "Heavy Love Affair", it's particularly the Diary of Marvin Gaye. Nobody in soul music was like this cat and there will be nobody like him again no matter what you say! Marvin Gaye is forever the Original King of R&B! (TAKE THAT, WHITNEY, HA-HA!)

Description of The Best of Marvin Gaye (Motown Anthology Series)

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