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Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye (born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr.; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo artist with a string of hits, earning him the nicknames "Prince of Motown" and "Prince of Soul".

Gaye's Motown hits include "Ain't That Peculiar", "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)", and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", and duet recordings with Mary Wells, Kim Weston, Diana Ross, and Tammi Terrell. During the 1970s, he recorded the albums What's Going On and Let's Get It On and became one of the first artists in Motown, along with Stevie Wonder, to break away from the reins of a production company. His later recordings influenced several contemporary R&B subgenres, such as quiet storm and neo soul. Following a period in Europe as a tax exile in the early 1980s, he released the 1982 hit "Sexual Healing", which won him his first two Grammy Awards, and its parent album Midnight Love. Gaye's last televised appearances were at the 1983 NBA All-Star Game, where he sang "The Star-Spangled Banner"; Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever; and Soul Train, which was his final appearance.

On April 1, 1984, the day before his 45th birthday, Gaye's father, Marvin Gay Sr., fatally shot him at their house in the West Adams district of Los Angeles. Many institutions have posthumously bestowed Gaye with awards and other honors including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and inductions into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Early life

Gaye was born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. on April 2, 1939, at Freedman's Hospital in Washington, D.C., to church minister Marvin Gay Sr., and domestic worker Alberta Gay (née Cooper). His first home was in a public housing project, the Fairfax Apartments (now demolished) at 1617 1st Street SW in the Southwest Waterfront neighborhood. Although one of the city's oldest neighborhoods, with many elegant Federal-style homes, Southwest was primarily a vast slum. Most buildings were small, in extensive disrepair, and lacked both electricity and running water. The alleys were full of one- and two-story shacks, and nearly every dwelling was overcrowded. Gaye and his friends nicknamed the area "Simple City", owing to its being "half-city, half country".

Gaye was the second oldest of the couple's four children. He had two sisters, Jeanne and Zeola, and one brother, Frankie Gaye. He also had two half-brothers: Michael Cooper, his mother's son from a previous relationship, and Antwaun Carey Gay, born as a result of his father's extramarital affairs.

Gaye started singing in church when he was four years old; his father often accompanied him on piano. Gaye and his family were part of a Pentecostal church known as the House of God. The House of God took its teachings from Hebrew Pentecostalism, advocated strict conduct, and adhered to both the Old and New Testaments. Gaye developed a love of singing at an early age and was encouraged to pursue a professional music career after a performance at a school play at 11 singing Mario Lanza's "Be My Love". His home life consisted of "brutal whippings" by his father, who struck him for any shortcoming. The young Gaye described living in his father's house as similar to "...living with a king, a very peculiar, changeable, cruel, and all powerful king." He felt that had his mother not consoled him and encouraged his singing, he would have killed himself. His sister later explained that Gaye was beaten often, from age seven well into his teenage years.

Gaye attended Syphax Elementary School and then Randall Junior High School. Gaye began to take singing much more seriously in junior high, and he joined and became a singing star with the Randall Junior High Glee Club.

In 1953 or 1954, the Gays moved into the East Capitol Dwellings public housing project in D.C.'s Capitol View neighborhood. Their townhouse apartment (Unit 12, 60th Street NE; now demolished) was Marvin's home until 1962.

Gaye briefly attended Spingarn High School before transferring to Cardozo High School. At Cardozo, Gaye joined several doo-wop vocal groups, including the Dippers and the D.C. Tones. Gaye's relationship with his father worsened during his teenage years, as his father would kick him out of the house often. In 1956, 17-year-old Gaye dropped out of high school and enlisted in the United States Air Force as a basic airman. Disappointed in having to perform menial tasks, he faked mental illness and was discharged shortly afterwards. Gaye's sergeant stated that he refused to follow orders. Gaye was issued a "General Discharge" from the service.

Career

Early career

Following his return, Gaye and his good friend Reese Palmer formed the vocal quartet The Marquees. The group performed in the D.C. area and soon began working with Bo Diddley, who assigned the group to Columbia subsidiary OKeh Records after failing to get the group signed to his own label, Chess. The group's sole single, "Wyatt Earp" (co-written by Bo Diddley), failed to chart and the group was soon dropped from the label. Gaye began composing music during this period.

Moonglows co-founder Harvey Fuqua later hired The Marquees as employees. Under Fuqua's direction, the group changed its name to Harvey and the New Moonglows, and relocated to Chicago. The group recorded several sides for Chess in 1959, including the song "Mama Loocie", which was Gaye's first lead vocal recording. The group found work as session singers for established acts such as Chuck Berry, singing on the hits "Back in the U.S.A." and "Almost Grown".

In 1960, the group disbanded. Gaye relocated to Detroit with Fuqua where he signed with Tri-Phi Records as a session musician, playing drums on several Tri-Phi releases. Gaye performed at Motown president Berry Gordy's house during the holiday season in 1960. Impressed by the singer, Gordy sought Fuqua on his contract with Gaye. Fuqua agreed to sell part of his interest in his contract with Gaye. Shortly afterwards, Gaye signed with Motown subsidiary Tamla.

When Gaye signed with Tamla, he pursued a career as a performer of jazz music and standards, having no desire to become an R&B performer. Before the release of his first single, Gaye was teased about his surname, with some jokingly asking, "Is Marvin Gay?" Gaye changed the spelling of his surname by adding an e, in the same way as did Sam Cooke. Author David Ritz wrote that Gaye did this to silence rumors of his sexuality, and to put more distance between himself and his father.

Gaye released his first single, "Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide", in May 1961, with the album The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye, following a month later. Gaye's initial recordings failed commercially and he spent most of 1961 performing session work as a drummer for artists such as The Miracles, The Marvelettes and blues artist Jimmy Reed for $5 (US$43 in 2019 dollars) a week. While Gaye took some advice on performing with his eyes open (having been accused of appearing as though he were sleeping), he refused to attend grooming school courses at the John Roberts Powers School for Social Grace in Detroit because of his unwillingness to comply with its orders, something he later regretted.

Initial success

In 1962, Gaye found success as co-writer of the Marvelettes hit, "Beechwood 4-5789". His first solo hit, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow", was later released that September, reaching No. 8 on the R&B chart and No. 46 on the Billboard Hot 100. Gaye reached the top 40 with the dance song, "Hitch Hike", peaking at No. 30 on the Hot 100. "Pride and Joy" became Gaye's first top ten single after its release in 1963.

The three singles and songs from the 1962 sessions were included on Gaye's second album, That Stubborn Kinda Fellow. Starting in October of the year, Gaye performed as part of the Motortown Revue, a series of concert tours headlined at the north and south eastern coasts of the United States as part of the Chitlin' Circuit. A filmed performance of Gaye at the Apollo Theater took place in June 1963. Later that October, Tamla issued the live album, Marvin Gaye Recorded Live on Stage. "Can I Get a Witness" became one of Gaye's early international hits.

In 1964, Gaye recorded a successful duet album with singer Mary Wells titled Together, which reached No. 42 on the pop album chart. The album's two-sided single, including "Once Upon a Time" and 'What's the Matter With You Baby", each reached the top 20. Gaye's next solo hit, "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)", which Holland-Dozier-Holland wrote for him, reached No. 6 on the Hot 100 and reached the top 50 in the UK. Gaye started getting television exposure around this time, on shows such as American Bandstand. Also in 1964, he appeared in the concert film, The T.A.M.I. Show. Gaye had two number-one R&B singles in 1965 with the Miracles–composed "I'll Be Doggone" and "Ain't That Peculiar". Both songs became million-sellers. After this, Gaye returned to jazz-derived ballads for a tribute album to the recently-deceased Nat "King" Cole.

After scoring a hit duet, "It Takes Two" with Kim Weston, Gaye began working with Tammi Terrell on a series of duets, mostly composed by Ashford & Simpson, including "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", "Your Precious Love", "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By".

In October 1967, Terrell collapsed in Gaye's arms during a performance in Farmville, Virginia. Terrell was subsequently rushed to Farmville's Southside Community Hospital, where doctors discovered she had a malignant tumor in her brain. The diagnosis ended Terrell's career as a live performer, though she continued to record music under careful supervision. Despite the presence of hit singles such as "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By", Terrell's illness caused problems with recording, and led to multiple operations to remove the tumor. Gaye was reportedly devastated by Terrell's sickness and became disillusioned with the record business.

On October 6, 1968, Gaye sang the national anthem during Game 4 of the 1968 World Series, held at Tiger Stadium, in Detroit, Michigan, between the Detroit Tigers and the St. Louis Cardinals.

In late 1968, Gaye's recording of I Heard It Through the Grapevine became Gaye's first to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached the top of the charts in other countries, selling over four million copies. However, Gaye felt the success was something he "didn't deserve" and that he "felt like a puppet – Berry's puppet, Anna's puppet...." Gaye followed it up with "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" and "That's the Way Love Is", which reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969. That year, his album M.P.G. became his first No. 1 R&B album. Gaye produced and co-wrote two hits for The Originals during this period, including "Baby I'm For Real" and "The Bells".

Tammi Terrell died from brain cancer on March 16, 1970; Gaye attended her funeral and after a period of depression, Gaye sought out a position on a professional football team, the Detroit Lions, where he later befriended Mel Farr and Lem Barney. It was eventually decided that Gaye would not be allowed to try out owing to fears of possible injuries that could have affected his music career.

What's Going On and subsequent success

On June 1, 1970, Gaye returned to Hitsville U.S.A., where he recorded his new composition "What's Going On", inspired by an idea from Renaldo "Obie" Benson of the Four Tops after he witnessed an act of police brutality at an anti-war rally in Berkeley. Upon hearing the song, Berry Gordy refused its release due to his feelings of the song being "too political" for radio. Gaye responded by going on strike from recording until the label released the song. Released in 1971, it reached No. 1 on the R&B charts within a month, staying there for five weeks. It also reached the top spot on Cashbox's pop chart for a week and reached No. 2 on the Hot 100 and the Record World chart, selling over two million copies.

After giving an ultimatum to record a full album to win creative control from Motown, Gaye spent ten days recording the What's Going On album that March. Motown issued the album that May after Gaye remixed portions of the album in Hollywood. The album became Gaye's first million-selling album launching two more top ten singles, "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" and "Inner City Blues". One of Motown's first autonomous works, its theme and segue flow brought the concept album format to rhythm and blues. An AllMusic writer later cited it as "...the most important and passionate record to come out of soul music, delivered by one of its finest voices." For the album, Gaye received two Grammy Award nominations and several NAACP Image Awards. The album also topped Rolling Stone's year-end list as its album of the year. Billboard magazine named Gaye Trendsetter of the Year following the album's success.

In 1971, Gaye signed a new deal with Motown worth $1 million (US$6,313,065 in 2019 dollars), making it the most lucrative deal by a black recording artist at the time. Gaye first responded to the new contract with the soundtrack and subsequent score, Trouble Man, released in late 1972. Before the release of Trouble Man, Marvin released a single called "You're the Man." The album of the same name was a follow up to What's Going On, but Motown refused to promote the single. Marvin later alleged that he and Gordy clashed over Marvin's political views, and for that reason, he was forced to shelve the album's release and substitute Trouble Man. However, Universal Music Group announced in 2019 that You're the Man would receive an official release. Around this period, he, Anna and Marvin III finally left Detroit and moved to Los Angeles permanently.

In August 1973, Gaye released the Let's Get It On album. Its title track became Gaye's second No. 1 single on the Hot 100. The album subsequently stayed on the charts for two years and sold over four million copies. The album was later hailed as "a record unparalleled in its sheer sensuality and carnal energy." Other singles from the album included "Come Get to This", which recalled Gaye's early Motown soul sound of the previous decade, while the suggestive "You Sure Love to Ball" reached modest success #14 on r&b charts but received tepid promotion due to the song's sexually explicit content.

Marvin's final duet project, Diana & Marvin, with Diana Ross, garnered international success despite contrasting artistic styles. Much of the material was crafted especially for the duo by Ashford and Simpson. Responding to demand from fans and Motown, Gaye started his first tour in four years at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum on January 4, 1974. The performance received critical acclaim and resulted in the release of the live album, Marvin Gaye Live! and its single, a live version of Distant Lover, an album track from Let's Get It On.

The tour helped to enhance Gaye's reputation as a live performer. For a time, he was earning $100,000 a night (US$518,421 in 2019 dollars) for performances. Gaye toured throughout 1974 and 1975. A renewed contract with Motown allowed Gaye to build his own custom-made recording studio.

In October 1975, Gaye gave a performance at a UNESCO benefit concert at New York's Radio City Music Hall to support UNESCO's African literacy drive, resulting in him being commended at the United Nations by then-Ambassador to Ghana Shirley Temple Black and Kurt Waldheim. Gaye's next studio album, I Want You, followed in March 1976 with the title track "I Want You" becoming a No. 1 R&B hit. The album would go on to sell over one million copies. That spring, Gaye embarked on his first European tour in a decade, starting off in Belgium. In early 1977, Gaye released the live album, Live at the London Palladium, which sold over two million copies thanks to the success of its studio song, "Got to Give It Up", which became a No. 1 hit.

Last Motown recordings and European exile

In December 1978, Gaye released Here, My Dear, inspired by the fallout from his first marriage to Anna Gordy. Recorded with the intention of remitting a portion of its royalties to her as alimony payments, it performed poorly on the charts. During that period, Gaye's cocaine addiction intensified while he was dealing with several financial issues with the IRS. These issues led him to move to Maui, Hawaii, where he struggled to record a disco album. In 1980, Gaye went on a European tour. By the time the tour stopped, the singer relocated to London when he feared imprisonment for failure to pay back taxes, which had now reached upwards of $4.5 million (US$13,963,449 in 2019 dollars).

Gaye then reworked Love Man from its original disco concept to another personal album invoking religion and the possible end time from a chapter in the Book of Revelation. Titling the album In Our Lifetime?, Gaye worked on the album for much of 1980 in London studios such as Air and Odyssey Studios.

In the fall of that year, someone stole a master tape of a rough draft of the album from one of Gaye's traveling musicians, Frank Blair, taking the master tape to Motown's Hollywood headquarters. Motown remixed the album and released it on January 15, 1981. When Gaye learned of its release, he accused Motown of editing and remixing the album without his consent, allowing the release of an unfinished production (Far Cry), altering the album art of his request and removing the album title's question mark, muting its irony. He also accused the label of rush-releasing the album, comparing his unfinished album to an unfinished Picasso painting. Gaye then vowed not to record any more music for Motown.

On February 14, 1981, under the advice of music promoter Freddy Cousaert, Gaye relocated to Cousaert's apartment in Ostend, Belgium. While there, Gaye shied away from heavy drug use and began exercising and attending a local Ostend church, regaining personal confidence. Following several months of recovery, Gaye sought a comeback onstage, starting the short-lived Heavy Love Affair tour in England and Ostend in June–July 1981. Gaye's personal attorney Curtis Shaw would later describe Gaye's Ostend period as "the best thing that ever happened to Marvin". When word got around that Gaye was planning a musical comeback and an exit from Motown, CBS Urban president Larkin Arnold eventually was able to convince Gaye to sign with CBS. On March 23, 1982, Motown and CBS Records negotiated Gaye's release from Motown. The details of the contract were not revealed due to a possible negative effect on the singer's settlement to creditors from the IRS.

Midnight Love

Assigned to CBS's Columbia subsidiary, Gaye worked on his first post-Motown album titled Midnight Love. The first single, "Sexual Healing" which was written and recorded in Ostend in his apartment, was released on September 30, 1982, and became Gaye's biggest career hit, spending a record ten weeks at No. 1 on the Hot Black Singles chart, becoming the biggest R&B hit of the 1980s according to Billboard stats. The success later translated to the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1983 where it peaked at No. 3, while the record reached international success, reaching the top spot in New Zealand and Canada and reaching the top ten on the United Kingdom's OCC singles chart, later selling over two million copies in the U.S. alone, becoming Gaye's most successful single to date. The video for the song was shot at Ostend's Casino-Kursaal.

Sexual Healing won Gaye his first two Grammy Awards including Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, in February 1983, and also won Gaye an American Music Award in the R&B-soul category. People magazine called it "America's hottest musical turn-on since Olivia Newton-John demanded we get Physical." Midnight Love was released to stores a day after the single's release, and was equally successful, peaking at the top ten of the Billboard 200 and becoming Gaye's eighth No. 1 album on the Top Black Albums chart, eventually selling over six million copies worldwide, three million alone in the U.S.

I don't make records for pleasure. I did when I was a younger artist, but I don't today. I record so that I can feed people what they need, what they feel. Hopefully, I record so that I can help someone overcome a bad time.

On February 13, 1983, Gaye sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the NBA All-Star Game at The Forum in Inglewood, California—accompanied by Gordon Banks, who played the studio tape from the stands. The following month, Gaye performed at the Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever special. This and a May appearance on Soul Train (his third appearance on the show) became Gaye's final television performances. Gaye embarked on his final concert tour, titled the Sexual Healing Tour, on April 18, 1983, in San Diego. The tour ended on August 14, 1983 at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa, California but was plagued by cocaine-triggered paranoia and illness. Following the concert's end, he moved into his parents' house in Los Angeles. In early 1984, Midnight Love was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Male R&B Vocal Performance category, his 12th and final nomination.

Death

On the afternoon of April 1, 1984, in the family house in the West Adams district of Los Angeles, Gaye intervened in a fight between his parents and became involved in a physical altercation with his father, Marvin Gay Sr. In Gaye's bedroom minutes later, at 12:38 p.m. (PST), Gay Sr. shot Gaye in the heart and then, at point-blank range, his left shoulder. The first shot proved fatal. Gaye was pronounced dead at 1:01 p.m. (PST) after his body arrived at California Hospital Medical Center, one day short of his 45th birthday.

After Gaye's funeral, his body was cremated at Forest Lawn Memorial Park at the Hollywood Hills; his ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean. Initially charged with first-degree murder, Gay Sr.'s charges were dropped to voluntary manslaughter following a diagnosis of a brain tumor. Marvin Gay Sr. was later sentenced to a suspended six-year sentence and probation. He died at a nursing home in 1998.

Personal life

Gaye married Berry Gordy's sister, Anna Gordy, in June 1963. The couple separated in 1973, and Anna filed for divorce in November 1975. The couple were officially divorced in 1977. Gaye later married Janis Hunter in October 1977. The couple separated in 1979, and were officially divorced in February 1981.

Gaye was the father of three children, Marvin III (adopted with Anna; Marvin III was the son of Denise Gordy, Anna's niece), and Nona and Frankie, whom he had with his second wife, Janis. At the time of his death, he was survived by his three children, parents, and five siblings.

Musicianship

Equipment

Starting off his musicianship as a drummer doing session work during his tenure with Harvey Fuqua, and his early Motown years, Gaye's musicianship evolved to include pianos, keyboards, synthesizers, organs, bells, and finger cymbals. Gaye also utilized percussion instruments, such as box drums, glockenspiels, vibraphones, bongos, congas, and cabasas. This became evident when he was given creative control in his later years with Motown, to produce his own albums. In addition to his talent as a drummer, Gaye also embraced the TR-808, a drum machine that became prominent in the early 80's, making use of its sounds for production of his Midnight Love album. Despite his vast knowledge of instruments, the piano was his primary instrument when performing on stage, with occasional drumming.

Influences

As a child, Gaye's main influence was his minister father, something he later acknowledged to biographer David Ritz, and also in interviews, often mentioning that his father's sermons greatly impressed him. His first major musical influences were doo-wop groups such as The Moonglows and The Capris. Gaye's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame page lists the Capris' song, "God Only Knows" as "critical to his musical awakening." Of the Capris' song, Gaye said, "It fell from the heavens and hit me between the eyes. So much soul, so much hurt. I related to the story, to the way that no one except the Lord really can read the heart of lonely kids in love." Gaye's main musical influences were Rudy West of The Five Keys, Clyde McPhatter, Ray Charles and Little Willie John. Gaye considered Frank Sinatra a major influence in what he wanted to be. He also was influenced by the vocal styles of Billy Eckstine and Nat King Cole.

Later on as his Motown career developed, Gaye would seek inspiration in fellow label mates such as David Ruffin of The Temptations and Levi Stubbs of the Four Tops as their grittier voices led to Gaye and his producer seeking a similar sound in recordings such as "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "That's the Way Love Is". Later in his life, Gaye reflected on the influence of Ruffin and Stubbs stating, "I had heard something in their voices something my own voice lacked". He further explained, "the Tempts and Tops' music made me remember that when a lot of women listen to music, they want to feel the power of a real man."

Vocal style

Gaye had a four-octave vocal range. From his earlier recordings as member of the Marquees and Harvey and the New Moonglows, and in his first several recordings with Motown, Gaye recorded mainly in the baritone and tenor ranges. He changed his tone to a rasp for his gospel-inspired early hits such as "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" and "Hitch Hike". As writer Eddie Holland explained, "He was the only singer I have ever heard known to take a song of that nature, that was so far removed from his natural voice where he liked singing, and do whatever it took to sell that song."

In songs such as "Pride and Joy", Gaye used three different vocal ranges—singing in his baritone range at the beginning, bringing a lighter tenor in the verses before reaching a gospel mode in the chorus. Holland further stated of Gaye's voice that it was "...one of the sweetest and prettiest voices you ever wanted to hear." And while he noted that ballads and jazz was "his basic soul", he stated Gaye "...had the ability to take a roughhouse, rock and roll, blues, R&B, any kind of song and make it his own", later saying that Gaye was the most versatile vocalist he had ever worked with.

Gaye changed his vocal style in the late 1960s, when he was advised to use a sharper, raspy voice—especially in Norman Whitfield's recordings. Gaye initially disliked the new style, considering it out of his range, but said he was "into being produce-able." After listening to David Ruffin and Levi Stubbs, Gaye said he started to develop what he called his "tough man voice"—saying, "I developed a growl." In the liner notes of his DVD set, Marvin Gaye: The Real Thing in Performance 1964–1981, Rob Bowman said that by the early 1970s, Gaye had developed "three distinct voices: his smooth, sweet tenor; a growling rasp; and an unreal falsetto." Bowman further wrote that the recording of the What's Going On single was "...the first single to utilize all three as Marvin developed a radical approach to constructing his recordings by layering a series of contrapuntal background vocal lines on different tracks, each one conceived and sung in isolation by Marvin himself." Bowman found that Gaye's multi-tracking of his tenor voice and other vocal styles "summon[ed] up what might be termed the ancient art of weaving".

Social commentary and concept albums

Prior to recording the What's Going On album, Gaye recorded a cover of the song, "Abraham, Martin & John", which became a UK hit in 1970. Only a handful of artists of various genres had recorded albums that focused on social commentary, including Curtis Mayfield. Despite some politically conscious material recorded by The Temptations in the late 1960s, Motown artists were often told to not delve into political and social commentary, fearing alienation from pop audiences. Early in his career, Gaye was affected by social events such as the 1965 Watts riots and once asked himself, "with the world exploding around me, how am I supposed to keep singing love songs?" When the singer called Gordy in the Bahamas about wanting to do protest music, Gordy cautioned him, "Marvin, don't be ridiculous. That's taking things too far."

Gaye was inspired by the Black Panther Party and supported the efforts they put forth like giving free meals to poor families door to door. However, he did not support the violent tactics the Panthers used to fight oppression, as Gaye's messages in many of his political songs were nonviolent. The lyrics and music of What's Going On discuss and illustrate issues during the 1960s/1970s such as police brutality, drug abuse, environmental issues, anti-war, and black power issues. Gaye was inspired to make this album because of events such as the Vietnam War, the 1967 race riots in Detroit, and the Kent State shootings.

Once Gaye presented Gordy with the What's Going On album, Gordy feared Gaye was risking the ruination of his image as a sex symbol. Following the album's success, Gaye tried a follow-up album that he would label You're the Man. The title track only produced modest success, however, and Gaye and Motown shelved the album. Later on, several of Gaye's unreleased songs of social commentary, including "The World Is Rated X", would be issued on posthumous compilation albums. What's Going On would later be described by an AllMusic writer as an album that "not only redefined soul music as a creative force but also expanded its impact as an agent for social change". You're the Man was finally released on March 29, 2019, through Motown, Universal Music Enterprises, and Universal Music Group.

The What's Going On album also provided another first in both Motown and R&B music: Gaye and his engineers had composed the album in a song cycle, segueing previous songs into other songs giving the album a more cohesive feel as opposed to R&B albums that traditionally included filler tracks to complete the album. This style of music would influence recordings by artists such as Stevie Wonder and Barry White making the concept album format a part of 1970s R&B music. Concept albums are usually based on either one theme or a series of themes in connection to the original thesis of the album's concept. Let's Get It On repeated the suite-form arrangement of What's Going On, as would Gaye's later albums such as I Want You, Here, My Dear and In Our Lifetime.

Although Marvin Gaye was not politically active outside of his music, he became a public figure for social change and inspired/educated many people through his work.

Legacy

Marvin Gaye has been called "the number-one purveyor of soul music". In his book Mercy Mercy Me: The Art, Loves and Demons of Marvin Gaye, Michael Eric Dyson described Gaye as someone "...who transcended the boundaries of rhythm and blues as no other performer had done before." Following his death, The New York Times described Gaye as someone who "blended the soul music of the urban scene with the beat of the old-time gospel singer and became an influential force in pop music". Further in the article, Gaye was also credited with combining "the soulful directness of gospel music, the sweetness of soft-soul and pop, and the vocal musicianship of a jazz singer." His recordings for Motown in the 1960s and 1970s shaped that label's signature sound. His work with Motown gave him the titles Prince of Soul and Prince of Motown. Critics stated that Gaye's music "...signified the development of black music from raw rhythm and blues, through sophisticated soul to the political awareness of the 1970s and increased concentration on personal and sexual politics thereafter." As a Motown artist, Gaye was among the first to break from the reins of its production system, paving the way for Stevie Wonder. Gaye's late 1970s and early 1980s recordings influenced contemporary forms of R&B predating the subgenres quiet storm and neo-soul.

Artists from many genres have covered Gaye's music, including James Taylor, Brian McKnight, Kate Bush, Cyndi Lauper, Chico DeBarge, Michael McDonald, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Aaliyah, Christina Aguilera, Phish, A Perfect Circle, The Strokes and Gil Scott-Heron. Other artists such as D'Angelo, Common, Nas, Erick Sermon, and Maxwell interpolated parts of Gaye's clothing from the singer's mid-1970s period. Gaye's clothing style was later appropriated by Eddie Murphy in his role as James "Thunder" Early in Dreamgirls. According to David Ritz, "Since 1983, Marvin's name has been mentioned—in reverential tones—on no less than seven top-ten hit records." Later performers such as Kanye West and Mary J. Blige sampled Gaye's work for their recordings.

Awards and honors

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted him in 1987, declaring that Gaye "...made a huge contribution to soul music in general and the Motown Sound in particular." The page stated that Gaye "...possessed a classic R&B voice that was edged with grit yet tempered with sweetness." The page further states that Gaye "...projected an air of soulful authority driven by fervid conviction and heartbroken vulnerability." A year after his death, then-mayor of D.C., Marion Barry declared April 2 as "Marvin Gaye Jr. Memorial Scholarship Fund Day" in the city. Since then, a non-profit organization has helped to organize annual Marvin Gaye Day Celebrations in the city of Washington.

A year later, Gaye's mother founded the Marvin P. Gaye Jr. Memorial Foundation in dedication to her son to help those suffering from drug abuse and alcoholism; however she died a day before the memorial was set to open in 1987. Gaye's sister Jeanne once served as the foundation's chairperson. In 1990, Gaye received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1996, Gaye posthumously received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed three Gaye recordings, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", "What's Going On" and "Sexual Healing", among its list of the 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll. American music magazine Rolling Stone ranked Gaye No. 18 on their list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time", sixth on their list of "100 Greatest Singers of All Time" and number 82 on their list of the "100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time". Q magazine ranked Gaye sixth on their list of the "100 Greatest Singers".

Three of Gaye's albums – What's Going On (1971), Let's Get It On (1973), and Here, My Dear (1978) – were ranked by Rolling Stone on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. What's Going On remains his largest-ranked album, reaching No. 6 on the Rolling Stone list and topped the NME list of the Top 100 Albums of All Time in 1985 and was later chosen in 2003 for inclusion by the Library of Congress to its National Recording Registry. In addition, four of his songs – "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", "What's Going On", "Let's Get It On" and "Sexual Healing" – made it on the Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

In 2005, Marvin Gaye was voted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame.

In 2006, Watts Branch Park, a park in Washington that Gaye frequented as a teenager, was renamed Marvin Gaye Park. Three years later, the 5200 block of Foote Street NE in Deanwood, Washington, D.C., was renamed Marvin Gaye Way. In August 2014, Gaye was inducted to the official Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in its second class. In October 2015, the Songwriters Hall of Fame announced Gaye as a nominee for induction to the Hall's 2016 class after posthumous nominations were included. Gaye was named as a posthumous inductee to that hall on March 2, 2016. Gaye was subsequently inducted to the Songwriters Hall on June 9, 2016. In July 2018, a bill by California politician Karen Bass to rename a post office in South Los Angeles after Gaye was signed into law by President Donald Trump.

In popular culture

His 1983 NBA All-Star performance of the national anthem was used in a Nike commercial featuring the 2008 U.S. Olympic basketball team. Also, on CBS Sports' final NBA telecast to date (before the contract moved to NBC) at the conclusion of Game 5 of the 1990 Finals, they used Gaye's 1983 All-Star Game performance over the closing credits. When VH1 launched on January 1, 1985, Gaye's 1983 rendition of the national anthem was the very first video they aired. In 2010, it was used in the intro to Ken Burns' Tenth Inning documentary on the game of baseball.

"I Heard It Through the Grapevine" was played in a Levi's ad in 1985. The result of the commercial's success led to the original song finding renewed success in Europe after Tamla-Motown re-released it in the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands. In 1986, the song was covered by Buddy Miles as part of a California Raisins ad campaign. The song was later used for chewing gum commercials in Finland and to promote a brand of Lucky Strike cigarettes in Germany.

Gaye's music has also been used in numerous film soundtracks including Four Brothers and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, both of which featured Gaye's music from his Trouble Man soundtrack. "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" was used in the opening credits of the film, The Big Chill.

In 2007, his song "A Funky Space Reincarnation" was used in the Charlize Theron–starred ad for Dior J'Adore perfume. A documentary about Gaye—What's Going On: The Marvin Gaye Story—was a UK/PBS co-production, directed by Jeremy Marre and was first broadcast in 2006. Two years later, the special re-aired with a different production and newer interviews after it was re-broadcast as an American Masters special. Another documentary, focusing on his 1981 documentary, Transit Ostend, titled Remember Marvin, aired in 2006.

Earnings

In 2008, Gaye's estate earned $3.5 million (US$4,156,182 in 2019 dollars). As a result, Gaye took 13th place in "Top-Earning Dead Celebrities" in Forbes magazine.

On March 11, 2015, Gaye's family was awarded $7.4 million in damages following a decision by an eight-member jury in Los Angeles that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had breached copyright by incorporating part of Gaye's song "Got to Give It Up" into their hit "Blurred Lines". In January 2016, the Gaye family requested a California judge give $2.66 million in attorneys' fees and $777,000 in legal expenses.

Gaye's estate is currently managed by Geffen Management Group and his legacy is protected through Creative Rights Group, both founded by talent manager Jeremy Geffen.

Attempted biopics

There have been several attempts to adapt Gaye's life story into a feature film. In February 2006, it was reported that Jesse L. Martin was to portray Gaye in a biopic titled Sexual Healing, named after Gaye's 1982 song of the same name. The film was to have been directed by Lauren Goodman and produced by James Gandolfini and Alexandra Ryan. The film was to depict the final three years of Gaye's life. Years later, other producers such as Jean-Luc Van Damme, Frederick Bestall and Jimmy De Brabant, came aboard and Goodman was replaced by Julien Temple. Lenny Kravitz was almost slated to playing Gaye. The script was to be written by Matthew Broughton. The film was to have been distributed by Focus Features and released on April 1, 2014, the thirtieth anniversary of Gaye's death. This never came to fruition and it was announced that Focus Features no longer has involvement with the Gaye biopic as of June 2013.

In June 2008, it was announced that F. Gary Gray was going to direct a biopic titled Marvin. The script was to be written by C. Gaby Mitchell and the film was to be produced by David Foster and Duncan McGillivray and co-produced by Ryan Heppe. According to Gray, the film would cover Gaye's entire life, from his emergence at Motown through his defiance of Berry Gordy to record What's Going On and on up to his death.

Cameron Crowe had also been working on a biopic titled My Name Is Marvin. The film was to have been a Sony presentation with Scott Rudin as producer. Both Will Smith and Terrence Howard were considered for the role of Gaye. Crowe later confirmed in August 2011 that he abandoned the project: "We were working on the Marvin Gaye movie which is called My Name is Marvin, but the time just wasn't right for that movie."

Members of Gaye's family, such as his ex-wife Janis and his son Marvin III, have expressed opposition to a biopic.

On December 9, 2015, Roger Friedman spoke of a biopic to be directed by F. Gary Gray that was approved by Berry Gordy and Suzanne de Passe as well as Gaye's family, following the success of Gray's Straight Outta Compton biopic based on the hip-hop act N.W.A.

In July 2016, it was announced that a feature film documentary on Gaye would be released the following year delving into the life of the musician and the making of his 1971 album, What's Going On. The film would be developed by Noah Media Group and Greenlight and is quoted to be "the defining portrait of this visionary artist and his impeccable album" by the film's producers Gabriel Clarke and Torquil Jones. The film will include "unseen footage" of the singer. Gaye's family approved of the documentary. In November 2016, it was announced that actor Jamie Foxx was billed to produce a limited biopic series on the singer's life. The series was approved by Gaye's family, including son Marvin III, who will serve as executive producer, and Berry Gordy, Jr..

On June 18, 2018, it was reported that American rapper Dr. Dre was in talks to produce a biopic about the singer.

Tributes

Acting

Gaye acted in two movies, both having to do with Vietnam veterans. One was in 1969 in the George McCowan-directed film, The Ballad of Andy Crocker which starred Lee Majors. The film was about a war veteran returning to find that his expectations have not been met and he feels betrayed. Gaye had a prominent role in the film as David Owens. The other was in 1971. He had a role in the Lee Frost-directed biker-exploitation film, Chrome and Hot Leather, a film about a group of Vietnam veterans taking on a bike gang. The film starred William Smith and Gaye played the part of Jim, one of the veterans. Gaye did have acting aspirations and had signed with the William Morris Agency but that only lasted a year as Gaye wasn't satisfied with the support he was getting from the agency.

Discography

Studio albums

The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye (1961)

That Stubborn Kinda Fellow (1963)

When I'm Alone I Cry (1964)

Hello Broadway (1964)

How Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You (1965)

A Tribute to the Great Nat "King" Cole (1965)

Moods of Marvin Gaye (1966)

I Heard It Through the Grapevine (1968)

M.P.G. (1969)

That's the Way Love Is (1970)

What's Going On (1971)

Trouble Man (1972)

Let's Get It On (1973)

I Want You (1976)

Here, My Dear (1978)

In Our Lifetime (1981)

Midnight Love (1982)

Collaborative albums

Together (with Mary Wells) (1964)

Take Two (with Kim Weston) (1966)

United (with Tammi Terrell) (1967)

You're All I Need (with Tammi Terrell) (1968)

Easy (with Tammi Terrell) (1969)

Diana & Marvin (with Diana Ross) (1973)

Filmography

1965: T.A.M.I. Show (documentary)

1969: The Ballad of Andy Crocker (television movie)

1971: Chrome and Hot Leather (television movie)

1973: Save the Children (documentary)

Videography

Marvin Gaye: Live in Montreux 1980 (2003)

The Real Thing: In Performance (1964–1981) (2006)

#04/02 #04/01

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alexanderwrites · 7 years

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The A-Z of TMBG

Introduction

They Might Be Giants have forever been one of those bands that, when asked my opinion on, I would say “Oh, I adore them”. But similarly to my relationship with The Mountain Goats, I have gaps in my knowledge of their history that are so big that they rival the amount that I do know about them. I always list them as a favourite band, but if I turned up to one of their shows I’d be the asshole excited by every other song, then trying to work out if I knew the rest, nervously mouthing the odd lyric here or there. “Duhh muhh duhh BAG OF GROCERIES duhh duhhh muhh muhhh EXPIRATION DAAAAATE”.

This is because I have a very silly way of listening to music in which I discover a band, love a couple of their albums to death, then struggle to move on from those because those are the ones that I love so much. Most people who have good critical thinking skills would say “Gee, I loved this album so much that I should probably try another of their albums”. Not me! Figure 8 by Elliott Smith, Entroducing by DJ Shadow and This is Our Music by Galaxie 500 are some of my favourite albums of all time, and guess what? They’re pretty much the only albums i’ve listened to by those artists. Now, I have listened to quite a lot of TMBG, but I haven’t often sat down to dig into their music (or stood up! I don’t exclusively listen to music sitting down on a couch like some record producer trying to feel the vision or fall asleep). It’s time to change that, and i’m going to be going through each of their studio albums over the weeks, one by one, and giving them a bit of an appraisal, and a bit of a praise, because, as hard and objective as I wish I was, i’m going to be gushing over TMBG a lot. But if any band, or any album, deserves a hot torrent of gush, it’s this band, and this album....

#1: Untitled, or, The Pink Album, 1986

“We were the most stoppable force in rock music”

- John Flansburgh

John Flansburgh and John Linnell’s (or the Johns as everyone, and now I, call them) first album is quite a rorschach test of an album. Whatever you see in it, and whatever you want it to be, it is. Musically adventurous and avant garde? Check. Goofy and hilarious? Check. The one thing I don’t think anyone could see it as is boring. It feels like an album that will elicit strong feelings and strong opinions from its listener, primarily because it truly does not sound like anything else. While Flansburgh self-deprecatingly refers to the band during their early days as a stoppable force, their music right from the off sounds determined, self assured and insuppressible. What Flansburgh means by stoppable is that they had no record label and no publicist, and that the only people who could really support the band were the few locals who’d catch their shows in Brooklyn. It wasn’t their music that was stoppable, but their situation.

In more ways that one, the music on this album is unstoppable. In their huge bursts of energy and ideas, and in how easily listenable the album is, it is unstoppable. Once I start the opening track on this album, I cannot and do not stop until the album is over, because it’s such a damn fun and specific world to be in. You know that feeling when you’re so deeply into a TV show that when the episode finishes, no other show on the planet can hit the spot? That’s how listening to this album feels.

I’d heard it a couple of times before, but sitting down (again, I don’t just sit down to listen to music! Sometimes I even have a nice little walk!) and paying proper attention to it really opened my eyes to what an incredible debut it is. Though it’s basically an adapted version of a DIY cassette, its distinctive sound is really professional and well recorded, and the songs themselves are fully-formed statements by a band who know what the fuck they’re about. Everything Right is Wrong Again is a legitimate contender for best opener on a debut ever, and it summarises everything that the band is about. It’s a mission statement and a litmus test; a song that, based on your reaction, tells you whether or not this’ll be your new favourite band. Linnell’s distinctive nasal vocals, the prominent drums machine patterns and a huge array of synthesised instruments underneath (is that a fucking harpsichord??) all tie together to make a pop song that sounds nothing like any other pop song around at the time. The lyrics on the opening track touch on a common theme for TMBG, that things feel out of step, and that confusion and even pain are weird damn things to deal with. I mean, take a look at the lyrics. It’s pretty unusual that such a fun and bizarro song would contain lyrics as precise as “The healing doesn't stop the feeling” and “Everything right is wrong again, every movement false, every four is waltz again”.

TMBG are demonstrating that as silly and playful as they might get, they write real songs that sometimes touch on very real ideas and feelings. And then they have songs called Toddler Hiway that describes a highway of toddlers that leads to Toys R Us. Their ability to mix the astute with the absurd is unique in that they often do it at the same time. Whereas a more traditional band might have a track alternation of serious song - silly song - serious song - silly song, this album blends the two so idiosyncratically that it creates a flavour unlike any other. All their serious songs sound silly, and all their silly songs sound serious. The album takes musical influence from all over the place which results in tracks that boil over with the enthusiasm of two very smart music-buffs who know how to use their inspirations. Number Three has a bluegrass rhythm to go with its self-referential storytelling (”I got two songs in me, and I just wrote the third”), while Alienation’s For The Rich has a country swing to complement its lamenting lyrics. And while these influences are never repeated in a straight forward manner, they also are more than parodies or pastiches of a genre. They’re influences that are put on a conveyer belt and processed through a strange and beautiful machine that mashes them up, flips them upside down and releases them as strange mirror images of themselves. What makes the difference is the skill the Johns have as songwriters, and how intelligently they use references and influences.

And so, accordions and harpsichords don’t feel parodic, or “how weird ARE WE”, but instead complementary tools used to build very specific little worlds. It might seem strange to start the song Youth Culture Killed My Dog with a James Bond riff (fittingly, TMBG would years later write Dr Evil’s Theme for Austin Powers) but it all gives off a mood, a vibe, and sometimes a good fucking laugh. The album feels like the Johns are saying “Look, this is the music we have to make. It has to have silly skits, it has to be ridiculous, because that’s what we care about.” Or as Flansburgh says in Put Your Hands Inside the Puppet Head: “Memo to myself: do the dumb things I gotta do”.

The album is built on smart absurdity, a kind of dadaist desire to reveal the strangeness of its characters, and of the music itself. Youth Culture Killed my Dog seems to parody the conservative’s public to youth and counter cultures:

“Bacharach and David used to write his favorite songs

Never, never, never would he worry/he'd just run and fetch the ball

But the hip hop and the white funk just blew away my puppy's mind”.

They seem to be tackling the topic of music itself, and the expectations on what music is and should be. They subvert this by making music that doesn’t sound like what traditional pop music is supposed to sound like. You could call it experimental, but the Johns seem to know exactly what they’re doing. They’re art school weirdos who mercifully don’t take themselves too seriously, and instead have a post-punk, Talking Heads-esque idea of deconstruction and why-the-hell-not attitude. And like Talking Heads, aside from all the oddness and whimsy, what TMBG sound like on this album is a really, really good alternative rock band. Their guitars sounds consistently excellent; Don’t Let’s Start in particular has a great surfer-y guitar sound in the verses that sounds like Pixies’ Here Comes Your Man (but a few years before that song was released), and She’s An Angel, which is the loveliest track on the album, has gorgeous, almost slide-like guitars giving a wonderful texture to the song. And songs like Don’t Let’s Start and (She Was A) Hotel Detective speak to the fact that as well as being a niche, cult item, the Johns create songs that are indisputable alternative classics. The songs might not be as well known as the Blue Mondays and Killing Moons of their era, but they are just as important, clever and classic.

This album makes it clear that the Johns probably won’t go on to be the biggest rock stars on the planet, but it does make it clear that they are truly worthy of their cult status and their passionate fan base, and that they have a hell of a lot in them to look forward to. It’s an album that, if you’d heard it in 1986, you would’ve rooted for it. You would’ve gone up to your friends who liked Devo and Oingo Boingo and told them to please listen to this. You would’ve attended their shows and bought cassettes and written reviews, like the one i’m inspired to write now. The album connects to me in an immediate sense, the songs instantly working their way into my ears and heart. They’re songs that i’m always happy to hear, and to instantly incorporate into my life. Songs that I want to live with. What I mean by that is, there are songs that are always swirling around in my head, so that when something even tangentially connected to them is mentioned, the songs barge their way to the front of my brain. Someone on TV a couple of days ago said “Not to put too fine a point on it”, and I instinctively said “Say i’m the only bee in your bonnet”. Because that’s who TMBG are for those who love them: a band that are constantly right there, dancing around in your head and giving you a wealth of songs, lines and tunes to enjoy.

And as an album, there really is no better example of their talents and their personality. It’s a surprisingly cohesive set of songs, the 19 of them flying by in just 38 minutes (they do have a lot in common with punk!). It strikes a good, even balance that spreads the tentpole tracks across the two sides, and though there are shorter songs that really are goof offs, they don’t feel like filler. It’s not like they’re saying “shit, we need to throw a 25 second a-cappella about a toddler highway in there to pad the album out”, they’re just giving you sort of...bonuses? Little treats, really. The album would be full enough without them, they’re just the weirdo icing on the cake. If the singles on the album are the equivalent of a comedian doing a longer monologue, then the shorter tracks are one-liners, and having both means you’re spoiled for choice. A lesser band trying that might not be able to hold your attention for so long, but the Johns do it effortlessly. I kind of think of them and this album as Pee-Wee Herman: Self aware, subversive, a little anarchic, but also completely warm hearted. The kind of thing that those who love it, really deeply love it.

It’s hard to imagine them breaking the mainstream, but looking at the few videos they produced from this album, they begin to make a bit more sense. Because as goofy, nerdy and joyful as they are in these videos, they’re also really fucking cool.

They look like the art-school weirdos that they are, but the kind that like to have lots of fun and make fart jokes. In the Don’t Lets Start video, Linnell is dressed sharply in black and has his hair long and floppy, and he instantly looks like a dweeby counter-culture hero. They dance like David Byrne and seem to be having the most fun of any band in any video. In the Put Your Hand Inside The Puppet Head video, they look like Tears for Fears letting loose with an accordion, which sounds like the uncoolest thing ever, but The Johns pull it off. It’s their enthusiasm and sweetness that sells it.

(She Was A) Hotel Detective has some great vintage Nick-At-Night vibes which (pardon the pun) illustrates their playful style, which is interspersed with self-mocking clips of the Johns playing, with the word “MUSIC” hanging behind them.

Please, if you haven’t seen them and if you get a few minutes, watch these videos. There are not many examples this good of such pure joy and fun. And there aren’t many bands who have music videos that feel like such an accurate extension of their ideals, and it’s in these that you can start to see how they carved out their niche.

Seeing this play on MTV would’ve been eye and ear catching to say the least, and though it might’ve made many ask “what the fuck is this”, there had to be those people in between who this connected with. And it turned out, there are a lot of those people, and they are now the TMBG fan base, as passionate and excited today as ever. TMBG don’t necessarily speak for them, but they speak to them. The Pink Album says it loud and clear “be weird, have fun, feel things, do the dumb thing you gotta do”.

#they might be giants #album review #TMBG A-Z #John linnell #john flansburgh #the pink album

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thehollywood360 · 7 years

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From July 7th – 9th, The 2017 San Diego Smooth Jazz Festival took place at the Embarcadero Marina Park North. The host this year was the supercharged, sharply dressed, Brian Culbertson. His lively antics, outgoing personality and welcoming warmth created the perfect atmosphere for the fun-filled weekend.

The two-day event featured some of the best smooth jazz artists touring the country while also offering a variety of delicious cuisine, vendor booths, and a spectacular scenic venue that overlooked the harbor. The Hollywood 360 covered the shows and the red carpet on Saturday and Sunday. I went Facebook live, interviewing the L.A. Collective, Brian Culbertson, Curtis Brooks, Nick Colionne, and Michael Franks. Keiko Matsui and Peter White also popped in to say hello.

Saturday’s Performers

Brian Culbertson

Brain Culbertson mesmerized the audience on Saturday night with his spellbinding vamping antics which were backed up by a seething hot outpouring of Culbertson’s soulful music. From the moment this musician hit the stage his kinetic passionate energy vibrated like a lightning storm…first riling up the audience with his enthusiastic intro, then belting out some bopping lyrics, then ripping up the keys, then grabbing the trombone and blowing with the sax and trumpet player. “Funk” is the name of his album, “Funk” is the name of his traveling tour, and “Funk” is what Brain Culberston emanates from head to toe –from the jaunty blonde licks hairstyle to his razzle dazzle fire engine red jacket, to his plucky dance steps.

For the last year or so Brain Culbertson has been on the road promoting his “Funk” tour but he’s been doing it the old fashioned way – covering the country in a tour bus. He told me in my Facebook Live interview that he thoroughly enjoys the close camaraderie that the band shares traveling this way. It is very apparent that Brain and his super tight group have established a formidable bond observing their stellar performance that night. As Culbertson hugged his keyboard then played it backward with complete expertise…he showed us all the many facets of a true Funk Master.