Divided Soul: The Life Of Marvin Gaye

by David Ritz

Overview

Drawing from interviews conducted before Marvin Gaye's death, acclaimed music writer David Ritz has created a full-scale portrait of the brilliant but tormented artist. With a cast of characters that includes Diana Ross, Berry Gordy, Smokey Robinson, and Stevie Wonder, this intimate biography is a definitive and enduring look at the man who embodied the very essence of the word soul.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786730469
Publisher:	Hachette Books
Publication date:	03/17/2009
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	534,654
File size:	9 MB

About the Author

David Ritz is a Grammy Award winner and the only four-time winner of the Gleason Music Book Award. He won the 2013 ASCAP Award for outstanding musical bio for When I Left Home, written with Buddy Guy. He has collaborated with Ray Charles, Marvin Gaye, B.B. King, Etta James, Janet Jackson, and Smokey Robinson, and is the co-composer of "Sexual Healing." Ritz lives in Los Angeles, California.

Editorial Reviews

Based largely on interviews for a projected ``autobiography'' that was cancelled after Gaye's death in 1984 at the hands of his father, this book is neither especially well-written nor perceptive. PW recommended that the Motown singer's fans ``skip the book and listen to his records instead.'' (May)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Originally published in 1985 and newly available on audio, this biography unearths the demons that both plagued Marvin Gaye and inspired his music. Author Ritz, who has previously chronicled the lives of musicians including Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, and B.B. King, knows the music industry well and had access to Gaye and many in his inner circle. In Audie Award winner Dion Graham's (River Rising) solid performance, he often seems to be channeling the singer's vocal range and speech patterns. Although the production would have benefitted from music at the CD breaks, this concise abridgment tells Gaye's story while providing insight into Motown and the music industry during his lifetime. Highly recommended. [Audio clip available through www.blackstoneaudio.com; this year marks the 70th anniversary of Gaye's birth, the 25th anniversary of his death, and the 50th anniversary of Motown.-Ed.]
—Gwendolyn Osborne

Library Journal