The Very Best of Marvin Gaye

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The Very Best of Marvin Gaye is the title of two compilations (American and European) by Motown artist Marvin Gaye.

Contents

UK edition

The Very Best of Marvin Gaye
MGVeryBest.jpeg
Greatest hits album by
Released1994
Recorded1962–82
Genre R&B, soul, funk
Label Motown
Producer Marvin Gaye, Norman Whitfield, Ashford & Simpson, William "Mickey" Stevenson, Hal Davis
Marvin Gaye chronology
The Norman Whitfield Sessions
(1994)
The Very Best of Marvin Gaye
(1994)
Anthology: Marvin Gaye
(1995)
Singles from The Very Best of Marvin Gaye
  1. "Lucky, Lucky Me"
    Released: 1994

Released in 1994, The Very Best is the best-selling (and highest charting) Marvin Gaye album in the UK – selling over 250,000 copies, peaking at #3 in the UK charts, and receiving a million-plus sales certificate in 2001. The album featured an unreleased track ("Lucky, Lucky Me") that would also be released as a single.

Track listing

  1. "I Heard It Through the Grapevine"
  2. "What's Going On"
  3. "Sexual Healing"
  4. "You Are Everything" (with Diana Ross)
  5. "It Takes Two" (with Kim Weston)
  6. "Let's Get It On"
  7. "Abraham, Martin & John"
  8. "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby"
  9. "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)"
  10. "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"
  11. "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)" (w/Diana Ross)
  12. "You're All I Need to Get By" (w/Tammi Terrell)
  13. "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" (w/Tammi Terrell)
  14. "Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home)"
  15. "The Onion Song" (w/Tammi Terrell)
  16. "You Ain't Livin' Till You're Lovin'" (w/Tammi Terrell)
  17. "Good Lovin' Ain't Easy to Come By (w/Tammi Terrell)
  18. "That's the Way Love Is"
  19. "Got to Give It Up, Pt. I"
  20. "When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You"
  21. "Can I Get a Witness"
  22. "Lucky, Lucky Me"

US edition

The Very Best of Marvin Gaye
Tvbpmg.jpg
Greatest hits album by
ReleasedJuly 17, 2001
Recorded1962-82
Genre R&B, pop, soul, psychedelic soul, funk
Length127:00
Label Motown, Universal Music
Producer Marvin Gaye, Berry Gordy, Larkin Arnold, Jeff Moskow, Harry Weinger, Fonce Mizell, Freddie Perren, Smokey Robinson, Valerie Simpson, William "Mickey" Stevenson, Art Stewart, Ed Townsend, Norman Whitfield, Leon Ware, Nickolas Ashford, Johnny Bristol, Henry Cosby, Lamont Dozier, Harvey Fuqua, Brian Holland

Released in the US in 2001, the two disc edition is a chronological look back at American R&B/soul singer Marvin Gaye's three decade-plus music career throughout his tenure in Motown Records in the 1960s and 1970s concluding with his final big hit, 1982's "Sexual Healing" from his brief tenure with Columbia Records before the singer's death in 1984. Re-released later in 2005 under Universal Records' Gold series, it has since been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
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Robert Christgau (A)
Tom Hull A [1]

Track listing

Disc One
No.TitleWriter(s)OriginLength
1."Stubborn Kind of Fellow"Marvin Gaye, William "Mickey" Stevenson, George Gordy That Stubborn Kinda Fellow , 19622:45
2."Hitch Hike"Gaye, Stevenson, Clarence Paul That Stubborn Kinda Fellow2:33
3."Pride and Joy"Gaye, Stevenson, Norman Whitfield That Stubborn Kinda Fellow2:08
4."Can I Get a Witness" Holland–Dozier–Holland Greatest Hits , 19642:50
5."You're a Wonderful One"Holland–Dozier–Holland How Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You , 1965; released as a single the previous year2:43
6."How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)"Holland–Dozier–HollandHow Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You2:58
7."I'll Be Doggone" Warren Moore, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Tarplin Moods of Marvin Gaye , 19662:48
8."Ain't That Peculiar"Moore, Robinson, Bobby Rogers, TarplinMoods of Marvin Gaye3:00
9."It Takes Two" (with Kim Weston) Sylvia Moy, Stevenson Take Two , 19662:59
10."Ain't No Mountain High Enough" (with Tammi Terrell) Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson United , 19672:28
11."Your Precious Love" (with Tammi Terrell)Ashford, SimpsonUnited3:05
12."If I Could Build My Whole World Around You" (with Tammi Terrell) Harvey Fuqua, Johnny Bristol, Vernon BullockUnited2:21
13."Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" (with Tammi Terrell)Ashford, Simpson You're All I Need , 19682:15
14."You're All I Need to Get By" (with Tammi Terrell)Ashford, SimpsonYou're All I Need2:51
15."You" Jeffrey Bowen, Jack Coga, Ivy Jo Hunter I Heard It Through the Grapevine , 19682:27
16."I Heard It Through the Grapevine" Barrett Strong, WhitfieldI Heard It Through the Grapevine3:15
17."Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" Janie Bradford, Whitfield, Strong M.P.G. , 19692:57
18."That's the Way Love Is"Strong, WhitfieldM.P.G.; also released on the following year's album of the same name 3:44
19."His Eye Is on the Sparrow" Civilla D. Martin, Charles H. Gabriel In Loving Memory , 19683:48
Disc Two
No.TitleWriter(s)OriginLength
1."What's Going On" Al Cleveland, Gaye, Renaldo "Odie" Benson What's Going On , 19713:52
2."Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"GayeWhat's Going On3:13
3."Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)"Gaye, James Nyx Jr. What's Going On5:28
4."You're the Man, Pts. I & II"Gaye, Kenneth Stover Non-album single, 19725:48
5."Where Are We Going?"Gaye, Larry Mizell Previously unreleased, 1994; originally recorded for Let's Get It On , 19733:57
6."Trouble Man"Gaye Trouble Man soundtrack, 19723:51
7."Let's Get It On"Gaye, Ed Townsend Let's Get It On4:53
8."Come Get to This"GayeLet's Get It On2:42
9."Distant Lover" (Live at the Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, California, January 4, 1974)Gaye, Gwen Gordy, Sandra Greene Marvin Gaye Live! , 1974; originally from Let's Get It On6:19
10."I Want You" (Edited version) Leon Ware, Arthur "T-Boy" Ross I Want You , 19763:57
11."Got to Give It Up"Gaye Live at the London Palladium , 197711:53
12."Anger"Delta Ashley, Gaye, Townsend Here, My Dear , 19784:03
13."Ego Tripping Out"Gaye1994 re-release of In Our Lifetime (originally released in 1981)7:14
14."Praise"GayeIn Our Lifetime4:53
15."Sexual Healing" (Single version) Odell Brown, Gaye, David Ritz Midnight Love , 19823:59

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Brazil21,000 [2]
France (SNEP) [3] Gold100,000*
New Zealand (RMNZ) [4] Gold7,500^
United Kingdom (BPI) [5] 2× Platinum600,000Double-dagger-14-plain.png
United States (RIAA) [6] Gold500,000^
Summaries
Worldwide5,000,000 [2]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Double-dagger-14-plain.png Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

<i>Easy</i> (Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell album) 1969 studio album by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell

Easy is an album recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, and released by Motown Records on September 16, 1969 under the Tamla Records label. One song on the album, "Good Lovin' Ain't Easy To Come By", was a hit single and remains popular to this day. Terrell had been ill, suffering from complications caused by a brain tumor, since the fall of 1967. Marvin Gaye later claimed that as a result, most of the female vocals on this album were performed by Valerie Simpson, who served as co-songwriter and co-producer for the LP with her boyfriend and future husband Nickolas Ashford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tammi Terrell</span> American singer-songwriter (1945–1970)

Tammi Terrell was an American singer-songwriter, widely known as a star singer for Motown Records during the 1960s, notably for a series of duets with singer Marvin Gaye.

The Andantes were an American female session group for the Motown record label during the 1960s. Composed of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps, the group sang background vocals on numerous Motown recordings, including songs by Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, the Four Tops, Jimmy Ruffin, Edwin Starr, the Supremes, the Marvelettes, Marvin Gaye and the Isley Brothers, among others. It is estimated they appeared on 20,000 recordings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ain't No Mountain High Enough</span> 1966 song by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell

"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" is a song written by Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson in 1966 for the Tamla label, a division of Motown. The composition was first successful as a 1967 hit single recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, and became a hit again in 1970 when recorded by former Supremes frontwoman Diana Ross. The song became Ross's first solo number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

<i>United</i> (Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell album) 1967 studio album by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell

United is a studio album by soul musicians Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, released August 29, 1967 on the Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records. Harvey Fuqua and Johnny Bristol produced all of the tracks on the album, with the exception of "You Got What It Takes" and "Oh How I'd Miss You". Fuqua and Bristol produced "Hold Me Oh My Darling" and "Two Can Have a Party" as Tammi Terrell solo tracks in 1965 and 1966, and had Gaye overdub his vocals to them in order to create duet versions of the songs.

<i>Youre All I Need</i> 1968 studio album by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell

You're All I Need is the second studio album by soul musicians Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, released in August 1968 on Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records. Highlighted by three hit singles written by Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson, You're All I Need was recorded throughout 1966 and 1967 and features two Top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hits, "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By". It peaked at #60 on the U.S. Billboard 200 Album Chart. You're All I Need was the two singers' final collaboration effort, as Terrell would become ill following recording, before succumbing to a brain tumor in 1970.

<i>Diana & Marvin</i> 1973 studio album by Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye

Diana & Marvin is a duets album by American soul musicians Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye, released October 26, 1973 on Motown. Recording sessions for the album took place between 1971 and 1973 at Motown Recording Studios in Hollywood, California. Gaye and Ross were widely recognized at the time as two of the top pop music performers.

<i>Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations</i> 1968 studio album by Diana Ross & the Supremes and The Temptations

Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations is, as the title implies, a collaborative album combining Motown's two best selling groups, Diana Ross & the Supremes and the Temptations. Issued by Motown in late 1968 to coincide with the broadcast of the Supremes/Temptations TCB television special, the album was a success, reaching #2 on the Billboard 200. Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations spent four weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart.

<i>Love Child</i> (The Supremes album) 1968 studio album by Diana Ross & the Supremes

Love Child is the fifteenth studio album released by Diana Ross & the Supremes for the Motown label in 1968. The LP was the group's first studio LP not to include any songs written or produced by any member of the Holland–Dozier–Holland production team, who had previously overseen most of the Supremes' releases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marvin Gaye discography</span>

American music artist Marvin Gaye released 25 studio albums, four live albums, one soundtrack album, 24 compilation albums, and 83 singles. In 1961 Gaye signed a recording contract with Tamla Records, owned by Motown. The first release under the label was The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye. Gaye's first album to chart was a duet album with Mary Wells titled Together, peaking at number forty-two on the Billboard pop album chart. His 1965 album, Moods of Marvin Gaye, became his first album to reach the top ten of the R&B album charts and spawned four hit singles. Gaye recorded more than thirty hit singles for Motown throughout the 1960s, becoming established as "the Prince of Motown". Gaye topped the charts in 1968 with his rendition of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", while his 1969 album, M.P.G., became his first number one R&B album. Gaye's landmark album, 1971's What's Going On became the first album by a solo artist to launch three top ten singles, including the title track. His 1973 single, "Let's Get It On", topped the charts while its subsequent album reached number two on the charts becoming his most successful Motown album to date. In 1982, after 21 years with Motown, Gaye signed with Columbia Records and issued Midnight Love, which included his most successful single to date, "Sexual Healing". Following his death in 1984, three albums were released posthumously while some of Gaye's landmark works were re-issued.

<i>Marvin Gaye and His Girls</i> 1969 greatest hits album by Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye and His Girls is a 1969 compilation album of duets recorded by Marvin Gaye and various female singers on the Tamla label. Among the ladies Gaye sung with were Mary Wells, Kim Weston and Tammi Terrell. It was the original album release of "Good Lovin' Ain't Easy to Come By," which later appeared on Easy. His solo album M.P.G., was released simultaneously, on Gaye's thirtieth birthday.

<i>Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrells Greatest Hits</i> 1970 greatest hits album by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell

Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's Greatest Hits is a 1970 compilation album released by Motown stars Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell on the Tamla label. It is a collection of the duo's recording material, penned and produced by the songwriting-producing team of Ashford & Simpson except for two tracks. The album was released shortly after the death of Terrell, who died of a brain tumor at the age of 24.

<i>The Master (1961–1984)</i> 1995 greatest hits album by Marvin Gaye

The Master (1961–1984) is a chronological box set album looking back at American R&B/soul Marvin Gaye's 23-year recording career. Spanning four discs, the box set goes over all portions of Gaye's career with a repertoire that spanned doo-wop, R&B, soul, psychedelic soul and funk with a mixture of themes including dance songs, love ballads, duets, socially conscious material, sensual material and autobiographical revelations. The set includes rarities such as a recorded 1981 live track of Gaye and Gladys Knight & the Pips each singing their seminal hit "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", Gaye's famed 1983 performance of "The Star-Spangled Banner" at an NBA All-Star game and an a cappella performance of "The Lord's Prayer" taped during Gaye's exile in Belgium.

<i>The Complete Duets</i> 2001 compilation album by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell

The Complete Duets is a two-disc compilation album of duet recordings by Motown Records artists Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, recorded between 1965 and 1969. The set compiles all of the tracks from the duo's three albums - United,You're All I Need and Easy - as well as several of Tammi Terrell's solo recordings and other previously unissued material.

"Good Lovin' Ain't Easy to Come By" is a duet released in 1969 on the Tamla label by singers Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell.

"You Ain't Livin' till You're Lovin'" is a 1968 single released on the Tamla-Motown label by Motown vocal duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell.

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References

  1. Hull, Tom (November 2013). "Recycled Goods (#114)". A Consumer Guide to the Trailing Edge. Tom Hull. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Maia, Mônica (25 December 1995). "Músicos mortos são campeões de vendagem". Folha de S.Paulo (in Portuguese). UOL HOST . Retrieved 4 January 2023. A coletânea "The Very Best of Marvin Gaye" vendeu cinco milhões de discos no mundo, 21 mil deles, no Brasil. Translation: The compilation "The Very Best of Marvin Gaye" sold five million records worldwide, 21,000 of it in Brazil.
  3. "French album certifications – Marvin Gaye – The Very Best of" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique . Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  4. "New Zealand album certifications – Marvin Gaye – The Very Best of". Recorded Music NZ . Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  5. "British album certifications – Marvin Gaye – The Very Best of Marvin Gaye". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved May 2, 2020.Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type The Very Best of Marvin Gaye in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  6. "American album certifications – Marvin Gaye – The Very Best of Marvin Gaye". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved March 3, 2020.