Marvin Gaye

The R&B and soul pioneer released some of the world's most recognisable songs, as well as the album dubbed the greatest ever made by both Rolling Stone and NME ...

“Marvin/Sang of the joy and pain/He opened up our mind”. It was later covered by The Gaslight Anthem and Eric Burdon of Animals fame. It was a direct inspiration for Michael Jackson on ‘Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough’ and was interpolated into Robin Thicke and Pharell Williams’ 2013 hit ‘Blurred Lines’, leading to a lawsuit from the Gaye estate. The single sold more than two million copies inside two weeks and launched Gaye as a sex symbol. Gaye’s most enduring legacy is surely What’s Going On, the 1971 album which is frequently cited as the greatest ever made. Flipping that particular script, Gaye took a previously released song and took it to new levels.