In this intimate biography of the Prince of Soul, David Ritz
provides a candid look at a star and a friend. Ritz had been
collaborating with Gaye on his story for several years before the
singer's tragic death, and had conducted a series of extraordinary
interviews in which Gaye discussed his deepest secrets. Drawing from
these interviews, Gaye's life is recounted in his own words and the
words of those who knew him best: his family, friends, and colleagues.
What emerges is a full-scale portrait of a charming but tortured artist,
a brilliant singer with a divided soul.
Here is Marvin's story
from his early years in the slums of Washington, D.C., to is rise to the
top of the Motown industry, his fall from grace, his comeback, and
finally his sudden, shocking end at the hands of his own father. But it
is also the story of his glorious music, and the music of black America
over the past fifty years, from gospel to doo-wop to soul to funk. The
result is an epic tale whose cast of characters includes Diana Ross,
Berry Gordy, Smokey Robinson, and Stevie Wonder, among others.
The definitive biography of an enormously gifted and sensitive man, Divided Soul takes us deep into the life and music of one of America's most passionate--and most troubled--composers and singers.
