Gold is Good--very very Good
I don't have anything earlier though and Disc 1 of this set is perfect for me and I like having Disc 2 anyway. I have the recent Marvin Gaye Deluxe remasters of What's Going On; Let's Get It On and I Want You.
Disc 1 has all the early hits before Marvin took total charge of his career and recordings. All the early hits are here and nicely mastered.
I Have many of the "GOLD" sets and I appreciate them. Yes, sometimes they are a repackage of an existing sets (see Yes: Gold) but other sets are pretty unique and very necessary.
If you need a good Marvin Gaye Compilation this is where to start.
Marvin Gaye IS gold
Fabulous. . . . . . . . . . . . every song you can imagine by Marvin, some that were way back in the recesses of your mind, and you kinda go "Whoa, I remember that" and start singing the words. gone way too soon.
Essential For Anyone's Record Collection
"Gold" includes just about every major Marvin classic you need, including "Can I Get A Witness", "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" (with Tami Terrell), "What's Going On", "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)", the timeless "Let's Get It On", "Got To Give It Up" (all 11 minutes) and "Sexual Healing", as well as a healthy dose of rarer tracks such as a previously unreleased stereo mix of the gospel classic "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" and the never before heard "Where Are We Going?" as well as much more. Marvin Gaye is quite simply one of the finest talents in the entire history of American music, and this collection is proof of that.
All this and digitally remastered sound and great liner notes makes this a must have for any record collection.
Inferior Rehash of 'The Very Best Of Marvin Gaye' 2 CD Set
While the music on this latest compilation is great, it's missing A VERY ESSENTIAL MARVIN CLASSIC. Since 'Gold' is nothing but an inferior rehash duplicate of 'The Very Best Of Marvin Gaye' CD set, I'll repeat most of my previous review here. . . . 'After The Dance'!! This 2 CD set (nice packaging though!!) is a MAJOR FAILURE without 'After The Dance', and THERE IS enough room for it's inclusion (I remastered the set myself to include 'After The Dance' & more!!).
Also, instead of too many 'filler songs' from the so-so 'Here My Dear' CD, they could've (& should've!) included masterpieces like 'Save The Children', 'Flying High In The Friendly Sky', and Marvin's awesome 'Till Tomorrow' from his Midnight Love CD (1983). The rare track 'Where Are We Going ?' is nice, BUT by releasing this incomplete collection, Motown missed the boat AGAIN!
I advise everyone to remaster this set (with the proper software) & do Marvin some justice, since Motown continues to miss the mark!!! In the end, you'll have a CD set to REALLY be proud of!
GRADE for 'Gold' (a. k. a. 'The Very Best Of Marvin Gaye')
Cover Art/Packaging. . . 2 Stars!!
Tracklisting gets. . . 1 Stars!!
OVERALL GRADE. . . 1. 5-2. 0 STARS!!.
From that stubborn kind of fellow to the midnight man: the best of Marvin Gaye
Not the case with Marvin Gaye. From first glance, when you look at something like a cover of a greatest hits album like this, you think 'wow, nice rare photo' and then you put the album in and the same stuff you had in the other greatest-hits album of the same artist is reduced to rubbish. Re-released after UTV ran out of copies of "The Very Best of Marvin Gaye" (which probably had a better booklet than the one in "Gold" but hey), "Gold: Marvin Gaye" integrates Marvin's early 1960s beginnings when he was mixing rock, blues and gospel (or soul music) in songs like "Stubborn Kind of Fellow", "Hitch Hike" and "Pride & Joy", his mid-1960s soul discovery in songs like "How Sweet It Is", "I'll Be Doggone" and "Ain't That Peculiar", his late-1960s duos with Tammi Terrell (with the Kim Weston duet added in good measures), his late-1960s coming out party as a gritty soul belter in songs like "You", "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby", "That's the Way Love Is" and his 1968 masterpiece, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" together with the 1970's gems that we all know and love like "What's Going On", "Mercy Mercy Me", "Inner City Blues", "Trouble Man", "Let's Get It On", "Come Get to This", the live version of "Distant Lover" (shown in its full six and some twenty minutes), "I Want You", and the entire 11-minute "Got to Give It Up" and his early-1980s funk/soul synthesis/gem "Sexual Healing". All in all presenting 20 years of one amazing man's work with these rare gems:
*An unreleased version of his rendition of the old gospel standard, "His Eye Is On the Sparrow" (1968)
*Rare socially conscious gems like "You're the Man" and "Where Are We Going" (both in 1972)
*The obscure 1979 single "Ego Tripping Out"
*The also very obscure single, "Anger" from his 1978 album, "Here, My Dear"
*And finally 1981's "Praise"
If you want to complain about the negativities of how the CD was produced and shipped, go ahead, the music is all I need and as long as I discover rare Marvin gems between the classics. It's all good because I have the best of both worlds: a 2-tape anthology set that has more unreleased and rare gems (including a rare unreleased version of "Ego Tripping Out" with Marvin going "only one way!"), another hits album that includes a rare '72 doo-wop gem and this album and a rare album full of other rare gems in Marvin's tank.
I'm set with Marvin for life.
P. S. , "Where Are We Going" is the cut! Go get it for the song and the entire 11-minute "Got to Give It Up" alone! It's worth it, trust me.
You can see a complete list of all Marvin Gaye discography, or go back to the Marvin Gaye tabs
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