"Praise" is a 1981 gospel-inspired

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number released by

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soul singer

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

. The song, written by Gaye, is a tribute to not only his church upbringing but also to the sound of then-label mate

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

, who is given a shout out on the song by Gaye. In the song, he persuades a lady to be positive in difficult times and let her "love come shining through". He then moves forward to praise God, similar to how a preacher would recite such passages from The Bible. The song, equipped with horns, a propulsive drum beat, and Gaye's multi-layered vocals, was Gaye's second Top 40 hit since "A Funky Space Reincarnation" on Billboard's Hot Soul Singles chart, where it peaked at number 18 on that chart while reaching #101 on ''

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s Bubbling Under the Hot 100. "Praise" was the first release off Gaye's controversial recording, '' In Our Lifetime''. ''

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'' said that it's "guaranteed to get the body moving with its salsa rhythm and Gaye's unmistakable romantic croon."

Notes on evolution

The song was originally recorded in 1979 under the title "A Lover's Plea" from the singer's shelved ''Love Man'' album. It contained a piano riff of notes B B C# B, B B C# B. This was subsequently removed and replaced with a xenon filter. Motown replaced it with synths similar to Ego Tripping Out.

Chart positions

Personnel

*All vocals by

*Instrumentation by assorted musicians

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Praise (Song) 1981 singles Songs written by Marvin Gaye Song recordings produced by Marvin Gaye 1980 songs Tamla Records singles Marvin Gaye songs