''Live at the London Palladium'' is a

live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music * Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of album ...

double album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

musician

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 ...

, released March 15, 1977, on

Tamla Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

. Recording sessions took place live at several

concert A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide var ...

s at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 a ...

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major se ...

, in October 1976, with the exception of the

hit single A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record' ...

Got to Give It Up "Got to Give It Up" is a song by American music artist Marvin Gaye. Written by the singer and produced by Art Stewart as a response to a request from Gaye's record label that he perform disco music, it was released in March 1977. Upon its releas ...

", which was recorded at Gaye's

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

studio Marvin's Room on January 31, 1977. ''Live at the London Palladium'' features intimate performances by Gaye of many of his career highlights, including early hits for Motown and recent material from his previous three studio albums. As with his previous live album, ''

Marvin Gaye Live! ''Marvin Gaye Live!'' is the second live album issued by soul musician Marvin Gaye, released on June 19, 1974, by Tamla Records. Overview Returning to live performances In 1973, Gaye released his greatest-selling album, ''Let's Get It On'', which ...

'',

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

of the record was handled entirely by Gaye, except for the studio portion, "Got to Give It Up", which was managed by

Art Stewart Arthur Stewart (February 6, 1927 – November 11, 2021) was an American baseball front-office executive and scout. He began his Major League Baseball (MLB) scouting career with the New York Yankees in 1953. He later joined the Kansas City Roya ...

. ''Live at the London Palladium'' received a surprising and significant amount of critical recognition for a live album following its initial release. Critical reviews of the album were positive compared to the mild receptiveness Gaye's previous studio album '' I Want You'' received. As Gaye's most successful live release, the album also became one of his most commercially successful albums during his tenure at Motown's Tamla label, as well as a

Billboard chart The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

hit. Following

digital remastering Remaster refers to changing the quality of the sound or of the image, or both, of previously created recordings, either audiophonic, cinematic, or videographic. The terms digital remastering and digitally remastered are also used. Mastering A ...

, ''Live at the London Palladium'' was

reissue In the music industry, a reissue (also re-release, repackage or re-edition) is the release of an album or Single (music), single which has been released at least once before, sometimes with alterations or additions. Reasons for reissue New aud ...

d on August 24, 1999, by Motown on

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in O ...

Background

In October 1976, Marvin Gaye had begun recuperating from personal issues.Weinger (1999), pp. 2-5. He had recently gone through a divorce with his first wife, and sister of

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record l ...

Anna Gordy Anna Ruby Gaye (née Gordy; January 28, 1922 – January 31, 2014) was an American businesswoman, composer and songwriter. An elder sister of Motown founder Berry Gordy, she became a record executive in the mid-to-late 1950s distributing records ...

, and married his second wife,

Janis Hunter 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 a ...

. Hunter had previously inspired many of Gaye's romantic-themed albums including 1973's ''

Let's Get It On ''Let's Get It On'' is the thirteenth studio album by American soul singer, songwriter, and producer Marvin Gaye. It was released on August 28, 1973, by the Motown subsidiary label Tamla Records on LP. Recording sessions for the album took pla ...

'' and his previous album, the erotic '' I Want You''. Gaye was also going through

drug addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use oft ...

to help cope with

stage fright Stage fright or performance anxiety is the anxiety, fear, or persistent phobia which may be aroused in an individual by the requirement to perform in front of an audience, real or imagined, whether actually or potentially (for example, when perf ...

. By 1976, Gaye, while still a popular artist in America - his " I Want You" single hit the American top twenty - he was slowly starting a steep climb down as

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric p ...

began to dominate popular music, but while American fans were moving on to other sounds, the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

audience was still very appreciative of Gaye's fame and music, as Gaye would take advantage of this and perform a series of shows in Britain. ''Live at the London Palladium'' was recorded during several live shows performed by Gaye in England's capital city,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. The performances won rave reviews by the British press in London, the first of which took place on October 3, 1976, and continued throughout the rest of that month.

Music

Though he wasn't over his stage fright and often mumbled words on stage, when performing and singing, Gaye, then 37, still could dazzle an audience with his charm, wit and show-stopping talent as was heard on the album. Featuring a variety of songs from newer material encompassing from Gaye's 1976 album, '' I Want You'', to older songs (featured in three segues of medleys) from his early to mid-1960s heyday to his famed '' What's Going On'' period in 1970-1971, his legendary duets and a trio of songs from his ''Let's Get It On'' album, Gaye performed for the British audience. Highlights include the performances of "

Come Get to This "Come Get to This" is a song written and recorded by American recording artist Marvin Gaye. It was released as the second single off Gaye's album, '' Let's Get It On'' following the success of the title track. Recording sessions for the song firs ...

", "Let's Get It On" (on which Gaye moaned during a break of the song to the delight of several female fans who were heard squealing, as heard on the album) and "

Distant Lover "Distant Lover" is the sixth song issued on singer Marvin Gaye's 1973 album, ''Let's Get It On'' and the B-side of the second single from that album, " Come Get to This". A live recording was issued as a single in 1974. The live version of th ...

". ''Live at the London Palladiums three epic medleys, which all exceeded nine minutes, featured Gaye's intimate interactions with the audience and reflections on his songs. An

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

reviewer later wrote of Gaye's performance, "you can feel the sultry passion in his voice as his singing drifts close to moaning and his ad libbing approaches tasteful, amorous aural lovemaking", and continued to write in a review of ''Live at the London Palladium'' that the "between-song moments" when Gaye addressed the audience revealed "just how shaken Gaye is at this troubled point in his career. Listen carefully and you can sense the struggling instability that would erupt cathartically a year later with ''Here, My Dear''." After the concert was over following Gaye saying "Thank you!" over and over almost in sing-song medley as the band opened and closed with the intro to " I Want You", Gaye launches into the studio effort, his one attempt at making a convincing "

record", the

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mi ...

track, "

". Recorded at Gaye's Los Angeles studio, Marvin's Room, the singer vocalized a song where the author is longing to get out of his shy cover and get on the dance floor with reckless abandon. The original song runs for nearly twelve minutes, however, a single version of "Got to Give It Up" was released featuring a four-and-a-half minute

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

Reception

"Got to Give It Up", which became a #1 hit on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

pop and R&B/Soul singles chart, as well as a #1 hit on the

Hot Dance/Disco Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as ...

chart, later influenced songs composed and performed by

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the " King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over ...

.Weinger (1999), pp. 6-9. The first of which, "

Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground) "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" is a song recorded by The Jacksons for their 1978 album ''Destiny'', and released as a single the same year. It peaked at No. 7 in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in May 1979. Background The most successful of t ...

", featuring

The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...

, had Michael singing in the same manner, style and voice pitch as Gaye had during the closing chant in "Got to Give It Up": "Let's dance/let's shout/get funky what it's all about!", while his solo #1 hit, "

Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" is a single written and recorded by American singer Michael Jackson. Released under Epic Records on July 10, 1979, the song is the first track on Jackson's fifth studio album '' Off the Wall'' (1979). It was the ...

", was strongly influenced by "Got to Give It Up". Soon after, ''Live at the London Palladium'' became one of Gaye's best-selling and most commercially successful albums during his late-Motown period, reaching the top of the

Soul Albums In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

chart and peaking at #3 on the

Pop Albums The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists ...

chart. Critical recognition of the album was also favorable and continued following the album's reissue on compact disc. In late 1977, ''Live at the London Palladium'' remained in the top 10 for thirteen weeks and went on to sell two million copies becoming one of the top ten best-selling albums of that year in America. The album was Gaye's last official live release until a July 1980 show at the

Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annual ...

was released as a CD in 2003 though live bootleg copies of Gaye's 1979

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

tour and 1983 North American tour have been released in small labels over the years.

Track listing

Original LP

Original 1977 US vinyl LP double album.

Side one

# "Intro Theme" ( Ross, Ware) – 2:32 # "All the Way Round" (Ross, Ware) – 5:15 # "Since I Had You" (Gaye, Ware) – 4:15 # "

" (Gaye) – 2:02 # "

" (Gaye,

Townsend Townsend (pronounced tounʹ-zənd) or Townshend may refer to: Places United States *Camp Townsend, National Guard training base in Peekskill, New York *Townsend, Delaware *Townsend, Georgia *Townsend, Massachusetts, a New England town ** Townsend ...

) – 6:40

Side two

# " Trouble Man" (Gaye) – 6:17 # Medley I – 8:40: #* "

Ain't That Peculiar "Ain't That Peculiar" is a 1965 song recorded by American soul musician Marvin Gaye for the Tamla (Motown) label. Background The single was produced by Smokey Robinson, and written by Robinson, and fellow Miracles members Bobby Rogers, Pete Mo ...

" #* " You're a Wonderful One" #* "

Stubborn Kind of Fellow "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" is a 1962 song recorded by Marvin Gaye for the Tamla label. Co-written by Gaye and produced by William "Mickey" Stevenson, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" became Gaye's first hit single, reaching the top 10 of the R&B chart ...

" #* " Pride & Joy" #* "

Little Darling (I Need You) "Little Darling (I Need You)" is a 1966 single written and produced by Holland-Dozier-Holland and recorded and released by Marvin Gaye on the Tamla label. Background This song was released after the modest success of the Miracles-produced sin ...

" #* "

I Heard It Through the Grapevine "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is a song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for Motown Records in 1966. The first recording of the song to be released was produced by Whitfield for Gladys Knight & the Pips and released as a ...

" #* "

Hitch Hike Hitchhiking (also known as thumbing, autostop or hitching) is a means of transportation that is gained by asking individuals, usually strangers, for a ride in their car or other vehicle. The ride is usually, but not always, free. Nomads hav ...

" #* " You" #* "

Too Busy Thinking About My Baby "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" is a Motown song written by Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, and Janie Bradford. The song was first recorded by The Temptations as a track on their 1966 album '' Gettin' Ready''. Eddie Kendricks sings lead on the ...

" #* "

How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You) "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" is a song recorded by American soul singer Marvin Gaye from his fifth studio album of the same name (1965). It was written in 1964 by the Motown songwriting team of Holland–Dozier–Holland, and produce ...

" # Medley II – 9:40: #* "

Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)", often shortened to "Inner City Blues", is a song by Marvin Gaye, released as the third and final single, and the climactic song from his 1971 landmark album, '' What's Going On''. Written by Gaye and J ...

" #* " God Is Love" #* " What's Going On" #* "

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic ...

Side three

# Medley III (Performed by Gaye & Florence Lyles) – 12:01 #* "

You're All I Need to Get By "You're All I Need to Get By" is a song recorded by the American R&B/soul duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell and released on Motown Records' Tamla label in 1968. It was the basis for the 1995 single "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Ge ...

" #* "

Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" is a 1968 single released by American R&B/soul duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, on the Tamla label in 1968. The B-side of the single is "Little Ole Boy, Little Ole Girl" from the duo's ''United'' LP. The ...

" #* "

Your Precious Love "Your Precious Love" is a popular song that was a 1967 hit for Motown singers Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. The song was written by Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson, and produced by Harvey Fuqua and Johnny Bristol. The doo-wop styled recor ...

" #* " It Takes Two" #* "

Ain't No Mountain High Enough "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 ...

" # "

" (G. Fuqua, Gaye, Greene) – 5:20 # "Closing Theme / I Want You" (Ross, Ware) – 3:00

Side four

" (Gaye) – 11:53

CD reissue

1999 compact disc reissue. #"Intro Theme" – 2:34 #"All the Way Round" – 3:50 #"Since I Had You" – 4:59 #"

" – 2:24 #"

" – 6:21 #" Trouble Man" – 5:39 #"Medley I: Ain't That Peculiar/You're a Wonderful One/Stubborn Kind of Fellow/Pride & Joy/Little Darling (I Need You)/I Heard It Through the Grapevine/Hitch Hike/You/Too Busy Thinking About My Baby/How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)" – 8:49 #"Medley II: Inner City Blues/God Is Love/What's Going On/Save the Children" – 9:49 #"Medley III: You're All I Need to Get By/Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing/Your Precious Love/It Takes Two/Ain't No Mountain High Enough" – 10:27 #"Thanks" – 1:05 #"

" – 6:31 #"Closing Theme: I Want You" – 3:47 #"Got to Give It Up" – 11:52

Charts

Album

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Singles

Personnel

Odell Brown Odell Elliott Brown Jr. (February 2, 1940 – May 3, 2011) was an American jazz organist. He was active in the late 1960s and early 1970s, playing soul jazz and jazz funk with his backing band as Odell Brown & the Organ-Izers. Biography Brown was ...

- synthesizer *Elmira Amos - percussion *

Jack Ashford Jack Ashford (born May 18, 1934), known to his friends as Jashford, is an American musician widely known as the percussionist for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band during the 1960s and early 1970s. Ashford is most famous for playing th ...

- tambourine *

Frankie Beverly Frankie Beverly (born Howard Beverly, December 6, 1946) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and producer, known primarily for his recordings with the soul and funk band Maze. Beverly formed Maze, originally called Raw Soul, in his ho ...

- spoons and milk bottle *Gerald "Get Down" Brown - bass guitar *Walter Cox - vocals * Terry Evans - guitar *Bobby Gant - vocals *

Frankie Gaye Frankie Gaye (born Frances Gay; November 15, 1941 – December 30, 2001) was an American recording artist and the brother of fellow recording artist Marvin Gaye. Gaye's recollections of his tenure in the Vietnam War inspired Marvin's song " What ...

- background vocals *Marvin Gaye - vocals, keyboards, RMI bass synthesizer, juice bottle, producer (tracks: A1 to C3) *David Ly - saxophone *Florence Lyles - duet vocalist *Gwanda Hambrick - vocals *Fernando Harkness - saxophone *Jan Hunter - background vocals *Hiro Ito – photography *Johnny McGhee - guitar * Nolan Andrew Smith - trumpet *Michael Stanton - electric piano *Art Stewart – producer (tracks: D1) *Melvin Webb - conga *Bugsy Wilcox - drums *Richard D. Young – photography

Notes

References

* {{Authority control Albums produced by Marvin Gaye 1977 live albums Marvin Gaye live albums Tamla Records live albums Albums recorded at the London Palladium Albums produced by Art Stewart

Background

Music

Reception

Track listing

Original LP

Side one

Side two

Side three

Side four

CD reissue

Charts

Album

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Singles

Personnel

See also

Notes

References