Personnel: Marvin Gaye (vocals); David T. Walker, Ray Parker (guitar); James Getzoff, Jack Shulman (violin); Ernie Watts (saxophone); Paul Hubinon (trumpet); George Bohanon (trombone); Joe Sample (keyboards); James Jamerson (bass); Ed Green (drums); Joe Clayton (congas); John Arnold (percussion); Eric Dolen, Charles Burns, Dwight Owens, Michael Torrance, Wally Cox (background vocals).

Recorded live at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California on January 4, 1974. Originally released on Tamla (333). Includes liner notes by David Ritz.

Digitally remastered using 20-bit technology by Kevin Reeves (Polygram Studios, Edison, New Jersey).

This 1974 concert documents a superb performer at the height of his popularity. The show was a rare treat for fans, since Gaye was just coming off a three-year, self-imposed period of isolation and a refusal to sing in public. The artist's reputed nervousness and fragility are nowhere in evidence, however, as he burns through superior treatments of such classics as "Trouble Man," What's Going On," "Inner City Blues," "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)," and the unsurpassable "Let's Get It On."

Gaye croons with soulful intensity throughout, in a sweet and silky tenor. If the waves of female screams emanating from the audience are any indication, his voice is doing exactly what it should. A definitive version of "Distant Lover" proves a particular highlight for the excitable crowd. Gene Page's jazz-tinted orchestrations frame Gaye's performances nicely, and the band lends the proceedings an air that is equal parts raw groove and smooth sophistication. MARVIN GAYE LIVE! is an outstanding disc, showcasing one of soul and pop music's greatest voices.