Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye

Rating:
Summary: Excellent, a provocative telling of a Singer's tortured life
Review: For those of us who only know Marvin Gaye from late night listenings of his soulful, sultry songs, David Ritz's "Divided Soul" let's us know excatly what went on when the music stopped. You meet the Gaye Family and get to know about the struggles between Father, Mother and Son that would have made a perfect "Greek Tragedy". David Ritz's book definetly let's you know that All that glitters is not Gold, and it makes you hope that even though Marvin lost his life, perhaps he was able to save his Soul.

Rating:
Summary: The Essence of the Divided Soul
Review: Here, David Ritz penned a masterpiece about a master of song. His chapter by chapter usage of the Spirit and soul as transitional tools in identifying not only the essence of the man but also the essence of the man's music and how the two relate is simply ... great! He begins in rural Kentucky on the day that Marvin's father was born into a violent family. The father, attempting to excell spiritually, becomes a minister and falls short of his goal.His son inherits not only the spiritual aspects of the father but the tragic division of his father's soul that eventually determines his worldly fate. Marvin's three octave vocal chords jet him pass the average good singer and propel him into stardom...enabling him to approach the heavens. His soaring tenor voice and musical apptitude take him to the mountaintop where he loves the Master, Jesus, but ignores the biblical example. He embraces the satanic white powder instead of ordering it to " get thee behind me", just as his father approached the mountaintop and "dashed his foot" after a long and perilous fall. Ritz masterfully captures the melody and the religion of both the protagonist and the antagonist as they soar towards the ethereal plane only to bump the glass ceiling and abruptly fall prey to the best tools used by satan in the current era...alcohol and cocaine. The final chapters accentuate the all to familiar theme of the divided soul...good vs evil; in Marvin's words,"evil seems to always win". Maybe so...maybe not. At least one former coke addict has said" get thee behind me satan" as a direct result of reading this monumental work!

Rating:
Summary: A great,informative read
Review: I found this book to reveal so much about this troubled man. I could not believe the thoughts he had about life. I really enjoyed reading it though.

Rating:
Summary: 3 times...
Review: I have read this book three times and learn something new everytime. I never knew Marvin, but this book made me feel like I did.

Rating:
Summary: 3 Times
Review: I read this book three times. I don't read anything three times! If you want to know about the man, the music, his life, you must read this book. We have the music of this legend, but you will feel his words, his life coming through each page. I'm glad we have this book since Marvin is long gone. This is a must read!

Rating:
Summary: Don't pass this one up
Review: I read this book when it was first released. To this day, I still recognize it as one of the best biographies I've ever read. I'm such a fan of this book that I passed my original copy around for months to make sure not one of my friends or family missed this. David Ritz cut to the chase and made me put aside all my preconceived ideas about Marvin's life and death. At once Marvin Gaye's life and untimely death became real, painful and surprisingly personal to me. I highly recommend this book to anyone who appreciates an unflinchingly honest, richly detailed and flawless account of a life, especially one as complicated as Marvin's.

Rating:
Summary: Divided Issues With Divided Soul
Review: I was fascinated while reading Divided Soul. . . up until the last few chapters, where Ritz sprints through the most tragic events of Gaye's life at the speed of light. He provided much more detail at the beginning; from his birth, religious upbringing, and Motown, etc. However, I don't feel that Ritz gave me a clear understanding of the last few years of Gaye's life. I also had some reservations about the fact that Gaye and Ritz were in a financial conflict regarding royalties to "Sexual Healing" at the time of Gaye's death. Could Ritz give a reader an accurate picture, free of bias? While the book did seem objective at times, at others it seemed malicious and derogatory...
Overall, Divided Soul was a good book, worthy of reading.

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Summary: A candid and sad insight into Marvin's rollercoaster life.
Review: I've just finished _Divided Soul_ and it gave me an insight into Marvin's rollercoaster world that I had never dreamed he endured (and caused). The book is simultaneously informative, candid, and sad. At times, Marvin's behavior is so arrogant that I had to quit reading. Yet, I found myself crying at the end as I read the final seconds of Gaye's all too brief life. Ritz is a keen observer who gives fair and objective accounts of such prominent figures in Marvin's life as Berry Gordy and Anna Gaye. This book has definitely opened my eyes to the divided soul of the beautiful Marvin Gaye.

Rating:
Summary: Grapevine...Suck On That One!
Review: If your looking for a good Gaye bio pick up ''GRAPEVINE'' by Sharon Davis. It combines the best parts of this book...and ''GRAPEVINE'' is a smoother read.

Rating:
Summary: Grapevine...Suck On That One!
Review: If your looking for a good Gaye bio pick up ''GRAPEVINE'' by Sharon Davis. It combines the best parts of this book...and ''GRAPEVINE'' is a smoother read.