Divided Soul cover art

Divided Soul

The Life of Marvin Gaye

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Thousands of incredible audiobooks and podcasts to take wherever you go.
Immerse yourself in a world of storytelling with the Plus Catalogue - unlimited listening to thousands of select audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Divided Soul

By: David Ritz
Narrated by: Dion Graham
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Buy Now for £8.99

Buy Now for £8.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

In this intimate biography of the Prince of Soul, David Ritz provides a candid look at a star and a friend. Ritz had been collaborating with Marvin Gaye on his story for several years before the singer's tragic death and had conducted a series of extraordinary interviews in which Gaye discussed his deepest secrets. What emerges is a full-scale portrait of a charming but tortured artist, a brilliant singer with a divided soul.

Here is Marvin's story, from his early years in the slums of Washington, D.C. to his rise to the top of the Motown industry, his fall from grace, his comeback, and finally his sudden, shocking end at the hands of his own father. It is also the story of his glorious music and the music of Black America over the past 50 years, an epic tale whose cast of characters includes Diana Ross, Berry Gordie, Smokey Robinson, and Stevie Wonder.

©1991 David Ritz (P)1995 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Cultural & Regional Entertainment & Celebrities Music Sociology Celebrity

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Soul Survivor cover art
Me and Sister Bobbie cover art
Looking to Get Lost cover art
Temptations cover art
On Time cover art
Detroit 67 cover art
The Greatest cover art
Blood cover art
I've Had to Think Up a Way to Survive cover art
God Only Knows cover art
Eternal Troubadour cover art
Born to Run cover art
Johnny Cash cover art
High on Arrival cover art
The Polygamist’s Daughter cover art
After the Dance cover art

Critic reviews

"[David Ritz] tells Marvin Gaye's sorrowful story with remarkable insight and sensitivity....Divided Soul is often startlingly candid, but it manages to avoid lurid sensationalism, no mean feat given the particulars of the story: sex, drugs, child abuse, show business scandal." ( The Nation)
All stars
Most relevant  
Interesting but frustrating life story of a massive talent. Well written and entertainingly retold by the narrator of a life of strife and trouble of a man with huge abilities but also of self hamstringing and damage radiating outwards. By the end it is hard to envisage any other outcome than the self destruction that Marvin almost wills onto himself via his life long nemesis and part originator of his demons but this man’s talents should also be celebrated here as both sides of this sad story are excellently put together in a book length that is about right.

Great retelling of a tragic life self sabotaged and ruined despite huge talent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I love Marvin Gaye's music, his life was so complicated and messed up. This book captures his journey from cradle to grave. A very interesting listen.

What a complex and sad story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Beautifully narrated story of a tortured genius who’s music lives on still , find music biography’s so interesting

Divided soul

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Loved it. so deep, I feel so sorry for Marvin and his mother. Thanks Dave!

Excellent delivery

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I have always loved Marvin Gaye’s music, it was my youth, after listening to his story I feel a little different about the person. For all his talent, looks and obvious brain he wasn’t a good person. As is usual for people with so much talent those around him indulged him, helping him to be delusional. His mother I think held the key to his happiness and unhappiness.

Another total waste of a talent!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
In the early part of this book it reveals the treatment metered out by his father. Subsequently we see Marvin searching to regain a sense of adequate self, through using addictive substances and sex. A sad and troubled story.

Tragic, but somewhat predictable death of a tortured, spiritual genius.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
An excellent book would recommend to anyone not just Marvin fans. gives such an insight into his life and struggles.

Amazing Marvin

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
excellent so sad well narrated..easy to listen to.a hard life for such a great man

excellent so sad

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Loved it. Incredibly interesting all the way through. What a life. A great artist and a tortured human being

Spellbinding

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A truly powerful and moving read for me. As someone who has always admired Marvin Gaye's music, I found this biography incredibly eye-opening. David Ritz managed to capture not just the public figure but the man behind the voice – full of charm, contradictions, brilliance, and deep pain.

What stood out most was the raw honesty throughout the book. The interviews Marvin gave Ritz were deeply personal, and they revealed so much about his struggles – with fame, family, addiction, and his own identity. I felt like I was being given a rare glimpse into the mind of a genius, someone who gave the world so much yet battled so many demons behind closed doors.

Reading about his journey from the harsh realities of his childhood in Washington, D.C., to becoming a Motown legend, and eventually his tragic death at the hands of his own father, was heartbreaking. But it was also inspiring. His story is filled with highs and lows, and the book does a brilliant job of honouring both.

I also really appreciated how the book explored the wider landscape of Black American music. Seeing names like Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, and Berry Gordy brought Marvin’s world to life, and reminded me just how significant his contribution was.

Some parts were hard to read emotionally, but I am so glad I read this. I learned things about Marvin Gaye I never knew, and it gave me a new level of respect for him not just as an artist, but as a human being.

This book is more than a biography – it is a tribute to a complex, soulful man whose music and story still resonate so strongly today

More Than a Motown Legend. Great Read!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews