Welcome to the song of the day, where we feature a single track, whether its brand new or older than us, overlooked or overplayed, our favorite or no one’s favorite; as long as its interesting, it can be the song of the day.
Happy Marvin Gaye’s birthday! Gaye was born on this day in 1939 in DC and died almost exactly 44 years later on April 1, 1984 after his father shot him. He would be 79 today. Gaye’s version of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” was recorded in 1967 and released the following year.
It was originally written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong, who both worked with The Temptations throughout their respective careers and are members of the Songwriters Hall of Fame. The song was then recorded by The Miracles for their album Special Occasion, and then included on Gaye’s In The Groove. It was subsequently released as a single and became one of Motown Records biggest hits.