20 Years Ago, Marv Gaye Took 'Natnal Anthem' To New Heights : NPR

Contents:

• 20 YEARS AGO, MARV GAYE TOOK 'NATNAL ANTHEM' TO NEW HEIGHTS
• FEBARY 13, 1983: THE AFTERNOON MARV GAYE REVOLUTNIZED THE SGG OF THE NATNAL ANTHEM
• FLASHBACK: MARV GAYE REIMAG ‘THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER’ 1983
• MARV GAYE’S INIC NBA ALL-STAR GAME NATNAL ANTHEM: ‘HE TURNED THAT THG TO HIS OWN’
• MARV GAYE'S ALL-STAR GAME NATNAL ANTHEM PERFORMANCE: LOOKG BACK AT THE FG MOMENT OM 1983
• REVIS MARV GAYE'S REVOLUTNARY NATNAL ANTHEM
• THE ALL-STAR ANTHEMPJ MCQUA/;PJ MCQUA/FACEBOOKTWTERFACEBOOK MSENGEREMAILPETE CROATTOFEB 15, 2013, 03:00 AM ETFACEBOOKTWTERFACEBOOK MSENGERPTERTEMAILPRTIT WAS EARLY AFTERNOON INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA, ABOUT 10 MUT BEFORE THE 12:30 P.M. TELEVISED START OF THE 1983 NBA ALL-STAR GAME, AND AMANDA MAYO WAS A BROOM CLOSET.TWENTY MUT EARLIER, A PANICKED LON ROSEN, THE LAKERS' DIRECTOR OF PROMOTNS, HAD ASKED THE 24-YEAR-OLD TEAM EMPLOYEE TO GET READY. THE PLANNED PREGAME ACT WAS NEARLY TWO HOURS LATE AND, SPE THE VERY HOLLYWOOD CROWD GATHERED AT THE FOM, ROSEN ULDN'T FD ANY SGERS TO FILL . SO THE HER WH PERFECT PCH, THE ACTRS'S DGHTER WHO HAD TALKED HER WAY TO THE TEAM'S ROTATN OF NATNAL ANTHEM SGERS, WOULD HAVE TO PERFORM.THE SMALL SPACE UNR THE FOM'S STAIRS WAS THE PREFERRED WARM-UP SPOT FOR MAYO, WHOSE MOTHER, JA BLAIR, WAS THE STAR OF A STRG OF MILS AND EDI THE 1940S. SHE DIDN'T MD THE LAST-SEND REQUTS. THERE WAS NO TIME TO OBSS OR WORRY, THOUGH SHE DID NTACT HER BROTHER AND LET HIM KNOW WHAT MIGHT BE G. "CALL EVERYBODY," SHE TOLD HIM.SURROUND BY NCRETE WALLS AND WH AN DIENCE OF A MOP AND BROOM, MAYO THOUGHT ABOUT THE MAGNU OF THE SCENE, AND THE EXCEMENT SURROUNDG THE MIL LEGEND SHE WAS ABOUT TO REPLACE. ONE THOUGHT, HOWEVER, LGERED ABOVE THE SPECTACLE."I REALLY WANTED HIM TO SHOW UP THE END," SHE REMEMBERS.HE DID.ROSEN LISTENED TO MARV GAYE'S TAKE ON "THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER" OM THE SRER'S TABLE AT CENTER URT. HE LOVED WHAT HE HEARD, BUT STILL HAD NCERNS. GAYE'S RENDN WAS A BREAK TRADN, AND JUDGG BY THE ENZIED RPONSE OF 17,505 ATTEN, ROSEN KNEW PLENTY OF PEOPLE MIGHT FD DISRPECTFUL. ONE THG, HOWEVER, WAS IMMEDIATELY CLEAR: NBA MISSNER LARRY O'BRIEN SURE DID.DURG THE FIRST QUARTER, O'BRIEN LET ROSEN HAVE . THE NVERSATN WAS SHORT AND "VERY LORFUL," SAYS ROSEN, WHO CLED TO GO TO SPECIFICS.MARV GAYE HAD BEEN ONE OF ROSEN'S MIL HERO. NOW ROSEN WAS SURE GAYE WAS GOG TO GET HIM FIRED. AT HALFTIME, ROSEN HAD TO CHECK WH LAKERS OWNER JERRY BS. THE WALK TO THE PRIVATE BOX WAS EXCCIATGLY LONG; FELT LIKE HE WAS HEADG TO THE PRCIPAL'S OFFICE."WHAT'S THE MATTER?" BS ASKED.ROSEN TOLD HIM."THAT WAS THE GREATT ANTHEM OF ALL TIME," BS REPLIED. "ARE YOU KIDDG?"IT'S BEEN 30 YEARS SCE MARV GAYE'S GROUNDBREAKG NATNAL ANTHEM, AND AT THIS POT, 'S HARD TO QUTN S IMPACT ON POP CULTURE. GAYE ME BEFORE WHNEY HOTON'S TRIUMPH TAMPA … AND FOR ROSEANNE BARR'S CROTCH-GRABBG EMBARRASSMENT SAN DIEGO. AND HIS RENDN FLUENCED THE NBA, WHOSE "HISTORY WAS BEG VENTED AS WE SPOKE," SAYS GOLN STATE WARRRS PRINT RICK WELTS, WHO WORKED THE LEAGUE OFFICE OM 1982 TO 1999 AND CREATED ALL-STAR WEEKEND. VENERABLE BASKETBALL WRER JACK MCCALLUM SAYS GAYE'S PERFORMANCE SIGNIFIED THE LEAGUE PLANTG S FLAG AS "A CULTURAL LEAR."AT THE TIME, HOWEVER, "YOU DIDN'T HEAR PASSNATE VERSNS OF 'THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER,' WHICH IS WHY 'S A MISTAKE TO HAVE AT 10,000 BASEBALL GAM," SAYS MIC WRER DAVE MARSH. "IT DILUT THE MEANG THE SONG HAS. IT'S SOMETHG THAT ALONG LIKE THE FIVE O'CLOCK TRA." GAYE'S BGRAPHER AND IEND DAVID RZ SAYS THE PERFORMANCE OFFERED A SOCIAL MENTARY AND REVEALED THE SGER'S SOUL. IT WAS A CHALLENGE TO THE AMERIN JGOISM EMBRACED BY PRINT REAGAN — AND AN SI JOKE: HERE'S A FUNKY, DISTCTIVELY BLACK VERSN THAT'S REPRENTATIVE OF WHAT'S ON THE URT.MARV GAYE'S NATNAL ANTHEMAUD CLIPS URTY OF GAYE'S GUARIST AND MIL DIRECTOR, GORDON BANKS. THE FIRST IS GAYE PRACTICG WH A DIFFERENT BEAT; THE SEND IS THE BEAT ED AT THE ALL-STAR GAME.CLICK HERE FOR D
• THE PLAYERS’ ANTHEM: WHEN MARV GAYE SANG ‘THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER’ AT THE 1983 ALL-STAR GAME
• MARV GAYE'S INIC PERFORMANCE OF THE NATNAL ANTHEM THAT WOWED THE WORLD
• MARV GAYE SGS THE NATNAL ANTHEM
• WHNEY HOTON VS. MARV GAYE: WHO SANG THE BT STAR SPANGLED BANNER?
• MARV GAYE’S NATNAL ANTHEM
• MARV GAYE'S SOULFUL 'THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER' AT 1983 NBA ALL-STAR GAME IS NATNAL HEALG

20 YEARS AGO, MARV GAYE TOOK 'NATNAL ANTHEM' TO NEW HEIGHTS

Marv Gaye was always a le-breaker, and when he had the opportuny to sg the natnal anthem at the 1983 NBA All-Star Game, the “Prce Of Motown” did his way.

Gaye raised some eyebrows, but he also raised the bar for all future “Star-Spangled Banner” performanc. To prepare for her performance at Super Bowl XXV, Hoton took a cue om Marv Gaye’s inic versn and had the song arranged at a slower pace. 20 Years Ago, Marv Gaye Took 'Natnal Anthem' To New Heights.

FEBARY 13, 1983: THE AFTERNOON MARV GAYE REVOLUTNIZED THE SGG OF THE NATNAL ANTHEM

It was 20 years ago, at the 1983 NBA All-Star Game, that Marv Gaye stole the show wh his sgular rendn of "The Star-Spangled Banner. Marv Gaye was the middle of a pretty remarkable eback when the NBA tapped him to perform the Natnal Anthem at the 1983 All-Star Game. While many of his Motown peers were trapped on the oldi circu, Gaye briefly seemed like he’d be a huge mercial force the MTV-era.

Few people realized that Gaye’s growg e addictn was g his life to spiral pletely out of ntrol.

Marv Gaye’s natnal anthem remas the most legendary moment of the game (and pretty much any other All-Star Game of the era). So much so, was nsired a big ask when then-Suns owner Jerry Colangelo went to CBS Sports print Bob Wsler 1975 requtg two mut at the top of the work’s upg broadst of the All-Star Game Phoenix so crooner Andy Williams uld sg “By The Time I Get to Phoenix” wh Henry Manci’s was to this vanilla void that stepped Marv Pentz Gay Jr., on Feb.

FLASHBACK: MARV GAYE REIMAG ‘THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER’ 1983

Addg an E to his surname, Marv Gaye beme one of Motown’s biggt stars durg nearly two s wh the label, a mil leviathan whose semal 1971 album “What’s Gog On” was voted, almost 50 years later, as the greatt album of all time by Rollg Stone. But Gaye’s voice — stirrg, sultry and fiant all at once — had bee vox ’s reer was a paeon to survivg life’s tribulatns and perseverg. Fans claimed all of , the angelic croong and the flawed the early ’80s, Gaye had aga fallen to prsn.

MARV GAYE’S INIC NBA ALL-STAR GAME NATNAL ANTHEM: ‘HE TURNED THAT THG TO HIS OWN’

The album featured the h “Sexual Healg, ” which got Gaye back to the top of the charts at age 43. Ten days after his performance at the All-Star game, Gaye won his first Grammy. (Armando Gallo / Getty Imag)In ’83, Gaye was the send choice to sg the anthem at the All-Star game.

MARV GAYE'S ALL-STAR GAME NATNAL ANTHEM PERFORMANCE: LOOKG BACK AT THE FG MOMENT OM 1983

“(Gaye) end up sayg, ‘OK, I’ll e back tomorrow wh a shorter versn.

”Seemgly at the last mute, Gaye arrived, walkg down the center aisle of the Fom, drsed to the n, wh a ssette tape his hand.

REVIS MARV GAYE'S REVOLUTNARY NATNAL ANTHEM

It was the dm track that had been laid down Saturday by Gaye and his longtime llaborator, guarist Gordon Banks, at Gaye’s sister’s hoe L. ”Thomas said they went backstage to meet Gaye after the show. It was all he uld to keep his mouth om htg the years later, he was centerstage wh Gaye at the All-Star Game.

But if Hoton’s adaptatn f neatly to the jgoistic narrative of a natn at war, Gaye’s versn spoke to a different kd of patrtism, one which Black Amerins were, still, wag for the untry to do what said was gog to do. ”In a 1987 Showtime special about his life and reer — premierg three years after Gaye was shot and killed 1984 by his father, Marv Gay Sr., followg an argument at his parents’ Los Angel home — Gaye said, “I felt that sgg wh that kd of mic the background gave me an spiratn. All-Star Game, they say, ‘That’s the Marv Gaye natnal anthem game, '” Thomas like the anthem were still sacrosanct.

Gaye had sung the anthem before sportg events many tim, but wh more of the tradnal October 1968, Gaye sang the anthem Detro before Game 4 of the World Seri between the Tigers and Cardals. When Gaye sang the anthem at the World Seri, he sang straight, at the requt of the Tigers’ legendary play-by-play man, Ernie Harwell, who was charge of pickg anthem sgers durg the Seri.

THE ALL-STAR ANTHEMPJ MCQUA/;PJ MCQUA/FACEBOOKTWTERFACEBOOK MSENGEREMAILPETE CROATTOFEB 15, 2013, 03:00 AM ETFACEBOOKTWTERFACEBOOK MSENGERPTERTEMAILPRTIT WAS EARLY AFTERNOON INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA, ABOUT 10 MUT BEFORE THE 12:30 P.M. TELEVISED START OF THE 1983 NBA ALL-STAR GAME, AND AMANDA MAYO WAS A BROOM CLOSET.TWENTY MUT EARLIER, A PANICKED LON ROSEN, THE LAKERS' DIRECTOR OF PROMOTNS, HAD ASKED THE 24-YEAR-OLD TEAM EMPLOYEE TO GET READY. THE PLANNED PREGAME ACT WAS NEARLY TWO HOURS LATE AND, SPE THE VERY HOLLYWOOD CROWD GATHERED AT THE FOM, ROSEN ULDN'T FD ANY SGERS TO FILL . SO THE HER WH PERFECT PCH, THE ACTRS'S DGHTER WHO HAD TALKED HER WAY TO THE TEAM'S ROTATN OF NATNAL ANTHEM SGERS, WOULD HAVE TO PERFORM.THE SMALL SPACE UNR THE FOM'S STAIRS WAS THE PREFERRED WARM-UP SPOT FOR MAYO, WHOSE MOTHER, JA BLAIR, WAS THE STAR OF A STRG OF MILS AND EDI THE 1940S. SHE DIDN'T MD THE LAST-SEND REQUTS. THERE WAS NO TIME TO OBSS OR WORRY, THOUGH SHE DID NTACT HER BROTHER AND LET HIM KNOW WHAT MIGHT BE G. "CALL EVERYBODY," SHE TOLD HIM.SURROUND BY NCRETE WALLS AND WH AN DIENCE OF A MOP AND BROOM, MAYO THOUGHT ABOUT THE MAGNU OF THE SCENE, AND THE EXCEMENT SURROUNDG THE MIL LEGEND SHE WAS ABOUT TO REPLACE. ONE THOUGHT, HOWEVER, LGERED ABOVE THE SPECTACLE."I REALLY WANTED HIM TO SHOW UP THE END," SHE REMEMBERS.HE DID.ROSEN LISTENED TO MARV GAYE'S TAKE ON "THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER" OM THE SRER'S TABLE AT CENTER URT. HE LOVED WHAT HE HEARD, BUT STILL HAD NCERNS. GAYE'S RENDN WAS A BREAK TRADN, AND JUDGG BY THE ENZIED RPONSE OF 17,505 ATTEN, ROSEN KNEW PLENTY OF PEOPLE MIGHT FD DISRPECTFUL. ONE THG, HOWEVER, WAS IMMEDIATELY CLEAR: NBA MISSNER LARRY O'BRIEN SURE DID.DURG THE FIRST QUARTER, O'BRIEN LET ROSEN HAVE . THE NVERSATN WAS SHORT AND "VERY LORFUL," SAYS ROSEN, WHO CLED TO GO TO SPECIFICS.MARV GAYE HAD BEEN ONE OF ROSEN'S MIL HERO. NOW ROSEN WAS SURE GAYE WAS GOG TO GET HIM FIRED. AT HALFTIME, ROSEN HAD TO CHECK WH LAKERS OWNER JERRY BS. THE WALK TO THE PRIVATE BOX WAS EXCCIATGLY LONG; FELT LIKE HE WAS HEADG TO THE PRCIPAL'S OFFICE."WHAT'S THE MATTER?" BS ASKED.ROSEN TOLD HIM."THAT WAS THE GREATT ANTHEM OF ALL TIME," BS REPLIED. "ARE YOU KIDDG?"IT'S BEEN 30 YEARS SCE MARV GAYE'S GROUNDBREAKG NATNAL ANTHEM, AND AT THIS POT, 'S HARD TO QUTN S IMPACT ON POP CULTURE. GAYE ME BEFORE WHNEY HOTON'S TRIUMPH TAMPA … AND FOR ROSEANNE BARR'S CROTCH-GRABBG EMBARRASSMENT SAN DIEGO. AND HIS RENDN FLUENCED THE NBA, WHOSE "HISTORY WAS BEG VENTED AS WE SPOKE," SAYS GOLN STATE WARRRS PRINT RICK WELTS, WHO WORKED THE LEAGUE OFFICE OM 1982 TO 1999 AND CREATED ALL-STAR WEEKEND. VENERABLE BASKETBALL WRER JACK MCCALLUM SAYS GAYE'S PERFORMANCE SIGNIFIED THE LEAGUE PLANTG S FLAG AS "A CULTURAL LEAR."AT THE TIME, HOWEVER, "YOU DIDN'T HEAR PASSNATE VERSNS OF 'THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER,' WHICH IS WHY 'S A MISTAKE TO HAVE AT 10,000 BASEBALL GAM," SAYS MIC WRER DAVE MARSH. "IT DILUT THE MEANG THE SONG HAS. IT'S SOMETHG THAT ALONG LIKE THE FIVE O'CLOCK TRA." GAYE'S BGRAPHER AND IEND DAVID RZ SAYS THE PERFORMANCE OFFERED A SOCIAL MENTARY AND REVEALED THE SGER'S SOUL. IT WAS A CHALLENGE TO THE AMERIN JGOISM EMBRACED BY PRINT REAGAN — AND AN SI JOKE: HERE'S A FUNKY, DISTCTIVELY BLACK VERSN THAT'S REPRENTATIVE OF WHAT'S ON THE URT.MARV GAYE'S NATNAL ANTHEMAUD CLIPS URTY OF GAYE'S GUARIST AND MIL DIRECTOR, GORDON BANKS. THE FIRST IS GAYE PRACTICG WH A DIFFERENT BEAT; THE SEND IS THE BEAT ED AT THE ALL-STAR GAME.CLICK HERE FOR D

”Years later, Gaye knew the signifince of the urt where he stood, the magnu of the players led up behd him and the timacy of the the end of the first le — which Gaye shortened to “Say, n you see, ” omtg the openg “Oh” — the crowd began gaspg and squealg. ”Gaye started rampg up towards the end of the song, turng up the passn on his lounge vibe.

THE PLAYERS’ ANTHEM: WHEN MARV GAYE SANG ‘THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER’ AT THE 1983 ALL-STAR GAME

”Gaye bent the song to his will and tempo, gog fast on some sectns, slowg down others. ”When Gaye fished, Rosen said, “He walked right out of the buildg, and I never saw him aga.

Rosen thought he was gog to be fired, after O’Brien, as Rosen relled, “tore me a new (one)” when Gaye was fished.

Fortunately for Rosen, his immediate boss, the late Jerry Bs, the Lakers’ owner, loved Gaye’s rendn, so his job was time, what Bs regnized, what the players knew stantly, beme clearer to the mass. What happened that one night Inglewood beme the watershed moment Gaye’s performance not only legimized the A-list worths of the NBA All-Star Game and the league self, but opened the door for future artists to exprs the diversy of the U.

MARV GAYE'S INIC PERFORMANCE OF THE NATNAL ANTHEM THAT WOWED THE WORLD

Marv Gaye changed the way the US natnal anthem was performed at sportg events and elsewhere. Gaye was never even the first choice to sg the natnal anthem that year. However, Gaye's rendn seemed to have posively impacted the majory of the listeners.

Gaye had a tremendo fan followg among NBA circl, cludg yteryear All-Stars like Isiah Thomas and Magic Johnson.

MARV GAYE SGS THE NATNAL ANTHEM

Nobody before Marv Gaye tkered wh how the natnal anthem was sung prevly. Gaye himself always sang the anthem wh tradnal beats whenever he performed durg var events. Click here to read Isiah Thomas' ments on Marv Gaye's rendn of the natnal anthem at the 1983 All-Star Game.

WHNEY HOTON VS. MARV GAYE: WHO SANG THE BT STAR SPANGLED BANNER?

Marv Gaye's rendn opened the doors for artists to sg their own versn of the natnal anthem for s.

The artistic eedom that never existed back the day found a new spark after the 1983 All-Star game when Marv Gaye surprised and pulled everyone together at The Fom wh his betiful rendn of the natnal anthem.

This is thanks to the late legendary Marv Gaye, who opened the gat to a trend that has held up for s after his historic livery at the 1983 All-Star game. But nobody had told Marv Gaye that when he arrived at the 1983 NBA All-Star Game. Gaye already had two s of experience that helped qualify him to sg Ameri’s most patrtic song.

MARV GAYE’S NATNAL ANTHEM

Startg out as a ssns dmmer for The Funk Brothers Motown, Gaye slowly ma his way up the ladr until he was able to rve out a niche sgg duets wh fellow Motown star Tammi Terrell.

It was only after was stck down wh a bra tumour (the same one that would kill her at the tragilly young age of 24) that Gaye began feelg his way around a solo reer.

MARV GAYE'S SOULFUL 'THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER' AT 1983 NBA ALL-STAR GAME IS NATNAL HEALG

Across more than a of work, Gaye pneered a new genre of soul mic that me to be known as quiet storm. Legends didn’t get any bigger than Marv Gaye the early 1980s, but there was still room for one more novatn at least.