Marvin Gaye

This is one of the greatest albums of the past 50 years, and it's just as sublime, sad and beautiful today as it was in 1971. You don't even need to listen to the lyrics -- though you should, eventually. A few bars of Marvin's haunted and heavy voice is enough to bring tears to your eyes and make the album's macro-political themes sound urgently personal. This remixed deluxe edition, originally released in 2001, sounds great and includes a wonderful live show culled from a 1972 performance at the Kennedy Center.

"alternate Detroit mix" useless, concert version hornier and less strung up ("Head Title," "Sixties Medley: That's the Way Love Is/You/I Heard It Through the Grapevine/Little Darling [I Need You]/You're All I Need to Get By/Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing/Your Precious Love/Pride and Joy/Stubborn Kind of Fellow") (Grade - **)