The photo of Marvin Gaye was taken for People Magazine and was taken about a year before he died. Marvin had just released his record "Midnight Love".

Neal Preston believes that this was the last major shoot before Marvin Gay's death. The shooting takes place in Martin's father's house, the very place where the singer is murdered a year later.

When Neal enters the house, Marvin Gay is more than friendly, almost scratched! His clothes look so big. He looks extremely thin and the shoot can't start until Marvin finds a joint. Marvin Gaye is sure he has a joint, so the singer and the photographer search the whole house for this joint. Even under the couch, everywhere to no avail. So it has to go without.

Not only Paper magazine later published these images, but Rolling Stone Magazine used an image from this series as its cover a year later.

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The Story behind the Picture – by Neal Preston



Neal Preston - Exhilarated and Exhausted

BOOK TIP

Neal Preston is one of the greatest rock photographers of all time. "Exhilarated and Exhausted" is an unrestricted retrospective of his 40-year career. This was produced in collaboration with Neal and is the first time he has granted unrestricted access to his legendary archive – it is considered one of the most important and extensive photo collections in the music industry. This extraordinary band is a who's who of rock kings.

Neal has been the official tour photographer for Led Zeppelin, Queen, Bruce Springsteen and The Who, and has also photographed extensively the Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, Michael Jackson and many more.

The book includes his portraits, backstage moments, live performances, post-performance highs and lows, and outtakes. Neal's photographs vibrate with a palpable and inimitable intensity. Neal is a true insider, and the images are brought to life by his liner text – a stunning insight into life as a rock 'n' roll photographer on tour.