• After the Dance

  • My Life with Marvin Gaye
  • By: Jan Gaye
  • Narrated by: Robin Eller
  • Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (569 ratings)

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After the Dance  By  cover art

After the Dance

By: Jan Gaye
Narrated by: Robin Eller
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Publisher's summary

Dear Cary meets Confessions of a Video Vixen in this searing memoir of drugs, sex, and old school R&B from the wife of legendary soul icon Marvin Gaye.

On her 17th birthday in 1973, Janice Hunter met Marvin Gaye - the soulful prince of Motown with the seductive liquid voice whose chart-topping, socially conscious album What's Going On made him a superstar two years earlier. Despite a 16-year-age difference and Marvin's marriage to the sister of Berry Gordy, Motown's founder, the star-struck teenager and the emotionally volatile singer began a scorching relationship.

One moment Jan was studying high school history; the next she was accompanying Marvin to parties with other pop stars, lounging with Don Cornelius on the set of Soul Train, and helping to discover new talent like Frankie Beverly. But the distractions and burdens of fame, the chaos of dysfunctional families, and the irresistible temptations of drugs overshadowed the love they shared and their marriage disintegrated.

Silent since Marvin's tragic death in 1984, Jan at last opens up, sharing the moving, erotically charged story of one of music history's most fabled marriages. Unsparing in its honesty and insight, After the Dance reveals what it's like to ride shotgun on a wave of fame and self-destruction with a tortured genius who helped transform popular culture and whose artistry continues to be celebrated today.

©2015 Jan Gaye (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about After the Dance

Average customer ratings
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A must read

A great book by Jan who was the closest, on and off to Marvin Gaye for the last decade of his life. Very interesting read for all fans of Marvin.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Very good read!

I love how she unapologetically told her truth about her life with Marvin Gaye! A very good read!

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Awesome

Enjoyed every minute of this tittle. I have awkward been a fan of Marvin Gaye!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Mind Blowing

Jan gave is a dynamic look in graphic detail about her life with Marvin! A must read.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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When the Dance is Over...

What made the experience of listening to After the Dance the most enjoyable?

Learning thing about Marvin Gaye's life.

What was one of the most memorable moments of After the Dance?

Even though it was sad but reading about Marvin's paranoia - his fear of performing live (who would have thought the man that sang sexual healing dealt with insecurity)

What about Robin Eller’s performance did you like?

Her voice was very calming. It felt as though Jan Gaye was reading the audiobook herself - Robin really connected with the story.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

When the Dance is Over...

Any additional comments?

Highly recommend!

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6 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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Great story

Loved the story but didn't care for the narrator. Needed more emotion in the actual reading of story. I prefer when the actual Author narrate their own story. Other than that, it was a beautiful, but tragic love story.

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3 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Good Read

Very honest book that gave a different perspective on Marvin Gaye and his love life. i can tell he loved her very much but drugs ruined many lives. I did get sick of hearing about how much they broke up and got back together, it was very cyclical and unhealthy. Jane was so young and insecure, she literally praised Marvin and became an enabler. overall good good and shout out to Jane for being so brave to share her truth.

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1 person found this helpful

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Uninhibited tell the artistry creativity and deceit

Amazing story kept me on the edge of my seat from Marvin Gaye's wife Janice Gaye

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    5 out of 5 stars
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tragic...

The narrator was so dry. it was horrible listening to such a captivating story with such a vacant narrator. nonetheless the testimony was kind blowing. unbelievable.

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The Raw Insight

This book is well written and rich with context organization and insight. Janis Gaye gives you a look into one of the greatest artist in modern times, Mr. Marvin Gaye. You also get a look into her life and her mindset. Although the book can be sad at times it also reeks with redemption and undying love. This book is essentially a love story between two people who struggle is the shadows searching for the light. This book is definitely worth your ear.

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