#what an end to the season in which they were out of Junior Nats because of covid

[barricadebops]

Combeferre's mom once came home to find her son and his two best friends, tangled, sleeping in the couch, she has that picture framed next to Ferre's high school diploma.

Hi anon! I’m so sorry this took so long! Forgive me? I really loved this prompt and I wanted to do it justice.

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Despite everything, Christmas and the holiday break surrounding the winter season had never really been stressful for Enjolras. Every year held the same routine: first Combeferre’s mother would sprint to the elementary school which soon gave way to the middle school which soon gave way to the high school he, Combeferre, and Courfeyrac would attend, and, gasping for breath, ask Enjolras if he would like to spend holiday break with their family. Right as Enjolras would open his mouth to answer the question, Courfeyrac’s mom would materialize out of the air and tug him to their side and ask him if he would like to spend holiday break at their house. Then each of the mother’s would demand to know how dare the other have the audacity to ask Enjolras to spend holiday break at her house when she knows that it’s her turn, and the fathers would passive aggressively try to nab the same parking spot to pick their son up from, and in the end, Enjolras would head home after having promised each family that he would think on it. Then, the next day, the cycle would start over again when both Combeferre and Courfeyrac latched onto either of his arms and tug, demanding he spend holiday break with him, and while he would scowl and pretend it’s an annoyance, he was never really able to tamp down the beam that would eventually make its way onto his face during the whole argument, and he knew that Combeferre and Courfeyrac too knew how much he loved it—loved feeling wanted, loved feeling like he’s part of a family even if he didn’t necessarily hold the blood relations within it, because God knew that what little he had of his family--his father--never welcomed him.

Usually, Enjolras alternated houses each holiday break, but it never stopped the arguments from occurring. 

This year would have been the same. He was gearing up for the arguments even though he knew that this year he would be spending his time at Combeferre’s house. 

But there were none. No one had to argue. There were no laughs or smiles or pretenses at being mad at each family as if they were the Montagues and the Capulets. 

This year, Enjolras spent the first day of his junior year holiday break curled up in Combeferre’s bed while his two best friends and each of their parents all stood downstairs in the living room, speaking in hushed tones about the only person who wasn’t present in the room. 

Beside the bed on the nightstand stood the few barebone possessions Enjolras had stored in his pocket when his father had finally thrown him out of the house. There laid his wallet, filled only with a few measly dollars and his ID and license, among a few other things, his phone, a pack of gum, and a granola bar wrapper. 

He doesn’t think sleep will come to him tonight. Not while the sight of the little he has left to his name stares at him, a reminder of the fact that his father believes he’s only valuable to be allowed a pack of gum as edibles when he locked the door in his face. 

Enjolras knows his father is no fool; he knows that as soon as he uttered the words “get out,” that his son would appear on the doorstep of either the Combeferres or the de Courferyacs, that they would plunge their household into an emergency situation and get him in the shower, into new clothes, into a new bed, after having some warm food—but he also knows that if they hadn’t been there for him, he wouldn’t care either way where his son ended up. 

And then Courfeyrac and his family had been called over, and here he was, shaking in bed, a nuisance, rather than be out there, discussing the logistics of the situation with everyone. 

He doesn’t think motion will come easy to him either for a while. 

The door creaks open, spilling streams of light from the bright hallway into the dark room, and he finds he has to squint to make out the distinct figure of Courfeyrac gently padding into the room and gingerly seating himself at his bedside, right beside his face. His best friend cards a gentle hand through his hair. 

“Combeferre?” he mumbles unintelligibly, wondering where he was. His mouth feels dry—like no amount of water will get rid of that sharp feeling when he swallows and his throat cries out for nourishment. 

Courfeyrac gives him a small smile. “He’s gone over to your house with his father. He’s getting your stuff.” 

Enjolras coughs. When had he been coming down with a cold? “He’s probably thrown it all away by now,” he responds, shutting his eyes for a moment, trying to ignore the little he has on the nightstand. Courfeyrac cards his hand through his hair once more, and Enjolras leans in a little closer. This touch, at least, is gentle. He hasn’t felt such a thing in a while. 

“That fast?” Courfeyrac asks quietly. He nods with another cough. His friend gives him a pained look, and Enjolras knows how it must pain him not to portray his comfort through some form of touch—it’s how Courfeyrac expresses love and care, and Enjolras doesn’t want to see that look on his face, and truth be told he too wants it, but he doesn’t know how to ask for it, not like this, not in this situation—

But then, Courfeyrac comes through, like he always does, because he’s always there, he’s always been there just as Combeferre has, since they each met each other in kindergarten and decided through means of their friendship bracelets that they would always be there for each other, like the first time Courfeyrac’s heart had been broken, or the first time Combeferre failed a biology exam and started to doubt his potential to pursue his dreams of becoming a doctor, or the first time Enjolras had the courage to tell his friends about the verbal abuses his father would throw him, and Courfeyrac is there, real and solid, he’s not just an apparition, or a friend his father says simply “tolerates him,” and he’s asking him, “Can I hug you?” 

And Enjolras is nodding, nodding because he needs this, he lets Courfeyrac wrap his arms around him tight, he caves in and fists his friend’s shirt, and reality is crashing down on him, but as real as his father’s words to never come back, as real as the uncertainty of his future is, so too is the reality of his friends’ love for him. 

And if they both fall asleep like that, and Combeferre gently opens the door to the sight of his two friends curled around each other, as if the past few hours never occurred, if he joins them on the bed, then that just serves as further proof that even if the world comes crumbling down around them, at least they’ll be together, salvaging what little they can and rebuilding their own, better world.

_________________________________________

They managed to retrieve most of his possessions, actually. 

Well. His father would argue that they’re really his possessions because they were bought with his money, but Combeferre and his father wouldn’t hear of it. The important thing is they retrieved the legal documents necessary, and quite a few of Enjolras’ clothes and books, amongst various other things. 

When they finish raiding the house, Enjolras’ father asks with a sneer to leave him alone from then on. 

How ridiculous, thinks Combeferre. If Enjolras was going to start living with his family now, he does realize there’s going to have to be some legal discussion on the transference of possession of a minor, doesn’t he?

---------------------------------------------------

They’re sitting on the couch, bundled underneath a blanket while Combeferre’s parents are out dealing with the legalities of the situation, and they are watching, of all shows, Maury, and Enjolras can’t stop complaining, but Courfeyrac won’t change it, even if he loathes the show (honestly just loathes daytime television—who actually enjoys this stuff?) because there—there—there’s that relaxed, unstressed attitude he’s been trying for so hard to coax from Enjolras in the past few weeks that Courfeyrac has been staying with Combeferre’s family, trying to ease Enjolras into this new transition with as much support as he can give. 

“You… are… the… FATHER!!!” Maury screams on tv, pointing to the man everyone already knew would have been. From his position—head in Enjolras’ lap, he can see the way Enjolras’ expressions contort to one of exasperation and irritation at having to watch something so unbelievably garbage. 

“Okay, you know who the father is, now can we please watch something else?” he asks for the hundredth time. 

Reaching up, he pokes a finger in Enjolras’ cheek. “But, Enjolras! There’s a new episode starting up right after this! Don’t you want to know about…” he casts his arm around for the remote, reading the description for the next episode, “...Garth cheating on Cheryl with her friend… Helen?” 

Enjolras looks down at him, incredulous. “Courfeyrac, please.” 

“Yes, Courfeyrac,” Combeferre says as he drops down on the couch, a bowl of popcorn in his hands, “change the channel. There’s only so much of Kathy accusing Abigail of carrying her husband’s child that I can take.” Setting it aside on the coffee table in front of them all, he drapes an arm around Enjolras, a silent invitation. 

And when Enjolras leans in, settling his head on Combeferre’s chest without flinching or tensing up for the first time in so many days, Courfeyrac smiles.

Pouting, he pretends to be upset at the way Enjolras and Combeferre gang up on him. “Fine, then what do you say we watch—and no, Ferre, we’re not watching a Nat Geo documentary. This isn’t the time for Nat Geo documentaries.”

Combeferre looks affronted. “Fine. But that means we’re not watching Bridget Jones’ Diary again.” 

He gasps, outraged. “Excuse you! Bridget Jones’ Diary is a cult classic.” He glances back up at Enjolras. “Back me up here, Enj.” 

Enjolras snorts. “Why would I waste my time watching Bridget Jones get together with knock off Mr. Darcy when I can instead watch Elizabeth Bennet get together with real-deal Mr. Darcy? After some due insults, that is,” he ends, smiling a little. 

Sighing dramatically, he reached up to twist one of Enjolras’ curls around his finger. “All this talk of Lizzy Bennet and Mr. Darcy from you Enjolras, and yet I still don’t see you looking for your own Mr. Darcy. You’ve roasted the shit out of plenty of people. When are we going to find someone who tells you that you’ve bewitched them body and soul?”

Enjolras scrunches his nose as Combeferre shakes his head. “Enjolras ‘roasts the shit’ out of bigots in school. I doubt he’d want to go out with racist Randy from history class.”

“I thought we were deciding what movie we were going to watch, not my love life,” complains Enjolras. 

“And I’m just trying to find you a love life!” he shoots back. 

Enjolras raises an eyebrow. “If I’m Elizabeth Bennet, and you’re unjustly interfering in my love life, wouldn’t that make you Mrs. Bennet, then?” 

He gasps. “You take that back!” 

Enjolras smiles smugly, resuming carding his fingers through Courfeyrac’s hair. “I can think very well of another bookworm who Mr. Bennet would be,” he says with an air of superiority. Courfeyrac blushes and glares up at him, just as Combeferre breaks from looking through Netflix and goes hm? 

“Let’s get back to looking for a movie,” he mutters. 

And then—

Then—

Courfeyrac would risk his crush being exposed hundreds of times if it meant he could hear Enjolras laugh again like that, laugh after so long, after so many weeks of being so tense, so much more tense than boys their age should be. He beams as he watches Enjolras try and recover himself from his fit of laughter, and under the blanket, he squeezes Combeferre’s hand, and he smiles even brighter when as he watches Combeferre watch their best friend softly, some of the past few days’ tension dissipate, though they all know it’s not gone completely. 

But here in this moment, as Enjolras laughs, which makes Courfeyrac laugh, and in turn makes Combeferre furrow his eyebrows trying to figure out what he missed, it exists as something outside their reality. 

“You know what we should watch?” Enjolras finally manages to say when he’s caught his breath. Combeferre sees the look in Enjolras’ eyes and sighs. 

“But it’ll be the second time this month.”

Courfeyrac catches on quickly. “As if you haven’t watched the same Nat Geo documentary four times in the same month.” He casts his eyes back up to Enjolras and gives him a small salute. “I second the motion, dear leader!” 

As Enjolras bursts out into laughter once more, Combeferre heaves another sigh and begins to look through Netflix, resigned to his fate. Though, he admits it’s a rather good fate. Honestly, who doesn’t love this movie? 

Enjolras snuggles closer into Combeferre’s chest. Combeferre tightens his arm around Enjolras’ shoulder. Enjolras continues to card his fingers through Courfeyrac’s curls. Courfeyrac has his feet thrown up on Combeferre’s lap. All three of them burrow under the blankets as, on screen, Grandpa begins to recite the tale of Westley and Buttercup’s love story. 

_________________________________________

Unsurprisingly, it is Enjolras who falls asleep first, head heavy on Combeferre’s chest. Courfeyrac would have smiled at the sight, if he wasn’t also on the verge of falling asleep. Combeferre considers making two trips and carrying his two friends up the stairs and two his room, but his own eyes are drooping closed, and the blankets were warm, and so were his friends. 

He figures they’ll all wake up later anyways. 

---------------------------------------------------

They don’t wake up for a while. 

The movie is over and something absurd Netflix has suggested is playing, but dimly, as her son, Enjolras, and Courfeyrac all sleep on, bundled together.

Can anyone blame her, really, when Mme. Combeferre cannot resist and snap a picture?

Right now, the entire world seemed to be crashing down on those three, and on her family and the de Courfeyracs. 

But here is a moment in which they reside in this little space of bliss they have—carefree, the weight of the world off their shoulders, the weight of problems they shouldn’t have to deal with—and it is a moment worth capturing, a reminder that maybe, hopefully, soon enough, things will be okay. 

Two years later, as her son and his two best friends—one of which she had considered another one of her sons the moment she had seen him when the three were all in kindergarten—leave for university, she breathes out, looks back, and nods. 

Yes, things had turned out okay. 

Next to her son’s and Enjolras’ high school diplomas hangs that same picture—the three all snuggled on the couch. At the de Courfeyrac’s the same hangs in the living room, and as the three boys—the triumvirate, she thinks with a fond roll of her eyes—head off to their new residence at university where they’ll stay together, as they had always meant to, she knows that the framed copy she sent with her son will hang there too. 

Things turned out okay. 

[jordluna]

You Meet Steve Rogers (Natasha x daughter!reader)

Summary: On a mission to rescue hostages, you end up meeting Captain America along the way. The daughter reader is 15. Since reader is in her teenage years she's pretty sassy and her and Nat have a kinda bitchy relationship but it's still sweet though.

"I have a mission with Steve to go on. I should be back in the morning so stay home, and don't do anything reckless while I'm gone." Natasha says while loading up guns on her cat suit as you sit on the couch of your apartment and binge the 100 on the T.V.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll stay here." You say while shoving a load full of popcorn in your mouth. You want her to leave badly so you can go onto the next season before the next day.

"Stay here and don't stay up late." She says firmly as you turn your back to face her to say one last remark.

"No mom, I'll go to the popular girl's party, get drunk, and hook up with the hottest dude I see." She rolls her eyes as she leaves the apartment, while you snicker to herself.

Just as your about to get up to make some more popcorn your phone rings from your hoodie. You pull it out,hoping one of your friends wants to chat with you so you won't be bored all night. Instead you see Director Fury's name on the screen.

You groan, as you swipe to answer it, knowing never to not answer Fury's calls.

"Was-sup Fury." You say while shutting off the T.V.

"Agent Romanoff, it's great to here from you again. Since you haven't showed up to Shield the past two weeks." Fury says not even trying to hid the annoyance in his voice.

"Two weeks already? Well I've been very busy with school work and all." You lie, as for the real reason you haven't shown up is because you were to busy binging The 100."Romanoff I think you must have forgotten you're on Spring break." You wince as you have totally forgotten.

"Shit." You mutter under your breathe. "Shit, indeed." Fury says back after a little bit of silence.

"So why'd you call me exactly?" You ask. "I need you as back up on your mother's and Steve's mission." He then explains their mission to you.

"So what do I have to do?" You ask annoyed that your all nighter is ruined, due to saving lives. "You, my least favorite Romanoff, have to collect Shield's intel on the ship. You can also kick some ass if needed." You sigh while putting on your cat suit and loading your weapons.

"Will do pirate dude." You say while leaving the apartment. "Also I'm so flattered to be your least favorite Romanoff."

"A car should be in the front of your house to escort you to the quinjet. You can jump off shortly after Natasha and Steve are already inside the ship."

"Sounds easy enough."

"Don't disappoint me y/n." You just sigh and end the call. You let your red hair down from the messy bun it was already in. Well time to do the dirty work.

*****

As you hide in the back of the ship you do what Fury instructed and waited for everyone to get off before you leave. Once you jump off you immediately start making your way to the to the control room to grab the data and go, hoping maybe just maybe you can finish one last episode before your mom comes home. Men immediately start running at you but you take out your dagger and slide towards them on your knees, slicing their thighs.

As they knell to the floor you stab them in the chest and make a break for the room. You think about using your guns tonight off the men in front of you but you know that's more of Natasha's thing than yours. Plus the guns would be to loud and you don't want to bump into anyone you know on the mission.

So instead you just do the simple hand to hand combat and leave without a single bruising or scratch as usual while the guys are wailing in pain on the ground.

"Sorry about that, but to be fair you did ruin my movie night." You say with a sinister smile.

*****

Steve moves around the ship looking for the rest of the hostages when he sees pirates injured on the ground. He immediately thinks it's Natasha since there is no there person that can fight without some sort of weapon as good as her. Let alone lave five men unconscious on the ground. As he walks closer he sees two more injured guys on the ground with what appear to be stab wounds.

"Nat, I didn't know you had an interest in knives." Steve says into his ear piece. Natasha is confused by his statement wondering what he is talking about. It then hits her. You were here.

"I'm not." She simply says as Steve is now also more confused.

*****

As you enter the control room you immediately put the hard drive in and start collecting whatever you can. Just then something comes crashing through the door with some unconscious guy underneath him.

"Hey Rogers." You say with a small smirk on your face, recognizing the man as Captain America.

"Who are you and what are you doing?" He says sternly as he pushes you back into the wall, harshly, putting his shield up to your collar bone so you couldn't escape. However you showed no fear in your eyes as you weren't even scared, just irritated that you're still in this room.

"Damn, is this how people introduced themselves in the forties? I'm here on Director Fury's orders."

"To collect Shield intel?"

"Why are you asking if you obviously already know." You say.

"Who are you?" He says firmly looking for an answer.

"Name's y/n. I would ask for your name but I already know because of the whole being a popsicle in a freezer for 97 years."

"You knocked all those guards out there?" He says looking down at the bloody knife in your holster. You just nod quickly hoping to get out of here before your mother finds you and grounds you for life.

"Why would Fury send a 14 year old girl out here?" Ok, now your annoyed with the interrogation.

"I'm 15 Cap. Get your facts strait before spitting them out." He most likely annoyed to as he's pushing you a little more further against the wall. Just as your about to grab the knife and stab him the thigh a familiar voice fills the room.

"Let her go Steve." Natasha says as he releases the pressure on your collar bone. As he moves out of the way you see the one person you've been planning on avoiding this entire mission. Natasha gives you the deadliest glare you've ever seen her give you. You tense for a second but let your muscles relax knowing this isn't the time to be a wimp.

"Hey-" She immediately cuts you off."Я сказал тебе оставаться дома." She's yelling to you in Russian, that's not good. (I told you to stay home.)

"Я знаю, но Фьюри сказал, что тебе нужна помощь.There for here I am." You say trying to reason with her as Steve just watches you guys very confused. (I know, but Fury said you needed back up.) She takes the hard drive out and throws it to you. You catch it and immediately put it in your pocket."Фьюри твоя мать? Нет, я." (Is Fury your mother? No, I am.) You sigh in defeat.

"Can I say something?" Steve says loudly.

"Shut it star spangled capris." You say as he is clearly taken aback.  All of a sudden a grenade is thrown at you by the unconscious guy but Steve uses his shield to knock it away. He grabs the you and your mother and crash into a window. Smoke fills the air as you chuckle slightly at the look on Steve's face when you mocked him. However Steve and Natasha just look at you weirdly and your face goes back to its stern expression.

  ******

You, Natasha, and Steve stand in front Fury's desk in Shield's headquarters. As he stares at you three without saying anything you try to avoid eye contact and just tap the floor with your boot.

"Why would you send a child out on our mission without telling me?" Steve says interrupting the silence.

"Cap did you see the results of putting her on the field? Her mission was to collect Shield intel, and she did it with even getting a few of our foes hurt." Fury responds with and you look at your mother and see a smirk on her face, which makes you feel even more accomplished.

"People could have gotten killed and hurt." Steve says.

"I believe Fury sent the best assassins and super soldier to make sure that didn't happen." Natasha says as you nod your head agreeing.

"The kid could have gotten hurt!"

"Agent y/n Romanoff, is one of the best junior agents, Shield has ever seen. She doesn't get hurt easily." You see the shocked look on Steve's face, mixed with confusion. You, Fury, and Natasha try your best not to laugh as Steve's mouth is practically wide open.

"You better close your mouth before a fly goes in." You say as Steve moves his head looking at you, then Natasha, then back at you. He slowly starts to notice how similar you two are.

"Oh, yeah. I have a daughter." Natasha says as if she just accidentally forgot to mention it before.

"Oh hell no. I'm dreaming." Steve says raising his arms up and starts to leave the room.

"I can assure you that I'm very much real." You say laughing.

I enjoyed making this one a lot. I also just love writing sassy y/n. Sorry if Russian is wrong I'm so sorry I just used google translate. Also I might move to tumblr idk. Next story will be You're okay!

[blackkudos]

Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye (born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr.; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo artist with a string of hits, earning him the nicknames "Prince of Motown" and "Prince of Soul".

Gaye's Motown hits include "Ain't That Peculiar", "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)", and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", and duet recordings with Mary Wells, Kim Weston, Diana Ross, and Tammi Terrell. During the 1970s, he recorded the albums What's Going On and Let's Get It On and became one of the first artists in Motown, along with Stevie Wonder, to break away from the reins of a production company. His later recordings influenced several contemporary R&B subgenres, such as quiet storm and neo soul. Following a period in Europe as a tax exile in the early 1980s, he released the 1982 hit "Sexual Healing", which won him his first two Grammy Awards, and its parent album Midnight Love. Gaye's last televised appearances were at the 1983 NBA All-Star Game, where he sang "The Star-Spangled Banner"; Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever; and Soul Train, which was his final appearance.

On April 1, 1984, the day before his 45th birthday, Gaye's father, Marvin Gay Sr., fatally shot him at their house in the West Adams district of Los Angeles. Many institutions have posthumously bestowed Gaye with awards and other honors including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and inductions into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Early life

Gaye was born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. on April 2, 1939, at Freedman's Hospital in Washington, D.C., to church minister Marvin Gay Sr., and domestic worker Alberta Gay (née Cooper). His first home was in a public housing project, the Fairfax Apartments (now demolished) at 1617 1st Street SW in the Southwest Waterfront neighborhood. Although one of the city's oldest neighborhoods, with many elegant Federal-style homes, Southwest was primarily a vast slum. Most buildings were small, in extensive disrepair, and lacked both electricity and running water. The alleys were full of one- and two-story shacks, and nearly every dwelling was overcrowded. Gaye and his friends nicknamed the area "Simple City", owing to its being "half-city, half country".

Gaye was the second oldest of the couple's four children. He had two sisters, Jeanne and Zeola, and one brother, Frankie Gaye. He also had two half-brothers: Michael Cooper, his mother's son from a previous relationship, and Antwaun Carey Gay, born as a result of his father's extramarital affairs.

Gaye started singing in church when he was four years old; his father often accompanied him on piano. Gaye and his family were part of a Pentecostal church known as the House of God. The House of God took its teachings from Hebrew Pentecostalism, advocated strict conduct, and adhered to both the Old and New Testaments. Gaye developed a love of singing at an early age and was encouraged to pursue a professional music career after a performance at a school play at 11 singing Mario Lanza's "Be My Love". His home life consisted of "brutal whippings" by his father, who struck him for any shortcoming. The young Gaye described living in his father's house as similar to "...living with a king, a very peculiar, changeable, cruel, and all powerful king." He felt that had his mother not consoled him and encouraged his singing, he would have killed himself. His sister later explained that Gaye was beaten often, from age seven well into his teenage years.

Gaye attended Syphax Elementary School and then Randall Junior High School. Gaye began to take singing much more seriously in junior high, and he joined and became a singing star with the Randall Junior High Glee Club.

In 1953 or 1954, the Gays moved into the East Capitol Dwellings public housing project in D.C.'s Capitol View neighborhood. Their townhouse apartment (Unit 12, 60th Street NE; now demolished) was Marvin's home until 1962.

Gaye briefly attended Spingarn High School before transferring to Cardozo High School. At Cardozo, Gaye joined several doo-wop vocal groups, including the Dippers and the D.C. Tones. Gaye's relationship with his father worsened during his teenage years, as his father would kick him out of the house often. In 1956, 17-year-old Gaye dropped out of high school and enlisted in the United States Air Force as a basic airman. Disappointed in having to perform menial tasks, he faked mental illness and was discharged shortly afterwards. Gaye's sergeant stated that he refused to follow orders. Gaye was issued a "General Discharge" from the service.

Career

Early career

Following his return, Gaye and his good friend Reese Palmer formed the vocal quartet The Marquees. The group performed in the D.C. area and soon began working with Bo Diddley, who assigned the group to Columbia subsidiary OKeh Records after failing to get the group signed to his own label, Chess. The group's sole single, "Wyatt Earp" (co-written by Bo Diddley), failed to chart and the group was soon dropped from the label. Gaye began composing music during this period.

Moonglows co-founder Harvey Fuqua later hired The Marquees as employees. Under Fuqua's direction, the group changed its name to Harvey and the New Moonglows, and relocated to Chicago. The group recorded several sides for Chess in 1959, including the song "Mama Loocie", which was Gaye's first lead vocal recording. The group found work as session singers for established acts such as Chuck Berry, singing on the hits "Back in the U.S.A." and "Almost Grown".

In 1960, the group disbanded. Gaye relocated to Detroit with Fuqua where he signed with Tri-Phi Records as a session musician, playing drums on several Tri-Phi releases. Gaye performed at Motown president Berry Gordy's house during the holiday season in 1960. Impressed by the singer, Gordy sought Fuqua on his contract with Gaye. Fuqua agreed to sell part of his interest in his contract with Gaye. Shortly afterwards, Gaye signed with Motown subsidiary Tamla.

When Gaye signed with Tamla, he pursued a career as a performer of jazz music and standards, having no desire to become an R&B performer. Before the release of his first single, Gaye was teased about his surname, with some jokingly asking, "Is Marvin Gay?" Gaye changed the spelling of his surname by adding an e, in the same way as did Sam Cooke. Author David Ritz wrote that Gaye did this to silence rumors of his sexuality, and to put more distance between himself and his father.

Gaye released his first single, "Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide", in May 1961, with the album The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye, following a month later. Gaye's initial recordings failed commercially and he spent most of 1961 performing session work as a drummer for artists such as The Miracles, The Marvelettes and blues artist Jimmy Reed for $5 (US$43 in 2019 dollars) a week. While Gaye took some advice on performing with his eyes open (having been accused of appearing as though he were sleeping), he refused to attend grooming school courses at the John Roberts Powers School for Social Grace in Detroit because of his unwillingness to comply with its orders, something he later regretted.

Initial success

In 1962, Gaye found success as co-writer of the Marvelettes hit, "Beechwood 4-5789". His first solo hit, "Stubborn Kind of Fellow", was later released that September, reaching No. 8 on the R&B chart and No. 46 on the Billboard Hot 100. Gaye reached the top 40 with the dance song, "Hitch Hike", peaking at No. 30 on the Hot 100. "Pride and Joy" became Gaye's first top ten single after its release in 1963.

The three singles and songs from the 1962 sessions were included on Gaye's second album, That Stubborn Kinda Fellow. Starting in October of the year, Gaye performed as part of the Motortown Revue, a series of concert tours headlined at the north and south eastern coasts of the United States as part of the Chitlin' Circuit. A filmed performance of Gaye at the Apollo Theater took place in June 1963. Later that October, Tamla issued the live album, Marvin Gaye Recorded Live on Stage. "Can I Get a Witness" became one of Gaye's early international hits.

In 1964, Gaye recorded a successful duet album with singer Mary Wells titled Together, which reached No. 42 on the pop album chart. The album's two-sided single, including "Once Upon a Time" and 'What's the Matter With You Baby", each reached the top 20. Gaye's next solo hit, "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)", which Holland-Dozier-Holland wrote for him, reached No. 6 on the Hot 100 and reached the top 50 in the UK. Gaye started getting television exposure around this time, on shows such as American Bandstand. Also in 1964, he appeared in the concert film, The T.A.M.I. Show. Gaye had two number-one R&B singles in 1965 with the Miracles–composed "I'll Be Doggone" and "Ain't That Peculiar". Both songs became million-sellers. After this, Gaye returned to jazz-derived ballads for a tribute album to the recently-deceased Nat "King" Cole.

After scoring a hit duet, "It Takes Two" with Kim Weston, Gaye began working with Tammi Terrell on a series of duets, mostly composed by Ashford & Simpson, including "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", "Your Precious Love", "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By".

In October 1967, Terrell collapsed in Gaye's arms during a performance in Farmville, Virginia. Terrell was subsequently rushed to Farmville's Southside Community Hospital, where doctors discovered she had a malignant tumor in her brain. The diagnosis ended Terrell's career as a live performer, though she continued to record music under careful supervision. Despite the presence of hit singles such as "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By", Terrell's illness caused problems with recording, and led to multiple operations to remove the tumor. Gaye was reportedly devastated by Terrell's sickness and became disillusioned with the record business.

On October 6, 1968, Gaye sang the national anthem during Game 4 of the 1968 World Series, held at Tiger Stadium, in Detroit, Michigan, between the Detroit Tigers and the St. Louis Cardinals.

In late 1968, Gaye's recording of I Heard It Through the Grapevine became Gaye's first to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached the top of the charts in other countries, selling over four million copies. However, Gaye felt the success was something he "didn't deserve" and that he "felt like a puppet – Berry's puppet, Anna's puppet...." Gaye followed it up with "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" and "That's the Way Love Is", which reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969. That year, his album M.P.G. became his first No. 1 R&B album. Gaye produced and co-wrote two hits for The Originals during this period, including "Baby I'm For Real" and "The Bells".

Tammi Terrell died from brain cancer on March 16, 1970; Gaye attended her funeral and after a period of depression, Gaye sought out a position on a professional football team, the Detroit Lions, where he later befriended Mel Farr and Lem Barney. It was eventually decided that Gaye would not be allowed to try out owing to fears of possible injuries that could have affected his music career.

What's Going On and subsequent success

On June 1, 1970, Gaye returned to Hitsville U.S.A., where he recorded his new composition "What's Going On", inspired by an idea from Renaldo "Obie" Benson of the Four Tops after he witnessed an act of police brutality at an anti-war rally in Berkeley. Upon hearing the song, Berry Gordy refused its release due to his feelings of the song being "too political" for radio. Gaye responded by going on strike from recording until the label released the song. Released in 1971, it reached No. 1 on the R&B charts within a month, staying there for five weeks. It also reached the top spot on Cashbox's pop chart for a week and reached No. 2 on the Hot 100 and the Record World chart, selling over two million copies.

After giving an ultimatum to record a full album to win creative control from Motown, Gaye spent ten days recording the What's Going On album that March. Motown issued the album that May after Gaye remixed portions of the album in Hollywood. The album became Gaye's first million-selling album launching two more top ten singles, "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" and "Inner City Blues". One of Motown's first autonomous works, its theme and segue flow brought the concept album format to rhythm and blues. An AllMusic writer later cited it as "...the most important and passionate record to come out of soul music, delivered by one of its finest voices." For the album, Gaye received two Grammy Award nominations and several NAACP Image Awards. The album also topped Rolling Stone's year-end list as its album of the year. Billboard magazine named Gaye Trendsetter of the Year following the album's success.

In 1971, Gaye signed a new deal with Motown worth $1 million (US$6,313,065 in 2019 dollars), making it the most lucrative deal by a black recording artist at the time. Gaye first responded to the new contract with the soundtrack and subsequent score, Trouble Man, released in late 1972. Before the release of Trouble Man, Marvin released a single called "You're the Man." The album of the same name was a follow up to What's Going On, but Motown refused to promote the single. Marvin later alleged that he and Gordy clashed over Marvin's political views, and for that reason, he was forced to shelve the album's release and substitute Trouble Man. However, Universal Music Group announced in 2019 that You're the Man would receive an official release. Around this period, he, Anna and Marvin III finally left Detroit and moved to Los Angeles permanently.

In August 1973, Gaye released the Let's Get It On album. Its title track became Gaye's second No. 1 single on the Hot 100. The album subsequently stayed on the charts for two years and sold over four million copies. The album was later hailed as "a record unparalleled in its sheer sensuality and carnal energy." Other singles from the album included "Come Get to This", which recalled Gaye's early Motown soul sound of the previous decade, while the suggestive "You Sure Love to Ball" reached modest success #14 on r&b charts but received tepid promotion due to the song's sexually explicit content.

Marvin's final duet project, Diana & Marvin, with Diana Ross, garnered international success despite contrasting artistic styles. Much of the material was crafted especially for the duo by Ashford and Simpson. Responding to demand from fans and Motown, Gaye started his first tour in four years at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum on January 4, 1974. The performance received critical acclaim and resulted in the release of the live album, Marvin Gaye Live! and its single, a live version of Distant Lover, an album track from Let's Get It On.

The tour helped to enhance Gaye's reputation as a live performer. For a time, he was earning $100,000 a night (US$518,421 in 2019 dollars) for performances. Gaye toured throughout 1974 and 1975. A renewed contract with Motown allowed Gaye to build his own custom-made recording studio.

In October 1975, Gaye gave a performance at a UNESCO benefit concert at New York's Radio City Music Hall to support UNESCO's African literacy drive, resulting in him being commended at the United Nations by then-Ambassador to Ghana Shirley Temple Black and Kurt Waldheim. Gaye's next studio album, I Want You, followed in March 1976 with the title track "I Want You" becoming a No. 1 R&B hit. The album would go on to sell over one million copies. That spring, Gaye embarked on his first European tour in a decade, starting off in Belgium. In early 1977, Gaye released the live album, Live at the London Palladium, which sold over two million copies thanks to the success of its studio song, "Got to Give It Up", which became a No. 1 hit.

Last Motown recordings and European exile

In December 1978, Gaye released Here, My Dear, inspired by the fallout from his first marriage to Anna Gordy. Recorded with the intention of remitting a portion of its royalties to her as alimony payments, it performed poorly on the charts. During that period, Gaye's cocaine addiction intensified while he was dealing with several financial issues with the IRS. These issues led him to move to Maui, Hawaii, where he struggled to record a disco album. In 1980, Gaye went on a European tour. By the time the tour stopped, the singer relocated to London when he feared imprisonment for failure to pay back taxes, which had now reached upwards of $4.5 million (US$13,963,449 in 2019 dollars).

Gaye then reworked Love Man from its original disco concept to another personal album invoking religion and the possible end time from a chapter in the Book of Revelation. Titling the album In Our Lifetime?, Gaye worked on the album for much of 1980 in London studios such as Air and Odyssey Studios.

In the fall of that year, someone stole a master tape of a rough draft of the album from one of Gaye's traveling musicians, Frank Blair, taking the master tape to Motown's Hollywood headquarters. Motown remixed the album and released it on January 15, 1981. When Gaye learned of its release, he accused Motown of editing and remixing the album without his consent, allowing the release of an unfinished production (Far Cry), altering the album art of his request and removing the album title's question mark, muting its irony. He also accused the label of rush-releasing the album, comparing his unfinished album to an unfinished Picasso painting. Gaye then vowed not to record any more music for Motown.

On February 14, 1981, under the advice of music promoter Freddy Cousaert, Gaye relocated to Cousaert's apartment in Ostend, Belgium. While there, Gaye shied away from heavy drug use and began exercising and attending a local Ostend church, regaining personal confidence. Following several months of recovery, Gaye sought a comeback onstage, starting the short-lived Heavy Love Affair tour in England and Ostend in June–July 1981. Gaye's personal attorney Curtis Shaw would later describe Gaye's Ostend period as "the best thing that ever happened to Marvin". When word got around that Gaye was planning a musical comeback and an exit from Motown, CBS Urban president Larkin Arnold eventually was able to convince Gaye to sign with CBS. On March 23, 1982, Motown and CBS Records negotiated Gaye's release from Motown. The details of the contract were not revealed due to a possible negative effect on the singer's settlement to creditors from the IRS.

Midnight Love

Assigned to CBS's Columbia subsidiary, Gaye worked on his first post-Motown album titled Midnight Love. The first single, "Sexual Healing" which was written and recorded in Ostend in his apartment, was released on September 30, 1982, and became Gaye's biggest career hit, spending a record ten weeks at No. 1 on the Hot Black Singles chart, becoming the biggest R&B hit of the 1980s according to Billboard stats. The success later translated to the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1983 where it peaked at No. 3, while the record reached international success, reaching the top spot in New Zealand and Canada and reaching the top ten on the United Kingdom's OCC singles chart, later selling over two million copies in the U.S. alone, becoming Gaye's most successful single to date. The video for the song was shot at Ostend's Casino-Kursaal.

Sexual Healing won Gaye his first two Grammy Awards including Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, in February 1983, and also won Gaye an American Music Award in the R&B-soul category. People magazine called it "America's hottest musical turn-on since Olivia Newton-John demanded we get Physical." Midnight Love was released to stores a day after the single's release, and was equally successful, peaking at the top ten of the Billboard 200 and becoming Gaye's eighth No. 1 album on the Top Black Albums chart, eventually selling over six million copies worldwide, three million alone in the U.S.

I don't make records for pleasure. I did when I was a younger artist, but I don't today. I record so that I can feed people what they need, what they feel. Hopefully, I record so that I can help someone overcome a bad time.

On February 13, 1983, Gaye sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the NBA All-Star Game at The Forum in Inglewood, California—accompanied by Gordon Banks, who played the studio tape from the stands. The following month, Gaye performed at the Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever special. This and a May appearance on Soul Train (his third appearance on the show) became Gaye's final television performances. Gaye embarked on his final concert tour, titled the Sexual Healing Tour, on April 18, 1983, in San Diego. The tour ended on August 14, 1983 at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa, California but was plagued by cocaine-triggered paranoia and illness. Following the concert's end, he moved into his parents' house in Los Angeles. In early 1984, Midnight Love was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Male R&B Vocal Performance category, his 12th and final nomination.

Death

On the afternoon of April 1, 1984, in the family house in the West Adams district of Los Angeles, Gaye intervened in a fight between his parents and became involved in a physical altercation with his father, Marvin Gay Sr. In Gaye's bedroom minutes later, at 12:38 p.m. (PST), Gay Sr. shot Gaye in the heart and then, at point-blank range, his left shoulder. The first shot proved fatal. Gaye was pronounced dead at 1:01 p.m. (PST) after his body arrived at California Hospital Medical Center, one day short of his 45th birthday.

After Gaye's funeral, his body was cremated at Forest Lawn Memorial Park at the Hollywood Hills; his ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean. Initially charged with first-degree murder, Gay Sr.'s charges were dropped to voluntary manslaughter following a diagnosis of a brain tumor. Marvin Gay Sr. was later sentenced to a suspended six-year sentence and probation. He died at a nursing home in 1998.

Personal life

Gaye married Berry Gordy's sister, Anna Gordy, in June 1963. The couple separated in 1973, and Anna filed for divorce in November 1975. The couple were officially divorced in 1977. Gaye later married Janis Hunter in October 1977. The couple separated in 1979, and were officially divorced in February 1981.

Gaye was the father of three children, Marvin III (adopted with Anna; Marvin III was the son of Denise Gordy, Anna's niece), and Nona and Frankie, whom he had with his second wife, Janis. At the time of his death, he was survived by his three children, parents, and five siblings.

Musicianship

Equipment

Starting off his musicianship as a drummer doing session work during his tenure with Harvey Fuqua, and his early Motown years, Gaye's musicianship evolved to include pianos, keyboards, synthesizers, organs, bells, and finger cymbals. Gaye also utilized percussion instruments, such as box drums, glockenspiels, vibraphones, bongos, congas, and cabasas. This became evident when he was given creative control in his later years with Motown, to produce his own albums. In addition to his talent as a drummer, Gaye also embraced the TR-808, a drum machine that became prominent in the early 80's, making use of its sounds for production of his Midnight Love album. Despite his vast knowledge of instruments, the piano was his primary instrument when performing on stage, with occasional drumming.

Influences

As a child, Gaye's main influence was his minister father, something he later acknowledged to biographer David Ritz, and also in interviews, often mentioning that his father's sermons greatly impressed him. His first major musical influences were doo-wop groups such as The Moonglows and The Capris. Gaye's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame page lists the Capris' song, "God Only Knows" as "critical to his musical awakening." Of the Capris' song, Gaye said, "It fell from the heavens and hit me between the eyes. So much soul, so much hurt. I related to the story, to the way that no one except the Lord really can read the heart of lonely kids in love." Gaye's main musical influences were Rudy West of The Five Keys, Clyde McPhatter, Ray Charles and Little Willie John. Gaye considered Frank Sinatra a major influence in what he wanted to be. He also was influenced by the vocal styles of Billy Eckstine and Nat King Cole.

Later on as his Motown career developed, Gaye would seek inspiration in fellow label mates such as David Ruffin of The Temptations and Levi Stubbs of the Four Tops as their grittier voices led to Gaye and his producer seeking a similar sound in recordings such as "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "That's the Way Love Is". Later in his life, Gaye reflected on the influence of Ruffin and Stubbs stating, "I had heard something in their voices something my own voice lacked". He further explained, "the Tempts and Tops' music made me remember that when a lot of women listen to music, they want to feel the power of a real man."

Vocal style

Gaye had a four-octave vocal range. From his earlier recordings as member of the Marquees and Harvey and the New Moonglows, and in his first several recordings with Motown, Gaye recorded mainly in the baritone and tenor ranges. He changed his tone to a rasp for his gospel-inspired early hits such as "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" and "Hitch Hike". As writer Eddie Holland explained, "He was the only singer I have ever heard known to take a song of that nature, that was so far removed from his natural voice where he liked singing, and do whatever it took to sell that song."

In songs such as "Pride and Joy", Gaye used three different vocal ranges—singing in his baritone range at the beginning, bringing a lighter tenor in the verses before reaching a gospel mode in the chorus. Holland further stated of Gaye's voice that it was "...one of the sweetest and prettiest voices you ever wanted to hear." And while he noted that ballads and jazz was "his basic soul", he stated Gaye "...had the ability to take a roughhouse, rock and roll, blues, R&B, any kind of song and make it his own", later saying that Gaye was the most versatile vocalist he had ever worked with.

Gaye changed his vocal style in the late 1960s, when he was advised to use a sharper, raspy voice—especially in Norman Whitfield's recordings. Gaye initially disliked the new style, considering it out of his range, but said he was "into being produce-able." After listening to David Ruffin and Levi Stubbs, Gaye said he started to develop what he called his "tough man voice"—saying, "I developed a growl." In the liner notes of his DVD set, Marvin Gaye: The Real Thing in Performance 1964–1981, Rob Bowman said that by the early 1970s, Gaye had developed "three distinct voices: his smooth, sweet tenor; a growling rasp; and an unreal falsetto." Bowman further wrote that the recording of the What's Going On single was "...the first single to utilize all three as Marvin developed a radical approach to constructing his recordings by layering a series of contrapuntal background vocal lines on different tracks, each one conceived and sung in isolation by Marvin himself." Bowman found that Gaye's multi-tracking of his tenor voice and other vocal styles "summon[ed] up what might be termed the ancient art of weaving".

Social commentary and concept albums

Prior to recording the What's Going On album, Gaye recorded a cover of the song, "Abraham, Martin & John", which became a UK hit in 1970. Only a handful of artists of various genres had recorded albums that focused on social commentary, including Curtis Mayfield. Despite some politically conscious material recorded by The Temptations in the late 1960s, Motown artists were often told to not delve into political and social commentary, fearing alienation from pop audiences. Early in his career, Gaye was affected by social events such as the 1965 Watts riots and once asked himself, "with the world exploding around me, how am I supposed to keep singing love songs?" When the singer called Gordy in the Bahamas about wanting to do protest music, Gordy cautioned him, "Marvin, don't be ridiculous. That's taking things too far."

Gaye was inspired by the Black Panther Party and supported the efforts they put forth like giving free meals to poor families door to door. However, he did not support the violent tactics the Panthers used to fight oppression, as Gaye's messages in many of his political songs were nonviolent. The lyrics and music of What's Going On discuss and illustrate issues during the 1960s/1970s such as police brutality, drug abuse, environmental issues, anti-war, and black power issues. Gaye was inspired to make this album because of events such as the Vietnam War, the 1967 race riots in Detroit, and the Kent State shootings.

Once Gaye presented Gordy with the What's Going On album, Gordy feared Gaye was risking the ruination of his image as a sex symbol. Following the album's success, Gaye tried a follow-up album that he would label You're the Man. The title track only produced modest success, however, and Gaye and Motown shelved the album. Later on, several of Gaye's unreleased songs of social commentary, including "The World Is Rated X", would be issued on posthumous compilation albums. What's Going On would later be described by an AllMusic writer as an album that "not only redefined soul music as a creative force but also expanded its impact as an agent for social change". You're the Man was finally released on March 29, 2019, through Motown, Universal Music Enterprises, and Universal Music Group.

The What's Going On album also provided another first in both Motown and R&B music: Gaye and his engineers had composed the album in a song cycle, segueing previous songs into other songs giving the album a more cohesive feel as opposed to R&B albums that traditionally included filler tracks to complete the album. This style of music would influence recordings by artists such as Stevie Wonder and Barry White making the concept album format a part of 1970s R&B music. Concept albums are usually based on either one theme or a series of themes in connection to the original thesis of the album's concept. Let's Get It On repeated the suite-form arrangement of What's Going On, as would Gaye's later albums such as I Want You, Here, My Dear and In Our Lifetime.

Although Marvin Gaye was not politically active outside of his music, he became a public figure for social change and inspired/educated many people through his work.

Legacy

Marvin Gaye has been called "the number-one purveyor of soul music". In his book Mercy Mercy Me: The Art, Loves and Demons of Marvin Gaye, Michael Eric Dyson described Gaye as someone "...who transcended the boundaries of rhythm and blues as no other performer had done before." Following his death, The New York Times described Gaye as someone who "blended the soul music of the urban scene with the beat of the old-time gospel singer and became an influential force in pop music". Further in the article, Gaye was also credited with combining "the soulful directness of gospel music, the sweetness of soft-soul and pop, and the vocal musicianship of a jazz singer." His recordings for Motown in the 1960s and 1970s shaped that label's signature sound. His work with Motown gave him the titles Prince of Soul and Prince of Motown. Critics stated that Gaye's music "...signified the development of black music from raw rhythm and blues, through sophisticated soul to the political awareness of the 1970s and increased concentration on personal and sexual politics thereafter." As a Motown artist, Gaye was among the first to break from the reins of its production system, paving the way for Stevie Wonder. Gaye's late 1970s and early 1980s recordings influenced contemporary forms of R&B predating the subgenres quiet storm and neo-soul.

Artists from many genres have covered Gaye's music, including James Taylor, Brian McKnight, Kate Bush, Cyndi Lauper, Chico DeBarge, Michael McDonald, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Aaliyah, Christina Aguilera, Phish, A Perfect Circle, The Strokes and Gil Scott-Heron. Other artists such as D'Angelo, Common, Nas, Erick Sermon, and Maxwell interpolated parts of Gaye's clothing from the singer's mid-1970s period. Gaye's clothing style was later appropriated by Eddie Murphy in his role as James "Thunder" Early in Dreamgirls. According to David Ritz, "Since 1983, Marvin's name has been mentioned—in reverential tones—on no less than seven top-ten hit records." Later performers such as Kanye West and Mary J. Blige sampled Gaye's work for their recordings.

Awards and honors

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted him in 1987, declaring that Gaye "...made a huge contribution to soul music in general and the Motown Sound in particular." The page stated that Gaye "...possessed a classic R&B voice that was edged with grit yet tempered with sweetness." The page further states that Gaye "...projected an air of soulful authority driven by fervid conviction and heartbroken vulnerability." A year after his death, then-mayor of D.C., Marion Barry declared April 2 as "Marvin Gaye Jr. Memorial Scholarship Fund Day" in the city. Since then, a non-profit organization has helped to organize annual Marvin Gaye Day Celebrations in the city of Washington.

A year later, Gaye's mother founded the Marvin P. Gaye Jr. Memorial Foundation in dedication to her son to help those suffering from drug abuse and alcoholism; however she died a day before the memorial was set to open in 1987. Gaye's sister Jeanne once served as the foundation's chairperson. In 1990, Gaye received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1996, Gaye posthumously received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed three Gaye recordings, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", "What's Going On" and "Sexual Healing", among its list of the 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll. American music magazine Rolling Stone ranked Gaye No. 18 on their list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time", sixth on their list of "100 Greatest Singers of All Time" and number 82 on their list of the "100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time". Q magazine ranked Gaye sixth on their list of the "100 Greatest Singers".

Three of Gaye's albums – What's Going On (1971), Let's Get It On (1973), and Here, My Dear (1978) – were ranked by Rolling Stone on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. What's Going On remains his largest-ranked album, reaching No. 6 on the Rolling Stone list and topped the NME list of the Top 100 Albums of All Time in 1985 and was later chosen in 2003 for inclusion by the Library of Congress to its National Recording Registry. In addition, four of his songs – "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", "What's Going On", "Let's Get It On" and "Sexual Healing" – made it on the Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

In 2005, Marvin Gaye was voted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame.

In 2006, Watts Branch Park, a park in Washington that Gaye frequented as a teenager, was renamed Marvin Gaye Park. Three years later, the 5200 block of Foote Street NE in Deanwood, Washington, D.C., was renamed Marvin Gaye Way. In August 2014, Gaye was inducted to the official Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in its second class. In October 2015, the Songwriters Hall of Fame announced Gaye as a nominee for induction to the Hall's 2016 class after posthumous nominations were included. Gaye was named as a posthumous inductee to that hall on March 2, 2016. Gaye was subsequently inducted to the Songwriters Hall on June 9, 2016. In July 2018, a bill by California politician Karen Bass to rename a post office in South Los Angeles after Gaye was signed into law by President Donald Trump.

In popular culture

His 1983 NBA All-Star performance of the national anthem was used in a Nike commercial featuring the 2008 U.S. Olympic basketball team. Also, on CBS Sports' final NBA telecast to date (before the contract moved to NBC) at the conclusion of Game 5 of the 1990 Finals, they used Gaye's 1983 All-Star Game performance over the closing credits. When VH1 launched on January 1, 1985, Gaye's 1983 rendition of the national anthem was the very first video they aired. In 2010, it was used in the intro to Ken Burns' Tenth Inning documentary on the game of baseball.

"I Heard It Through the Grapevine" was played in a Levi's ad in 1985. The result of the commercial's success led to the original song finding renewed success in Europe after Tamla-Motown re-released it in the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands. In 1986, the song was covered by Buddy Miles as part of a California Raisins ad campaign. The song was later used for chewing gum commercials in Finland and to promote a brand of Lucky Strike cigarettes in Germany.

Gaye's music has also been used in numerous film soundtracks including Four Brothers and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, both of which featured Gaye's music from his Trouble Man soundtrack. "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" was used in the opening credits of the film, The Big Chill.

In 2007, his song "A Funky Space Reincarnation" was used in the Charlize Theron–starred ad for Dior J'Adore perfume. A documentary about Gaye—What's Going On: The Marvin Gaye Story—was a UK/PBS co-production, directed by Jeremy Marre and was first broadcast in 2006. Two years later, the special re-aired with a different production and newer interviews after it was re-broadcast as an American Masters special. Another documentary, focusing on his 1981 documentary, Transit Ostend, titled Remember Marvin, aired in 2006.

Earnings

In 2008, Gaye's estate earned $3.5 million (US$4,156,182 in 2019 dollars). As a result, Gaye took 13th place in "Top-Earning Dead Celebrities" in Forbes magazine.

On March 11, 2015, Gaye's family was awarded $7.4 million in damages following a decision by an eight-member jury in Los Angeles that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had breached copyright by incorporating part of Gaye's song "Got to Give It Up" into their hit "Blurred Lines". In January 2016, the Gaye family requested a California judge give $2.66 million in attorneys' fees and $777,000 in legal expenses.

Gaye's estate is currently managed by Geffen Management Group and his legacy is protected through Creative Rights Group, both founded by talent manager Jeremy Geffen.

Attempted biopics

There have been several attempts to adapt Gaye's life story into a feature film. In February 2006, it was reported that Jesse L. Martin was to portray Gaye in a biopic titled Sexual Healing, named after Gaye's 1982 song of the same name. The film was to have been directed by Lauren Goodman and produced by James Gandolfini and Alexandra Ryan. The film was to depict the final three years of Gaye's life. Years later, other producers such as Jean-Luc Van Damme, Frederick Bestall and Jimmy De Brabant, came aboard and Goodman was replaced by Julien Temple. Lenny Kravitz was almost slated to playing Gaye. The script was to be written by Matthew Broughton. The film was to have been distributed by Focus Features and released on April 1, 2014, the thirtieth anniversary of Gaye's death. This never came to fruition and it was announced that Focus Features no longer has involvement with the Gaye biopic as of June 2013.

In June 2008, it was announced that F. Gary Gray was going to direct a biopic titled Marvin. The script was to be written by C. Gaby Mitchell and the film was to be produced by David Foster and Duncan McGillivray and co-produced by Ryan Heppe. According to Gray, the film would cover Gaye's entire life, from his emergence at Motown through his defiance of Berry Gordy to record What's Going On and on up to his death.

Cameron Crowe had also been working on a biopic titled My Name Is Marvin. The film was to have been a Sony presentation with Scott Rudin as producer. Both Will Smith and Terrence Howard were considered for the role of Gaye. Crowe later confirmed in August 2011 that he abandoned the project: "We were working on the Marvin Gaye movie which is called My Name is Marvin, but the time just wasn't right for that movie."

Members of Gaye's family, such as his ex-wife Janis and his son Marvin III, have expressed opposition to a biopic.

On December 9, 2015, Roger Friedman spoke of a biopic to be directed by F. Gary Gray that was approved by Berry Gordy and Suzanne de Passe as well as Gaye's family, following the success of Gray's Straight Outta Compton biopic based on the hip-hop act N.W.A.

In July 2016, it was announced that a feature film documentary on Gaye would be released the following year delving into the life of the musician and the making of his 1971 album, What's Going On. The film would be developed by Noah Media Group and Greenlight and is quoted to be "the defining portrait of this visionary artist and his impeccable album" by the film's producers Gabriel Clarke and Torquil Jones. The film will include "unseen footage" of the singer. Gaye's family approved of the documentary. In November 2016, it was announced that actor Jamie Foxx was billed to produce a limited biopic series on the singer's life. The series was approved by Gaye's family, including son Marvin III, who will serve as executive producer, and Berry Gordy, Jr..

On June 18, 2018, it was reported that American rapper Dr. Dre was in talks to produce a biopic about the singer.

Tributes

Acting

Gaye acted in two movies, both having to do with Vietnam veterans. One was in 1969 in the George McCowan-directed film, The Ballad of Andy Crocker which starred Lee Majors. The film was about a war veteran returning to find that his expectations have not been met and he feels betrayed. Gaye had a prominent role in the film as David Owens. The other was in 1971. He had a role in the Lee Frost-directed biker-exploitation film, Chrome and Hot Leather, a film about a group of Vietnam veterans taking on a bike gang. The film starred William Smith and Gaye played the part of Jim, one of the veterans. Gaye did have acting aspirations and had signed with the William Morris Agency but that only lasted a year as Gaye wasn't satisfied with the support he was getting from the agency.

Discography

Studio albums

The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye (1961)

That Stubborn Kinda Fellow (1963)

When I'm Alone I Cry (1964)

Hello Broadway (1964)

How Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You (1965)

A Tribute to the Great Nat "King" Cole (1965)

Moods of Marvin Gaye (1966)

I Heard It Through the Grapevine (1968)

M.P.G. (1969)

That's the Way Love Is (1970)

What's Going On (1971)

Trouble Man (1972)

Let's Get It On (1973)

I Want You (1976)

Here, My Dear (1978)

In Our Lifetime (1981)

Midnight Love (1982)

Collaborative albums

Together (with Mary Wells) (1964)

Take Two (with Kim Weston) (1966)

United (with Tammi Terrell) (1967)

You're All I Need (with Tammi Terrell) (1968)

Easy (with Tammi Terrell) (1969)

Diana & Marvin (with Diana Ross) (1973)

Filmography

1965: T.A.M.I. Show (documentary)

1969: The Ballad of Andy Crocker (television movie)

1971: Chrome and Hot Leather (television movie)

1973: Save the Children (documentary)

Videography

Marvin Gaye: Live in Montreux 1980 (2003)

The Real Thing: In Performance (1964–1981) (2006)

[redgreenbluesforloco]

Daisuke, Takahiko & Nobunari (3BK) Interview on QuadAxel Pt.1/2

This interview didn’t feel long when I read it, but it sure as hell does now that I’m trying to translate and format it, so I’ll split it in half :P  

Some notes: I’ve honestly no idea how Takahiko came to call Nobunari “Naru-kun” but it’s adorable and I refuse to alter it, so Naru-kun = Nobunari. I had to let myself use lol and ahahaha for laughter (it’s what the magazine editors did!). Haven’t had anyone proofread it for me yet so there might be some minor edits later.  Part 2 here

The Vancouver Team: An everlasting bond

Daisuke Takahashi, Nobunari Oda and Takahiko Kozuka, eternal friends and rivals who helped popularize the sport, discuss the first time they met, their memories of the Vancouver Olympics, future plans for their skating careers. [summarized intro]

Thank you for granting us this precious opportunity today. Is this the first sit-down with all 3 of you since the 2009 program (Figure Skating Opening of the Season Special by TV Asahi)?

Dai: Oh, is it?

Nobu: Yeah, we haven’t had one since then, right?

Dai: I guess not.

Taka: Right. Do you remember on that program there was a question about what Doraemon items you wanted? And when I answered, “The Dictator Switch” [“Dokusai Switch” a switch to erase the existence of bothersome people], you both went, “Wow, how scary!” lol.

Dai: I don’t remember.

Nobu: I don’t remember.

Takahiko: I remember very well.

Dai/Nobu: Ahahaha LOL

Anyway, I would like to start by asking you about when you first met. Between the 3 of you, were Takahashi-san and Oda-san the first to meet?

Dai: Wasn’t the first time we met at that competition in Kyoto?

Nobu: Yeah, the Western Japan Elementary and Middle School Championships.

Dai: Yeah! That was the first time I saw Nobu.

Nobu: Yeah, that’s right. My impression back then was, ‘Wow, there are some talented guys coming from Okayama.”

Dai: And then I started to commute to the Takatsuki rink, and we started talking in the 1st  or 2nd year of Middle School.

Nobu: Yeah, it was around that time we started getting closer [talking more intimately].

What did you call each other back then?

Nobu: Everyone was already calling him Dai-chan back then.

Dai: What did I call Nobu back then?

Nobu: Didn’t you call me “Nobunari-kun”? Yeah, it was “Nobunari-kun” lol. Back then, Dai-chan already had the status of a junior champion. When his music came on during practice, everyone would scramble to get closer to the walls, like “I’ll get in trouble if I get in his way.” So I already had the image of him, like, “Wow, what an amazing person.” But even so, I still called him Dai-chan lol.

Dai: Everyone called me Dai-chan.

Nobu: Yeah. And then I think I first saw Takahiko at the Novice Japanese National Championships (1998). He’s two years younger than me, so he was in the Novice B championships. That was the first time I caught a glimpse of him.

Taka: Yeah.

Nobu: I had been hearing people talk like, “Kozuka-san’s son is so talented,” so I thought, “Ah, so this is Kozuka-san’s kid.”

Taka: When I first met Naru-kun it was at the Osaka Junior Nats (1999). You were there, right?

Nobu: Yeah, I was! I was eliminated from the preliminary rounds after the short program. My first Junior competition, I ended up 27th lol.

Dai: Ahahaha lol

Nobu: That was when I performed at a Junior event by invitation for the first time coming from Novice, and I was so excited to compete in Osaka, I ended up putting too much energy into everything and screwed up all the jumps lol.  

Taka (looking straight at Nobu): You kinda always did that, you put too much energy into it lol.

Nobu: Yeah, yeah! That’s why I’m skating better now lol. Way back then it was like I’d get too tense.

At that time, were you at a point where you’d share lodgings and meet at competitions and stuff?

Nobu: I went to a competition in Belgium with Takahiko. That was my first international event.

Taka: Oh, that’s right.

Nobu: Takahiko had already gone to many international events and knew how to get by overseas, so he taught me all sorts of things. I was just about to start high school and I was studying for the entrance exam. While we were abroad, he’d always sit next to me and tutor me.

Dai: LOL

Nobu: I’d be like, “I really don’t get math!!” lol.

Dai: Really?

Nobu: He was always in my room, solving my math problems for me. He’d teach me math the entire time.

Dai: LOOL

Taka: I’d get lonely on my own, so we’d just stay together the whole time lol

Nobu: Takahiko’s mother (Coach Kozuka Sachiko) and my mother (Coach Oda Noriko) were really close, so we’d often have meals together, too.

Taka: We had waffles too, right?

Nobu: We did, we did!

Taka: They wouldn’t let us give any to the girls. We were told that it was only for the guys.  

Nobu: Yeah, that’s right! We were with Aki Sawada and Nana Takeda and the others.

Dai: Ah, that’s nostalgic.

Nobu: Yeah.

Taka: And everyone’s gotten married already. It’s been a long time. And then, the first time I met Dai-chan at a competition, it was in Croatia, right?

Dai: Right. With Hirokazu Kobayashi and others.

Taka: Hirokazu was a senpai from my rink, so I became friends with Dai-chan through him.

Dai: Right, starting from there.

And when did you first start to become aware of each other as rivals?

Nobu: It was the season after I won the Junior World Championships (2005). Even if I wasn’t really aware [of a rivalry], people around me started comparing me to Dai-chan.

Dai: There was also the fact that it was the Torino Olympic (2006) season.

Nobu: And that spring I got into the same university (Kansai University), so that drew even more attention.

Dai: Right, yeah.

Nobu: And, when I was asked, “Who is your rival?” I’d answer, “It’s Dai-chan.” Because I knew that was the answer they were looking for lol.

Dai: And that was when we started appearing in competitions together more often.

Nobu: Right, yeah.

Dai: There wasn’t a lot of overlap during Juniors right? Because I went to Seniors early.

Nobu: We didn’t overlap at all.

Taka: At what age did you rise to Seniors, Dai-chan?

Dai: I think I was 16?

Nobu: At the Kyoto NHK Cup (2002) when Dai was competing, I was really excited to go and root for him. I was yelling, “Go, Dai-chan!” with everyone else from the rink.

Dai: Hahahaha.

Nobu: Now that I think about it, I didn’t run into Takahiko much at Junior competitions, right?

Taka: There was some overlap, but I messed up a bunch of things, so it was very scattered. I played soccer too much, I did too much warming-up…

Nobu: And you forgot your costume…

Taka: That was at Nats, actually!

Nobu: At Nats, huh!

Taka: Yeah, the Nagoya one (in 2006). That was so bad, man.

Dai: Ahahaha LOL.

As Takahashi-san and Oda-san were being called “rivals,” Kozuka-san joined in, and the three you of you went on to fight fiercely against one another for a long period of time. Looking back, what are your thoughts now?

Nobu: We were always told that we were “in a fierce battle against each other” but that’s not how it felt to us, right?

Dai: Right, yeah.

Taka: Yeah.

Nobu: Dai-chan was always great at the interpretation and steps, Takahiko had amazing skating skills, so what I felt the most was that I wanted to absorb their skills.

Dai: We were at the same rink so we had a lot of opportunities to watch each other train. When you notice the other person is working hard, it makes you work hard, too. So it was good to receive that kind of stimulation. The thing is, when it’s time to compete, you can only think about your own performance.

Nobu: Right.

Taka: Yeah, that’s right. When we were together in competitions, we weren’t that aware of each other, it was more when we were in different competitions and I heard someone got good results that I’d think, “I better do my best, too!” That was often good motivation for me.

Nobu: When I found out that people from other sports, both men and women, don’t speak to their rivals that much, I was surprised. After I retired, I realized that in figure skating the atmosphere doesn’t get tense like that.

Dai: That’s true.

Nobu: People are so surprised, like, “Wow, you get along really well.” And for us that was just normal.

Taka: Yeah, that’s normal.

Nobu: That’s why when people asked me about rivals, I think my true feeling was that it didn’t quite make sense.

Was that because you’ve been seeing each other often since you were little?

Dai: And I think it’s also because our sport isn’t 1 vs 1 [there is no direct confrontation].

Taka: Because it’s an individual competition, yeah.

Dai: You get your results from what you do on your own.

Taka: Since it’s a competition where judges decide the scores, it makes it easier.

Dai: Right, since other people are giving you the scores.

Nobu: Yeah, that’s right.

Dai: And it’s whether you yourself were able to get good results or not.

Taka: Sometimes you get results, sometimes you don’t. When you do, you’re happy, when you don’t, you’re sad…

Nobu: It’s all your responsibility. It felt more like fighting against yourself. 

Out of the many competitions in which you were all together, which one left the biggest impression?

Dai: For me it was probably the NHK Cup in Nagano, when the three of us got 1st  (Takahashi-san), 2nd (Oda-san) and 3rd  (Kozuka-san) places.

Taka: In 2006, right?

Nobu: Right, all 3 of us skated the FS clean! I went after Takahiko, and I saw that he did so well and I thought, “Aaaah, I better work hard!”

Taka: That was when I came in 4th in the SP. Chengjiang Li was 3rd.

Dai: Chengjiang Li! Ah, that takes me back!

Nobu: I wonder how he’s doing these days.

Taka: Back then, during the press conference, somebody asked, “Are the rumors that you’re practicing a Quad-Quad true?” And he said, “Yes, I am.”

Dai: Seriously?!

Taka: Really!

Nobu: That time in Nagano, Takahiko and I went to the bathhouse every night, didn’t we?

Taka: Oh yeah! We did lol. We asked Dai-chan, “Won’t you come?” and he said, “My body feels sluggish, I’m not going.” Lol

Nobu: Oh yeah, yeah, we got rejected, didn’t we! We got rejected and went by ourselves lol.

Dai: LOL. Oh, but there was also Vancouver (Olympics 2010), of course.  

Taka: Vancouver was so much fun.

Nobu: I have some hilarious memories from after the competition was over lol

Dai & Taka: LOL

Nobu: We kept using skype nonstop lol.

Dai: Even though we were right next to each other lol.

Taka: I was using Skype, and Dai-chan was like "What's that?" So I set it up, and it was like, "let's try it out, let's all try it." "There is also a chat function." "Let's try that, let's!"

Nobu: Even though the distance was like this [measures with his hands].

Dai: LOOL We were right next to each other!

Taka: Yeah.

Nobu: And we kept using the chat but somehow we were silent. No one would say anything.

Taka: We would just talk through the text chat instead.

Dai: Yeah, we were just quiet the whole time!

Nobu: That will always be funny lol

Taka: It was so funny, right? lol

Nobu: And then we went to the Olympic village to stuff ourselves with McDonald’s lol.

Dai: It was like, "Do we go?!"

Nobu: What time was that? It was quite late wasn't it. I feel like it was the middle of the night.

Dai: It was.

Taka: It was like 3 or 4AM.

Nobu: Yeah, yeah!

Taka: The McDonald’s was open 24/7, so we went to grab a bite.

Nobu: It was so much fun.

Dai: So much fun.

Taka: And then when we were going to support the girls at the ladies' event, we put on face-paint lol.

Nobu: We did, we did lol.

Taka: Dai was going to write Japan on his cheek, but he wrote it backwards lol.

Dai: LOOL Because I was writing it while looking in the mirror so I got it wrong!

Nobu: And we were like, "No, Dai-chan, no! It's wrong!" lol

Taka:  Yeah, like, “That clearly just says ‘today’!” lol

Dai: “Today” LOL

(T/N: 日本 (Japan) backwards becomes 本日 which means “today”)

Was there a service in the Olympic village where you could get your face painted?

Nobu: Well, we decided we all wanted to paint our faces, so we bought art supplies and did it ourselves in the men's bathroom of the Pacific Colosseum (Sports Arena).

Dai: Wasn't it Takahiko who went to buy the art supplies?

Taka: Yeah!

Dai: That was a lot of fun. And at the closing ceremony there was a ball flying around for some reason lol.

Nobu, Taka: Ahahahaha yeah!!

Nobu: Before I knew it, we were chasing after it LOL. It was so cold that day, right?

Taka: Yeah, at the closing ceremony it was freezing cold.

You three chasing the ball in the closing ceremony became a hot topic among fans.

Dai: Really?

Nobu: I didn't think they would film that!

Dai: We didn't know, yeah.

Nobu: Chasing after a giant ball...

Taka: Like it was Sports Day or something.

Dai: We were running after it with all our might lol

Taka: We were so hyped up.

Nobu: Now that I think about it, we were so innocent when we did that, right? Even though we were all over 20.

Dai: Ahahaha I was well over twenty lol.

You were able to make such good memories because the three of you were able to go together, isn't that so?

Dai: Yeah, that's right.

Nobu: I don’t think we could even imagine not going together, all three of us.

Dai: Yeah, and not doing all this weird stuff lol.

Taka: Yeah, we wanted to go together.

The season before that (2008-09) was when Takahashi-san sustained an injury. What kind of effect did that end up having on Oda-san and Kozuka-san?

Nobu: That year there was the Worlds in Los Angeles (2009, when the number of spots for the Vancouver Olympics would be decided). Back then, I went thinking that we had to get the 3 spots also for Dai-chan’s sake. But then I just crashed and burned; I jumped too many times, and it was like, “Oh, crap, this is bad!”

Dai & Taka: LOL

Nobu: And then Takahiko really put in the work for us. Somehow we were able to save the 3 spots by the skin of our teeth, because our combined placements were exactly 13.

Taka: We were 7th (Oda) and 6th (Kozuka). That was really nerve-wrecking.

Nobu: If either of us dropped a spot, it’d be hopeless.

Taka: I was in the last group at the time, and Naru-kun was the last of the 3rd group.

Nobu: Yeah, yeah! And I thought I’d skated clean!

Taka: You even did a fist bump and everything.

Nobu: I jumped too much...

Taka: I can never forget the look on the coach’s face when you came back.

Dai: LOL

Nobu: And then I just watched the last group kind of like in prayer. It was such a feeling of relief when we just barely secured the 3 spots.

Taka: The Worlds from the year before (2008) was in Sweden and that was my first appearance at Worlds. And the year before (2007), it was just Dai-chan and Naru-kun, right?

Dai: Yeah, it was in Tokyo.

Nobu: Ah, I remember!

Taka: I was in the audience rooting really hard for you guys. And then Naru-kun found me and was like, “We got the 3 spots for you, kiddo, so do your best!”

Nobu: I wasn’t really in a position to say something so arrogant lol.

Taka: But I was thankful you worked so hard.

Dai: He worked hard.  

Part 2/2 posted here: Their thoughts on the popularity of men’s figure skating, what they admire about each other, their views on their careers after retirement, plans for the future, how to contribute to the development of the sport, Quad revolution, Pyeongchang Olympics, what kind of ice show they would create if given the chance.

[purplesurveys]

253

If someone tells you really juicy gossip right now, would you pass it on? Err depends on the gossip. Admittedly there are things that I can consider telling my close friends, but for most of the gossip I just tell it to Gab, who I know doesn’t care about anyone and will forget about it the next day. What's one song can’t you stop listening to right now? The Cardi B remix of Finesse by Bruno Mars. Do you have index cards in your room right now? I do. I have a bunch. Profs always ask for them at the beginning of the semester so I have a whole stock of them. Do you have an attic? Nope, no need for that as my mom never hoards. What was the last song you sang out loud to? It was by a local band, so no one here would know it anyway.

Have you ever lived in the country before? Nah I’ve always lived in the suburby part of the city.

Do you drink coffee everyday? I rarely drink coffee these days; and it’s only just so that I can hang out at a coffee shop to work, not to stay awake or whatever. Have you ever had mice in your house? Ugh yeah. I’ve gone downstairs at midnight to get water and the rats* start scurrying away and I hate it. Have you ever stayed in a suite? Yes. Do you take good pictures? Not at all. I had to give my DSLR to my sister precisely because of my inability. Do you remember names or faces better? Faces. I’d recognize a face I’ve already seen once before. Do you enjoy working with animals? I really believe I would if given the chance! I wanted to be a vet before so I think that answers this question. Have you ever been in a tornado or hurricane? I’ve never seen a tornado happen, but I’ve been through countless hurricanes. We go through huge ones every year and always make it on the global news. Do you have any bookmarks in your internet browser? If so, how many? I have tons. I’m a link hoarder. Have you ever seen any movie version of Romeo and Juliet? Yep, I’ve seen two I think - the one from the 1960′s and the hip-hop one with Claire Danes, which we both watched in class. In your opinion, which decade has the best hairstyle? I’m a sucker for the pin-up look, so the 50′s. If you're in a competition, are you in it to win it or just for the fun? I’m naturally competitive so everything I do is always to win it haha. Do you have winter, spring, summer, and fall where you live? We only have summer, or dry season. The other half of the year is the wet season or when the hurricanes come pouring in. Is the computer you're using a desktop or laptop? Laptop. I haven’t used a desktop since senior year of high school... Do you know anyone in the military right now? Yeah but it’s a pretty far connection. It’s Angela’s cousin’s dad. What's your favorite show on Comedy Central? We don’t have that channel. How old is the oldest person you know? Right now probably Angela’s grandparents, but I don’t know how old they are. Have you ever had braces? I did, for a year and a half. Is there a TV show right now that you just can't miss an episode of? Just Black Mirror. Which love story would you want your life to turn out like? Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka, dude. Do you usually go to sleep before or after the people you're living with? Before because I’ve become a lousy grandma. Are you into ripped jeans? Yeah but I hate jeans, so I still don’t wear them a lot. Do you watch the Discovery Channel? As a kid I used to watch it with my grandpa, who always had the TV either there or on Nat Geo. Have you ever wanted to live in the Playboy mansion? No. Would you ever name your child after someone famous? I’ve always considered naming my kid Audrey, yes. As a second name, at least. Have you ever participated in a car wash for charity? Nope. I didn’t know that was a thing... Which band has the best name, in your opinion? The Clash is pretty iconic. Do kids often knock on your door on Halloween? No, because we’re literally right at the end of our private subdivision and the kids wouldn’t go that far anymore. It’s fine though, at least I don’t have to keep turning them down which I always feel awful about. Which one of your exes do you feel like you have the most chemistry with? I’ve only had one ex and we’ve always had strong chemistry. Do you like where your house is located? I can live with it, but I find it waaaayyyy too isolated. Gab made me want to venture out more and subsequently, made me realize that I ultimately want to end up in the city. What's the best hotel you've been to? Shangri-La Boracay was amaaaaaaaazing. I felt like a first-class customer all throughout. It’s pretty expensive but we were able to score discounts since my mom worked for the company at the time. There was no one at the beach, there were golf carts to bring you places, there was a huge play area for kids and a game room for the bigger people, and the hotel room itself was so nice. Bluewater in Bohol is also my favorite. Everything was SO PRETTY and I also felt like an important person there!!! Are you into designer clothes? Not really. Have you ever watched the show How I Met Your Mother? No thanks. Do you share the same political views as your parents? Nope. How often do you eat chocolate? Every few months, but when we do have it in the fridge I eat them a lot. Have you ever done any internship? I’ve done job shadowing, which sorta counts. I have to do internship in my junior year, though.

[anthonypaulh]

JOY and PAIN - The Troubled Life and Tragic Death of Marvin Gaye

The song “Joy and Pain” forms the perfect epitaph for Marvin Gaye. Ultimately, the hugely troubled, flawed, sensitive soul lived his all too short life, somewhere between the extremes of the classic Frankie Beverley and Maze soul anthem. 

It is often said that fact is stranger than fiction, that with some events you apparently couldn’t make it up. Well, in the traumatic life of the silkiest of soul singers that is absolutely accurate. A complicated, sensitive, and passionate man, Marvin Gaye lived his life overshadowed by his violent father. 

The difficult, violent, explosive relationship with his father underpinned everything that followed in the life of Marvin Gaye. Ultimately, and tragically it would end in father shooting son after their final yet fatal bitter argument on April 1st 1984.

The contradictions of Marvin Gaye’s life started on April 2nd 1939 when he was born in Washington DC as Marvin Pentz Gay. He later added an E to his name , in the early 1960’s to ward off teasing about being Gay and also to distance himself from his father’s surname. 

His father Marvin Gay was a Reverend in a Hebrew Pentecostal church called the House of God. He imparted a very strict upbringing on Marvin junior and his 3 siblings. He was a brutal man, frequently inflicting physical violence on his children and subjecting his wife to regular beatings. Marvin junior attracted the worst of his father’s violence as he took it upon himself to protect his mother Alberta from the worst his father could do. 

Needless to say, this very violent family upbringing, left Marvin Junior scarred for life. He forever craved the love of his father who could never give him that. Despite all of his career achievements and the recognition he earned he never achieved the thing that he needed the most, his father’s love.

Nowadays we all recognise that trauma experienced by any child in their formative years is always going to lead to a troubled adulthood and in fact it is a key factor in addictive behaviour of all sorts. Hardly any wonder then that Marvin would become drug dependent and a manic depressive despite all of his fame.

It was therefore, no surprise that Marvin wanted to escape from his family as soon as possible. His first attempt to break free was in 1956 when aged 17 he enlisted in the US Air Force. But even then, the contradictions that ran through his life surfaced as he faked mental illness to extricate himself from the disciplined air force environment he hated. 

He returned to Washington DC and formed a vocal quartet called The Marquees. But after one failed single they were dropped from their recording contract with Okey records a subsidiary of Columbia. 

One of the few things that Marvin had seen as a positive from his father was the delivery style of his sermon’s in church. Marvin regularly attended and sang at the services from the tender age of 4. He drew on his father’s preaching style as he developed his own stagecraft and he readily acknowledged that it was something that played a key role in his vocal delivery.

As a singer the young Marvin was influenced by Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Ray Charles and Billy Eckstine. But success didn’t come quickly. After the initial failure of The Marquees, he continued working in Washington DC on the club circuit and started writing his own songs. 

Eventually the impresario Harvey Fuqua spotted Marvin and took him under his wing. Harvey would become the father figure that Marvin had always sought and he would shape the rest of his life and career in so many ways.

As it happens Harvey was a very good judge of talent. He had already discovered the likes of Johnny Bristol, Lamont Dozier, Junior Walker and The Spinners. Just as importantly for Marvin, his new mentor was to introduce him to the woman that would he would marry and that in itself would effectively catapult him to International fame.

In 1959 Harvey Fuqua and his group The Moonglows moved to Chicago where they recorded a few unsuccessful tracks for Chess Records. But with little sign of success the group split up and in 1960 Harvey and Marvin moved to Detroit. It would be the most important move of their lives. Hittsville USA was about to become the Sound of Young America and they would be vital cogs in that machine.

On arrival in Detroit, Marvin became a session musician, a drummer. However, his fate was about to be signed, sealed and delivered when he was invited to the home of Berry Gordy over the Holiday Season of 1960. 

Harvey Fuqua had married Gwen Gordy the sister of Berry and he distributed the first record that would become a MOTOWN hit. The record was Barrett Strong’s “Money (That’s What I Want ) and it was released on Anna Records, owned by Harvey and Gwen. Their label was later sold to Berry. Thereafter Harvey Fuqua became a song writer and executive at MOTOWN.

For Marvin, the introduction to Berry Gordy in 1960 would change his life and the history of soul music to boot. He married Anna Gordy, seventeen years his senior, in June 1963. The relationship was intense, passionate and fiery. But they were good for each other and Marvin realised that his marriage kept him close to the ear of Barry Gordy at the “Hit Factory”.

Nonetheless, Berry was always grudging in any praise of his brother in law. He recognised his talent and was especially keen to use Marvin as the leading male vocalist for MOTOWN. He saw Marvin as a cross between a matinee idol and a pop star.

Many studio workers and musicians at MOTOWN recall strenuous arguments between Marvin and Berry. They would often square up to each other in heated squabbles but Berry held the highest cards. Financially Berry called the tune and Marvin sang the songs that Berry wanted (at least to start with). What made things even worse for Marvin was that Berry owned the house that he and his wife Anna lived in. It seemed that Berry controlled his every move.

Undoubtedly, in the early part of his career, MOTOWN wanted Marvin to sing simple, pop songs. Berry Gordy wanted MOTOWN to sell records and not make political and social statements. He didn’t want to alienate the middle of the road, largely white, record buying public. 

Berry Gordy did not want to present MOTOWN as in any way threatening. In many ways he was doing with MOTOWN what Brian Epstein did with The Beatles. Keep it clean, don’t threaten, dress sensibly and get the hits. He was selling pop, upbeat, happy music. Selling was his game and money was the driver. Berry Gordy was a ruthless businessman first, second and third.

The first hits Marvin had on MOTOWN reflected the “safe” music that the company ordered. So in 1962 “Stubborn Kind of Fellow” was typical of the type of material that the business demanded. It was absolutely not the music that Marvin dreamed of making but it was successful. 

As success followed success Marvin worked with the genius in house MOTOWN production team, Holland-Dozier-Holland, and the hits kept coming. So “Can I Get A Witness”, You’re A Wonderful One” and “How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You “ hit the charts.

Firmly established as MOTOWN’s leading man, Marvin was pushed by Berry to record a series of duets with the leading ladies on the label. Against his wishes, Marvin agreed and although he didn’t really want to cooperate the recordings produced some great moments. 

Firstly he recorded with Mary Wells “What’s The Matter With You Baby ?”, then with Kim Weston “It Takes Two”, and most successfully with Tammi Terrell “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”, Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing”, and “You’re All I Need To Get By”. Later Berry forced him to record with Diana Ross although they never actually recorded anything at the same time because they despised each other.

The Prince of MOTOWN he may well have been but privately Marvin Gaye was in torment. He was deeply hurt at having to play the tunes that Berry called, and he wanted to record his own more contentious, expansive music. He felt a fraud and in fact some of the duets released under his name with Tammi Terrell were exactly that because due to illness some of her vocals were actually performed by Valerie Simpson.

Following her collapse on stage in Virginia in October 1967, Tammi Terrell was never able to perform or record again so Valerie Simpson stood in her shoes. Marvin was spun the line that he should continue recording with Valerie impersonating Tammi as sales meant money which could pay medical bills for Tammi. Marvin reluctantly went along with it out of respect and love for Tammi. When Tammi died from a brain tumour on 1970 Marvin was broken. He spiralled into depression.

By the late 60’s the relationship between Marvin and Berry could  be described as frosty, at best. Typical of the shenanigans was the saga that went on with the classic Norman Whitfield and Barratt Strong tune “ I Heard It Through The Grapevine”. It was recorded by Marvin in February 1967 but MOTOWN rejected it suggesting it be covered by Gladys Knight and The Pips. 

Only when released as an album track on Marvin’s LP “In The Groove” in August 1968 did radio stations give it the airplay that demanded it be released as a single. His classic rendition reached number 1 on the pop and RnB charts in the US and became a world wide smash hit. A victory of sorts for Marvin but the next battle of wills with Berry and “the company” was not long in coming.

In May 1969, Obie Benson of the Four Tops started work on a song he intended be recorded by the “Tops’, called “What’s Going On ?”. It was rejected by the Four Tops because it was a protest song. But their loss was to be Marvin’s gain and it would result in arguably one of the most important MOTOWN albums. 

Anna Gordy persuaded Marvin to try the song “What’s Going On ?” and it soon became clear that “What’s Going On ?” was perfect for him. From the very first run throughs it was his song, tailor made for him. But even though the studio singers, musicians and engineers were convinced he had to record and release the song, Berry Gordy was annoyed that Marvin was contemplating doing so.

As far as Berry Gordy was concerned, if the Four Tops believed the song to be inappropriate then it WAS inappropriate. It was a “protest” song and MOTOWN did not do anything that might rock any boats. Berry Gordy forbade Marvin to record the song. Effectively Marvin subsequently went on strike, refusing to record at all. 

The stand off lasted almost a year, until in June 1970 permission was granted for the single “What’s Going On ?” to be recorded by Marvin for release at an undetermined time. When it was eventually released it was done so without the knowledge or sanction of Berry Gordy. 

The strike period had actually given Marvin time to compose a series of songs he wanted to release on a concept album with “What’s Going On ?” as the title track. The contentious piece of work was to become one of the most important records ever made and certainly the most radical of anything put out by MOTOWN. Marvin openly challenged the existing social order on the album. He sang about civil rights, environmental abuse, intolerance and the record became a clarion call for anyone wanting to question the politics of the time. It was definitely NOT MOTOWN neither musically or lyrically.

As a political record, Berry Gordy did not want Marvin to continue with the album and he did not believe it would be a hit anyway. It was far too serious. MOTOWN was light hearted, fun pop. Marvin was talking about climate change before the scientists talked about it and he sang in a more jazz influenced style than RnB/pop that had proven successful for Hittsville USA. 

The seminal Marvin Gaye album “What’s Going On ?” was released in May 1971, arguably the most important year in the history of MOTOWN. The album became the biggest selling album on MOTOWN to that point and remains a key piece of work. It fused social commentary, politics, jazz , funk and soul to endure well beyond its’ time. It is still one of the most important records ever made.

Following “What’s Going On ? “ was always going to be a huge challenge but throughout the 1970′s Marvin continued to experiment with jazz, gospel, blues, soul and even more with narcotics. He managed to balance spirituality, commerciality, and experimentation with hits such as “Let’s Get It On”, “Trouble Man”, “After The Dance” and “Got To Give It Up”. He eventually divorced Anna Gordy in 1978 after what can only be described as a pained, strained marriage.

The traumatic separation inspired him to record the album “Here My Dear” and it is probably the most bitter record you will ever listen to. Marvin was leaving no doubt that he was in a deep emotional hole. His drug use fuelled terrible and dangerous mood swings as he lurched from one instability to another seeking some kind of stability and solace. 

A short lived second marriage to Janis Hunter lasted only until 1979 with divorce finalised in 1981. Marvin found himself bankrupt financially and emotionally and he attempted to take his own life.

In 1982 with the aid of old friend and mentor Harvey Fuqua,  Marvin made something of a comeback. Exiled to Britain then Belgium it was here that he released the single “Sexual Healing” on Columbia Records. The track was taken from the album “Midnight Love” which certainly had some more than decent high moments. As usual for Marvin, he fused a number of different musical influences from reggae, RnB, soul, funk and synthopop.

The success of the 1982 “comeback” allowed Marvin to clear 2 million dollars in back taxes to the US authorities. Sadly off stage, Marvin could never fend off his personal demons. All that damage that he had been caused as a child, all that trauma, all that baggage. Stage fright, paranoia, drug use and ongoing depression eventually confined the “Prince of Motown” to his Los Angeles home. It was a home that he would lose his life in.

As if somehow predestined Marvin Gaye was shot dead by his father on April 1st 1984. Yes indeed, April fools day. You couldn’t make it up could you ? In a violent argument and fight between his mother and father, Marvin tried to intervene and sadly the whole situation escalated quickly into the final, fatal act of the ultimate tragedy.

The Reverend Marvin Gay was charged with first degree murder but eventually the charge was reduced to manslaughter following the diagnosis of a brain tumour. He was sentenced to a six year suspended sentence and probation. He died in 1998 in a nursing home.

In the final analysis, Marvin Gaye will always be remembered as one of the most important voices ever to be recorded. In the pantheon of male vocal greats, he is right up there in the top echelons. He is in the same company as Frank Sinatra, Sam Cooke, Wilson Picket, Otis Redding, Donny Hathaway, Ray Charles, Nat King Cole, and now Gregory Porter.

 His work remains as relevant today as it was when it was recorded. The sentiment and messages delivered on the “What’s Going On ?” album were years ahead of their time and are probably more important today than ever.  Marvin Gaye has often been imitated but never bettered. 

Nothing in his successful music career however, could compensate him for the love and recognition he craved from his father. His whole life was a battle to achieve the acknowledgement and attachment his father didn't provide. 

In life Marvin Gaye was a restless, troubled, tragic soul. He leaves an incredible body of work and a wonderful musical legacy. Rest in peace Marvin, you will never be forgotten

[iguana012]

Japanese Nats: The Aftermath

This recap is almost 3 weeks late but fwiw I judged the event on The Judges’ Table. If you’re interested in my (serious) opinions about the competition, you can read them there. If you’re interested in my less censored opinions, I will include as much as I can in this post. 

So what happened is that Japan crowned their tiniest champions ever, Satoko Miyahara (her 3rd title) and Shoma Uno (his 1st title). But some people were less interested in that and more interested in receiving updates on Yuzuru Hanyu’s recovery after he decided to withdraw from the competition in order to prioritize his health, thus generating earthquakes among his sensitive fans. Other people (those who attended the competition) went just to see Mao Asada but they were polite enough not to get up and empty the arena while Mao wasn’t skating unlike what happened at the Sochi Olympics when Evgeni Plushenko withdrew from the men’s event. 

Now I’m not pretending to be some advocate of justice and I’m not intending to preach. But I believe this is a good opportunity to highlight frequent problems in the skating fandom so you won’t be tempted to fall into their traps. 

DISCLAIMER: I do realize I’m already in a very high risk of getting attacked by some Yuzu fans via anon asks or salty replies/reblogs but I’m gonna say this again: it’s okay if you’re not into my kind of “”””humor”””. You can ignore me and I promise I won’t get a boo-boo. GETTING TO THE SUBJECT NOW!

THE LADIES EVENT aka Game Of Thrones

Satoko Miyahara waltzed into this event giving negative fucks and the results showed: when she gives negative fucks, that 3Lz-3T combo in the second half of her SP is miraculously rotated. As a consequence she got 76 for her program and further established her new position as one of the most overscored skaters currently competing (don’t believe me? Ask the Russian ubers and Mao ubers). I also thought “damn, this empty program actually looks nice when neither she nor I have to worry about rotations”. But the key here is to make the program look like that when you give a lot of fucks as opposed to negative fucks, and Mie Hamada knew that. So the next day before Satoko skated her FS, Hamada annoyed the crap out of her and pressured her as a strategy to make her get used to skating clean when she gives a lot of fucks, such as when she’s thinking she’s gotta get a medal in a relevant event, including the Olympics. For now, Satoko is still failing that test because she had a step-out on the 3Lz-3T combo and a couple of carrots. 

Wakaba Higuchi finally - I repeat - FINALLY skated a clean short program and it was so adorable to see her get all excited and happy about it. Except it wasn’t a squeaky-clean program because she got a wrong edge call on her flip. What can ya do, if ya got a good lutz ya gotta lip and when ya got a good flip ya gotta flutz. She’s gonna have to follow Satoko’s example and replace that lip with a loop and be done with it. Other than that, damn this girl got huge jumps. Everyone loves some huge jumps. However, the disadvantage of huge jumps is that you gotta have very good control of the landing and you have to know how to manage your speed, when to speed up, when to slow down, otherwise you’re doomed to pull a Midori Ito and land your jumps over the cameraman outside the boards. (Have you imagined Evgenia Medvedeva landing one of her 3-3-3 combos on Tarasova’s table cause I did and I cracked myself up really). 

Another skater who is fast as crap and has great technique on top of that is Mai Mihara who won the bronze medal and got herself a ticket to Worlds. Just a year ago around this time she was watching Nationals on TV from a hospital bed having been diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Doesn’t that make a great Cinderella story? She is, actually, skating to Cinderella but her style is still stuck somewhere on the road between junior and senior (she was pretty good as a junior but I didn’t like her skating then and I’m not necessarily warming up now) but she seems like a very sweet girl and if there’s anyone who deserved going to Worlds aside from Satoko and Wakaba, it’s this young lady. 

Marin Honda is another skater who finally - I repeat - FINALLY skated a clean short program after burying herself in competitions right from the start. The poor girl has been under so much constant pressure this season I feel like she’s always on the verge of having an emotional breakdown. It’s not only the fact that she’s cried a number of times after her performances, but this season she always looked like she was terrified of her results no matter how she skated. I’m not a fan of either of her programs this season (SP is similar to last season’s and the FS is a hot mess combo of Yuzuru’s Romeo & Juliet 1 and 2) but she has excellent skating skills, musicality, expression, projection to the audience for her age. She doesn’t have the best jump technique but she is one of the few lucky ones with a clean lutz AND flip. After a smooth short program, a popped jump in the free prevented her from stepping onto the podium but that’s how it is in competition; it’s not about what you’re able to do, it’s about what you end up doing when it counts. 

Rika Hongo has been in serious trouble ever since the beginning of this season - or maybe as far as the previous Nationals - and the worst case scenario happened. She finished 5th and now the juniors ahead of her are old enough to go to Worlds in her place. While she was 2nd in the SP with the best performance of the season, she went down to 6th in the FS and finished 5th overall despite bringing back Riverdance, a program that worked for her last year. Unfortunately the spark, the freedom and the joy that was present last season was absent in this competition as she was very nervous even before she took the ice. 

Yuna Shiraiwa on the other hand... I’m only going to say this. Clean 3Lz-3T and (second half) 3F-3T combos in the FS. No UR calls. Highest TES (71.74) of the evening. She’s the real MVP in Hamada’s team. 

THE OLD(ER) GENERATION

This was Mao Asada’s worst result at Nationals but instead of having retirement thoughts (like she had last season at Nationals even though she skated better), she’s still determined to come back stronger next season. An old knee injury prevented her from landing the 3A and rotating a lot of her jumps but at this point she’s obviously not skating for the medals as much as she’s skating for herself. No skater wants to leave the competitive world with regrets so who are we to judge Mao’s decision to continue in spite of physical difficulties? With Yuzuru absent due to influenza, most fans attended the competition to see Mao and it was obvious just counting the number of flowers that were thrown on the ice for her compared to the other skaters. 

Redemption from Kanako Murakami, who is also nearing the end of her career but managed to deliver the first clean FS she’s skated in ages. That’s all she wanted from this competition, she got it, and she awarded the audience with her signature Kanako Smile.

Painful competition for Haruka Imai, former Japanese Jr National Champion and 4th at the 2014 4CC. No GP assignments this season, she was plagued by inflammation of her hips and knees but she fought to land the 3Lz and 3F. This was also the first time we got to see one of her new programs (the FS, which is Primavera by Einaudi) and she’s still beautiful to watch. 

SHOMA UNO & CO.

It was kind of depressing to watch the men’s event this year because only a couple of years ago it was the fiercest event at Nationals. Keiji Tanaka seized his chance to grab onto the silver medal while Takahito Mura’s bronze was (once again) useless - as harsh as it sounds. Shoma wasn’t at his best here but he showed that he learned a new lesson (tag a 3T to a different jump if you screw up one of your planned combos!!) and he came out of this alive and well. The added pressure of having to “live up to expectations” in the absence of Olympic King Zuzu was another thing he suddenly had to put up with (good job Fuji). But there’s an old saying; “better here than at Worlds”. 

CONTROVERSIES 

While Satoko and Shoma are the tiniest champions Japan has ever had, they’re also the most criticized. They both have to skate under the shadows of two skating giants, Mao and Yuzuru, who have hoards of fans. Among those hoards of fans there are ubers, people who have made a habit out of bashing their favorite skaters’ successors. In Japan there already are Mao ubers whose jobs are to tear Satoko apart and the disease has long spread worldwide. You can see it on forums, you can see it on comment sections of YouTube videos, you can even hear it on television (looking at you Simon Reed). People who write passive-aggressive, sarcastic remarks, calling Satoko names and whatnot. Shoma gets similar (though mellower) treatment from overseas fans, but not from Japanese fans, possibly due to the fact that he’s a Daisuke Takahashi fan so most of Dai’s fans are now supporting him. 

These two young skaters (and not only) deserve all the support in the world. It’s not easy to become Japan’s supporting pillar and leading lady after the great Mao Asada, but Satoko is doing an incredible job. Appreciate more, bash less. Don’t let the judges cloud your judgement. There’s also a massive amount of PR in figure skating; Mao has so many sponsors you can see her in commercials, you can see fluff videos about her because that’s what the general audience wants. She’s been advertised as a child prodigy (which she was) and people consider her part of their family. Satoko doesn’t benefit from that kind of treatment so people tend to be cold and judgmental towards her because she’s nothing compared to Mao-chan (oh dear those jumps, oh dear the way she bends her knee, oh dear her face). 

Recently Marin Honda has been getting the “heir of Mao” treatment, getting sponsorship from JAL, shooting CMs for Ghana and stuff. I feel like I have to point out the fact that all of her siblings, including herself, are managed by a hugely influential management company. If you’re into Japanese entertainment, you might have heard of it. It’s called Oscar Promotion and it’s a talent agency whose famous names include actresses Emi Takei, Aya Ueto and Ayame Gouriki. She’s been promoted and modeled by a talent agency since she was a young child so she’s an expert at working with the camera, the audience and the reporters. As a result she’s also been gathering - well, pretty scary fans who are downright infatuated with her and will start arguments if you dare criticize her. Similar to idol group fans, I’d say. 

But this is figure skating and crack commentaries aside we’re talking about real, young people with feelings who are training every day from dawn till dusk, who get injured, who sacrifice their childhood and adolescence. We’re also talking about real fans behind the computer screen who like who they like and no one person is entitled to criticize or ridicule the things that make them happy. At the same time, no one is entitled to attack fans who criticize your favorite skater(s) as long as they bring valid arguments and they’re polite about it. And no one is entitled to attack another fan whose way of seeing or perceiving things is either more or less intense than yours. Be nice to each other. #PEACE

[shadowetienne]

Etienne’s Top Fives of 2016 - Figure Skating Edition:  Senior Ladies

Senior Ladies is a deep field, and while it’s not progressing technically as fast as the men’s field right now, there have been some absolutely stunning skates this season.  I’ve got some old favorites and new favorites and favorites coming up from juniors for some very exciting skating all season.

These Top Fives lists are not absolutely who I think is best as who I find the most appealing.  The Senior Ladies post is focused on skaters who were on the Senior Grand Prix circuit.

Honorable Mention:  Mirai Nagasu (USA)

Mirai is one of those skaters I’ve loved for a long time, and I’ve always felt bad about how poorly she’s been treated/handled by USFSA.  I was sad at the beginning of the season to see her struggle with her first GP assignment, and she did beautifully at NHK and I was SO PROUD.  I love her programs (this is nothing new, she almost always has wonderful programs).  I hope that she kills it at Nats and gets the chance to go to 4CC and Worlds.

Her SP this season is to Chopin’s Nocturne No. 20 in C Sharp Minor.  There is so much attention to detail and beauty to the footwork and transitions.  She’s got lovely footwork, lovely spins, and just amazing attention to detail.  I want to see it more times this season!

Her FS is to “The Winner Takes it All,” which is a program that I really really want to see her win something with.  It’s such an excellent program, and I love seeing her skate to music she is so clearly in to.  I love her spirals and spins in this program and how classically lovely and flowing they are. 

My hopes for her this season/year: - placing at nationals - being proud of the rest of her season

5. Ashley Wagner (USA)

Ashley is one of those skaters who took a good long while to grow on me.  I didn’t really really like her until last season.  She’s continued to skate things that make me like her this season though, for which I am glad.  She’s got so much attitude and presence on the ice, and that is something that I think that there needs to be more of.  I’m also just really glad to see a skater like Ashley who loves what she’s doing so much that she’s kept going through to a point where experience and skill have started outweighing the young jumpers abilities and getting her so solidly on podiums.  Ashley can be so hit and miss sometimes, and that hurt her this season with not making some podiums, but I’m proud of her anyhow.

Her SP this season is to “Sweet Dreams” (the techno remix), and I feel like this is one of those songs that really works for her, but I don’t want to see too many other skaters trying to pick it up.  It works for Ashley because she’s Ashley.  There is so much attitude in this program, so much attention to expressing and showing the music.  It’s such an experience to watch.

Her FS is to Muse’s “Exogenisis Symphony Part III,” and I think that it was an interesting choice in terms of going to something different and trying it out.  It’s good to see her trying more new things.  This smoother, more elegant style is not something I’m used to seeing from Ashley, but she did a wonderful, interesting, expressive job with it.  I definitely enjoyed seeing her do something like this.  And her spins were great straight through to the end.

My hopes for her this season/this year: - more skates like her Skate America skates - medal at Nationals - an end to the season she can be happy with leading into the next Olympic season

4.  Li Zijun (CHN)

Zijun has been one of my favorite skaters for a while, and seeing her have a lovely set of skates at Rostelecom Cup this season was definitely a relief.  She’s had some struggles in the past few seasons, so I really want to see her back on her game and challenging the higher scoring set again.  I love her programs this season and I just really hope to see her do well in the later half of the season.

Her SP this season is to “Le Diable Matou.”  Her quality of skating is just so amazing.  I love how well she incorporates the music into her interpretation.  She’s got incredible spins, incredible footwork, and I am just so in love with this program.  (I also just love the costume she’s got for this.)

Her FS is to a piece by one of my favorite composers which just makes me even happier with it:  “Only for Love” by Tan Dun.  She is just stunningly elegant and has a beautiful connection with her music.  I adore this program and the way this was performed and flowed together.  I have so many feelings about this program.

https://youtu.be/Az7C9JoBrB0 (no more embeded links)

My hopes for her for the rest of this season/year: - an amazing 4CC and Worlds - programs she can be proud of and happy with - more wonderful, elegant performances (I just want to watch her skate beautifully more)

3.  Evgenia Medvedeva (RUS)

Evgenia is definitely my favorite of the Russian ladies right now, but I have some mixed feelings about her programs (especially the FS) this season.  She’s a brilliant skater, amazingly ahead of the field in many ways, and I really enjoy the quality of her skating.

Her SP is to “The River Flows in You” and “The Winter,” and it is definitely my favorite of her two programs this season.  This program is beautifully expressive and just so sure.  I really enjoy it, and I feel like it is appropriately suited to her.  She clearly feels this program really well.

https://youtu.be/-TqSaDHuP5Y (no more embeded videos)

Her FS is a somewhat inopportune musical choice, skating to “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Clear” and “Piano Lesson with Grandma” by Alexandre Desplat along with a voiceover that is apparently a tribute to 9/11.  Because Evgenia is so young, and definitely doesn’t have a lot of control over her music, I’m mostly side-eyeing her coach and her choreographer over this.  With that out of the way, she is an incredible skater, and she does so many things in this program very well.  Such amazing jumps, such lovely spins, such good transitions.  I’m still not positive she has the maturity to skate this actual program though.

https://youtu.be/vXnnwHYqGo4 (no more embeded videos)

My hopes for her next season/this year: - better program decisions for next season - continuing to do amazing skates with few mistakes - continuing to do things that she can be happy with

2.  Wakaba Higuchi (JPN)

Wakaba burst into seniors this season, and I was so excited for her (also slightly terrified because I hadn’t realized she was quite old enough for seniors this year until it was announced that she would be on the GP circuit).  I’ve loved her skating since she came onto the Junior circuit, and she’s been doing amazingly nationally and abroad.  I was very pleased with how she did for her first year at seniors, and I think that it is a sign of many more awesome years of seniors to come (and hopefully the second half of her season attests to that).

Her SP is to La Califfa, and I think that it was an excellent vehicle for her first senior season.  She’s so fast and such a good jumper (even when she occasionally doubles out a triple).  She is performing so well, and I just love the expression that she has all through.

https://youtu.be/IWtO2W_8fk0 (no more embeded videos)

Her FS is to Sheherazade, which is honestly something that concerned me some.  I’m not fond of it as a warhorse or in many ways the costuming choices that come along with it.  She’s an amazing skater, and I love her skating in it, but there’s a part of me that is very glad that she’s skating this program at 15 where I can be pretty sure that it was a decision made by her coaches and choreographers.  She’s not been free of mistakes on this program this season, but it has some incredible jumping and footwork passes.

https://youtu.be/toWVEzw8JoQ (no more embeded videos)

My hopes for her next season/this year: - a good finish at 4CC and Worlds - skates that she can be proud of the rest of the season - programs that she has fun with for next season (and also gets a fair amount of input on)

1. Satoko Miyahara (JPN)

Satoko has been such a presence for team Japan the past few seasons.  She’s got wonderful consistency, beautiful skating, and incredible commitment.  I love her spins, and I’ve been so impressed with the improvement in her jumps across the board.  I love her for her elegance that just keeps getting better as well. 

Her SP this season is to Musetta’s Waltz, and this is a very characteristic program of Satoko, fitting to her strengths and just creating beautiful skate after beautiful skate.  Everything in this program is so on point and so fluent.  I love the way she moves so effortlessly between elements.

https://youtu.be/UNhJzQixePE (no more embeded videos)

Her FS is a lovely contrast in that it pushes areas she’s not quite as confident in, skating to The Planets.  I love how she tackled some of the more powerful skating, and I love how she wove the different styles of the skating together.  She’s definitely seen a little bit of struggle on this program, but she’s brought it together into a beautifully artistic piece.  I love her spins so very much, and her jumps are looking stronger, though they are still small, and that means that some people are suspicious of her rotations (she rotates so fast though that she gets around a lot of the time).

https://youtu.be/X35FMuwRtRE (no more embeded videos)

My hopes for her next season/this year: - podiums at both 4CC and Worlds - more recognition for her amazing skating - being proud of her programs for the rest of the season

[thetrumpdebacle]

WASHINGTON — Juan Soto finished a round of batting practice here Saturday and when he stepped out of the cage, he deliberately pantomimed the finish to his swing, the sort of thing you see from veterans but rarely from teenagers. Soto is a 19-year-old with unusual maturity, someone who already has an understanding of the strike zone and how his own mind works best — that for him, obsessive video study can clutter the brain.

Soto looks like he’s going to be around a long time with the Nationals. Max Scherzer is right in the middle of what might turn out to be the best long-term contract for a pitcher, because he appears to be the reigning Best Pitcher On The Planet with no end to his reign in sight; he threw his bullpen session Saturday in full game uniform, in keeping with Scherzer’s belief that you should practice the way you play.

• Phillies not about to go away » • Nats’ offense coming up short »

Shortstop Trea Turner is 24, talented starting pitcher Erick Fedde is 25, third baseman Anthony Rendon is 28, outfielder Michael Taylor 27. Washington holds club options on 31-year-old closer Sean Doolittle for 2019 and 2020.

The national narrative on the Nationals has been that 2018 is the last year of their window of championship opportunity, particularly with Bryce Harper headed into free agency in the fall and the Braves and the Phillies on the ascent in the NL East. But with Soto, Scherzer and the others tied to Washington beyond this season, it seems inevitable that the Nationals will continue to contend regardless of whether Harper stays.

Harper’s tortured performance seems to have eased just a bit in recent days, with the quality of his plate appearances improving and the promise of a second-half surge hovering. It’s unclear whether he’ll bounce back, and how his first-half slump will impact his free agency and the chances of his return to the Nationals.

Harper is hitting .212 with 19 homers and a .353 on-base percentage, and executives with other teams offered some early speculation this week that a down year for Harper could increase the chances he returns to the Nationals — because they understand Harper more than other teams, and understand that in those periods when he eases the paralytic pressure he places on himself, he is a dynamic force. Since Harper began his career, there has been an expectation that he would approach a record-setting contract in free agency.

But some executives wonder if Harper’s 2018 struggles continue, a better option could be to take a shorter-team deal with an opt-out, to give Harper a mulligan and another launch year; after all, Harper is only 25 years old. “That could work for him, and for the Nationals,” said one evaluator.

News from around the major leagues

As Orioles lefty Zach Britton lingered in the trade market last summer, the Dodgers and the Astros were among the teams that felt as if they wasted a lot of time talking with the Orioles — because in their view, Baltimore struggles with the process. The Orioles have a different perspective on this, predictably, with some club officials believing that in the end, they assessed the question of whether the offers on the table were worthwhile and decided to keep Britton. But because of how those conversations played out, some rival executives say they won’t actively engage the Orioles — rather, they’ll wait for the Orioles to come to them with hard proposals.

• Pick-by-pick results from Day 1 • Law’s Day 1 winners and losers • Tigers take Auburn’s Mize No. 1 • Sooners QB Murray picked ninth by A’s • Law: AL team-by-team breakdown • Law: NL team-by-team breakdown

Evaluators with other teams say Baltimore isn’t really pushing any Manny Machado trade talk yet. It may be that in order for the Orioles to get solid return on Machado, a major injury to a contender is needed, because there are so many left-side infielders available and so few teams seemingly looking for a third baseman or a shortstop. Unless some team steps up aggressively to take Machado off the board, in the way that the Nationals moved aggressively on Kelvin Herrera, the Orioles could go into the last days before the trade deadline without significant offers on Machado. They could be left with the same choice that the Rangers had with Yu Darvish last summer: Take 60 cents on the dollar in value, or keep the player and get nothing more than a compensation draft pick.

“I’m not convinced [the Orioles] will actually trade him,” said one rival exec, “because I don’t know how attractive the offers will be.”

The Phillies have been rumored to be interested in Machado for the stretch drive, but it could be more likely that they’ll pursue him in free agency and try to fill need this summer with someone like Mike Moustakas.

• Nick Pivetta starts for the Phillies on Sunday Night Baseball, and he’s among the fastest-working pitchers in baseball, averaging about 22 seconds between deliveries. Pivetta explained that when he attended New Mexico Junior College, his head coach encouraged his pitchers to work fast, and if they didn’t, pitching coach Matthew Torrez would yell loudly, “THIS GAME IS BORING.” And the pitchers got the message.

Pivetta’s curveball is one of the best in the majors in its effectiveness — the value of his curve runs parallel to those of Justin Verlander and Aaron Nola — and he is throwing more and more of them. Pivetta used a conventional grip for his curveball, but when he went to a spike curve, the spin rate on the pitch improved markedly. … Pivetta grew up in Canada but was never interested in hockey, with its early-morning practices, and instead was always drawn to baseball.

• The Nationals made the first big strike of the summer trade market by adding Royals closer Kelvin Herrera. Washington acquired big bullpen pieces in the past, but this has caused clubhouse tension repeatedly for the Nationals — like when they added Jonathan Papelbon to replace Drew Storen as the closer. Given the generous personalities involved this year — Sean Doolittle, Ryan Madson, Herrera — there will not be a scrap over roles. … Herrera believes that his excellent command this season was built on the additional workouts he did during the winter. A long, ascending road leads to Herrera’s home in the Dominican Republic, and twice a week last winter, he would do a series of sprints up that road.

• The Phillies’ Odubel Herrera has been among the hottest hitters in baseball, clubbing a home run in five consecutive games during the past week. He probably leads the league in social interaction during his at-bats, often pausing to chat with the plate umpire between pitches — and each of Herrera’s plate appearances is like a separate chapter in each game, because he averages an MLB-high 29.5 seconds between pitches.

• The American League is all but fully declared in the separation of buyers and sellers, with an enormous gap between the best and worst teams. Because of that, some executives of NL and AL contenders expect that there will be a high volume of veterans available, especially in dollar dumps. “A lot of the deals that go down will be about saving two months’ worth of salary,” said one evaluator.

• Some NL officials believe that the Diamondbacks will be among the most aggressive teams before the trade deadline, because their window of opportunity could begin to close after this season. A.J. Pollock and Patrick Corbin will be free agents this winter, Paul Goldschmidt is eligible to hit the market after the 2019 season, and Mike Hazen’s front office is early in the process of rebuilding the farm system. “This might be their best chance for a while to win the [NL West],” said one evaluator.

• Union chief Tony Clark was roundly criticized by agents before and after the last collective bargaining negotiations because they felt he did not seek their feedback in suggestions and strategy — and instead, shut them out, before agreeing to a deal in which the union seemed to cede major ground to the owners. In recent months, with player unhappiness percolating, the union leadership has given signals that it wants to hear more from the agents.

• Mike Trout has compiled more than 1,000 games in his career, and countless kudos for the way he plays. Torii Hunter, Trout’s mentor and former teammate, refers to him as … The Digger, because of the divots he leaves as he’s sprinting to first base. Because Trout is so big, at about 240 pounds, and so fast and runs with such intensity every time, Hunter says that The Digger leaves the deepest divots of any player in baseball.

Baseball Tonight Podcast

A special Call To The Legends with Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez, who explains his philosophy about pitching inside and why he wasn’t afraid to retaliate, and his lingering questions about why he was left off voter ballots.

Friday: Karl Ravech on Manny Machado’s trade value and Mike Trout; Jessica Mendoza on Bryce Harper and Juan Soto; Marly Rivera about the Mets and Yoenis Cespedes.

Thursday: Phillies play-by-play man Scott Franzke on the team’s ascent, and the question of whether they’ll target Manny Machado in free agency; Sarah Langs plays The Numbers Game, with some great Trout notes on the eve of his career game No. 1,000; and Boog Sciambi on hyphenated pitching batteries, Giancarlo’s big moment and Trout.

Wednesday: Nationals GM Mike Rizzo on the Kelvin Herrera trade, Juan Soto’s plate discipline and the struggles of Bryce Harper; Jerry Crasnick on the dust-up between the Giants and Marlins, and the future of Mike Trout; and Paul Hembekides on why the Astros might be a lot better than anybody realizes.

Tuesday: Keith Law on the Kelvin Herrera trade; Seattle Times beat writer Ryan Divish about the surprising first half of the Mariners; Sarah Langs and The Numbers Game.

Monday: A conversation with Joe Maddon; Tim Kurkjian on the Astros’ win streak and a great Home Run Derby idea; Todd Radom’s weekly quiz.

And today will be better than yesterday.

via The Trump Debacle

[wakabahiguchi]

gpf recap aka. what gpf? there was no gpf, it was canceled

in which literally all my favorites are actually disasters and a reminder that the Olympic season of figure skating is literally the WORST

Is this actually a real GPF recap? or is this a place for me to vent about how demoralizing this event was? Olympic seasons are actually the worst, it’s like you get a glimmer of hope for your faves until it all gets taken away. I knew I was being sent a message when my DVR refused to record the televised GPF this weekend, and with good measure because I would’ve just deleted it anyways, just like how I’m deleting this entire event from my existence :)

Fair warning, this is basically an excuse for me to get extremely emo about my faves who all pretty much made mistakes or just flat out bombed their events. And a time for me to pointlessly complain about why the judges never get behind my faves. Oh, and lots of me stressing out about the Olympics. So, the usual.

First of all, I’m so glad we’ll be having a 1+ month break before anymore international competitions. Nats will happen of course, but the GPF has been too much in terms of stress. All my faves are tired and didn’t perform well at all. Literally all my faves. Every single one of them. I honestly need a break from this sport, thanks skating schedule. 

Ladies

So I basically wrote a soliloquy on how much I love Satoko’s skating and how much her haterz annoy me so here it is:

I'm getting tired of all the negativity that comes in every thread of a competition that Satoko competes in. That's one part I didn't miss about Satoko's hiatus. I'm not so knowledgeable or invested in the rhetoric of jumping techniques or ISU rulings, etc. so I don't have much to say about the heated debate going on about pre-rotations or URs. What I do know, however, is that Satoko has addressed her jumps countless times in interviews and to me, has visibly worked hard on improving it over the years. We've all read the practice reports; everyone knows that she drills those jumps over and over again and doesn't settle for any less. Even so much so that she's injured herself. The accusations that Satoko is purposefully cheating the judging system is perplexing to me, and the argument that she is being overscored doesn't make that much sense to me either. In fact, Satoko's had to work the hardest in order for her PCS and scores to gradually inflate like other skater's scores seem to naturally do. I don't understand why she is getting so much hate; sure, there can be critiques towards the judging system as to the coherency and enforcement of their rules, but for now, judging is how it is. Satoko's job isn't to judge and make calls on her own jumps. Her job, and the only thing she has control over, is her own performance. And to me, she's one of the most elegant and nuanced skaters in that regard. I think it's pointless to blame the skater and to go as far as accuse her of being lazy and knowingly cheating the system when all evidence points otherwise. I've anticipated Satoko's comeback for months and have been so impressed with how she's shown up these past two competitions. While I am also a fan of younger, more powerful skaters, I realized while watching her over the years that it's the skaters that tell a story and really interpret the music that move me the most. It's disheartening as a fan to see all this vitriol thrown at her, but it's also easy for me to just ignore the noise and watch her skate   I'm so excited for the Ladies FS and I hope Satoko continues her streak of good performances at the Grand Prix Final! 

TLDR; I’m used to reading negative things about Satoko; it’s almost like a tradition at this point with her, but it was at this GPF when it hit me the most. For the first time, I really felt kind of miserable about it all and I wanted to write something in support for her, because I truly truly do love her skating so much. 

The qualities that I love the most in Satoko’s skating are never rewarded what they deserve in competition which is why she’ll never win all the things that she deserves. But watching the junior event and some of her competitors right before watching her really hit me with how under appreciated she is. Like I said in my emo post, I love skaters that move me and listen to their music and actually perform. Satoko does all of that and more. I truly love her skating, I always have. But seeing everyone trying to tear her to shreds honestly just made me love her more. Keep thriving Satoko!

Her FS was a disaster in terms of scoring, thanks to the sudden attitude shift by the tech panel, I suppose. I just don’t like playing this guessing game with her scores waiting to see if she’ll be deducted or not. I hate seeing her reactions to the low scores and I hate that her PCS are underscored. Idk, it’s been like this, the same problem over and over for the past two years. At this point, waiting for her scores is like russian roulette and I’d rather just ignore it and enjoy her performances. 

Now onto a bigger mess. Here’s a smaller passage I wrote about my girl Wakaba concerning her constant underscoring:

I'm still puzzled why Wakaba's scores aren't going through the typical inflation a skater's scores usually goes through when they start performing consistently. Her scores have been great compared to her junior years, but they've pretty much been stagnant from the beginning of the season (compared to her competitors) despite consistent showings  She could trade the 3F for a 3Lo but that lowers her BV and she's already not being rewarded for consistency. 

I'm always puzzled about why Wakaba isn't benefitting from higher scores due to her consistency this season  It seems like other skaters are enjoying a meteoric rise in their PCS especially, and their scores have been gradually rising even w/o clean programs. But besides the scoring, Wakaba performed amazing at her first GPF! 

LOL at me trying to be positive at the end but tbh I just don’t get it. Why do So many skaters see such a meteoric rise in PCS but Wakaba doesn’t, despite being consistent and always skating well? Her popularity has skyrocketed this season thanks to her fabulous programs alone, so what’s taking the judges so long to finally get behind her? I shouldn’t be surprised, it took Satoko like 2 years longer to finally get the average PCS scores she’s getting now, but Wakaba is so much like EuroAmerican skaters who seem to be benefiting the most from gradual score increases. Why not her? 

And another disaster FS. But like, it was really a disaster this time. Something wasn’t right, I could tell even before she took the ice that she was more nervous than usual and something jus didn’t click with the program. What went wrong? Wakaba has never been one to crack under pressure, in fact, she usually rises to the occasion. Was the pressure of the GPF too much? Was she overworked? Just tired? Just having an off day? She looked so defeated ever since she missed that first jump, as if she knew she would already lose because she doesn’t benefit from a PCS cushion. It was so upsetting to see, especially because I could notice it affecting her performance. It lost a bit of its spark. I’m a little more concerned for her Olympic spot which she seemed to have locked down before this performance. Now it really depends on nationals. Wakaba has never failed to deliver during Nationals, and now is absolutely not the right time to start. I’m worried for her, this free skate was easily the worst she’s skated all season, and we’ve seen how good she can be with her amazing programs this season. I don’t know what’s in store for her next, I hope she can just be proud of qualifying for her first GPF and take the disappoint to fuel for Nationals.

Pairs

y i k e s. Said in the preview that this would either be the best or the worst competition based on results. based on what I had said, this should be the worst competition. but instead, I’m kind of just lowkey shook that Sui/Han didn’t win, but I’m not that surprised, honestly. As I stated earlier, I never thought they were the judges favorites and despite winning PCS with the fall in the SP they skated basically a WR skate and still didn’t win the FS or the TSS. Shook. I can find the pros in this situation, as I think it’s a reminder that they can’t afford any mistakes. That mistake (from Cong!!) in the SP cost them at least 5-6 points that could’ve won them the entire event. the fact that they lose the PCS element isn’t something I can think of a solution for, honestly, but like?? like I said, they aren’t the judges favorites (no one I like is :^)). Additionally, being back in the underdog situation might be the firing up they need for the Olympics. They’ve already won in the stadium in Korea :) But they’re showing amazing consistency with their FS, especially with the SBS 3S! They’re still the only pair to crack 80 in the SP (a common feat for them). Also, the GPF doesn’t have the best track record when predicting olympic podiums. Also they have tons of time to prepare for Feb because they most likely won’t go to Chinese nats or 4CC. however, I’m equally just as nervous. Even with a clean FS, they didn’t win TES or PCS. Their streak of being undefeated just got broken meaning that they're not as invincible anymore. They no longer hold the WR (which I hope they get back @ the olympics), and now they’re starting to lose out on PCS which is a big WTF for me, but again, not surprising. There’s talk of the 4S coming back which makes me SO nervous because their track record with the 4S has not been great in the past (witnessed it with my own eyes). Before this comp I thought they could go w/o it and still win, now I’m not so sure, since the judges aren’t as eager to give them the win in the FS as they are for the SP. 

I think the only reason why I’m so shook is because I go so hard for winners. I remember back when C/B were in contention for winning things I got so hyped because I’m so desperate to really root for skaters who actually win things and are liked by the judges (probably due to me liking skating after watching YunaMao). Once S/H started winning EVERYTHING last year it was so wonderful. And the GP series this year with the WR and amazing performances were so great. It felt so good to be a fan of skaters who won all the time and came so far from when I first saw them. And now it’s so strange to see them not win something. Even though I knew they weren’t the favorites, it’s so weird to feel like I’m back in 2016 when S/H got silver so many times, got underscored in PCS, and got ignored and looked over. It’s nostalgic in a way. I’m absolutely stressed for them at the Olympics the most, probably because they’re the only ones that have a real likely chance of winning out of everyone else I stan hard for. And that’s what’s kind of scary; because up until now, they were pretty much being hailed as guaranteed locks. And that’s why I have so many thoughts and why I’m so invested. They’ve been on the most uphill climb I’ve ever followed a skater through and somehow, it still doesn’t feel like it’s reached the peak. They’re still going for 2022 but 4 years is SO MUCH for skating and even looking at the pairs field this quad, there’s been so much changing around in positions. This isn’t at all to say that I’ve ruled them out or lost faith. I’m concerned that others will, but S/H have always been underestimated, (although pretty much universally liked by the public thank god). I think I’m just trying to process their situation going forward. It would be a lot clearer had they won, but I can still see some positives from here. The only thing I’m feeling a bit disheartened about is their PCS gap, and the fact that they don’t have the WR anymore. Had they skated a clean SP, would the have won? If they skated last, would they have won? Every time S/H skated last in major competitions recently they won, and when they skated first in the group they didn’t. IDK it’s so so so important for them to get good start orders for the olympics, that’s what may stress me the most lol. Because I know they can deliver; that’s what they’ve proven over the last year. 

I’ve already written WAY too much about this but I tend to overthink and I’m still processing this situation. What I’m worried about the most is probably if they’ll go for the quad throw. I’m so nervous because they shouldn’t need to have it tbh but then again, if they’re no longer winning while skating clean, then what? How will they get the judges back on their side? Were the judges even on their side in the first place? Am I wrong to be doubting everything right now? I wanted to know how they’d score while skating first in a group, and I can see that the judges still like to leave room for scores coming in later. This makes me so apprehensive because basically it means that S/H really NEED to skate last in the FS at the olympics if they even want to win. They might not even be in the last group for the SP due to their lack of competitions during their hiatus. Skating first is a death sentence, as witnessed at Boston Worlds 2016. It’s also wise for them to most likely skip the team event. They don’t need the extra event when lbr china has no chance of medaling at the team event. I think I’m just shook the most from this because I’m not used to them not winning, and it’s weird to be back in this place again. I’m definitely overthinking this whole thing but I needed some way to process my thoughts! They always seem to be in good spirits after competitions regardless of results, but I could tell they seemed kind of pissed. I’m anxiously awaiting what they’ll do to prepare for the olympics, and you bet I’ll probably be dying when the pairs event happens in Pyeongchang. The one consolation I have that will save me from the devastation of 2014 olympics is the fact that they’ll still be continuing for 2022, but like I said, so many things can change. I’m stressed because I know that they have a real solid chance to win. They aren’t locks, like people have claimed (I never thought they were), but IMO they have such a good chance. and THATs why I’m so invested. and THAT’s why I’m so stressed. Because they CAN win and I want them to so bad. And it looked so good up until now where it’s not looking bad, but it’s just not as clear anymore. Still letting my thoughts mull over but IDK how to feel. I’m just really uncertain right now, and that’s an ickier feeling than being outright angry or happy at the moment. I'll be holding my breath and lighting ALL the candles for them from now until February. Obviously, they can still do it. But of course, I’m still worried. I’m always so worried. I really am. Shook, but not shaken. 

Ice Dancing

a disaster! Shibutanis messed up on their twizzles not once, but twice in both the SD and the FS, which honestly does not compute with me. I just don’t get it, they came out so strong in the GP series a la S/H, but somehow just made uncharacteristic mistakes a la S/H. Barely made it by with a bronze, but that’s definitely not how anyone wanted to see them win it. I’m not that worried about Nationals unless they repeat this hot mess performance again. They were so bummed, you could really tell because usually they always just smile and wave regardless of their scores. Not this time. They’ve truly had rotten luck at the GPF maybe they should just skip it next time LOL (don’t think that works in ice dancing but whatever). I hope this was just a fluke competition and they go back to being strong. C/B at least won the FS and the PCS but they still got 3rd overall among the 3 US teams which hella worries me for nationals but they’re not definitely last, I just have no clue what the hell will happen at US nationals and that worries me kind of.

Mens

I’m okay with this podium but not with their performances. Shoma losing 1st place and Japan’s streak of GPF men titles with a time violation? A time violation?! Nathan messing up in the FS again? It says something that mens had the most acceptable result for me in this entire event. I’m less invested in the results of the mens because it’s so unpredictable that I have 0 expectations of anyone. That’s what makes it the most easygoing competition for me, but somehow it still managed to be disappointing :^)

This competition must be a new record for the sheer amount of all my favorites bombing or making mistakes. All of them, all at this competition. kings and queens of solidarity I suppose. Usually at least one of my faves pulls through to make the event bearable, but not even a shoma-nathan podium can make up for what a disaster this event was. The optimist in me hopes that this is a good sign for my faves; that they’re letting their mistakes go before the Olys. The other part of me wants to ignore the numbers/placements and just enjoy their skating. The other part of me is worried that their reputation judging/pcs is going to be affected by their performances here. The other part of me is just sad that nobody really pulled through, not even those who I thought were dependable. The final part of me wants to skip this season, and every olympic season that follows from hereon out. Nothing good comes out of an olympic season, not since Maosus retired! I’ll enjoy my break from skating after Japanese nationals, and once the Olympics comes back around, my death will be imminent. 

[giantsfootball0]

Bartolo 2.0? Matt Albers has been a heavyweight on the mound – Washington Nationals

During the first half of the season, Matt Albers was the Washington Nationals’ best reliever by a landslide. But the bullpen was a train wreck, so nobody noticed. Since the All-Star break, he’s been just as good, if not better. Yet he remains overlooked because he wasn’t part of the pen’s blockbuster midseason makeover. Being underestimated is nothing new for Albers. While there’s no denying he can pitch, the husky righty has had to swim upstream — because he doesn’t necessarily look like a pitcher.

“Matt didn’t have the greatest body,” says former Astros scout Rusty Pendergrass, now with the Diamondbacks. Back in 2000, when Pendergrass first laid eyes on Albers, he wasn’t quite sure what to make of the hefty high school junior from Houston. “He didn’t look the part, but I decided to stay there and watch him throw, and it was really good.”

“Call him the Michelin Man, Humpty Dumpty, whatever you want. The bottom line is, he performs.”

AL scout on Albers

What he saw was a lightning-quick arm with plus movement on his sinker and slider, and a deceptively good athlete who was a strike-throwing machine. Pendergrass spent the next year trying to sell Houston’s front office, and it worked. Kind of. At the end of his senior season, Albers was drafted by the Astros, but not until the 23rd round.

“If he had a better body,” says Pendergrass, “he probably would’ve gone higher.”

Sixteen years later, Albers takes pride in being a 23rd-rounder. “A lot of teams had quite a few chances,” he says, referring to the other 29 clubs that passed on him nearly two dozen times before the Astros finally pulled the trigger with the 686th overall pick. “I try to make the most out of that.”

That hasn’t necessarily been easy for Albers, who’s been dismissed in the big leagues almost as much as he was during the draft process.

Now in his 12th season in the majors, Albers has played for eight different teams, including the Astros, Orioles, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, Indians, Astros, White Sox and Nationals. Between the roundabout resume and the rounded physique, he’s a little like Bartolo Colon 2.0 (minus two teams and 55 pounds). Like Colon, he’s a sneaky-good athlete who last season crushed an extra-base hit that became an Internet sensation:

Unlike Colon, he hasn’t topped the $100 million mark in career earnings. Not even close. In fact, Albers has never earned more than $2.25 million in a season, which is peanuts for a veteran with as much tenure as he has. In fairness to the clubs that contracted him, especially earlier in his career, those decisions were likely less about his body and more about his body of work.

During his first six years in the show, Albers struggled with his control and had only one campaign in which he posted an ERA south of 4.5. Over the past six years though, he’s quietly developed into one of the game’s more effective relievers, pitching to a 2.93 ERA since the beginning of the 2012 season. “His command on both sides of the plate has gotten better throughout his career,” says Nationals backstop Matt Wieters, who spent 2009 and 2010 catching Albers in Baltimore, where some fans became disenchanted with the hurler’s poor performance and started referring to him as “Fat Albers.”

Since then, the 34-year-old righty has introduced a change-up that he deploys against lefties and started throwing his sinker down and away to righties instead of exclusively down and in. He’s also mixing in a four-seam fastball to go along with the filthy slider he already had. Says Wieters: “His stuff allows him to pitch to any hitter in any situation.”

That ability to pitch anytime and anywhere is part of what has made Albers such a valuable commodity for manager Dusty Baker and the NL East champs. He’s entered games as early as the fifth inning and as late as the 10th. He’s been a situational guy, pitching to just one batter on five different occasions (opponents are 0-for-5 and have hit into two double plays), and he’s been a multi-inning guy, throwing more than one frame a dozen times (his ERA is 0.00 in those outings). On May 5, he even recorded his first career save, breaking a string of 460 relief appearances without one (an MLB record). Among National League relievers, he ranks fifth in ERA (1.72), third in WHIP (0.88), and tied for second in batting average against (.170).

Although his body type would never be confused with that of Andrew Miller, the long and lanky Indians lefty who dominated last postseason in a super-reliever role, it’s entirely possible Albers — who’s never appeared in a playoff game — could have a similar impact this October. In the meantime, he’s too busy mowing down hitters to care about what people think of his physique.

“You can do all the judging you want, but he goes out there and gets outs. [He’s] one of the best relievers in baseball.”

Braves catcher Kurt Suzuki on Albers

“I obviously know about the perception,” says Albers, who’s listed at 6-foot-1 and 225 pounds, the same height and only five pounds more than Washington second baseman Daniel Murphy. In 2016, prior to joining Murphy and the Nationals, he posted a career-worst 6.31 ERA with the White Sox. Still, Albers views the season as a success because, unlike 2014 (torn subscapularis muscle) and 2015 (broken finger), he was able to stay whole, just as he has this year. “Mostly I focus on staying healthy and what my teammates think about me. The other stuff, what the outside world thinks, I can’t really control that much. As long as I feel like they have my back and they want me on their team, that’s all I can do.”

For the record, his fellow Nats seem tickled to have him on their side.

“He’s been as good if not better than the new guys,” says righty reliever Shawn Kelley, referring to Sean Doolittle, Ryan Madson, and Brandon Kintzler, the trio of deadline acquisitions who grabbed all the ink and have helped stabilize what was once a wretched Nationals bullpen. “And he’s done it all year.”

He’s done it without the benefit of a cool nickname like Doo or Mad Dog (he’s known as Albie or Matty Al in the clubhouse), and he’s done it without the benefit of the doubt. “People might judge him before they realize what he can do on the mound,” says lefty Sammy Solis, a non-roster invitee in spring training who didn’t even make the big club out of camp, then got called up from the minors a week into the season. “When he gets out there, it’s just absolutely electric.”

Even his opponents are impressed. “You can do all the judging you want, but he goes out there and gets outs,” says Braves backstop Kurt Suzuki, who’s spent the past three years in the same division as Albers and is a lifetime .133 hitter against him. “One of the best relievers in baseball.”

Back in the Nats clubhouse, nobody’s been more wowed by Albers than his manager. “I didn’t know much about him,” said Baker, who has spent his entire career in the National League, “but I’m glad we got him. He’s been the find of the year.”

Now that Washington’s found him, they’re not likely to let him out of their sight any time soon. If they do, there’s sure to be no shortage of suitors for his services, regardless of his figure.

“Call him the Michelin Man, Humpty Dumpty, whatever you want,” says one AL scout. “The bottom line is, he performs.”

The post Bartolo 2.0? Matt Albers has been a heavyweight on the mound – Washington Nationals appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from https://dailystarsports.com/2017/09/23/bartolo-2-0-matt-albers-has-been-a-heavyweight-on-the-mound-washington-nationals/ from https://dailystarsports.tumblr.com/post/165650129781

[footyplusau]

The high-powered meeting where Kevin Sheedy and Richard Colless tore strips off each other

The animosity between the Sydney Swans and GWS Giants wasn’t sparked on the field.

It came to life at a high-powered lunch at Circular Quay six years ago, when inaugural Giants coach Kevin Sheedy and former Swans chairman Richard Colless roared at each other in front of the AFL’s most senior figures, including chief executive Andrew Demetriou and chairman Mike Fitzpatrick.

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Viney: Criticism of players has impact

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FootyFix: Can the Tiges keep it up?

FootyFix: Can the Tiges keep it up?

Rohan Connolly previews all the footy action ahead of round 5 in the AFL.

Viney: Criticism of players has impact

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Viney: Criticism of players has impact

Viney: Criticism of players has impact

Richmond and Melbourne captains Trent Cotchin and Jack Viney believe the negative opinion aimed at individual players such as Tyrone Vickery can cause a heavy mental impact.

Gunston: Mitchell will receive plenty of banter

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Gunston: Mitchell will receive plenty of …

Gunston: Mitchell will receive plenty of banter

Jack Gunston knows if Sam Mitchell is right to play for West Coast his ex-teammates will make sure he remembers where he came from.

AFL plays of round 4

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AFL plays of round 4

AFL plays of round 4

Good Friday footy was great, Nat Fyfe is captain courageous, Hopper pops through a ripper, Eddie kicks six including the usual bit of genius and Riewoldt is sublime as Tiges remain unbeaten.

Clarkson’s confidence challenge

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Clarkson’s confidence challenge

Clarkson’s confidence challenge

Alastair Clarkson believes the playing group is devoid of confidence and will need to find a way to bounce back to remain competitive.

Geelong remain unbeaten as Hawthorn misery continues

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Geelong remain unbeaten as Hawthorn …

Geelong remain unbeaten as Hawthorn misery continues

The Geelong Cats have continued their unbeaten start to the season at the expense of winless the Hawthorn Hawks, winning 20.14.134 to 6.12.48.

Crows crush Bombers to remain undefeated

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Crows crush Bombers to remain undefeated

Crows crush Bombers to remain undefeated

Eddie Betts and Taylor Walker kicked ten between them by half-time, as Adelaide crushed Essendon by 65 points to remain undefeated.

FootyFix: Can the Tiges keep it up?

Rohan Connolly previews all the footy action ahead of round 5 in the AFL.

“Let’s agree to what we’re going to fight about in the papers,” Sheedy said, according to those in the room.

Colless, the AFL’s longest-serving chairman who transformed the Swans into a powerhouse, wasn’t having a bar of publicity stunts played out in the media.

Flashpoint: Steve Johnson and Lance Franklin clash at the quarter time break during the 2016 AFL First Qualifying Final match between the Swans and the Giants. Photo: Michael Willson/AFL Media

“We don’t even want you in Sydney,” he said, according to those in the room.

Then it was on: two titans of the game passionately ripping into another. Fabulous stuff.

In the end, Fitzpatrick had to calm them down.

The other guests who had a front-row seat this day included Demetriou’s deputy and eventual successor, Gillon McLachlan, Swans coach John Longmire and chief executive Andrew Ireland, Giants chairman Tony Shepherd and then chief executive Dale Holmes.

Headline-maker: Kevin Sheedy was the perfect choice as coach for the Giants. Photo: Brook Mitchell/AFL Media

Sheedy confirmed the blow-up when contacted this week ahead of Saturday night’s blockbuster between the two clubs at the SCG.

“[Giants chief executive] Dave Matthews called the meeting,” Sheedy said. “I looked at Andrew Demetriou and Mike Fitzpatrick and said, ‘What’s this bullshit? Andrew, let’s not play the Swans for five years, because we’re only going to give them eight points so they can make the four.

“If he [Colless] doesn’t want us in, why should we give them eight easy points?’ How many top-four finishes and grand finals did the Swans make in those years when we were just starting out? This was on top of us being called an AFL propaganda hoax. I thought this was the biggest load of rubbish I’d ever heard.”

Then Sheedy throws in this line: “Richard didn’t appreciate the talent that was looking at him. He didn’t realise how good we were.”

The anecdote perfectly sums up the angst between the Swans and Giants, whose rivalry is intensifying as GWS edge closer to a maiden flag and Sydney struggles.

On one hand we have the Swans, who shrugged off mediocrity to become the strongest club of any code in the country.

On the other the Giants, who have been parachuted into Western Sydney and funded by head office. Sheedy – an Energizer Bunny when it comes to promoting the game – was the perfect choice as coach. He generated back pages by being, well, Sheeds.

“Kevin’s default position is to put on a clown suit, to be fired out of a cannon, to generate publicity,” Colless said. “The Swans position was ‘no gimmicks’. If we were to be taken seriously, [the] Geoff Edelsten days had to be gone. We’ve had to be taken seriously as a club, and that was to be respectful of our position in NSW. We had to show humility and convey that we understood the history and culture of sport in this city.”

To that end, Colless does not believe rivalry or animosity between the two clubs can be manufactured. He loathes the term “Battle of the Bridge”, which positions the Anzac Bridge as the geographical divide between the two clubs.

“There’s no question that the fixture has taken on a different complexion because Sydney is respected for its consistency and now you’ve had this spectacular rise from GWS,” he said. “But the Swans have done the heavy lifting with sustained success. ‘The Battle of the Bridge’ is a stupid term. Big brother, little brother … Who thought of that? In Adelaide, there’s deep-seated enmity. That type of rivalry takes time. With Sydney and GWS, I think it’s more deep-seated respect.”

A crowd of about 40,000 is expected for the round five match on Saturday night. It follows the 60,000-plus crowd at ANZ Stadium for last year’s qualifying final between the two clubs.

Sydney get four big-name players back but they are eyeballing a possible 0-5 start to the season. There have been whispers around Moore Park all summer that two grand final defeats in three years have left deep scars.

It should be a fascinating game, but Sheedy won’t be in attendance because of other commitments in Melbourne.

“But tell the NRL I’ll come and help them any time that they need me,” he said.

Like almost every conversation I’ve had with him, I don’t know if he was joking.

Within his rights to look around: Aaron Woods. Photo: Getty Images

Tigers’ dramas drag on

Bravo, Ivan Cleary, bravo.

The new Wests Tigers coach did what his chief executive should’ve done months ago: he told off-contract stars Aaron Woods and James Tedesco on Thursday they had 24 hours to make a decision about their futures.

Then Cleary walked over to the gaggle of reporters at training at Concord Oval and told them, too.

Unfortunately, he should’ve also brought a white flag because it’s a sure sign he knows both players are leaving.

Woods is basically a done deal at the Bulldogs. Fans will bag him but consider the fact he’s been there for two rebuilds and is now expected to hang around for a third.

Tedesco has been genuinely torn but all roads seem to be leading to the Roosters instead of the Dogs. He’s been sounding out Roosters players about joining them next season.

The Roosters are adamant Tedesco won’t receive more than a $1 million a season, relying on the selling point of joining a powerful club. They expect a decision in the next day or two.

When the dust settles, can someone explain to me how Tigers chief executive Justin Pascoe and the board keep their jobs after all this?

In less than a year, on their watch, they have: disgracefully shoved favourite son Robbie Farah out the door; sacked coach Jason Taylor after three rounds (he found out from his coaching staff, who found out via Twitter, that he’d been punted); then watched three local juniors in Woods, Tedesco and Mitchell Moses walk out of the club.

Meanwhile, the all-powerful Wests faction that pulls all the levers won’t talk publicly about the decisions it is making.

Someone wake me when this is over. It has officially become boring.

Inspirational human being: Curtis McGrath. Photo: Brendan Esposito / NRL Photos

True grit

If you ever needed a reminder about the silliness – and importance – of sport, it was there for those of us lucky enough to attend the Ted Larkin Oration dinner at NRL headquarters on Wednesday night.

The oration was delivered by Curtis McGrath, the decorated former sapper who incredibly rebounded from losing both his legs from a mine blast while serving in Afghanistan in 2012 to winning a Paralympic gold medal four years later.

“My legs were gone,” McGrath told a silent room. “Everything hurt. My earlobes, my bum, my tongue, my eyes were sore.”

Then he uttered these immortal words …

“They loaded me on to a stretcher and as they carried me along, that’s when I said, ‘You guys will see me at the Paralympics. I’ll compete for NZ in the black and white, not the green and gold’. They said, ‘We’ll drop you here’. They were crying as they were carrying me. That’s what I have learnt: this injury wasn’t just mine. It belonged to everyone around me, too.”

As McGrath waited for a helicopter, his mood changed.

“I didn’t think I was going to die until I was sitting there waiting for the helicopter,” he said. “That’s when I asked one of the lads, ‘You need to print off some letters on my laptop to my family, my girlfriend, my friends’ [to tell them] that I wasn’t coming home.”

When McGrath was eventually loaded on to an air force “nurse” headed for Germany a few days later, the enormity of the war in Afghanistan struck him.

“I was the only non-American on the flight, we were all wounded,” he said. “This was when I realised this war was so much bigger than I realised. Up the front, there were two guys having surgery on them. They were trying to die on that flight.”

McGrath took up the paracanoe and last year, in Rio, won the KL2 200 metres … wearing the green and gold of Australia.

Still a chance: The Sydney Harbour Bridge could yet host a horse race.

Long shot, but a shot nonetheless

An exclusive story in last Saturday’s Sydney Morning Herald about horse racing being held on the Sydney Harbour Bridge was met with scepticism, as tantalising as the prospect of thoroughbreds steaming over the Coathanger might be.

Racing writer Chris Roots revealed Racing NSW is in discussions with a promoter about synthetic turf being laid across the bridge for program consisting of six races of about 1000 metres.

This column made some calls on it and was surprised to learn – not least from a few state politicians – that this might have legs.

It still appears to be a long shot, but don’t dismiss it as something a couple of marketing types schemed up over a long lunch at Mr Wong.

We’re assured the promoter in question who approached Racing NSW isn’t a lightweight, is serious about making it happen, and serious about it happening in Sydney.

Given the width of the bridge, temporary grandstands could be erected at either end so a crowd of 20,000 to 30,000 could watch.

The event wouldn’t so much promote racing in NSW as Sydney itself. Images of horse races being held on Australia’s most iconic landmark would be shown around the world.

No word yet on which way the horses would run, although it makes sense that they should head north so they don’t have to pay the toll.

THE QUOTE

“He would often do an entire weights session in his undies.” – Bernard Foley‘s enduring memory of Wallabies and Waratahs teammate Drew Mitchell, who has announced his retirement.

THUMBS UP

In 1967, Kathrine Switzer became the first woman to run in the Boston Marathon. “Get the hell out of my race!” shouted race director Jock Semple as he tried to take her out. On Monday, half a century later and at the age of 70, she again ran in the race and officials retired her bib number in her honour.

THUMBS DOWN

Boston Celtics star Isaiah Thomas bravely took to the court in the NBA finals a day after his sister was killed in a car accident, and then knocked down 33 points. Of course, Charles Barkley thought it necessary to say the sight of Thomas crying pre-match was “not a good look”. Just wow …

It’s a big weekend for … the Western Sydney Wanderers, who meet a Brisbane Roar side that will have revenge on their mind in the A-League quarter-finals at Suncorp Stadium.

It’s an even bigger weekend for … Polarisation, the English stayer who won the Sydney Cup two weeks ago and must do it again on Saturday after the first attempt was declared a “no race”.

Andrew Webster is on Facebook.

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Melbourne Demon Clayton Oliver leads army of stars

Think of the best young midfielders in the game. Think what they did in their first 15 games. Who are you thinking of? Joel Selwood? Definitely. Patrick Cripps? Clearly. Olly Wines? Yep, absolutely. Tom Mitchell? For his first 15? OK, yes, probably. Tom Liberatore? Hmmm, he probably started a little slower but yes he’d be in there.

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Collingwood defeat Swans in one-point thriller

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FootyFix: Who will claim bragging rights …

FootyFix: Who will claim bragging rights in Adelaide?

Rohan Connolly previews all the footy action ahead of round three in the AFL.

Collingwood defeat Swans in one-point thriller

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Collingwood defeat Swans in one-point …

Collingwood defeat Swans in one-point thriller

The Pies dominated from the outset against the Swans as the home side struggled to bring things level.

Buddy prepares for 250th

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Buddy prepares for 250th

Buddy prepares for 250th

Swans star Buddy Franklin will go down as one of the game’s best and on Friday night he plays his 250th match.

Zorko’s City2South challenge

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Zorko’s City2South challenge

Zorko’s City2South challenge

Brisbane Lions midfielder and City2South ambassador Dayne Zorko gives some tips on how to finish a a fun run.

Dockers young guns in action for Peel Thunder

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Dockers young guns in action for Peel …

Dockers young guns in action for Peel Thunder

After a disastrous start to the season, Ross Lyon will turn to some of the young players on the Dockers list.

Nat Fyfe on why he’s yet to sign a contract

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Nat Fyfe on why he’s yet to sign a …

Nat Fyfe on why he’s yet to sign a contract

Fremantle Dockers captain Nathan Fyfe on why he hasn’t signed a contract yet. Vision: Nine News Perth.

Hasleby lashes former club

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Hasleby lashes former club

Hasleby lashes former club

Dockers legend Paul Hasleby lashes out at his former club on Sportsday WA.

FootyFix: Who will claim bragging rights in Adelaide?

Rohan Connolly previews all the footy action ahead of round three in the AFL.

Did you have Clayton Oliver? Didn’t think so. But you should have. Chances are if you thought of Melbourne players you put in Jack Viney, maybe Christian Petracca. But you’d be wrong.

On raw numbers Oliver is the best of all of them per 100 minutes of game time in their first 15 matches. This method of measurement seeks to put all players on a level field, ruling out the distortions of subs vests and limited time on the field.

Clayton Oliver of the Demons in action against St Kilda. Photo: Getty Images

Under this measure, Oliver is averaging more disposals, more contested possessions and more tackles than any of those other top-ranked players. Only Cripps, in the same time frame, averaged a smidgin more contested possessions – 12.7 a game to Oliver’s 12.3 – according to Champion Data.

The other players are bigger names but they are big numbers from Oliver – who has started this year with 36- and 35-possession games.

Part of the reason he is often not noticed as readily as others is that he is an inside player and his hands are so fast and clean he shuttles out a handball so quickly it’s easy to miss.

Opposition teams have also perhaps focused more on Viney, Nathan Jones and Dom Tyson and put less defensive time into Oliver. But that is going to change. He will not be granted the liberty of unencumbered access to the ball at stoppages.

This week Oliver will be in a midfield opposed to Selwood and Patty Dangerfield, two players who play the game with a self-assurance they will get the ball and so play an aggressively offensive game and will not be players who will be worried whether they stand to block Oliver. Other Cats, however, might consider Oliver the man to stop.

He is a tall (187 centimetres) midfielder with a solid build that lent to the pudgy when he was a junior. He is still thickly built, but no longer heavy.

He is like Cripps or Sydney’s Josh Kennedy, a tall and strong midfielder who with longer arms have better reach to be able to get clear of a tackle and still get a handball out. Certainly he has that advantage – or different approach – when compared to his two captains at Melbourne.

The difference between Oliver and Cripps or Kennedy is that he is quick. I know, he doesn’t look like he is, but he is. The assumption with an inside player is they are one-paced plodders often with good endurance, Oliver bucks that. He is quick and has decent foot skills.

“He accelerates through the contest,” Melbourne player/coach performance manager Brendan McCartney said. “He is electric. He just has great power.

“He is still very raw and under-developed in using his body and body position but he has a freakish ability to know where the ball is, where it will bounce and when he gets close to it he blocks out everything else. The great ones narrow their focus on the ball and everything else is irrelevant.”

Ben Davey, a long-term family friend and Oliver’s midfield coach at the Murray Bushrangers, said that Oliver carried puppy fat that concertinaed into osteitis pubis in his teenage years. Those problems were remedied with a changed training program and tweaks of his diet at Murray, and his running and pace improved radically.

“Those numbers are pretty impressive but that wouldn’t surprise anyone at Murray. What he is doing now would not be a problem to him. He would see it as normal that he has arrived in the game and he is up against these great players but he would just look at them as another player,” Davey said.

“He is getting a lot of first handballs and I think he will get a lot better again. His disposal efficiency will continue to get a lot better.

“He is surprisingly quick. You see some players that run sub-three seconds for 20 metres but on game day they look slow but with Clayton it’s how quick his mind reacts and how quick his hands are because he is so clean that makes him look even quicker.”

Even for an AFL player Oliver has a fierce competitiveness in everything he does. Which means not just getting the ball and winning, but even making sure he gets the last word in an argument. That is not a bad thing when he has also learned when to bite his tongue.

He has also learned what not to bite.

“We did a bit of work with him on his diet and being a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week footballer,” McCartney said.

“It took us a while, too, to work out how much training to give him and for him to be educated in training and knowing his body and the difference between soreness and tightness.”

Oliver has arrived at Melbourne at the right time. He arrives with a generation of young elite players – Jesse Hogan, Petracca, Viney, Sam Weideman – but he does so at a time when Melbourne appears finally to be improving those who come into their system. That could seldom be said of picks taken at the pointy end.

“He was a really inspired pick by our recruiters,” McCartney said.

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Before the siren

WITH three electric games scheduled for the MCG in the opening round, there is every chance all sorts of AFL attendance records will be smashed this weekend as the 2017 season gets underway.

If the Carlton-Richmond, Collingwood-Western Bulldogs and Essendon-Hawthorn games each attract more than 70,000 fans – and the expectation is they should – then not only would the AFL’s round one attendance record of 367,792, set in 2012, be under threat, but the overall record of 371,212, set in round 15 of 2013, could be surpassed.

We reckon the fans will turn up in droves as Australia’s No.1  sport returns. As episodes such as Luke Hodge’s ‘mystery’ training absence and Jordan De Goey’s bizarre broken hand episode demonstrate, don’t we badly need the games to start so that we can start talking about, you know, the footy? 

Anyhow, we’re putting our neck on the line to project how many people will attend each game. Check back Monday morning to see how we went. 

Carlton v Richmond (MCG, Thursday, 7.20pm AEDT)

Highest: 83,493 – round one, 2015*

We think: 72,000

It’s a Carlton home game, which might keep a few away but if you can’t be excited about going to the footy, when can you? Anecdotally, the opening game gets more than its share of neutral supporters.

Collingwood v Western Bulldogs (MCG, Friday, 7.50pm AEDT)

Highest: 67,920 – round nine, 2006

We think: 69,000

It’s not the Bulldogs’ flag unfurling – that takes place next week – but it is a replacement game for their members so they should rock up in big numbers. There’s always early season optimism at Collingwood and their fans will turn up in droves. Add the likelihood of Travis Cloke making his Dogs debut against the Pies and this is a great piece of fixturing.

St Kilda v Melbourne (Etihad Stadium, Saturday, 4.35pm AEDT)

Highest: 40,004 – round four, 2005

We think: 35,000

Another great piece of fixturing by the AFL as it pits the two clubs considered most likely to break into the top eight this year. Saints fans are up and about at the start of every season, but particularly now after a great summer. Melbourne supporters traditionally hate Docklands, but it is a different team this year, one that appears to have set itself to snap a 14-match losing streak to the Saints. If ever they dare venture to the western side of the CBD, this is the time.

Sydney v Port Adelaide (SCG, Saturday, 4.35pm AEDT)

Highest: 41,317 – round 13, 2014

We think: 32,000

The Swans are a big draw now and optimism is high for another finish deep into September. An issue here will be the weather, which can be sketchy in Sydney at this time of year. A few showers are predicted for this twilight game. Port aren’t a huge draw on the road although chairman ‘Kochie’ will be pleased to be able to drive to the footy.

Essendon v Hawthorn (MCG, Saturday, 7.25pm AEDT)

Highest: 61,006 – round six, 2010

We think: 85,000

The Bombers were given their choice of round one opponents and plumped for their great 1980s rivals. The banned Dons step out for the first time in 18 months, and even if you’re the most casual Essendon fan – there is no excuse for missing this game. Bumping up this crowd figure even further is the fact that this is a replacement game for Hawthorn members because of the Tasmanian deal, so they’ll be there in huge numbers as well, celebrating their own comeback game as new skipper Jarryd Roughead returns for the first time since 2015 after his cancer fight. Then there’s Jaeger.

Gold Coast v Brisbane Lions (Metricon Stadium, Saturday, 7.05pm AEST)

Highest: 16,593 – round three, 2015

We think: 16,000

It’s a football fiesta at Metricon with the AFLW Grand Final kicking off the day, and if enough Brisbane Lions fans choose to stick around for the nightcap then a healthy crowd figure can be expected. Do the people of the Gold Coast understand that a potentially very good team plays on their doorstep?

North Melbourne v West Coast (Etihad Stadium, Sunday 1.10pm AEDT)

Highest: 33,151 – round 5, 2005

We think: 26,000

The ‘graveyard’ of time slots, but it is that time of the year where we’re between junior cricket and footy seasons, so it’s not that bad for families. The Kangas are up to nearly 35,000 members, so unless they’re into motor racing and attend the Australian Grand Prix instead, let’s hope they turn up in droves. West Coast has about 5,000 fans in Victoria who get to every game.

Adelaide v Greater Western Sydney (Adelaide Oval, Sunday, 2.50pm ACDT)

Highest: 46,737 – round 10, 2016

We think: 42,000

There won’t be much away support, but the Crows can pack out Adelaide Oval on their own and despite some likely key outs for the opening game, hopes of Adelaide supporters are riding high.

Fremantle v Geelong (Domain Stadium, Sunday, 4.40pm AWST)

Highest: 38,565 – round nine, 2014

We think: 36,000

This is a great rivalry, and while serial irritant Hayden Ballantyne’s absence will be keenly felt, new skipper Nat Fyfe is back – and he’s fit, firing and likely to go head to head with Patrick Dangerfield for parts of the game. Going back to the days of Polly Farmer, the Cats have always had a loyal following in Western Australia.

Total crowd prediction: 413,000

* Highest crowd is for home and away games only with the first named team as the home club.

Sore and sorry Swans

Let’s not detract for a moment what a magnificent effort it was by the Western Bulldogs to win the 2016 Grand Final. It was a September (and early October) to remember and to cherish for the Dogs, while the match itself was as engrossing as they come for a flag decider. 

But a bit overlooked amid all the romance was how brave the vanquished Sydney was. They were a kick from the lead until late in the final quarter, and as the subsequent stories of woe started to mount, it is becoming more evident what a great effort it was from the Swans to even get so close. 

Lance Franklin entered the game with a shoulder banged up enough to require a reconstruction after the game and then he injured his ankle in the opening term. He played the game out, but was hampered. 

Kurt Tippett missed an earlier final because of a fractured jaw, but had earlier missed a huge part of the season because of a serious hamstring injury. Luke Parker played the Grand Final with a PCL injury from the week before that needed post-season surgery. Dan Hannebery hurt his knee in the final quarter and tried to play the game out, but had to retreat to the bench. 

Josh Kennedy was sore, Sam Naismith needed a shoulder reconstruction, Callum Mills and Jarrad McVeigh were underdone entering the Grand Final and McVeigh’s calf issues are now chronic. For Tom Mitchell, who came to Hawthorn during the trade period, once the fitness staff there took a good look at him, they decided he needed to be held back from full training until after Christmas.

What does this tell us? That’s eight players (that we know of) who were less than their best in the Grand Final and no doubt, there were plenty of hurting bodies on the other side as well.

The Swans have played deep into September for a few years and you can only admire that they keep fronting up year in and year out as they bash and crash their bodies for longer than most. They’ll likely do so again this year. 

And it probably adds further context to Hawthorn’s achievement of winning three-straight flags from 2013-15 with the physical toll that took. While the Hawks would dearly have loved to have won again last year to enter the record books, what you do hear out of Waverley is how depleted they were at the end of last season. They have subsequently enjoyed both their biggest break and longest pre-season for five years.

Dan Hannebery and Tom Papley were a picture of dejection on Grand Final Day. Picture: AFL Photos

Gabba problems laid bare

That Saturday’s AFLW Grand Final needed to be moved from the Gabba because of turf issues only brought to the surface what the Lions have known for more than a decade – they really are its second-class citizens. 

Talk to those at the Lions and they’ll tell you plenty of stories about the Gabba staff trying to put the Lions, and by extension the AFL, back in their place.

Former Lions coach Justin Leppitsch used to have regular run-ins with notorious curator Kevin Mitchell about access to the ground even in footy season. Never mind that the cricketers are allowed to kick the Sherrin for as long and as often as they want as part of their training sessions.

But as recently as a few weeks ago, Lions media staff were shooed away from the boundary area by security staff merely for trying to take a publicity photo for the AFLW team. That explains why whenever a new player joins the Lions, the obligatory happy snap in the new polo shirt usually takes place high up in the grandstand. 

And when there is cricket on, particularly the Test match that usually starts the summer, Lions admin staff usually aren’t even allowed into those aforementioned grandstands to watch a few overs on their lunch break. 

A caller to SEN radio the other night told of taking a guided tour of the Gabba recently, during which football and the Lions were mentioned once. 

Once!

It is Mitchell who cops much of the flak, and deservedly so. But there are a few others at the Gabba who need to understand that they work for the venue, not just for one of the sports that primarily use it.

The Lions have struggled for a fair go at their home ground. Picture: AFL Photos

My movers and shapers

The annual industry-wide movers and shapers survey has appeared on AFL.com.au the last few days and will also appear in full in this week’s edition of the AFL Record.

It is a fascinating project to compile and now in its second year, the extra twist is those who jump up the rankings and those who slide down or drop out entirely. 

The survey is anonymous and drawn widely from throughout the industry, but for the sake of the exercise, here is my personal top 12. 

1. Gillon McLachlan – Boss of the AFL. Nothing more to add. 2. Simon Lethlean – Brought AFLW to life and now heads up footy operations. Huge job. 3. Richard Goyder – Incoming AFL chairman. Not from Victoria, which is important. 4. Andrew Dillon – AFL chief counsel and McLachlan’s main confidant and sounding board. 5. Alastair Clarkson – The best coach and a brilliant innovator. 6. Caroline Wilson – The best journo in the game. Breaks news and creates agendas. 7. Patrick Dangerfield – Who said great players don’t need to walk down media street? 8. Kerry Stokes/Channel Seven – Shape so much of how we consume the game. 9. Paul Marsh – Happy players, happy game. Needs to bring the CBA home. 10. Ray Gunston – Negotiating the CBA and the AFL’s investment model. Both vital. 11. Eddie McGuire – A bruising year but still commands a huge voice. 12. Rupert Murdoch/News/Herald Sun – Also play a huge role in how the game is consumed by millions.

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