Editing Marvin Gaye (section)

===Early career===
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Marvin Gaye promotional photo.jpg|thumb|240x240px|A 1959 promotional picture of [[Harvey Fuqua|Harvey]] and the ''New Moonglows''. Gaye is second from the right behind a seated Fuqua.|alt=]] -->
After Gaye left the Air Force, he formed a vocal quartet, [[the Marquees]], with his good friend Reese Palmer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uncamarvy.com/Marquees/marquees.html |title=Marv Goldberg's R&B Notebooks – MARQUEES |access-date=July 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120408055035/http://www.uncamarvy.com/Marquees/marquees.html |archive-date=April 8, 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=38}} The group performed in the D.C. area and soon began working with [[Bo Diddley]], who tried to persuade his own label, [[Chess Records|Chess]], to sign them to a record deal. Failing that, he sent them to [[Columbia Records|Columbia]] subsidiary [[OKeh Records]].{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=38}} Diddley co-wrote the group's sole single, "Wyatt Earp"; it failed to chart and the group was soon dropped from the label.{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=39}} Gaye began [[Musical composition|composing]] music.{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=39}}

[[The Moonglows|Moonglows]] co-founder [[Harvey Fuqua]] later hired the Marquees as employees.{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=40}} Under Fuqua's direction, the group changed its name to Harvey and the New Moonglows, and moved to Chicago.{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=47}} The group recorded several sides for Chess in 1959, including the song "Mama Loocie", which was Gaye's first lead vocal recording.{{citation needed|date=April 2024}} The group found work as [[session singers]] for established acts such as [[Chuck Berry]], singing on the songs "[[Back in the U.S.A.]]" and "[[Almost Grown (song)|Almost Grown]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://acerecords.co.uk/features/artist-profiles/etta-james|title=Etta James |publisher=Ace Records |access-date=April 23, 2024}}</ref>

In 1960, the group disbanded. Gaye moved 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 December 1960. Impressed, Gordy sought Fuqua on his contract with Gaye. Fuqua agreed to sell part of his interest in his contract with Gaye.{{sfn|Edmonds|2001a|p=24}} Shortly afterwards, Gaye signed with Motown subsidiary Tamla.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}

When Gaye signed with Tamla, he pursued a career as a performer of jazz music and [[standard (song)|standards]], having no desire to become an [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]] performer.{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=25}} Before the release of his first single, Gaye started spelling his surname with an added "e", in the same way as did [[Sam Cooke]]. Author [[David Ritz]] wrote that Gaye did this to silence rumors of his [[sexual orientation|sexuality]], and to put more distance between himself and his father.{{sfn|Jet|1985b|p=17}}

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 $5 (US${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|5|1961}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}}{{inflation-fn|US}}) a week.{{sfn|Bowman|2006|p=6}}{{sfn|Des Barres|1996|p=107}} While Gaye took some advice on performing with his eyes open (having been accused of appearing as though he were sleeping) and also got pointers on how to move more gracefully onstage, he refused to attend grooming school courses at the John Robert Powers School for Social Grace in Detroit because of his unwillingness to comply with its orders, something he later regretted.{{sfn|Posner|2002|p=116}}{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=88}}