On the 40th anniversary of his death, a collection of unheard Marvin Gaye recordings has been discovered in the Belgian seaside town Ostend, where the renowned singer spent 18 months recovering from drug addiction in the 1980s.
During his time on the Belgian coast, Gaye lived in the home of music producer Charles Dumolin. Upon his departure, he left everything with his host, who passed away in 2019. An invaluable collection of tapes and other souvenirs are now in the hands of the Dumolin family.
Lawyer and family friend Alex Trappeniers listened to the recordings that were left behind and is now on a mission to share his findings with the rest of the world.
"They belong to [the family] because they were left in Belgium 42 years ago," Trappeniers told the BBC. "Marvin gave the recordings to them and said, 'Do whatever you want with them' and he never came back."
On top of the 66 song demos, Trappeniers has sifted through song drafts, letters and endless notebooks. He says that listening to one of the recordings felt like "a moment of planetary alignment". There are also numerous items of clothing and costumes recognisable from past tours.
"We can open a time capsule here and share Marvin's music with the world," the lawyer said.
Legal matters
Belgian law stipulates that anything obtained and held onto for 30 years automatically belongs to the person in possession of it – even if the item in question was stolen. This rule does not apply to intellectual property, however.
The Dumolin family may therefore end up in a situation where they legally own the tapes but do not have the right to publish their contents, while Gaye's heirs in the US have the right to publish without access to the material.
Marvin Gaye meeting Prince Charles of Belgium. Credit: Belga
Trappeniers wants to find a compromise in the interest of adding to Gaye's discography 40 years after his death.
"I think we would both benefit – the family of Marvin and the collection in the hands of [Dumolin's heirs]," he explained. "I'm not here to make suggestions but to say OK, let's listen to this and let's make the next album."
Gaye's three children Marvin III, Nona and Frankie are reportedly aware of the new findings but no official negotiations have taken off just yet.
Seaside healing
Gaye arrived to Ostend in 1981 on a ferry from England, where his cocaine addiction had reached new lows in London. A subsequent 18-month seaside respite aided the singer's recovery immensely. He reportedly penned the award-winning track 'Sexual Healing' during his time at the windy seaside resort.
"There are plenty of places I'd like to be rather than Ostend," the singer once said, "but this where I need to be."
Less than two years later, Gaye was shot dead by his father on 1 April 1984, the eve of his 45th birthday.
