Let 's Get It On ( song ) - wikipedia Let 's Get It On ( song ) `` Let 's Get It On '' 1973 UK single release Single by Marvin Gaye from the album Let 's Get It On B - side `` I Wish It Would Rain '' Released June 15, 1973 Format 7 '' single ( 45 RPM ) Recorded March 22, 1973 Hitsville West ( Los Angeles, California ) Genre Soul, funk Length 4 : 53 ( Album version ) 3 : 58 ( Single edit ) Label Tamla ( T - 54234 ) Songwriter ( s ) Marvin Gaye, Ed Townsend Producer ( s ) Marvin Gaye Marvin Gaye singles chronology `` I Want to Come Home for Christmas '' ( 1972 ) `` Let 's Get It On '' ( 1973 ) `` Come Get to This '' ( 1973 ) `` I Want to Come Home for Christmas '' ( 1972 ) `` Let 's Get It On '' ( 1973 ) `` Come Get to This '' ( 1973 ) Let 's Get It On track listing `` Let 's Get It On '' ( 1 ) `` Please Stay ( Once You Go Away ) '' ( 2 ) Audio sample file help `` Let 's Get It On '' is a song and hit single by soul musician Marvin Gaye, released June 15, 1973, on Motown - subsidiary label Tamla Records. The song was recorded on March 22, 1973, at Hitsville West in Los Angeles, California. The song features romantic and sexual lyricism and funk instrumentation by The Funk Brothers. The title track of Gaye 's landmark 1973 album of the same name, it was written by Marvin Gaye and producer Ed Townsend. `` Let 's Get It On '' became Gaye 's most successful single for Motown and one of his most well - known songs. With the help of the song 's sexually explicit content, `` Let 's Get It On '' helped give Gaye a reputation as a sex icon during its initial popularity. Contents 1 Conception 2 Release and reception 3 Uses in popular culture 4 Track listings and formats 4.1 US 7 '' single 4.2 US reissue 5 Chart history 6 References 7 Bibliography 8 External links Conception Co-written with producer Ed Townsend, `` Let 's Get It On '' was Gaye 's plea for sexual liberation. When originally conceived by Townsend, who was released from a rehab facility for alcoholism, it was written with a religious theme. Gaye confidante Kenneth Stover changed some of the words around as a political song and Gaye recorded the version as it was written, but Townsend protested that the song was n't a politically conscious song but a song dedicated to love and sex. Gaye and Townsend then collaborated on new lyrics and using the original backing tracks as recorded, Gaye transformed the song into an emotional centerpiece. The album version of `` Let 's Get It On '' features soulful and emotional singing by Gaye that is backed by multi-tracked background vocals, also provided by Gaye, along with the song 's signature, and most notable, funky guitar arrangements. In an article for Rolling Stone magazine, music critic Jon Landau wrote of the song : `` Let 's Get It On '' is a classic Motown single, endlessly repeatable and always enjoyable. It begins with three great wah - wah notes that herald the arrival of a vintage Fifties melody. But while the song centers around classically simple chord changes, the arrangement centers around a slightly eccentric rhythm pattern that deepens the song 's power while covering it with a contemporary veneer. Above all, it has Marvin Gaye 's best singing at its center, fine background voices on the side, and a long, moody fade - out that challenges you not to play the cut again. -- Jon Landau The song was reprised on the fourth track of Let 's Get It On as `` Keep Gettin ' It On '', which was a sequel and continuation of the original. The recording of the title track also inspired Gaye to revive previous recordings from his earlier 1970 sessions at the Hitsville U.S.A. Studio, which would consist of the rest of the album 's material. In 2001, when the album Let 's Get It On was reissued by Motown as a two - disc deluxe edition release, the original demo that Gaye had recorded with lyrics by Kenneth Stover was included. It has a running time of 5 : 12. During the time of the recording of the song and its subsequent album of the same name, Marvin had befriended the family of jazz guitarist Slim Gaillard and had become smitten with Gaillard 's seventeen - year - old daughter, Janis Hunter. A widely reported story has been told that Hunter was in the studio when Gaye recorded the song at the recording booth. Gaye and Hunter were said to be smitten with each other and, within months, Gaye and Hunter began dating. Hunter would become Gaye 's live - in lover by 1974. Their relationship would produce two children and a 1977 marriage. Release and reception `` Let 's Get It On '' became, and remains to this day, one of Gaye 's most successful singles, as it reached # 1 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart on September 8, 1973. The single remained at # 1 for two weeks, while also remaining at the top of the Billboard Soul Singles chart for eight weeks. In its first week at the top of the chart, `` Let 's Get It On '' replaced `` Brother Louie '' by Stories, and was replaced by `` Delta Dawn '' by Helen Reddy ; it later replaced `` Delta Dawn '' and was finally knocked off the top of the chart by Grand Funk Railroad 's `` We 're an American Band ''. The single stayed inside the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 for 13 weeks, 10 of those weeks inside the top five. Billboard ranked it as the No. 4 song for 1973. The song became the biggest selling Motown release in the United States at the time, selling over two - million copies within the first six weeks of following its release. `` Let 's Get It On '' also became the second best - selling single of 1973, only surpassed in sales by Tony Orlando & Dawn 's `` Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree ''. At the time, the single was Motown 's largest - selling recording ever, selling over three - million copies between 1973 and 1975. The single has gone on to sell over 1 million copies, and, on June 25, 2007, was certified platinum in sales by the RIAA. A bluegrass version of the song was later recorded by Shannon Lawson on his 2002 album Chase the Sun. `` Let 's Get It On '' was given a remix in 2004, when producers mixed Gaye 's vocals with a different musical production labeled as `` stepper 's music ''. Released in 2005 as a single, `` Let 's Get it On ( The Producers Mix ) '' returned the song to the Billboard R&B charts, thirty years after its original release. The re-released version of `` Let 's Get It On '' was certified as a gold single with sales in excess of 500,000 copies in 2005 by the RIAA. In 2004, the song was ranked number 167 on Rolling Stone magazine 's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time ; in a revised 2012 list, the song was ranked at number 168. In 2008, `` Let 's Get It On '' was ranked # 32 on Billboard magazine 's Hot 100 All - Time Top Songs list. Uses in popular culture The song appeared in a 2005 TV commercial for the Chevrolet Malibu Maxx. It has appeared in ads for Reese 's Peanut Butter Cups and the Starz app. Track listings and formats These are the formats and track listings of the major single releases of `` Let 's Get It On '' : US 7 '' single Original US vinyl release, T - 54234F. A-side `` Let 's Get It On '' -- 3 : 58 Arranged by René Hall Produced by Ed Townsend, Marvin Gaye Written by E. Townsend B - side `` I Wish It Would Rain '' -- 2 : 46 Produced by Norman Whitfield Written by B. Strong, N. Whitfield, R. Penzabene US reissue Collectables 7 - inch reissue single from the Back To Back Hit Series, COL - 563. A-side `` Let 's Get It On '' -- 3 : 58 B - side `` Trouble Man '' -- 3 : 49 Chart history Title Information `` Let 's Get It On '' Tamla single 54234, June 15, 1973 B - side : `` I Wish It Would Rain '' ( from That 's the Way Love Is ) US Pop Singles # 1 ( 2 weeks ) US Black Singles # 1 ( 6 weeks ) UK Singles Chart # 31 References Jump up ^ Edmonds ( 2001 ), pp. 7 -- 8. Jump up ^ Marvin Gaye : Let 's Get It On : Music Review ( 1973 ). Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2008 - 08 - 18. Jump up ^ PopMatters Music Feature - The Tortured Soul of... Retrieved on 2008 - 08 - 26. ^ Jump up to : Billboard - Hot 100. Nielen Business Media. Retrieved on 2008 - 10 - 04. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). Top R&B / Hip - Hop Singles : 1942 - 2004. Record Research. p. 226. Jump up ^ Billboard Year - End Hot 100 singles of 1973 Jump up ^ Super Seventies - `` Let 's Get It On ''. Super Seventies. Retrieved on 2008 - 08 - 17. Jump up ^ RIAA Searchable Database Archived 2008 - 09 - 02 at WebCite. Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved on 2008 - 08 - 18. Jump up ^ `` Shannon Lawson : Biography ''. CMT.com. Retrieved 2007 - 09 - 02. Jump up ^ `` RS 500 Greatest Songs : 167 ''. RollingStone.com. Retrieved August 26, 2008. Jump up ^ `` 500 Greatest Songs of All Time : Marvin Gaye, ' Let 's Get It On ' ''. RollingStone.com. Retrieved July 5, 2012. Jump up ^ adland.tv http://adland.tv/commercials/chevy-maxx-lets-get-it-on-2005-030-usa. Retrieved February 25, 2017. Missing or empty title = ( help ) Jump up ^ Marvin Gaye - Let 's Get It On ( US 7 `` ). Discogs. Retrieved on 2008 - 08 - 26. Jump up ^ Marvin Gaye - Let 's Get It On ( US Reissue ). Discogs. Retrieved on 2008 - 08 - 26. Bibliography David Ritz ; Ed Townsend ; Ben Edmonds ; Harry Weinger ( 2001 ). Marvin Gaye - Let 's Get It On ( Deluxe edition liner notes ). Motown Records. MOTD 4757. External links Song lyrics at MTV.com Video of Gaye performing `` Let 's Get It On '' - Dailymotion.com Let 's Get It On Lyrics Preceded by `` Brother Louie '' by Stories Billboard Hot 100 number one single September 8, 1973 ( one week ) Succeeded by `` Delta Dawn '' by Helen Reddy Preceded by `` Delta Dawn '' by Helen Reddy Billboard Hot 100 number one single September 22, 1973 ( one week ) Succeeded by `` We 're an American Band '' by Grand Funk Railroad Preceded by `` Angel '' by Aretha Franklin Billboard 's Hot Soul Singles number one single August 18, 1973 ( six weeks ) Succeeded by `` Higher Ground '' by Stevie Wonder Marvin Gaye Studio albums The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye ( 1961 ) That Stubborn Kinda Fellow ( 1962 ) 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 ) In the Groove / 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 ) Posthumous albums Dream of a Lifetime ( 1985 ) Romantically Yours ( 1986 ) Vulnerable ( 1997 ) Duet 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 ) Compilations Greatest Hits ( 1964 ) Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 ( 1967 ) Marvin Gaye and His Girls ( 1969 ) Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell 's Greatest Hits ( 1970 ) Super Hits ( 1970 ) Anthology ( 1974 ) Marvin Gaye 's Greatest Hits ( 1976 ) Motown Remembers Marvin Gaye : Never Before Released Masters ( 1986 ) The Marvin Gaye Collection ( 1990 ) The Norman Whitfield Sessions ( 1994 ) Love Starved Heart : Rare and Unreleased ( 1994 ) The Very Best of Marvin Gaye ( 1994 ) The Master ( 1961 -- 1984 ) ( 1995 ) Marvin Gaye : The Love Songs ( 2000 ) The Complete Duets ( 2001 ) The Very Best of Marvin Gaye ( 2001 ) Live albums Marvin Gaye Recorded Live on Stage ( 1963 ) Marvin Gaye Live ! ( 1974 ) Live at the London Palladium ( 1977 ) Marvin Gaye at the Copa ( 2005 ) Video albums Greatest Hits Live ( Live in Holland 1976 ) ( 2000 ) Live In Montreux 1980 ( 2003 ) The Real Thing : In Performance ( 1964 -- 1981 ) ( 2006 ) Live In Belgium 1981 ( 2006 ) US / UK Top Ten singles `` Pride and Joy '' `` How Sweet It Is ( To Be Loved by You ) '' `` I 'll Be Doggone '' `` Ai n't That Peculiar '' `` Your Precious Love '' `` If I Could Build My Whole World Around You '' `` Ai n't Nothing Like the Real Thing '' `` You 're All I Need to Get By '' `` I Heard It Through the Grapevine '' `` Too Busy Thinking About My Baby '' `` That 's the Way Love Is '' `` Abraham, Martin and John '' `` The Onion Song '' `` What 's Going On '' `` Mercy Mercy Me ( The Ecology ) '' `` Inner City Blues ( Make Me Wanna Holler ) '' `` Trouble Man '' `` Let 's Get It On '' `` You Are Everything '' `` Got to Give It Up '' `` Sexual Healing '' Family Marvin Gay Sr. ( father ) Alberta Gay ( mother ) Anna Gordy Gaye ( first wife ) Denise Gordy ( son 's birth mother ) Nona Gaye ( daughter ) Frankie Gaye ( brother ) Gordon Banks ( brother - in - law ) Related topics Discography Songs Albums Songs by Marvin Gaye Albums produced by Marvin Gaye Songs in memory Songs produced by Marvin Gaye Personal life Death Tributes Harvey Fuqua Tammi Terrell Leon Ware Marvin 's Room Marvin Is 60 : A Tribute Album Book Category Portal Marvin Gaye singles discography 1960s : ( Tamla ) 1961 `` Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide '' 1962 `` Sandman '' `` Soldier 's Plea '' `` Stubborn Kind of Fellow '' `` Hitch Hike '' 1963 `` Pride and Joy '' `` Can I Get a Witness '' 1964 `` You 're a Wonderful One '' `` Once Upon a Time '' `` What 's the Matter with You Baby '' `` Try It Baby '' `` Baby Do n't You Do It '' `` What Good Am I Without You '' `` How Sweet It Is ( To Be Loved by You ) '' 1965 `` I 'll Be Doggone '' `` Pretty Little Baby '' `` Ai n't That Peculiar '' 1966 `` One More Heartache '' `` Take This Heart of Mine '' `` Little Darling ( I Need You ) '' `` It Takes Two '' 1967 `` Ai n't No Mountain High Enough '' `` Your Unchanging Love '' `` Your Precious Love '' `` You '' `` If I Could Build My Whole World Around You '' / `` If This World Were Mine '' 1968 `` Ai n't Nothing Like the Real Thing '' `` You 're All I Need to Get By '' `` Chained '' `` Keep On Lovin ' Me Honey '' `` You Ai n't Livin ' till You 're Lovin ' '' `` His Eye Is on the Sparrow '' `` I Heard It Through the Grapevine '' 1969 `` Good Lovin ' Ai n't Easy to Come By '' `` Too Busy Thinking About My Baby '' `` That 's the Way Love Is '' `` Abraham, Martin and John '' `` What You Gave Me '' `` How Can I Forget '' 1970s : ( Tamla ) 1970 `` Gonna Give Her All the Love I 've Got '' `` The Onion Song '' `` California Soul '' `` The End of Our Road '' 1971 `` What 's Going On '' `` Mercy Mercy Me ( The Ecology ) '' `` Inner City Blues ( Make Me Wanna Holler ) '' `` Save the Children '' 1972 `` You 're the Man '' `` Trouble Man '' `` I Want to Come Home for Christmas '' 1973 `` Let 's Get It On '' `` You 're a Special Part of Me '' `` Stop, Look, Listen ( To Your Heart ) '' `` Come Get to This '' `` You Sure Love to Ball '' `` My Mistake ( Was to Love You ) '' `` Do n't Knock My Love '' `` You Are Everything '' `` Distant Lover '' 1976 `` I Want You '' `` After the Dance '' `` Since I Had You '' 1977 `` Got to Give It Up '' 1978 `` Pops, We Love You ( A Tribute to Father ) '' 1979 `` A Funky Space Reincarnation '' `` Anger '' `` Ego Tripping Out '' 1980s : ( Tamla / Columbia ) 1981 `` Praise '' `` Heavy Love Affair '' 1982 `` Sexual Healing '' `` My Love Is Waiting '' `` ' Til Tomorrow '' `` Joy '' Posthumous 1985 `` Sanctified Lady '' `` It 's Madness '' `` Just Like '' 1986 `` The World Is Rated X '' 1991 `` My Last Chance '' `` Lucky, Lucky Me '' 1995 `` This Love Starved Heart Of Mine ( It 's Killing Me ) '' `` Music '' 2005 `` Let 's Get It On ( The M.P.G. Groove Remix ) '' 2015 `` Where Are We Going '' Book Category Portal Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Let%27s_Get_It_On_(song)&oldid=805857413 '' Categories : 1973 singles 2005 singles Billboard Hot 100 number - one singles Billboard Hot R&B / Hip - Hop Songs number - one singles Marvin Gaye songs Songs written by Marvin Gaye Funk ballads Songs about sexuality Songs written by Ed Townsend Song recordings produced by Marvin Gaye Tamla Records singles Hidden categories : Webarchive template webcite links Pages with citations lacking titles Pages with citations having bare URLs Music infoboxes with deprecated parameters Articles with hAudio microformats Talk Contents About Wikipedia Français Русский Edit links This page was last edited on 18 October 2017, at 02 : 15. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. 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Question: who sings the song lets get it on
Answer: Marvin Gaye