Editing Let's Get It On (section)

== Legacy and influence ==
Because of the album and its singles' initial sales and response, ''Let's Get It On'' marked a change and transition in sound and production for Motown, which had previously enjoyed success with its trademark "[[Motown Records#Motown sound|Motown Sound]]". The label's well-known sound, however, was beginning to fade in popularity among the majority of R&B and soul listeners, while experiencing commercial pressure from contemporary styles that incorporated more diverse elements, such as [[Philly soul]] and [[funk]].<ref name=edm15/> The Motown sound was typified by characteristics such as the use of [[tambourine]]s to accent the [[beat (music)|back beat]], prominent and often melodic electric [[bass guitar]] lines, distinctive [[Melody|melodic]] and [[Chord (music)|chord]] structures, and a [[Call and response (music)|call and response]] singing style that originated in [[gospel music]]. In addition, pop production techniques were simpler than that of Gaye's 1970s concept albums. Complex arrangements and elaborate, [[melisma]]tic vocal riffs were avoided by Motown musicians.<ref name=edm15/> Following his breakthrough with ''What's Going On'', an "experiment in collating a pseudo-classical suite of free-flowing songs",<ref name="slant">[http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=375 Slant Magazine Music Review: Marvin Gaye: What's Going On] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031219233229/http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=375 |date=2003-12-19 }}. Slant Magazine. Retrieved on 2008-11-29.</ref> Gaye used his artistic control to modify the sound and incorporate funky instrumentation, melismatic vocalization, and heavy [[Vocals|vocal]] [[Multi-track recording|multi-tracking]], in much contrast to the established production style at the label. In contrast to Motown's previously successful process of emphasizing an artist's single releases rather than their album, Gaye and fellow producer Ed Townsend followed a similar formula previously used on ''What's Going On'', in which the album's songs flow together in a suite-form arrangement,<ref name=johnstone>Johnstone (1999), p. 193.</ref> opposing label CEO Berry Gordy's strong emphasis on hit single success.<ref name="slant"/>

Gaye's change of musical style and production with the album made an immediate impact on the subsequently successful Motown artists, including [[Lionel Richie]] and [[Rick James]].<ref name=edm15/> The album's vocal multi-tracking and instrumentation also influenced the development of contemporary R&B and [[slow jam]]s. [[Allmusic]] calls the album "the blueprint for all of the slow jams to follow decades later — much copied, but never imitated."<ref name=bio/> Renown engineer [[Russell Elevado]]'s work in the [[neo soul]] genre, including his production for [[D'Angelo]]'s ''[[Voodoo (D'Angelo album)|Voodoo]]'' (2000) and [[Erykah Badu]]'s ''[[Mama's Gun]]'' (2000), has been influenced by Gaye's and Townsend's production techniques and sound.<ref name=edm15/><ref name=popmatters>Neal, Mark Anthony. [http://www.popmatters.com/music/reviews/d/dangelo-voodoo.shtml Review: ''Voodoo'']. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2008-08-09.</ref>

The album's sexual content pushed creative barriers in the recording industry and led to an increased popularity of sexual themes in contemporary music.<ref name=edm15/> Music writer [[Rob Bowman (music writer)|Rob Bowman]] later cited ''Let's Get It On'' as "one of the most erotic recordings known to mankind."<ref name=seventies/> The album's success helped spark a series of similarly styled releases by such smooth soul artists as [[Barry White]] (''[[Can't Get Enough (Barry White album)|Can't Get Enough]]''), [[Smokey Robinson]] (''[[A Quiet Storm]]'') and [[Earth, Wind & Fire]] (''[[That's the Way of the World]]'').<ref name=edm15/> The commercial success of such artists led to a change of trend from socially conscious aesthetics to more mainstream, sensually themed music.<ref name="dyson98">Dyson (2005), p. 98.</ref> Gaye achieved further success with ''I Want You'' (1976), featuring more sexually explicit lyrics and expanded use of vocal multi-tracking, and with ''Here, My Dear'' (1978), which he based entirely on his tumultuous marriage to Anna Gordy.<ref name=edm15/> In an interview with music author [[Michael Eric Dyson]], hip hop artist [[Q-Tip (rapper)|Q-Tip]] discussed the album's influence and significance to its time period, stating:

{{blockquote|Although there was a 'conscious' revolution, there was also a great [[sexual revolution]] ... I think ''Let's Get It On'' was Marvin wanting to make commentary on what was happening. I think there was a big 'love-in' that was going on. And with him quoting [[T. S. Eliot|T.S. Elliot]] [in his liner notes, that life amounts to "Birth, copulation and death"], and the young lady moaning [on the album], we hadn't heard that before. That was another first, as well as him capturing erotica like that, and weaving it into the music the way he did; it was mind blowing. I think it was a natural progression, because we were having a revolution with our minds, and then with our bodies at that time.<ref name="dyson98"/>}}

Following the success of [[Sly and the Family Stone]]'s ''[[There's a Riot Goin' On]]'' (1971) and [[James Brown]]'s late 1960s and early 1970s singles, Gaye's ''Let's Get It On'' gave greater mainstream exposure to funk and broadened its influence on the music industry. Many later R&B musicians, such as [[Prince (musician)|Prince]], D'Angelo, and [[R. Kelly]], were greatly influenced by its vintage sound and seductive themes, incorporating much of Gaye's musical style into their music.<ref name=edm15/>