The last of the Gordy sisters, Anna Gordy Gaye, made her transition on Friday, Jan. 31, at the age of 92 in Los Angeles. She was the older sister of Berry Gordy, Jr. and the former wife of Marvin Gaye.
There were seven children in the Gordy family, parented by Berry Gordy, Sr. and Bertha Gordy. Preceding Anna Gordy Gaye in death are three sisters, Esther Gordy Edwards, Gwen Gordy Fuqua and Loucye Gordy Wakefield, and two brothers, Fuller Gordy and George Gordy.
Anna Gordy Gaye was born Anna Ruby Gordy on Jan. 28, 1922, in Milledgeville, Georgia.
Known as the “glamour girl” of the four sisters, Anna Gordy Gaye married Motown recording star Marvin Gaye in 1963. At least two of Gaye hits were written with his wife in mind, “Pride and Joy” and “You’re a Wonderful One.” They had an adopted son, Marvin Gaye III, and divorced in 1977.
In 1958, Anna Gordy founded a record label in Detroit, Anna Records. Anna’s greatest success was “Money (That’s What I Want)” by Barrett Strong that reached No. 2 on the national R&B Singles chart and has since come to be recognized as a classic.
Anna Records was absorbed by Motown Record Corporation in 1961.
Anna Gordy Gaye had a hand in writing such hit recordings as the Originals’ “Baby I’m For Real” and Stevie Wonder’s “What Christmas Means to Me.”
Among her survivors are two brothers, Berry Gordy, Jr. and Robert Gordy, and a son, Marvin Gaye III.
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