Marvin Tarplin

Marv Tarplin
The Miracles in 1961. From bottom left: Claudette Rogers, Bobby Rogers, Marv Tarplin, Ronald White, and Smokey Robinson.
Background information
Birth name	Marvin Tarplin
Born	(1941-06-13)June 13, 1941 Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Died	September 30, 2011(2011-09-30) (aged 70) Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Genres	Soul
Occupation(s)	Guitarist, songwriter
Instruments	Guitar
Years active	1958–2008
Labels	Motown
Associated acts	The Miracles
Notable instruments
Gibson Les Paul Black Beauty

Marvin "Marv" Tarplin (June 13, 1941 – September 30, 2011) was an American guitarist and songwriter, best known as the guitarist for the Miracles from the 1950s through the early 1970s. He was one of the group's original members and co-wrote several of their biggest hits, including the 1965 Grammy Hall Of Fame inducted "The Tracks of My Tears". He is also a winner of the BMI Songwriter's Award, and the ASCAP Award Of Merit, and was a 2012 posthumous inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the Miracles.

Referred to as the Miracles' "secret weapon", Tarplin began his career accompanying the Supremes, who at the time were still teenagers, and known as the Primettes. They were seeking an audition with Motown Records, and Tarplin played guitar as they performed for Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson. Robinson was impressed by Tarplin's guitar playing, and lured him away from the Primettes to join the Miracles in 1958. In the 2006 Motown DVD release, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles: The Definitive Performances 1963-1987, Robinson and fellow Miracles Pete Moore and Bobby Rogers commented that Tarplin's guitar playing style was reminiscent of the late Curtis Mayfield, and was the inspiration behind many of their greatest hits. His guitar riffs at the beginning of the Miracles' 1965 Grammy Hall of Fame million-seller, The Tracks Of My Tears, are among the most famous in pop music history.

Whilst Tarplin remained with the Miracles for as long as Robinson was their lead singer, he is only present on the cover of three classic Miracles albums: Cookin' with the Miracles (1962), I'll Try Something New (1962), and The Fabulous Miracles (1963). He is mentioned, though not pictured, on the back cover of the group's very first album, Hi... We're the Miracles (1961), and listed as an original group member. As a songwriter, Tarplin helped co-compose many of the Miracles' hit singles, amongst them the million-selling Grammy Hall of Fame winner "The Tracks of My Tears" for which he received the ASCAP Award Of Merit (1965), "My Girl Has Gone" (1965), "I Like It Like That", (1964), "Going to a Go-Go" (1965), "The Love I Saw in You Was Just a Mirage" (1967), and Point It Out (1968).