33 Facts About Martin Gore

Martin Lee Gore was born on 23 July 1961 and is an English musician and songwriter.

Martin Gore is one of the founding members of the electronic music band Depeche Mode and is the band's main songwriter.

Martin Gore is the band's guitarist and keyboardist, and occasionally provides lead vocals.

Martin Gore is known for his flamboyant and androgynous stage persona.

Martin Gore has released several solo albums and collaborated with former Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke as part of VCMG.

Martin Gore has said he feels lyrical themes that tackle issues related to solitude and loneliness are a better representation of reality, whereas he finds "happy songs" fake and unrealistic.

Martin Gore was given the Moog Innovation Award "for his many contributions to the exploration of sound in popular music" in 2019, and became a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member in late 2020 with fellow active Depeche Mode members Dave Gahan and Andy Fletcher, as well as past members Clarke and Alan Wilder.

Martin Gore was raised by his stepfather David Martin Gore and biological mother Pamela, who both worked at the Ford of Britain motor plant in Dagenham.

Martin Gore believed his stepfather was his biological father until the age of 30, when he learned of his biological father.

Martin Gore later met his biological father in the American South.

Martin Gore has described his upbringing as "normal" and "stable" and has said that he was an introvert who preferred to spend time reading alone rather than with school peers.

Martin Gore taught himself to play keyboard from the 1970s, never receiving formal training.

Martin Gore learned to perform chart hits, figuring out their structures via the magazine Disco 45.

Martin Gore shared a class with Andy "Fletch" Fletcher, Alison Moyet and Perry Bamonte.

Martin Gore left Nicholas Comprehensive after completing his A-levels in 1979 and took a job as a bank cashier.

Martin Gore became interested in electronic music upon hearing acts such as Kraftwerk, the Human League and OMD.

Martin Gore borrowed a Korg 700S from a friend, before purchasing a Yamaha CS5, his first synthesizer.

Martin Gore has two younger half-sisters, Karen, born in 1967, and Jacqueline, born in 1968.

In 1980, Martin Gore reunited with classmate Andy Fletcher at the Van Gogh club.

Martin Gore is the band's keyboardist, contributes backing vocals, and occasionally provides lead vocals.

When Clarke announced his departure from Depeche Mode in 1981, Martin Gore became the principal songwriter for the band.

Songs Martin Gore wrote for Depeche Mode's second album, A Broken Frame, differed musically and lyrically from Clarke's.

Martin Gore's writing became gradually darker and more political on subsequent Depeche Mode albums.

Martin Gore sometimes plays guitar on Depeche Mode songs.

Martin Gore's guitar playing developed even more on Songs of Faith and Devotion.

Martin Gore covered the song "Coming Back to You" for the Leonard Cohen tribute album Tower of Song: The Songs of Leonard Cohen.

Martin Gore has a personal studio in Santa Monica with a sizeable collection of Euroracks, Moog and Erica synthesizers, where he has recorded solo work and written music for Depeche Mode.

On 27 May 1999, Martin Gore was presented with an award by Daniel Miller for "International Achievement" by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors at the 44th Ivor Novello Awards.

In 2019, Martin Gore received the Moog Innovation Award "for his many contributions to the exploration of sound in popular music".

Martin Gore's enduring ability to connect the rawest aspects of the human experience to the dance floor defined an era and perpetually reminds us what it means to be human through the emotional power of electronic sound.

Martin Gore started dating lingerie designer and model Suzanne Boisvert after meeting in Paris in 1989.

Martin Gore became a vegetarian for health and moral reasons in 1983.

Martin Gore had stress-induced seizures during the band's 1993 Devotional Tour and publicly acknowledged his past alcoholism.