Unholyalliance said:

In the end, it's all a matter of preference. There's no objectivity in anyone's statements here. Just because one is a more popular opinion doesn't make it fact. Just because one is a less popular opinion doesn't make it fact either.

For me, personally, I don't care about how many instruments and encores you play or do or even if you have smoke, mirrors, and 1 million dancers, if you sound like shit when you sing then just forget it. Imo, there's nothing worse than someone who is hurting my ears when they can't stay on key or they lack emotion when they sing. That, more than anything, drives me nuts and have ruined many performances for me.

Though, I must say, the reason why MJ started to be hailed as being one of the greatest performers of all time, was due to the added level of drama he added to his performances that made them standout so much. That's not to take away from anyone else in the least, but I was under that impression. I mean...it doesn't make anyone else's less entertaining, but it did put his on a different level.

In my opinion, this is the best and most level headed comment in this thread.

Who the greatest entertainer of all time is an opinion, not a fact, so no OP, I'm sorry but I disagree. You can't say for a fact that people who feel MJ was the greatest are wrong because you feel that Prince and Freddie are better. No one artist or entertainer appeals to everyone period.

What I do find interesting though about Prince is that when I watch some of his concert dvd's I find some of them to quite boring to be honest, but live he is incredible. For instance Love/Sexy tour is always hailed as being of Prince's best tours, but I bought the dvd and was not very entertained to be honest. I'm sure in person it was a different story. Same thing with "Rave Un2 The Year 2000" as well. The DVD was good, but not great. I struggled to get through it actually.

Prince for me is one of these artists you MUST see live in person to truly appreciate what a consumate artist and performer he is because for me his concerts don't translate as well on film. In person, he's incredible. The best i've seen.

Unfortunately, I never got a chance to see MJ live so I can't compare him to Prince as a performer. MJ is my favorite entertainer due to the fact that I think he is just an excellent vocalist,dancer and performer. He is really exciting to watch. At least for me he is. I have literally screamed from excitement watching him perform and cried as well and this was just sitting at home watching him on TV! Imagine if I had seen him in person? I'm sure I would have been like some of his crazy fans screaming, crying and passing out lol. The point is that no other entertainter has moved me more than MJ. MJ had tons of charisma and stage presence. He does not play instruments, but as a performer, I find him to be the all around package and as I said, no one excites me or moves me more, so this is why for me he is the greatest.

I'm not going to argue with anyone over that though. It truly comes down to personal taste and preference.

There is no right or wrong answer to this question.

[Edited 8/2/11 12:10pm]

mjscarousal said:

TylerHippie said:

1. People love MJ because he was a child star singing about "ABC's" with his bigger bros. So

who wouldn't have a passion for a guy like that? Prince came on the scene in high-heels and

tights, so who has the advantage?

2. I have the right to say Prince is better because I listened to all their work, and musicially and

entertainer wise, Prince is better to me. I don't judge someone off of a couple shows or songs.

3. I doubt Prince can make you cry without a guitar in his hand, that's the difference between a true

musician and a performer. If I know Prince can play the sexiest guitar solo in the world, or

play some sick drum beats or some moving piano, why would I want him to dance the whole

show?

[Edited 8/2/11 9:21am]

Thats YOUR opinion and you are basically saying the same thing as I am so what exactly IS your point?

In your preference for Prince you seem for some reason feel the need to downplay Michaels... talent Like seriously thats bullshit. You like Prince better okay. But Prince does not entertain on no Michael Jackson, James Brown, Sammy scale. I respect and appreciate Prince musicianship but they are TWO completely different things. You seem to get more out of the musicianship which is great I love that as well but your question ask who is the GREATEST ENTERTAINER and I am sorry Prince does not even come to mine and I love Stevie Wonder and I would never even call him such and I find him to be a more better musian/vocalist than Prince!. Now if you was to ask who was the GREATEST MUSICAL GENIUS COMPARED to HIS PEERS... than yea Prince is up there but they are two completely different things but if you find yourself to be MORE entertained with Prince musicianship than.. okay.

I personally dont.

I find James Brown, MJ, Sammy, Nicholas Brothers to be MUCH MORE entertaining.

If I just want to listen and appreciate Princes artistic and musical talent I can just simply pop in his C.D. but if I want to be entertained I am going to watch Michael... all in L.O.V.E..

Prince is a much better performer than Stevie any day of the week. No comparison. I don't think i've ever heard anyone refer to Stevie as being a great performer. My Dad always says that Stevie Wonder is the worst performer he's ever seen. I've never seen him live and although I think he's a genius as an artist his performances usally bore the heck outta me.

I have to ask you though, have you actually seen Prince live? If not, I reccommend you try to see him next time he's in your town. He definitely entertains and is absolutely in the same league as MJ, Sammy,James Brown, Jackie Wilson,etc. Prince is every bit as good as those you mentioned.

I'd say actually from the mid 90's and on, Prince was a BETTER performer than MJ. He was more spontaneous and had more variation in his shows. MJ lip synched too much for my liking in the 90's and kept rehashing old dance moves. "This Is It" showed a lot of promise however and i'm so upset we never even got to see one show.

I always said MJ should have done an "Unplugged" concert though. No hoopla. No theatrics. Just MJ singing from his heart. It would have been incredible because he definitely had the vocals to pull it off and really actually did not need all the gimmicks, but of course MJ was always thinking big and I don't think he would have ever scaled down his shows.

But I do think that some of the people who say MJ was too mechanical or wasn't spontaneous also need to watch some of his earlier shows. Watch some clips from the "Destiny" tour or "Triumph". I feel that in order to truly appreciate MJ as a performer, you need to go back to the beginning to fully appreciate what an incredible performer he was. He was always a natural talent. You can't teach that to someone. He had a gift for performing. He was at his best imo then and most spontaneous as a performer in the 70's and early 80's.

No one was seeing MJ on any level in the 70's and early 80's as far as performing goes, in my opinion of course.

Cinnamon234 said:

I'd say actually from the mid 90's and on, Prince was a BETTER performer than MJ. He was more spontaneous and had more variation in his shows. MJ lip synched too much for my liking in the 90's and kept rehashing old dance moves. "This Is It" showed a lot of promise however and i'm so upset we never even got to see one show.

Could you imagine Billie Jean with no Moonwalk? Actually...I would be curious to the audience's reaction.

theAudience said:

Graycap23 said:

Thee most individually talented human I've even seen from an arts & entertainment stand point was Sammy Davis jr.

Now you know this will get little or no consideration.

It's setup as yet another MJ vs Madonna vs [FILL IN THE BLANK] steel cage...

...Celebrity Deathmatch

Music for adventurous listeners

tA

Tribal Records

Timmy84 said:

Now theres a master. Prince and MJ's teacher!

Emancipation89 said:

TylerHippie said:

I haven't watched that tour in 5 years. But he had to many gimics. To much smoke etc...

Smoke effect and pyrotechnics type of stuff?! Wow. I guess I'm done.

??? MJ never even used smoke like that and never used pyros (except for Heartbreak Hotel when Jennifer comes out) .. I guess

Timmy84 said:

You know what?

You might actually be right.

Despite all my love for Michael and warm feelings for Prince, James Brown was a bad mofo who could own Prince and Michael any day.

daPrettyman said:

I can't pick just one:

I would say these are among my favorite/greatest entertainers:

James Brown would probably be at the top of my list. Especially since a lot of what we see and hear today came from him.

I would also add, Jackie Wilson, Michael Jackson, Prince, Sammy Davis Jr. (only because he did everything great), Tina Turner, Madonna and Fred Astair. All of these people are among the best to have ever done it.

I gotta give a vote to James Brown. He was electrifying. There was no doubt after I got the DVD of James Brown on the T.A.M.I Show in 1964. He thought he was going to be the closing act but they wanted it to be The Rolling Stones. The Stones reportedly contacted their booking agent and begged to be placed anywhere in the show NOT next to James (that's Mr. Brown to you...) and for good reason. James and his band tore that stage up. It is a legendary performance.

4 way tie between

Sammy Davis Jr./James Brown/Ray Charles/Sly Stone

Only because IMO when you apply "greatest" to anything artistic you better include a strong impact on society and business.

Prince and MJ, God bless them, reaped the benefits of those old cats mentioned above.

Michael Jackson,

if you want a list in my opinion it would go:

Michael Jackson

James Brown

Prince

Madonna

Freddy Mercury.

dreaminaboutu said:

I gotta give a vote to James Brown. He was electrifying. There was no doubt after I got the DVD of James Brown on the T.A.M.I Show in 1964. He thought he was going to be the closing act but they wanted it to be The Rolling Stones. The Stones reportedly contacted their booking agent and begged to be placed anywhere in the show NOT next to James (that's Mr. Brown to you...) and for good reason. James and his band tore that stage up. It is a legendary performance.

The Stones got "Kid & Play'd" that night...

[img:$uid]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b59/jbodine/StageExplosion.jpg[/img:$uid]

..."Step to the stage, too late I BLEW IT UP!"




Music for adventurous listeners

tA

Tribal Records

ViintageJunkiie said:

Emancipation89 said:

Smoke effect and pyrotechnics type of stuff?! Wow. I guess I'm done.

??? MJ never even used smoke like that and never used pyros (except for Heartbreak Hotel when Jennifer comes out) .. I guess

Imma go with Red Skelton,

Greatest Entertainer: Prince

Greatest Musician: Stevie

Greatest Vocalist: Chaka

Greatest Magician: Sade

Just my thoughts.

Charlie Chaplin---dude was a genuis and did his thing during a time when there was no such thing as sound in movies! I also forgot to add that Chaplin also composed music and scored all of his movies himself. He was a true all-around genius. If you haven't seen his film "City Lights" PLEASE rent it or whatever and be prepared to be amazed by this man's range. RIP Charlie, you were a great one!

http://www.youtube.com/wa...re=related

[Edited 8/2/11 23:02pm]

smoothcriminal12 said:

Timmy84 said:

You know what?

You might actually be right.

Despite all my love for Michael and warm feelings for Prince, James Brown was a bad mofo who could own Prince and Michael any day.

U've got to be kidding....let's get one thing straight....just because you came first doesn't mean your'e better.

Prince would clean james' clock...put a guitar in james' hands and watch the crowd go home.

Prince rocks better guitar than Jimi also...just because you came first doesn't mean your'e better.

But, this is non-sense...Prince has proven he's the best with the vast number of songs that he has and his studio wizardry. Stevie actually comes closer to Prince than Jimi, MJ or James, IMO.

(But he's a distance away from the one and only)

purplethunder3121 said:

Cinnamon234 said:

mjscarousal said:

Thats YOUR opinion and you are basically saying the same thing as I am so what exactly IS your point?

In your preference for Prince you seem for some reason feel the need to downplay Michaels... talent Like seriously thats bullshit. You like Prince better okay. But Prince does not entertain on no Michael Jackson, James Brown, Sammy scale. I respect and appreciate Prince musicianship but they are TWO completely different things. You seem to get more out of the musicianship which is great I love that as well but your question ask who is the GREATEST ENTERTAINER and I am sorry Prince does not even come to mine and I love Stevie Wonder and I would never even call him such and I find him to be a more better musian/vocalist than Prince!. Now if you was to ask who was the GREATEST MUSICAL GENIUS COMPARED to HIS PEERS... than yea Prince is up there but they are two completely different things but if you find yourself to be MORE entertained with Prince musicianship than.. okay.

I personally dont.

I find James Brown, MJ, Sammy, Nicholas Brothers to be MUCH MORE entertaining.

If I just want to listen and appreciate Princes artistic and musical talent I can just simply pop in his C.D. but if I want to be entertained I am going to watch Michael... all in L.O.V.E..

Prince is a much better performer than Stevie any day of the week. No comparison. I don't think i've ever heard anyone refer to Stevie as being a great performer. My Dad always says that Stevie Wonder is the worst performer he's ever seen. I've never seen him live and although I think he's a genius as an artist his performances usally bore the heck outta me.

I have to ask you though, have you actually seen Prince live? If not, I reccommend you try to see him next time he's in your town. He definitely entertains and is absolutely in the same league as MJ, Sammy,James Brown, Jackie Wilson,etc. Prince is every bit as good as those you mentioned.

I'd say actually from the mid 90's and on, Prince was a BETTER performer than MJ. He was more spontaneous and had more variation in his shows. MJ lip synched too much for my liking in the 90's and kept rehashing old dance moves. "This Is It" showed a lot of promise however and i'm so upset we never even got to see one show.

I always said MJ should have done an "Unplugged" concert though. No hoopla. No theatrics. Just MJ singing from his heart. It would have been incredible because he definitely had the vocals to pull it off and really actually did not need all the gimmicks, but of course MJ was always thinking big and I don't think he would have ever scaled down his shows.

But I do think that some of the people who say MJ was too mechanical or wasn't spontaneous also need to watch some of his earlier shows. Watch some clips from the "Destiny" tour or "Triumph". I feel that in order to truly appreciate MJ as a performer, you need to go back to the beginning to fully appreciate what an incredible performer he was. He was always a natural talent. You can't teach that to someone. He had a gift for performing. He was at his best imo then and most spontaneous as a performer in the 70's and early 80's.

No one was seeing MJ on any level in the 70's and early 80's as far as performing goes, in my opinion of course.

I am young so I wasnt around during Prince and Michaels peak and no I have never seen them live even though I DESPERATELLLLYYYYYY want to see Prince and I know one day I will lol unfortunately I wasnt able to see Michael

I never said that Stevie Wonder was a better entertainer than Prince I said that I personally find him to be a better vocalist and musician.

I love Prince and find him to be entertaining as well but for me, Michael is the greatest not just for his dancing and for his performances. Michael was an all around great entertainer and was superior in all the categories, singing, dancing, etc

Like you said it is really just preference.

With the bolded part that you stated, that was some of the points I was trying to make but you stated them more clearly. For some reason it just seem some people were undermining Michael in their opinion because of his popularity and big productions. Ive seen those footages and MJ was spontaneous and put on hella great shows. Regardless of the hoopla mess, Michael was NATURAL talent. His talent was a rarity the SAME with Prince. Their both great.

Revolution said:

smoothcriminal12 said:

You know what?

You might actually be right.

Despite all my love for Michael and warm feelings for Prince, James Brown was a bad mofo who could own Prince and Michael any day.

U've got to be kidding....let's get one thing straight....just because you came first doesn't mean your'e better.

Prince would clean james' clock...put a guitar in james' hands and watch the crowd go home.

Prince rocks better guitar than Jimi also...just because you came first doesn't mean your'e better.

But, this is non-sense...Prince has proven he's the best with the vast number of songs that he has and his studio wizardry. Stevie actually comes closer to Prince than Jimi, MJ or James, IMO.

(But he's a distance away from the one and only)

It's not about coming first. Prince is NOTHING compared to James live. Who cares if Prince can play an instrument and James can't? Kudos to James for still being better than Prince despite his advantage.

And obviously your "Prince is the best" comment is slightly biased, just like my Janes one probably is. We ARE on a Prince forum, after all. I still think Michael is the best ever, in my honest opinion.

It's hard to top Madonna. 3 decades at the top. Dozens of smash singles. Every tour is a huge, massive success. She is still an international superstar around the world at 52. She works incredibly hard, gives the fans her all, and never half-asses anything. Always changing, always challenging herself and her fans. Never irrelevent, always talked out. If we're talking sheer "entertainment" - it's hard to top Madonna.

purplethunder3121 said:

Graycap23 said:

Depends on your taste.

I agree. Each person looks for something to be filled by the entertainer that they are observing/interested in. Some seek awesome vocal ability, others seek stage presence, dance skills, all the way to ability to play instruments. Some seek the whole package! Each individual has their own perception of what makes the greatest entertainer ever.

Honestly, I can't answer because I have too many that I have listened to, or watched footage of, to narrow it down to just one. I have a list of the greatest entertainers ever.

mjscarousal said:

TylerHippie said:

I wouldn't say he entertained them by doing that, it was his presence that had people so crazy.

When you entertain someone, it last for a longer time.

Of COUSE you would say this... I mean this is a PRINCE FORUM BUT on ANY regular forum on a good day golf forum, beauty forum, rap forum, ring forum, weightloss forum, music forum paybills forum AS WELL AS REAL LIFE etc etc etc... Michael Jackson wins all the time because HE IS.

You have to realize something, being a musician and entertainer are TWO different things. Musicians can also entertain as well however Prince is an ACQUIRED taste. I LOVE Prince but I have NEVER been entertained by him like how I am by Michael. There really is NO comparision. Your going to get this thread locked or just stir up more drama. Cause you talkin crazy shit now.

Just say you prefer Prince over MJ but Michael is the greatest hands down. This goes BEYOND tours. Michael as a performer could stand ALONE on stage with a mic and be entertaining. Michael DONT EVEN have to use his magical amazing natural dancing talent to entertain a crowd but on the other hand folks here only arguement for Prince is the fact that his plays instruments and interacts with the crowd. I like to see Prince do half the stuff Michael does and be able to bring tears to my eyes without no guitar in his hand and just his mic. Not to mention Prince is NO WHERE near as talented as Michael on VOCALS ALONE. It is MUCH more to being a entertainer and it is also much more as to why Michael is the greatest entertainer that ever lived besides his impact on tours.

[Edited 8/2/11 8:42am]

I beg to differ(though I am aware that is your opinion). Though I respect MJ and his gift that (undeniably) no one has ever possessed or been able to compete with I do not think he is more talented that Prince vocally. MJ was an awesome entertainer. I look at his past footage, dating back to J5, and I am always left speechless. However, I was eight years old when I first heard Prince's music (84). MJ had been a part of the family ever since I can remember. But when I heard Prince in Purple Rain!!! I was amazed and I did not understand the full impact of what I was experiencing. I do now

ViintageJunkiie said:

Emancipation89 said:

Smoke effect and pyrotechnics type of stuff?! Wow. I guess I'm done.

??? MJ never even used smoke like that and never used pyros (except for Heartbreak Hotel when Jennifer comes out) .. I guess

I thought the firey stuff when he did the toaster for Jam was pyro as well (<- I hope this sentence makes sense)...And I think I've seen it in Black or White, and some other songs when he did the dramatic jump finale for the song.(especially in Bucharest DVD) But I certainly don't think he used too much.

[Edited 8/2/11 22:58pm]

Cinnamon234 said:

Unholyalliance said:

In the end, it's all a matter of preference. There's no objectivity in anyone's statements here. Just because one is a more popular opinion doesn't make it fact. Just because one is a less popular opinion doesn't make it fact either.

For me, personally, I don't care about how many instruments and encores you play or do or even if you have smoke, mirrors, and 1 million dancers, if you sound like shit when you sing then just forget it. Imo, there's nothing worse than someone who is hurting my ears when they can't stay on key or they lack emotion when they sing. That, more than anything, drives me nuts and have ruined many performances for me.

Though, I must say, the reason why MJ started to be hailed as being one of the greatest performers of all time, was due to the added level of drama he added to his performances that made them standout so much. That's not to take away from anyone else in the least, but I was under that impression. I mean...it doesn't make anyone else's less entertaining, but it did put his on a different level.

In my opinion, this is the best and most level headed comment in this thread.

MJ will always be the best entertainer for me but it kinda makes me happy when a lot of people say Prince is the best...I can't really explain this

It's all subjective

I prefer Michael but you can't deny someone like Sammy Davis Jr. the title either. Hell, he's the originator of that title

Like Graycap said, Sammy had IT altogether. The man lived, breathed, and DIED entertainment. He was show business to the day he died. He was a great singer, a great dancer, and a great actor. The original Mr. Entertainment. It annoys me that he doesn't get the recognitiion and respect he truly deserves. Before Michael, Prince, Jackie Wilson, and James Brown, it was Sammy. You really have to look back at Sammy's career to see how great he was.

Michael, who is my favorite, was very similar to that. To really put Michael in the context of "greatest entertainer", you just can't watch a concert from the Dangerous Tour or Bad Tour and make up your mind. You have to go ALL THE WAY BACK to 1969. I'm talking The Jackson 5's first TV performance on the Miss Black America pagaent singing "It's Your Thing" You gotta check out a 11 year old Michael RIPPING UP "Who's Loving You" on The Ed Sullivan Show, in fact, you gotta check out many of The Jackson 5's performance during 1969 to 1975. If you watch The Jackson 5 in Mexico concert from '75 or 2 shows from the Destiny Tour (Either the one in London or the one in New Orleans), you'll see what I mean. The Victory Tour and Bad Tour came and that's when the theatrics came. The lip synching, the pyro, the interludes, but because of what Michael saw entertainment as, I understand what he was going for. He sang, he danced, he wrote songs, and he acted (or tried )

When people say Michael Jackson is the greatest entertainer, they're not just talking about his stage shows, they're also talking about his album, his videos, his overall IT factor.

Prince, he's the most complete musician there is. That's where his heart is. His concerts are never the same, you can't predict what's he going to do next, and he's been able to pull it off for nearly 35 years! You see his shows and he puts his SOUL in it. I've listened to live concerts and had to rewind parts because it reels you in. Anybody who's heard the Septembre bootleg where he performs Purple Rain for the last time knows what I'm talking about. You end up tearing up, and you're listening to a 20 year old bootleg! He can just about anything and can pull it off

Freddie Mercury... what else can be said. IT'S FREDDIE MERCURY! All you gotta see is Queen's Live Aid performance and with that, enough said. Freddie Mercury is one of the few entertainers on my list who I can watch a full show from beginning to end without getting bored. That man's energy is unlimited. He had so much charisma, it seemed as if he didn't know what to do with it all

In the end, it comes down to communicating with the audience