There was talk about the unplugged thing even at BBC during the last night in trial, so I think it's been a serious consideration. I think he could pull it off quite good, plus it would give him a bit of a break of having to deliver an album that would sell 10-20 million for the media not to call it a flop. I know he is very concerned still about being the King of Pop, but he really needs a tester first before doing anything too major like a World Tour. Whatever that may be.

Well that was what One Night Only was going to be in 1995 with a few bells and whistles to top it off.

OdysseyMiles said:

That's a great setlist.

Novabreaker said:

I agree, jumping into a world tour seems hasty.
Screw being the King of Pop, though. That's such a stupid title anyway because it immediately takes the focus away from the art. At this point, a lot of us could care less what he's "king" of. Folks nowadays need to be reminded what he's capable of.

But they need that "king sentiment" when they are going to see him perform the next time. Even people who supposedly don't like him are going to yell "Mommy! mommy! come see Michael Jackson is singing on TV!". That's what's going to happen anyway, and he knows he really needs to pull it off. He can't fail this time as he did with the Anniversary shows and the release of "Invincible".

DavidEye said:

Thanks, D.
It'd be sick if he freaked it like he knows he can.

I don't know. It must be because I'm gettin gold, but I am really starting to like "You Are Not Alone". He needs to perform that whatever type of show it is going to be.

Oh, and no lip-syncing brother. You could sing live as a ten-year-old kid, you should be able to sing live as fifty-year-old man.

Novabreaker said:

Yeah, I wanna hear him live. A more intimate setting would put the focus on his voice, the lyrics, the vibe, the feeling, the art.
"You Are Not Alone" is a cool song, but it's always felt like "an R. Kelly" song to me, except for the end. At the end of the song, MJ takes that thing over and makes it his.

actually in rethinking my answer, ALL i want at this point is for the accusations to be completely forgotten about and flushed down the toilet and never thought of again. right now when michaels mentioned those 3 words are always accompanying him: child molestaion or pedophile. all i hope is in time the music and his art, entertainment, singing voice and iconic life is remebered, in the same way that elvis is remebered today. no one thinks of his tragic ending or how wierd and gross and what a mess he became or the drugs, food and the dying on the toilet. and when you really think about it michaels situation isnt as bad as what elvis was in the end of his life, i mean michaels not killing himself the way elvis was, so if elvis can have that mess forgotten, there really is hope for michael and his legacy.

This is kind of silly, but it's a mjor difference between my appreciation for Prince and Michael. With Prince it's like he's a robot. He doesn't mess up. I know he's gonna hit that note, I know he's gonna be perfect - at least in my experience with watching him anyway.

With MJ it's like he's a member of my family and I get nervous for him, so when he nails it, it feels more special. Even when Mike was like super-human in the 80s, and a lot of the stuff he does is far more repetitive and predictable than Prince, but it just seems different each time.

hellomoto said:

Here's an excerpt from one of the better MJJF Talk Radio interviews between Ron Sweet and legal analyst Jonna Spilbor from FindLaw.com:

RS: Okay. A couple of years ago, Nick Welsh, a reporter from the Santa Barbara Independent, did an interview with Mr. Sneddon. They talked about a multitude of topics. It was a rather lengthy interview. One of the things he asked him was, "Does it ever happen that you don't know what the ‘right thing' is? "And Mr. Sneddon replied, "There have been some close calls. I hear you talk about all of these people saying that I'm over-aggressive. But I have to tell you that the ability of the prosecutor to file charges is powerful. When you file charges against somebody, you have, in essence, taken something away from them that they can never get back. They can be innocent in a jury trial, but there's a mark that they've been prosecuted whether we win every case or not. "So, I guess what I'm doing is opening that up for comment. Does that really sound like a man seeking justice? What's your take on it? Kind of an odd statement coming from a lead prosecutor.

JS: It's nasty...and it's also true. What he says there about once you decide to prosecute somebody, even if they are acquitted, there's a scar. There's a scar...forever and ever. That person will have an arrest record. Michael Jackson right now has an arrest record. And the interesting thing about that, from a totally procedural point of view, is in order for Michael Jackson or anybody who has been arrested and acquitted to get rid of their arrest record, they have to be able to demonstrate to a court that they are factually innocent and the Supreme Court of California has held that a ‘not guilty' verdict does not automatically make you factually innocent, which is the scary part. So, Michael Jackson, for example, and other defendants in his position, could suffer with an arrest record, on the record, forever and ever and ever, number one. Number two, look at this case since we have a celebrity here. The next time he cuts an album, and I hope that he does...the next time he goes on tour... the next time he does anything that he will want to admire and pay money for--that's how he makes his living--is anybody going to be able to say "Yeah, that Michael Jackson, what a great entertainer...even if he is a CHILD MOLESTER! "You know, is that going to follow him forever? In the eyes of some people--of course. And Sneddon knew this. He just so much as said so. He knew this going into this trial like he's known it going into every other trial. Here's the thought I would want to leave you with... The worst crime in the world, to me, is not child molestation, which is certainly terrible, it's not murder, it's not rape...The worst crime in the world is to knowingly convict an innocent person. There can be no worse crime than that. Everything else pales in comparison. Even the worst crimes of the worst. I really see the case against Michael Jackson as one of those cases.

1) people need to stop demonizing tom sneddon...expecially mj..it was a pussy act to put a song about sneddon on HIStory.....totally pathetic..

2) mj can do it if he remembers:

a) its about the music..not him

b) remembers what its like to have balls

Sneddon's a fucking mong. I see the Efren Cruz lawsuit is still pending. Innocent man jailed for murder, Sneddon purposely sitting on exonerating evidence and a confession from the real killer. Class A TWAT!
[Edited 8/26/05 6:50am]

Ellie said:

Ellie said:

oh yeah...mj fans really want to forget...


and its one thing to dislike the man for doing a poor job overall...totally another for hating him just cause, "mj says he is devilish".

thanks guys for fuckin' up the only mj thread that was going good

sosgemini said:

Oh come on. You would have done the same thing if Sneddon tried to put you in prison.

sorry guys, lets continue on back to normal, i started the very thing i wanted to be forgotten. CONTINUE ON.....NO MORE posts on this subject

Anxiety said:

Oh man that is right on.

Krytonite said:

ummm.no. its one thing to express yourself in an eliquent fashion..totally another to do it with horrible lyrics that use the mans full name, "tom sneddon is a cold cold man"....it made mj look like a pussy.;


wtf? at least prince came up with something witty....billyjackbitch.....

Well I liked it that he didn't hold back. You know, instead of hiding behind "comedy" like Eminem or being vague and "mysterious", MJ doesn't diss many people at all, but when he does he'll just say it like he feels.

CinisterCee said:

I agree, that is so on the money.

Anyway, back to the old skool - here's an interview with MJ in Smash Hits mag in December 1982 as Thriller had just been released. It's so cute! Thanks to Tony-J at MJJForum for finding it and typing it up

-----


'Michael Jackson doesn’t do interviews any more'

But one of the last he did was with Mark Ellen of Smash Hits in December’82, just as Thriller was being released. He didn’t know then that it was going to become the biggest selling LP ever. He hadn’t started recording with his brothers again. And Adam Ant was still a phone friend whom he’d never actually met.

Inevitably, in the Smash Hits feature that followed, only part of the lengthy interview could be printed. But here, for the first time anywhere, is the complete Smash Hits interview with Michael Jackson.

SH - Your new LP Thriller, is out in Britain. Are you pleased with it?

MJ - It’s out already?

SH – I’ve got a copy.

MJ – In the stores?

SH – Well, it’s about to be. Are you pleased with it?

MJ – Oh, yeah, I’m pleased with it. I’m hap…I’m the kind of person
that is never satisfied.

SH – Which are your favourite tracks?

MJ – My favourite tracks are Thriller, um Billie Jean, Beat It, Startin’
Somethin’, The Lady In My Life. Stuff like that.

SH – There’s all sorts of extraordinary people on it, Vincent Price, for
Instance. How come you worked with him?

MJ – I’ve known Vincent ever since I was 11 years old. And when you
think of Thriller…I mean who’s the king of horror who’s still
alive? I mean Bela Lugosi and Peter Lorre are dead now and the
giant who goes back to those days is Vincent Price so I thought he
was the perfect voice. Actually, it was Rod Temperton and Quincy
who actuallt thought of him ‘cause he is a friend and everything. He
came in right away, it was no problem.

SH – How about Eddie Van Halen?

MJ – I wrote a song called Beat It and we wanted a great solo, a
guitar solo, so that night Quincy said, I have a great idea, um,
um, you know, someone like Van Halen would be a good idea
or Peter Townsend but Townsend and the Who are touring at
the moment so we thought it would be a problem. So the next
day, the very next day, Eddie was in the studio. He’s the kind of
guy that kept worrying that his part was okay and he wanted to be
just right. He’s a perfectionist.

SH – What qualities do you look for in songs?

MJ – I just look at the music to be outstanding and especially, more
Than anything, the melody.

SH – What kind of people offered you songs that you didn’t accept? I
think I heard there was one by Stevie Wonder?

MJ – Well, Stevie had one which was good. It was a good song, more
a danceable type thing. There was also…ah, what’s his name?

SH – David Grant?

MJ – I forget (laughs). There’s so much going on I forget. Stevie is
incredible. We went with a more danceable one but the song was
great.

SH – Why did you chose the title Thriller? You like movies a lot?

MJ – I love movies. All movies. But I don’t like scary movies.

SH – Why not?

MJ – I can’t sleep after watching one. It just scares me.

SH – What are your favourite movies?

MJ – Any Steven Spielberg movie?

SH – Do you like E.T.?

MJ – I love E.T.

SH – ‘Cause it reminds me of me. The whole story, you know, someone
from another world coming down and you becoming friends with
them and this person’s like 800 years old and he’s filling you with
all kinds of wisdom and he’s magic and he can teach you how to
fly. It’s that whole fantasy thing that I think is great. I mean who
don’t want to fly?

SH – What other films do you like?

MJ – I like the old MGM musicals. I like things with great acting, like
Katherine Hepburn, Spencer Tracey. I love Oliver! One of my
friends lives there (England) – Mark Lester. He’s a friend of mine.
Oliver! Is one of my favourite films of all time. When he’s here I
visit him and we talk on the phone.

SH – Why do you like that film in particular so much?

MJ – Ooooooh! It’s terrific! It’s Dicken’s story. I mean…it’s…it’s
incredible. Lionel Bart’s music is unreal…it’s magic. I’m going
to record that song in the future, one of the songs….

SH – Which one?

MJ – ‘Where Is Love?’

SH – Do you know other movie stars?

MJ – Yeah, being in the same field. Katherine Hepburn came to our
concert on the last tour. That was the first concert she’d ever seen.
The press were surprised. You know, an actress of her stature and
the whole Hollywood thing…They were surprised that she would
even show up. That was the first concert she’d ever been to.

SH – What did she say about it?

MJ – She loved it. She told me she loved it and she asked me to come to
dinner the next day but we had to move on to the next city, you
know.

SH – Do you have a hero or heroine in movies that you’d like to meet?

MJ – Well, I wanted to meet Walt Disney but he died. And I wanted to
meet Charlie Chaplin but he died. There’s nobody that I would
really want to meet. I’m gonna work with Steven Spielberg.
SH – Really. Doing what?

MJ – A film. We’re going to do a film together. He’s just putting the
Story and ideas together, gradually working on ideas. You know
I did the E.T. Storybook album and we just finished that. He and
Quincy directed the whole thing, you know.

SH – You haven’t done any acting since the WIZ, have you?

MJ – Right

SH – You’re looking forward to doing some more?

MJ – Oh, yeah.

SH – Obviously most of your time, you’re involved in making music.
What do you do apart from that? What else are you interested in?

MJ – I don’t know really. It’s hard to take a break…’cause I’m always
Creating stuff…songwriting…and that’s mainly what I do…
(laughs) and I’m interested in films and acting and that sort of
thing…I don’t really involve in sports or any of that stuff…

SH – Whereabouts do you live?

MJ – We live in the valley of California.

SH – What’s it like there?

MJ – It’s, ah, lots of orange trees and lots of lemon trees. The
whole valley used to be an orange grove so everywhere you
see is orange trees. And, ah, right now (laughs) there’s some
mud ‘cause it’s been raining this morning but it’s nice and clear
now there’s blue skies out…and a wind.

SH – What kind of music do you listen to?

MJ – I like all music, all music. From classical to country to pop.
I love Paul McCartney’s early solo stuff a lot.

SH – You worked with him.

MJ – Oh yeah, it was a lot of fun. He’s wonderful. Linda’s very
nice too. The whole family. Could you say “Hi” to them from
me from America.

SH – You met their children?

MJ – Oh yeah. Stella, James and Mary and Heather….

SH – You’ve been so fantastically successful, do you feel you have
a lot to live up to? Would you be upset if this LP wasn’t as
successful as the last?

MJ – Um, yeah. ‘Cause I always like to improve. I don’t like to take
a step backwards. But it’s a whole ‘nother economy now….

SH – You mean people aren’t buying as many records?

MJ - Yeah. That’s no excuse though.

SH – In the seventies why do you think you became so successful?

MJ – Probably that we were doing good songs, that were fresh and new
and different and we were real young. And I don’t think there was
anything else like that out there? The Osmonds, they came along
but they were a copy of what we did. I like watching them – I’m
not saying they weren’t good – I enjoyed what they did.

SH – Do you still see your brothers?

MJ – Yeah.

SH – And you still get along?

MJ – Very well.

SH – In the late 70s you were very representative of the “disco boom”.
Is that something you’d like to get away from now?

MJ – I don’t think I do represent “disco”. We were doing ballads and all
kinds of stuff. I wouldn’t call “One Day In Your Life” disco or
“Never Can Say Goodbye” or “She’s Out Of My Life” or “Rock
With You” …um…um…I just like good dance music. They can
label it whatever they want but as long as it’s dance music and
people like it…

SH – What English groups do you like?

MJ – I like Adam Ant’s drums. He’s a friend of mine also.

SH – Didn’t you swop jackets or something?

MJ – Yes (laughs). I was bugging him a long time about his jackets, yeah.
(Gives a little shriek of pleasure at the memory.) Yeah, we talk over
the phone a lot. I love his drums on his songs. Will you say “Hi” to
him from me, too?

SH – How did you come to meet him?

MJ – I’ve never met him. We’re phone friends. Whenever he’s here he
calls me. Like he calls me from the Greek Theater. Like he’s
backstage. When I’m in England I call him and we talk like we’ve
known each other for years but we’ve never met or seen each other
eye to eye.

SH – Wouldn’t you like to meet him?
MJ – Yeah, I would, if our schedules meet (laughs).

SH – What sort of things do you talk about?

MJ – We talk about different musical stuff and how to record drums
and the sound he got on “Antmusic”. He likes my stuff and I like
his and he talks about my dancing and I talk about his dressing.

SH – Do you have a very technical approach to your music then?

MJ – No.

SH – An emotional one then?

MJ – Yeah, it comes straight from the heart.

SH – What’s the track you’ve recorded that you’ve been most
pleased with?

MJ – Probably on “Thriller”, “Baby Be Mine”. Actually, I can’t
answer that ‘cause I’m never really pleased, never totally
satisfied. I’m a real perfectionist.

SH – Who would you like to work with that you haven’t yet?

MJ – Streisand is an example. We’re going to be doing a duet
together. We’ll be writing it together. I love her singing.

SH – What about McCartney and Rupert Bear?

MJ – We talked about it a lot but I didn’t come to a decision on
working on it. Sweet character….

SH – Who? Rupert?

MJ – Yeah. He seems so innocent and charming, like no matter what
he’s okay. I got a couple of books here for Paul on Rupert. He’s
real charming. He always reminds me of Winnie The Pooh.

SH – Do you read a lot of books?

MJ – Yeah.

SH – You’re obviously very interested in magical things and stories?

MJ – I love fairy tales. I like fantasy a lot. science fiction. I like magic.
I like to create magic. I love magic. It doesn’t matter what you do,
it’s got to be magic. Something that the person hears it or sees it,
they’re just totally blown away. The unexpected is what I like.

SH – Any particular writers?

MJ – I like J.M. Barrie. Mostly the older guys who aren’t here any more.
Their imagination was just out of this world. Frank Baum who did
the OZ book, Steven Stevenson. I love Steven Spielberg, he’s the
modern day Walt Disney. I gave Steven a great book which you
can’t buy in the stores. It’s this old company that used to make
these set of books called Wisdom and it’s very hard to find them
but it’s the cover story, the hard-book story of Walt Disney and I
gave it to Steven. And I wrote an inscription in it and he liked it
so much. He said it was the best present he’s ever gotten. He told me
he reads it every night before he goes to bed. At the back of it there’s
all these quotations, like things Disney has said in interviews, like
words of wisdom, like three whole pages, and we were just reading
them together on the aeroplane. I mean he loves it. It’s a great book.

SH – What did you inscribe in it?

MJ – I told Steven how Disney was one of the people who inspired me
the most I my music and in so many things and that I felt that
nobody has come along since Disney has died with his imagination
and to fill his shoes and he, Steven Spielberg, was the only person
who had inspired me. He gave me a big hug and everything. I mean
he was great, he loves it, he says it’s the best present he ever got.

SH – So you’re good friends?

MJ – Oh yeah, I mean every word of it.

SH – When are you going to start filming?

MJ – Probably after the Jacksons’ album which we’ll start working on
in January. Sometime after that we’ll just finalise the story and start
moving. He’s making an animated movie, Steven; He wants me to
come up with the story for it. (Giggles.) He told me to start thinking
of ideas ‘cause he wants me to work on it and I said, great. So I’ve
been thinking like crazy.

SH – What sort of part will you play in the film he’s making with you?

MJ – Gosh, I don’t know. It’s a futuristic, fantasy-type of thing but
they’re still not sure of the story so I don’t know the role or
anything.

SH – Do you go out in public?

MJ – No, I don’t. I don’t go out.

SH – So you watch films at home?

MJ – Yeah, we have a movie room. I saw a movie last night in our
theatre. We have a theatre in the house where we have film shows.
It seats like 32 people and if I want to see E.T. or something, I just
have it ordered, whatever I like to see.

SH – Is your house big?

MJ – Ah, yeah, I guess. (Giggles with embarrassment.)

SH – What other rooms are there?

MJ – We have a library. We have an exercise room…and Disney’s
going to do a whole thing for me, the Pirates Of The Caribbean,
in a display room. They’re going to have different parts of the
Caribbean thing put in my game room. They never do stuff so I
felt honoured that they’re going to do it for me. They’re going to
put it in.

SH – What? All the props?

MJ – “Animatronics” – where the faces move, the figures move, the
eyebrows move, and their eyes and their bodies, and they shoot….
When you step in this room there’ll be a whole war going on….
Cannons shooting off and smoke puffing at one another and
fighting…a whole war going on.

SH – And that’s all going to be set up in your room?

MJ – Yup.

SH – As an exhibition or just for you?

MJ – For me and for company. For whoever comes and wants to see it.
They’re going to do the sound and the lighting and everything. Then
there’s this games room….

SH – What sort of game shave you got in there?

MJ – Space Invaders and Star Fire and basketball games.

SH – Are you good at them?

MJ – I’m good until some little kid comes along and beats me. (Laughs.)

SH – And there’s an exercise room?

MJ – Yeah, I don’t do exercise but it’s there for other people. A sauna
and stuff like that. It’s just a place where, after you work hard, you
can come and relax and have a good time and entertain your friends.

SH – Who do you live with?

MJ – Just my mother and my two sisters and my father. I still live with
my folks. I’d die of loneliness if I moved out. Plus I couldn’t control
the fans and stuff. I’d be surrounded. I’d never leave the house but
there’s guards, security…a whole set up.

SH – So you rarely go out?

MJ – Very rarely.

SH – Do you ever get mobbed?

MJ – Oh, yes.

SH – Is it frightening?

MJ – No, it’s more fun ‘cause you get to turn and beck and hide. But
once they get you trapped it’s not fun.

SH – What happens then?

MJ – They start kissing you and pulling you and tearing your clothes and
tearing your hair out of your head…I’ve gone to certain countries
and I’ll walk along and there’s a fan and she’ll show me a piece of
hair and say, “I took this out of your head two years ago”, this piece
of my hair in her wallet.

SH – How do you feel about things like that?

MJ – I don’t know…it’s strange.

SH – So how do you travel? Do you fly and drive everywhere?

MJ – Yeah and we have security with us. We have a private jet.

SH – And you have bodyguards presumably?

MJ – Yeah, I have to.

SH – Would you say you lived a normal life?

MJ – Ah, no, I can’t say that.

SH – Do you ever long to lead a normal life?

MJ – No, I’m happy the way I am. I’m happy the way I am.

SH – Do you like groups like the Human League and Soft Cell?

MJ – Yeah, I like those groups. I like ‘em. My favourite English group
will always be the Beatles ‘cause they had real good songs. A lot
of the bands today have more musical sounds and different sounds
and things you’ve never heard, but melody and great lyrics is not
there. They always had great melody and lyrics – even if it was just
a harmonica playing in the background, the melody was the feature
of the whole song.

SH – Have you got a favourite Beatles song?

MJ – My favourite Beatles song is Paul’s favourite Beatles song.

SH – Which is that?

MJ – “Yesterday”. It always touched me the most. It was always
special to me. I think it’s wonderful, the melody and the
music and the whole feeling.

SH – Do you think anyones’s come near the Beatles’ songwriting
quality?

MJ – Yeah. Holland, Dozier, Holland.

SH – Do you have any particular favourites of theirs?

MJ – All of them. That whole sixties period to me – with Simon
And Garfunkel, The Beatles and Motown – was the best
musical time in history.

SH – Why?

MJ – ‘Cause they were real songs. Real good songs. Today a writer will
have success and then just celebrate the rest of his life and just
forget about ever writing again – no self control, he’s partying the
rest of his life. Back then people just kept trying, kept coming up
with great stuff.

SH – What about the seventies?

MJ – I like Elton John’s stuff – terrific. Bernie Taupin. “Yellow Brick
Road” and “Your Song” and “Benny And The Jets”. All that stuff.
That’s great stuff.

SH – What did you like about him?

MJ – His whole image with the feathers and the glasses I thought was
good but they were good songs. We’re good friends.

SH – Who else do you know in England?

MJ – These are the people I visit there: Mark Lester, the McCartneys.
I talk to Adam Ant a lot on the phone. I know Elton. I know a
great songwriter called Don Black… (*Note - Don Black co-wrote
“Ben” – Tony*)

SH – Where will you be for Christmas?

MJ – I’ll be at home.

SH – And what would you like?

MJ – Actually, I don’t celebrate Christmas. We just sit round the fire
or whatever, watch the parade or whatever. We don’t really do
anything special. We just enjoy the weather. I mean it’s 70 or 80
degrees, Christmas out here. We just don’t do anything. It’s hot.
It’s burning up.

Actually I'd like him to come up with some sort of TV special concert first (something that is well managed and planned-out - not just done with the "it's gonna be HUGE!"-mentality), release an album with some decent videos and a short tour, a TV interview, and then I would like to see him fuck it all up again. For entertainment purposes.

In all honesty, I would like to see MJ just doing his thing and making good music again. Having said that, he should also stay far away from young boys and his plastic surgeon too. Seriously!

As far as music..ditch Rodney Jenkins..hire Paul Oakenfold, that would be an innovative change of pace. I bet they could churn out one awesome CD.
As far as image..if he wants the keep the fedoras on stage and the army style stuff off stage..I don't mind, it is kind of his thing so that is cool with me.
As far as the face and physical features..just put on 10-30 pounds and look like you did "figure wise" in the HIStory era and you'll be alright.

Can someone please at least forward my idea to hire Paul Oakenfold as your next producer to Michael..?

No image. Just himself, wearing jeans and tshirt. Acoustic album produced by Rick Rubin. All uptempo nasty funk. No special FX, just talent shining through.

Maybe he should be not so child molesterish.... Sorry.

I'm not a huge MJ fan (I'm like his music but I'm not in love with his music) and feel totally out of place on his threads but these are excellent suggestions.

Unplugged? That would be something.

Definately ditch Jerkins (it's too much).

I would like to hear more hard rock stuff and some really interesting dance stuff (electronic MJ might be cool).
[Edited 9/22/05 18:31pm]

VinnyM27 said:

besides the ppl accussed of being molesters, can you name someone that exhibits this "quality", since it seems you can tell if someone has this quality.....

It'd be cool if he and P came out with some blazing shit and were head to head again. Right about now P has a nice lead on him.