yeah, i said it! (and i thought if i had to create an MJ thread, might as well make it a decent one)

Apart from Dirty Diana, Man In the Mirror and Just Good Friends, i tend to dislike nearly every song on the album intensely. It could be that it just got played out but I think i'm going to blame the production, i recall feeling it was dated upon release, so i'll blame MJ and Q equally. Q had to go.

The videos (except Bad itself, which was just MJ being ridiculous) and the tour made that album to me. now i can't sit through it start to finish.

i was overyjoyed when Dangerous came out and i first played it. It's held up better, a whole lot better.

discuss.


[Edited 1/11/06 13:30pm]

I actually defended the "Bad" album up and down back when I was first an orger as well as an MJ fanatic. I loved it.

But things have changed, and both albums now sound like manically banging, multi-layered messes to me, as well as of their time and extremely dated.

Don't be silly. Bad is a classic. You can't argue with Bad, Dirty Diana, Man In The Mirror, Speed Demon, Liberian Girl, Smooth Criminal, Dirty Diana....those are all legendary tracks.

Militant said:

Bad is one of the worst offenders, great bassline and nothing else. Intrinsically linked to the ridiculous video.

Liberian Girl is just a dull ballad. Doesn't rank anywhere near say, Human Nature, The Lady In My life etc

Smooth Criminal is just plain repetitive as hell.

MJ knows how to do an intro to a song on this album, i'll give him that.


[Edited 1/11/06 13:38pm]

"The Way You Make Me Feel"

"Liberian Girl"

Yep. I always hated this LP, from the first time the Bad single and video debuted. It's garbage, mainly because MJ was trying to push 100 million in sales...by writing almost all the songs himself, LOL. Then his whole image at this time was

I agree about the production and that both MJ and Q should share the blame equally. MJ wanted more control and Q gave it to him. Big mistake.

I didn't even get a copy of this crap until a few years ago, and that's just so I could bump 'Dirty Diana'... and "Speed Demon"

CinisterCee said:

Anyway, Just Good Friends is the only track I even vaguely dislike. I don't care if the album is synth heavy. I fucking love it.

Ellie said:

What's up with Just Good Friends?

BTW, i dig Streetwalker, but i'm not counting that.

Oh, and I think Bad is his peak vocally... and when I say that all the oldie purists start arguing all that shit about the change in his voice, but they can't preach that crap to me because I know and love all that stuff more than they ever could anyway. But for strength, range and pitch, the late 80s were the absolute shit for MJ's voice.

I love the 70s funk vibe throughout. I like it a lot more now than when I did when it was released.

Ellie said:

i disagree, pull out The Jacksons, Goin' places, Destiny or Off The Wall, looking back there are times on 'Thriller' (the song) when he started using this gutteral, growly voice he uses more often than not theses days. It worked on 'Whatever Happens' and he still has a great falsetto when he wants to (butterflies).

but in the mid to late seventies his voice was just the shit. On point, every song.

I digress,

Back to 'Bad'.


[Edited 1/11/06 13:56pm]

Ellie said:

So...um... What?

Marrk said:

It`s not his best album, but still, i think it`s a good record. "The way you make me feel", "Man in the mirror", "Smooth criminal" and also "Leave me alone" are all great songs

sextonseven said:

that is NOT the vibe I get.


About the only thing I noticed was that the bassline to "Bad" was sorta like James Brown (think "The Boss").

You telling me as a 19 year old MJ was capable to blurting out Dirty Diana with the same delivery? It was a growl, but it wasn't a proper SCREAM. The acappella versions of the Bad singles are just truly sublime.
[Edited 1/11/06 14:00pm]

CinisterCee said:

The album certainly doesn't sound like 1987 to me. It's total retro funk.

Ellie said:

19yr old Michael was purely a 100% soul singer back then, to sing a song like Dirty Diana wouldn't have even entered his head.

fact.
[Edited 1/11/06 14:06pm]

Marrk said:

Right. It's ironinc, Ellie, that you chose "Dirty Diana" for comparison. a song he struggles to keep pitch on and actually goes noticably flat a few times. Take a good listen...

Who gives a shit about being a Soul singer? Get some diversity.

Funny, I think he's flat on half the tracks on 'Forever, Michael'. Or the particularly rubbish and overrated but somehow "classic" song from 'Moving Violation' that keeps getting accolades in America, 'All I Do Is Think Of You'. FLAT.
[Edited 1/11/06 14:10pm]

Ellie said:

Ellie said:

Possibly, since he was 16 and coming into his adult voice.

You don't think 'Dear Michael' is rather irritatingly awful with the "pleeease Mr. Postman" wailing?

Just for the record, as albums, I put Off The Wall and Destiny far above Bad. I'm just defending a preference here.

Ellie said:

I don't even like that song, so I don't know. I mainly listen to the first 7 tracks.

Adisa said:

He'd had that voice for a good 2 years already!

Ellie said:

What's your point?

Adisa said:

Exactly... this thread was never Forever Michael vs. Bad

He didn't exactly need to do much adjusting.

Anyway, I always find it's the older (mainly American) R&B fans that have an issue with MJ's voice changing by the time of 'Bad'. There's a damn huge market out there that welcomed the change.