Timmy84 said:

ViintageJunkiie said:

That's the thing, the obvious hits is what bothers me because i can pretty much expect people to play them. I've NEVER in my life pulled up next to a car playing something like "Someone Put Your Hand Out" or something like "DS". everything is so predictable

I think it's up to us to bring to life the OTHER MJ songs people don't play.

The brother got a lot of great shit, we should promote it too lol

If Sony ever releases another greatest hits compilation (and you KNOW they will), they should release a "Singles Collection" set

Disc 1

Got To Be There (Single Version)
Maria (You Were The Only One)
Rockin' Robin (Single Version)
Love Is Here And Now You're Gone (Single Version)
I Wanna Be Where You Are (Single Version)
We've Got A Good Thing Going
Ben (Single Version)
You Can Cry On My Shoulder (Single Version)
Ain't No Sunshine
With A Child's Heart (Single Version)
Morning Glow
Music And Me
Happy
We're Almost There (Single Version)
Take Me Back (Single Version)
Just A Little Bit Of You (Single Version)
One Day In Your Life (Single Version)

Disc 2

You Can't Win
Don't Stop Til You Get Enough (7’ Edit)
Rock With You (Original Album Mix)
Off The Wall (7' Remix)
She's Out Of My Life
The Girl Is Mine (Special 7' Edit)
Can't Get Outta The Rain
Billie Jean (12' Extended Version)
Beat It (Promo Extended Version)
Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' (12' Extended Mix)
Human Nature (Promo 7' Mix) (Only Available in Japan)
Say Say Say
PYT (Instrumental)
Thriller (Remixed Short Version)
Farewell My Summer Love (Extended Version)
Call On Me
Girl You're So Together
I Just Can't Stop Loving You (French Version)
Bad (Dance Remix Radio Edit)
The Way You Make Me Feel (Dance Extended Mix)
Man In The Mirror (7' Version)
Dirty Diana (7' Edit)
Get It
Another Part Of Me (Radio Edit)
Smooth Criminal (Acapella)
Leave Me Alone (Extended Dance Mix)
Liberian Girl (Instrumental)
Speed Demon (Extended Version)

Disc 3

Black Or White (House With Guitar Radio Mix)
Remember The Time (New Jack Jazz Mix)
In The Closet (The Newark Mix)
Jam (Silky 7' Mix)
Heal The World (Spoken version)
Who Is It (Brothers In Rhythm House Mix)
Give In To Me
Will You Be There (Single Edit)
Dangerous (Roger's Rough Dub)
Gone Too Soon (Instrumental)
Scream (Naughty Main Mix)
Childhood (Instrumental)
You Are Not Alone [Jon B Padappella Mix]
Earth Song (Radio Edit)
This Time Around (Dallas Radio Mix)
They Don't Care About Us (Love To Infinity's Walk In The Park Radio Mix)
Stranger In Moscow
HIStory (The Ummah Radio Mix)
Ghost
Blood On The Dancefloor (TM Switchblade Mix)
You Rock My World (Jay Z Remix)
Cry
Shout
Butterflies (Alternate Radio Mix)
Heaven Can Wait
One More Chance
This Is It

Swa said:

Just giving this a bump incase it was a victim of the "last post on page 18 curse". Would love to hear all your thoughts on this classic album.

Swa said:

- LETS TALK ABOUT THE MUSIC -

So I was thinking about over the next several weeks we look at and discuss an album of Michaels (one a week) so as to focus our collective energies on the thing that made us a fan in the first part; the music.

So I was thinking starting each Sunday we work our way through Michael's solo work starting with Off The Wall (and yes I know he released solo work on Motown, but OTW was where he was his own artist).

So to kick things off here are my thoughts. I know BBoy and Timmie and others all have similar pieces and would love to read them as well as reading your thoughts (yes YOU) on the album.

~ Off The Wall ~

In 1979 as the disco years were winding to a close, Michael Jackson made his mark as a solo artist. With greater confidence in his writing and production, (evident with his brother’s on Destiny) Jackson embarked on an album that would see him present himself as a serious (adult) male performer. 

A lot has been said and written about the impact of Off The Wall, and listening to it today it’s easy to gloss over just how fresh and innovative this album was for the times. Not only was it reflective of the funk, soul and disco vibe that was building in his work but it also offered hope for an artist on the cusp of a new decade of growth.

With its percussive and bass intro, Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough beckons the listener in as Michael delivers his spoken intro. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of this 15 second intro is that you don’t know where the song is going to go. Then with what would become a trademark scream the music comes to life with a driving beat, lush strings, and teasing guitar. Michael’s falsetto is flawless on this track. Dripping and smooth the lead and background vocals draw out phrases and add accents in a way that is immediately catchy. With each passing verse and chorus the intensity of the song builds to the bridge, and the song steps up to another level. Much love and dedication is given to the delivery and arrangement of this song, with strings countering each other, and that non-stop wall of percussion that just shuffles the song along.

The more traditional disco groove of Rock With You allows Michael’s voice to float through the verses in anticipation of a driving chorus. Again the production and arrangement sees Quincy Jones bring his ability to sew together hints of jazz with a funk groove, all topped with Jackson singing with a sense of joy and excitement.

With the gear shifted to funk Jackson delivers the frenetic and hurried Workin’ Day and Night. And his falsetto delivers the vocal with ease as he expresses frustration at not getting the good loving he craves. With blasting horns and piano stabs the track is a dizzy hypnotic journey that is too good to sit still to.

The bass work on Get On The Floor is second to none as Louis Johnson (co-writer on the track) runs his hands all over the fret board in a flurry of funk. With a sparse arrangement of just bass, strings and vocals (later embellished with overdubs of guitars and horns in subsequent pressings) the song is just pure energy. Mixing his upper and mid voice, Michael delivers the vocals with a sense of abandon and teases out the lines. At the breakdown Jackson uses his voice as percussion, whispering and grunting as the section builds and builds to its climax. The joy of this album is evident completely in this track especially at the 3:38 mark where Jackson laughs caught in the moment. A spontaneous moment that in later years would have been removed and sacrificed for a more polished take.

The groove doesn’t let up as another party jam springs to life in the shape of Off The Wall. Layered with musical and vocal hooks, Michael’s own harmonies leave his brothers in their dust. Rich and velvety the vocal performance just oozes off the record.

Girlfriend, penned by Paul McCartney, has Michael taking on Paul’s trademark arrangements and “woo hoos” and making them his own. With its pop sensibilities on full display the track sounds terribly dated now.

Heartbreak hasn’t been captured on record quite like it is on She’s Out Of My Life. From the melodramatic string intro, to the crying guitar licks the song goes for the heartstrings from the first beat. Showing maturity in his vocals Michael delivers an impassioned performance complete with real tears and a break in the voice – sincere in the recording, more showman on stage SOOML became a staple ballad for many tours.

With its jazz feel I Can’t Help It has Jackson taking a Stevie Wonder penned track and making you forget who wrote it from the first refrain. With such ease Jackson’s voice trails up and down his register, scats here and there and then soars the closing minute before floating back down to earth. If anyone ever questions Michael’s ability to sing – this is the track to leave them awestruck.

It’s The Falling in Love is pop at its best. Dueting with Patti Austin, Michael blends the soul of R&B with a pop sensibility. And employing a technique he would use time and time again with his duets, Jackson puts his vocals on par with Patti to the point where the casual listener may forget the song is actually a duet.

Closing the record with Burn This Disco Out not only signalled an end of an era but also hinted to the future. Thankfully because it is infused more with funk than disco the song holds up fairly well to this day. Again Jackson sings with a sense of joy and energy that makes the whole album such a fan favourite.

Held by many as his shining moment as an R&B artist, Off The Wall sounds just as vibrant 30 years later as it did the first time it was played.

Swa

^^ bboy - would love you to repost your great review and analysis.

And I know you and I aren't the only one's capable of talking about the music and giving our views.

Chamon everyone. Chamon!

Always thought Mary was channelling Don't Stop Til You Get Enough in the arrangement and delivery of this cut. See for yourself.

ViintageJunkiie said:

THIS is my jam

I adore this song.

Timmy84 said:

Ne-Yo, go back to the drawing board sucka.

As for "Billie Jean", saying you're tired of that song is like saying you're tired of breathing. No offense but that's how it sounds to me.

Oh Timmy, you always say what's on my mind.

Me personally, I can't let a day go by without listening to Billie Jean. If I do, I go into withdrawal.

And the reason I love Billie Jean so much is because that's the first song I ever heard of MJ. I was only two, but I remember that song. Been a fan ever since

As far as real favourites go, at the moment I love "Ease on Down The Road", "You Can't Win", "Will You Be There", "Love Song" (J5), "Music's Takin' Over", and "Another Part Of Me"

[Edited 7/20/10 9:25am]

[Edited 7/20/10 9:27am]

[Edited 7/20/10 9:28am]

I Am Tired Of This Devil
I Am Tired Of This Stuff
I Am Tired Of This Business
Sew When The
Going Gets Rough
I Ain't Scared Of
Your Brother
I Ain't Scared Of No Sheets
I Ain't Scared Of Nobody
Girl When The
Goin' Gets Mean

Michael Jackson..Forever my hero.

Timmy84 said:

bboy87 said:

That reminds me of the This Is It premiere and how when they'd the celebrities what was their favorite song, it would usually be "Oh.....um.....Billie Jean" or Beat It or Rock With You or Thriller

That whole event was a fuckin' sham to me (I was surprised Quincy Jones wasn't there but the Kardashians were )

I would've been like "Oh, my favorite? I've been listening to Morphine and Get On The Floor right now but my all time favorite is Another Part Of Me although Take Me Back is the jam...."

If it was me:

"My favorite, I have been listening to "Someone Put Your Hand Out" daily and "Blues Away" but "We're Almost There" is almost delicious to me."

Reporter:

Oh dear I love "Someone Put our Hand Out, and Blues Away...

I want him back...

Swa said:

^^ bboy - would love you to repost your great review and analysis.

And I know you and I aren't the only one's capable of talking about the music and giving our views.

Chamon everyone. Chamon!

I've been thinking of rewriting it but I haven't gotten around to it (I plan on doing an essay on Dangerous soon also)

On December 4th, 1978, 20 year old Michael Joe Jackson took a break from planning the release of The Jacksons' third LP on Epic Records titled "Destiny", to start production on his fifith solo effort.

Going into the studio with producer Quincy Jones, they set out on making an album that blended genres while bringing something new to the platform of pop and R&B music.

Destiny was released on December 17th and Michael and his brothers quickly went into promotion, appearing on such shows such as American Bandstand, Soul Train, and Top of The Pops as well as touring Europe and the United States, all the while, Jackson would catch flights back to Los Angeles to studios such as Cherokee Studios, Allen Zenth Recording, and Westlake Audio to continue recording for the solo project which was at the time titled "Girlfriend"

In the beginning, Michael was not exactly sure what he wanted as the final product but one thing he knew was that he didn't want to sound like a Jacksons album and strived for the individual and creative freedom that a solo album granted him, which was not something he had on his previous solo efforts at Motown, which were recorded at the same time his albums with The Jackson 5 were being recorded, even during the same sessions (for example, songs from Forever, Michael were recorded during the same session as songs from Moving Violation)

Michael began writing songs for the album around late 1977 after the filming of "The Wiz" and two of the songs from those early writing sessions were included on the album "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" and "Workin' Day And Night", which early demos were recorded in 1978 with the help of his younger siblings Randy, then 17 and Janet, then 12 at the family's home recording studio at Hayvenhurst.

Another key writer on the album was Rod Temperton, who had been working on an album with Heatwave when Jones called him to write some songs for Michael.

Rod told him he’d write a song, and wrote 3 songs for Michael and Quincy to choose from. The duo booked a studio on the weekend when Rod wasn’t working with HW. Rod flew in (while Michael wasn’t there, most likely working promoting the Destiny album) to work on the tracks. He came back to Los Angeles the following week to work with Michael on the vocals, doing all of the background vocals for Rock With You, Burn This Disco Out, and Off The Wall that Saturday afternoon and all of the lead vocals the next afternoon. Michael spent the whole Saturday night learning the lyrics so he wouldn’t have to read off the paper.

The first session with Rod, Quincy asked him what musicians did he need to record the tracks, and Rod told him he would need 2 guitar players, a keyboard player, drummer, and a bass player. When he arrived to the studio, Quincy took him to the room with the musicians and told them “Here’s Rod, hit it!” This had been Rod’s first time without his own band.. Temperton had been in Heatwave for sometime and had gotten used to that environment and this was new atmosphere for him. He recalled feeling inadequate being in the studio when Jerry Hey and the other horns players arrived. At the end of the sessions, Temperton asked Quincy which songs had they picked, and Jones told him they wanted all 3. Temperton recalls Jackson singing uptempo grooves was very rhythmically driven and tried to write melodies with short notes to give him enough staccato, along with mixing them with enough harmonies.

Temperton took a different approach to his song writing after spending some time researching the background to Jackson's music style. Temperton mixed his traditional harmony segments with the idea of adding shorter note melodies to suit Jackson's aggressive style.

Other key contributors were Greg Philiganes who had worked on The Jacksons' Destiny album and would go on to collaborate with Michael on Thriller, Bad, Dangerous, and tour with him for the Victory, Bad, Dangerous, and HIStory Tour., The Brothers Johnson, especially Louis Johnson who co-wrote Get On The Floor with Michael which was created around the bass groove. Johnson had been playing around with it when he played it for Michael. He liked it, they went into the studio and collaborated on the song

other contributors included Stevie Wonder (co-writer of I Can't Help It with former Supremes Susaye Greene), David Foster and Carole Bayer Sager (It's The Falling In Love), Paul McCartney (writer of Girlfriend who would later record The Girl Is Mine, Say Say Say, and The Man with Michael in 1982), and Tom Bahler(writer of She's Out Of My Life)

The album did have obstacles. The recording of the album coincided with the European tour of The Jacksons' Destiny World Tour and the promotion of the Destiny album. Many observers feel that maybe Quincy's role in the production of the album has been overexaggerated.

Quincy's main role of the album was quality control, cutting down extra instrumentation and runs and getting particular people in the production. He was the person who got people like Temperton, The Johnsons, John Robinson from Rufus, and Patti Austin on board.
As time went on, Michael felt the direction of the album should be more dance and funk oriented but Quincy wanted a strict, conservative yet versatile album and the duo butted heads over the overall direction, comprising, and finding constant solutions.

Quincy also knew about balance and editing the album to fit the direction, which showed on the final result.

At the end of June 1979, audio mixing was handled by Bruce Swedien at Westlake Audio, after which the original tapes went to the A&M Recording Studio, also located in L.A. for mastering by Bernie Grunman.

OFF THE WALL initially debuted at #48 on the Billboard 200 but peaked at #3 26 weeks later, staying in the top 10 for 29 non consecutive weeks and stayed on the chart for over 2 years. It also peaked at #1 on the Billboard R&B album chart for 16 weeks, along with peaking at #5 on the UK album charts, selling over 19 million copies worldwide, making it the best selling album by a black artist of all time, for 3 years.





Billboard Album 200: #3
Billboard R&B Album- #1 (for 16 weeks)
UK Album Chart: #5
Australia- #1 (for 2 weeks)
Canada- #4
Finland- #9
France- # 27 (1988)
Germany- #25
Holland- #7
Ireland- #12 (2004)
Italy- #21
Japan- #26 (LP), #28 (cassette)
New Zealand- #2
Norway- #4
Sweden- #26
Zimbabwe- #1 (for 7 weeks)

Vanilli said:

I Am Tired Of This Devil
I Am Tired Of This Stuff
I Am Tired Of This Business
Sew When The
Going Gets Rough
I Ain't Scared Of
Your Brother
I Ain't Scared Of No Sheets
I Ain't Scared Of Nobody
Girl When The
Goin' Gets Mean

Michael Jackson..Forever my hero.

That's my favorite part of the song

I always write my reviews from scratch (the top of my head) lol

One of these days, I may do a review of all six MJ albums plus my two favorite Jacksons albums disguised as them (when I always believed they were the "first" MJ solo projects).

Thanks for all the reviews and articles, guys. I am not that good at writing them, so I am just gonna post some pix.

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M A N I N T H E M U S I C: The Creative Life and Work of M I C H A E L J A C K S O N

From Off the Wall to Invincible and beyond...over 500 pages exploring Michael Jackson the artist. The result of five years of research, interviews, and writing. Covers every song, album, and video of Jackson's solo career. Reveals the fascinating creative process and evolution of his music. Places his work and legacy in historical and cultural context.

Featuring a foreword by Rolling Stone contributing editor, Anthony DeCurtis

Rare photos from Michael Jackson's personal archives

Published by Sterling Publishing

Morphine

[The following excerpt is taken from Chapter 5 of Man in the Music: An Album by Album Guide to Michael Jackson]

People often struggle with allowing artists to grow and evolve. For Bob Dylan it was considered sacrilege by many to pick up an electric guitar; for the Beatles, the shift from sentimental love songs to social statements and psychedelia caused them to lose, in some people's minds, their initial charm and mass appeal. For Michael Jackson, the conventional wisdom meant every album post-Thriller that didn't sound or sell like Thriller was considered a failure; this, in spite of the fact that some of his most significant and challenging work came later. Call it the curse of expectational stasis.

Still, for those who gave Blood on the Dancefloor: HIStory in the Mix a serious listen, it was an impressive record indeed. Containing just five new songs, the album is considered an artistic breakthrough by some. "His singing on the first five tracks of new material has never been so tormented, or audacious," wrote Armond White of Village Voice. "'Blood on the Dancefloor' has the vitality of an intelligence that refuses to be placated. . .[It] is a throwdown, a dare to the concept of innocuous Black pop." In a 1997 review, The New York Times' Neil Strauss concurred: "There is real pain and pathos in these new songs... Jackson's pain is often the world's merriment, and this is probably true of his new songs, which fret about painkillers, sexual promiscuity and public image. In many of them, Jackson seems like the elephant man, screaming that he is a human being... In keeping with Jackson's darker mood, the music has grown more angry and indignant. With beats crashing like metal sheets and synthesizer sounds hissing like pressurized gas, this is industrial funk... Creatively, Jackson has entered a new realm."

In the gritty, haunting "Morphine," Jackson tackles a subject he never had before: drug addiction. To a relentless, industrial funk beat, the singer lashes out in visceral bursts of anger, aggression, and pain. "Is truth a game daddy," he screams out at one point. "To win the fame baby/It's all the same baby/You're so reliable." The rage and disappointment, combined with its ear-assaulting sound (music critic Tom Sinclair described it as "alternating Trent Reznor-style sturm und clang with Bacharachian orchestral pomp"), make for a jarring listening experience, particularly for those accustomed to the breezier melodic pop of Off the Wall and Thriller (though it should be noted that songs like "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "Billie Jean" were already beginning to uncover the complexity, paranoia and pain represented in these later tracks). But "Morphine" is best viewed as an experiment -- both sonically and lyrically -- in representing the experience of physical/psychological pain as well as its temporary release via narcotic pain relievers like demerol and morphine (both of which Jackson has been reportedly addicted to, on and off, since the early Nineties).

This experience is also brilliantly conveyed in the song's form: About mid-way through the track, the grating beat subsides, symbolically representing the pacifying effect of the drug. "Relax, this won't hurt you," Jackson sings soothingly from the perspective of the drug.

Before I put it in
Close your eyes and count to ten
Don't cry
I won't convert you
There's no need to dismay
Close your eyes and drift away

Demerol
Demerol
Oh God he's taking demerol
Demerol
Demerol
Oh God he's taking demerol

He's tried
Hard to convince her
To be over what he had
Today he wants it twice as bad
Don't cry
I won't resent you
Yesterday you had his trust
Today he's taking twice as much

Demerol
Demerol
Oh God he's taking demerol
Demerol
Demerol
Oh God he's taking demerol

These verses are perhaps some of the most poignant (and tragic) Jackson has ever sung. Beyond the literalness of the drug itself is Jackson's persistent yearning to escape from pain, loneliness, confusion, and relentless pressure. In this brief interlude he beautifully conveys the soothing, seductive, but temporary release from reality. There is a sense of pleading, of desperation, before the high abruptly ends, and the listener is slammed back into the harsh world of accusations and anguish. Sputnik Music described this musical sequence as a "moment of absolute genius." The song, written and composed entirely by Jackson, is one of his most experimental and brilliant creations. It is a confession, a personal intervention, a witness, and a warning.

[Note: This analysis of "Morphine" was written before Michael Jackson's death. It becomes all the more tragic given reports that narcotics like demerol and morphine may have contributed to his passing.]

(Copyright by Joseph Vogel, from Man in the Music: An Album by Album Guide to Michael Jackson)

Three Hidden Gems

[The following excerpts are taken from Man in the Music: An Album by Album Guide to Michael Jackson]

I Can't Help It -- (from Off the Wall)

The emotional ending to "She's Out of My Life" sets the stage for the lush disco-jazz odyssey that is "I Can't Help It." Composed by friend and mentor Stevie Wonder, this ethereal gem is a critical favorite, though still largely unknown by the public. Some claim it is not only one of the best tracks from Off the Wall, but Jackson's entire catalog. "I just love the bass line and chords of that song," says singer Alicia Keys. "It just puts you in an immediate zone--that yearning and that desire in his voice."

Stevie Wonder himself was blown away by Jackson's interpretation of the song: the flawlessly smooth delivery, brilliant harmonies, and variety of vocal twists, syncopation, and even scatting. The jazz-rooted Quincy Jones ensured the production was equal to Jackson's talent. From its bubbling opening chords, the song moves with the fluidity of a dream. "Floating just above a lush bed of organ and bass," writes Rolling Stone's J. Edward Keyes, ["Jackson] takes his time on this one, making its pleasures simple but irresistible." "Looking in my mirror," he sings. "Took me by surprise/I cant help but see you/Running often through my mind." Jackson allows the endings of words to take off, as if soaring through the imagination.

The song is about a lover ("an angel in disguise") who has enchanted the singer. "Love to run my fingers/Softly while you sigh," Jackson tells her. The understated, but sensual lyrics float on the melody, rendering the weightless feel of being in love. Finally, towards the end of the song the lyrical descriptions dissolve into wordless exultations, perhaps signifying the joy of intimacy that simply can't be expressed in language.

"I Can't Help It" is the result of two of the most talented musicians in history at the top of their games.


Human Nature -- (from Thriller)

"Human Nature" is synth-pop at its finest. "Simple, stark, quiet and beautiful," writes music critic J. Edward Keyes, " Jackson himself once described it as "music with wings," and indeed the singer's smooth voice seems to float effortlessly over its lush synthetic strings. An early version of the song was sent to Quincy Jones by the musical group Toto. Jones left the tape running until it reached an instrumental version of the track which he immediately fell in love with and brought to Jackson. "He and I both agreed that the song had the prettiest melody we'd heard in a long time," recalled Jones (197).

In its 1982 review the New York Times called "Human Nature" Thriller's most "striking" song: "This is a haunting, brooding ballad by Steve Porcaro and John Bettis, with an irresistible chorus, and it should be an enormous hit." In its 2003 review Slant Magazine concurred, calling the track "probably the best musical composition on the album and surely one of the only A/C ballads of its era worth remembering." Rolling Stone called it "beautifully fragile...open and brave."

Easily one of Jackson's best vocal performances, the song is further enhanced by it's subtle, intriguing lyrics: "Looking out/ Across the nighttime," Jackson sings, "The city winks a sleepless eye/ Hear her voice/ Shake my window/ Sweet seducing sigh. . ." The imagery throughout conjures the magic of a city at night; a young man, as if walking in a dream, is both observed (by "electric eyes") and observes ("she likes the way I stare"). Everything is experienced in a sort of fascinated detachment but he seems to yearn for something more intimate. If this town is just an apple," he tells himself, "Then let me take a bite."

Jazz legend Miles Davis covered the song for his 1985 album You're Under Arrest; it has also been sampled or covered by numerous others including Boyz II Men, Ne-Yo, and SWV. "Human Nature" was the last song included on Thriller, replacing "Carousel."

Liberian Girl -- (from Bad)

Once Jackson has successfully sped the listener out of society's world of control, discrimination, hypocrisy and limitations [in "Speed Demon"], we are suddenly transported into the faraway, primal jungles of Africa. The juxtaposition is striking (and quite bold and artistic for an album accused of being commercially calculated). The sounds shift from mechanical to natural as the noises of engines dissolve into the distant cries of birds and animals. For Jackson, this imagined Africa seems to represent a purer, simpler, richer world. It is as if he is returning to the birthplace of music's origins to explore what it can teach us, to recover some essence that has been lost. In this way, "Liberian Girl" seems to be as much a love song to Africa and what it signifies as it is to any one woman.

The song begins with the beautiful Swahili intro (spoken by Letta Mbulu), "Naku penda piya, naku taka piya--mpenziwe (which translates: "I love you too, I want you too--my love). The lush arrangements, including deep drum sounds and exotic instruments, beautifully support Jackson's passionate, yearning vocals, which are arguably his best since "Human Nature." Indeed, like "Human Nature" on Thriller (and "I Can't Help It" from Off the Wall) "Liberian Girl" is the hidden gem on Bad, often overlooked on an album of numerous well-known hits. The song is yet another "dream capsule," a cinematic fantasy in which Jackson transports the listener to a vivid paradise of possibility.

(Copyright by Joseph Vogel, from Man in the Music: An Album by Album Guide to Michael Jackson)

Tabloid Junkie

The following excerpt is taken from Chapter 5 of Man in the Music: An Album by Album Guide to Michael Jackson

If Dangerous is Michael Jackson's most creative album, HIStory is his most personal. From the impassioned rage of "Scream" to the painful sincerity of "Childhood," HIStory is, in Jackson's words, "a musical book." It encompasses all that he had felt and held in over the difficult past few years: it was his diary, his canvas, his rebuttal. Rolling Stone described it as an "exhilarating... often heartbreaking package." In retrospect, it is also one of Jackson's most underrated albums...

...Following the pleading vulnerability of "Childhood" is the provocative "Tabloid Junkie": a full-fledged indictment of the news media's increasing penchant for sensationalism and misinformation. Critics have typically reviewed such songs as examples of Jackson's persecution complex and self-absorption, but such a dismissal misses a more important fact: unlike most pop music content to dwell in shallow sentimentality and recycled clichés, Jackson, in this rather ambitious track, is singing truth to power on an issue with relevance far beyond his personal life.

The song begins with the authoritative voice of a newscaster mindlessly repeating tabloid fodder as fact. It is a sort of postmodern, Orwellian moment where the mainstream media becomes the "ministry of truth," the controller and manipulator of its audience's social reality. "Truth" simply doesn't matter. What matters is entertainment, ratings, and a drug-like addiction to endless spectacle. "Facts" are whatever is printed or broadcast on TV to a passive, un-critical audience. In the song, as the newscaster speaks, keyboards begin typing frantically, illustrating how quickly stories (whether true or false, important or unimportant) are consumed, copied and spread.

In this case, many of the stories involve the "strange and weird" Michael Jackson, who, to both the reporters and audience, is no longer a human being but a consumable object. Jackson allows the breathless reporting to build until it turns in to an all-out feeding frenzy with the sounds of wild animals representing so-called journalists.

"Speculate to break the one you hate," Jackson sings in a gritty opening rap, "Circulate the lie you confiscate/ Assassinate and mutilate/ As the hounding media in hysteria." Many people don't realize that Jackson, in this track and others, specifically uses the vehicle of hip-hop to deliver a political message. In this case, the verses are conveyed in short, biting rhymes, before the melody comes in the chorus, repeating the mantra: "Just because you read it in a magazine/ See it on the TV screen/ Don't make it factual, actual." Jackson, in essence is providing counter-programming to the "news"; between verses the newscaster continues to recite stories that Jackson pleads with his audience not to believe. "It's slander," he proclaims later in the song. "You say it's not a sword/But with your pen you torture men/You'd crucify the Lord." These are some powerful lyrics from an artist one reviewer claimed had "a woefully narrow awareness of life."

Composed by Jackson along with R&B masterminds Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, "Tabloid Junkie" is a deftly constructed, sonically layered, four-and-a-half minute polemic that demands truth and accountability. Rolling Stone described the track as a "mammoth funk-rock construction" with "lush vocal harmonies" and "quick-voiced warnings about the failings of media truth." Indeed, in an age when the "mainstream media" and tabloid coverage are conflated more than ever, when celebrity obsession consistently trumps far more important news, and undiscerning viewers are frequently distracted or deceived from the truth, Jackson's song remains an all too relevant rebuttal and warning.

[Note: This excerpt was written before Michael Jackson's death. It rings more true than ever in the aftermath of the singer's passing as we have, once again, seen an irresponsible, reckless media frenzy in which numerous "respectable" media outlets have relied on tabloid sites like TMZ and the Daily Mail and dedicated hours to trivial and sourceless speculation.]

(Copyright by Joseph Vogel, from Man in the Music: An Album by Album Guide to Michael Jackson)

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[Edited 7/20/10 13:24pm]

Vanilli said:

I Am Tired Of This Devil
I Am Tired Of This Stuff
I Am Tired Of This Business
Sew When The
Going Gets Rough
I Ain't Scared Of
Your Brother
I Ain't Scared Of No Sheets
I Ain't Scared Of Nobody
Girl When The
Goin' Gets Mean

Michael Jackson..Forever my hero.

Just a correction on the lyrics:

I Am Tired Of This Devil
I Am Tired Of This Stuff
I Am Tired Of This Business
GO When The
Going Gets Rough
I Ain't Scared Of
Your Brother
I Ain't Scared Of No Sheets
I Ain't Scared Of Nobody
Girl When The
Goin' Gets Mean

Swa said:

Vanilli said:

I Am Tired Of This Devil
I Am Tired Of This Stuff
I Am Tired Of This Business
Sew When The
Going Gets Rough
I Ain't Scared Of
Your Brother
I Ain't Scared Of No Sheets
I Ain't Scared Of Nobody
Girl When The
Goin' Gets Mean

Michael Jackson..Forever my hero.

Just a correction on the lyrics:

I Am Tired Of This Devil
I Am Tired Of This Stuff
I Am Tired Of This Business
GO When The
Going Gets Rough
I Ain't Scared Of
Your Brother
I Ain't Scared Of No Sheets
I Ain't Scared Of Nobody
Girl When The
Goin' Gets Mean

^^ I am often surprised at sites that have the lyrics to MJ's songs on them that are clearly wrong - especially when most of his albums had lyric sheets or booklets with them.

The japanese cardboard rereleases each come with the lyrical booklets for History and Invincible.

Sadly though, they have based some of the History lyrics on the Nations of Magic booklet they produced and in it there are some glaring mistakes.

The one that springs to mind most is in TDCAU and "in the suite" - the line is actually "in the suit", it is suit (as in clothing you put on) not suite (which means a room like a hotel suite). Yet I see this over and over again.

Maybe I'm a stickler for lyrics and pour over lyrics when I listen to music, but seeing the wrong words in certain songs is, well enough to make me want to scream.

These are so cool! He´s hot even with that mask on.

[Edited 7/21/10 13:41pm]

I have the making of thriller but forgot just how cute he was in it

Swa said:

^^ I am often surprised at sites that have the lyrics to MJ's songs on them that are clearly wrong - especially when most of his albums had lyric sheets or booklets with them.

The japanese cardboard rereleases each come with the lyrical booklets for History and Invincible.

Sadly though, they have based some of the History lyrics on the Nations of Magic booklet they produced and in it there are some glaring mistakes.

The one that springs to mind most is in TDCAU and "in the suite" - the line is actually "in the suit", it is suit (as in clothing you put on) not suite (which means a room like a hotel suite). Yet I see this over and over again.

Maybe I'm a stickler for lyrics and pour over lyrics when I listen to music, but seeing the wrong words in certain songs is, well enough to make me want to scream.

I feel ya.

Timmy84 said:

Yeee Hawwww....

alphastreet said:

I have the making of thriller but forgot just how cute he was in it

dag said:

These are so cool! He´s hot even with that mask on.

[Edited 7/21/10 13:41pm]

I wonder if those are from that book (The Making Of Thriller) that is coming out in October?

mimi07 said:

alphastreet said:

I have the making of thriller but forgot just how cute he was in it

very cute i'm scared to watch my vhs, it's older than me lol

mine is on a vhs, but I dubbed it off someone who brought it to school in the 90's. I'm paranoid the tape will go bad so I burned it onto a dvd but now I'm worried I will scratch that too.

I swear this should've been the first single from Invincible (2001). Not knocking "You Rock My World," but this is far more superior to me. Mike and Santana goes off in the deep end near the end of this one! Absolutely love this...

It would have been awesome first single, a surprise choice of one too that would have blown people away. YRMW did well too and I would hear it from people's cars though.

I agree,"Whatever Happens" is such a good track...maybe even the best song on the album! Sony was nuts for not releasing it as a single.It has "Top 10 smash" written all over it.

I'm mad that album's promotion stopped when it did. Then again I can understand what Michael was going through. I know he wanted to do his best with the album and for some reason due to label politics wasn't able to so he just said "fuck it".