[Edited 2/15/11 21:54pm]

Timmy84 said:

Love this track but never heard the 12" before. Believe it or not, I own all 3 of his albums. I love me some Rockwell!

yesssssssssssssssss

That's the 12 Inch? I always thought it was the album version, but then again, I only have the 45.

My favorite is the Ultimix....

vainandy said:

That's the 12 Inch? I always thought it was the album version, but then again, I only have the 45.

It is the album version.

vainandy said:

That's the 12 Inch? I always thought it was the album version, but then again, I only have the 45.

Someone titled it the 12". Someone said this is the album version.

Timmy84 said:

vainandy said:

That's the 12 Inch? I always thought it was the album version, but then again, I only have the 45.

Someone titled it the 12". Someone said this is the album version.

The maxi single was the same as the album, but the 45 single version was shorter and had an instrumental version on side 2.

The video for this use to freak me out.

i have the british edition (light blue and whie label with the 'M' logo). i love that song; it's timeless, especially since we actually ARE in an age where we're being watched everywhere.

the video gave me nightmares as a child, with that pot-bellied pig and the mailman...

and how many of y'all liked his cover of 'taxman'? no, seriously.

i wonder how this all went down:

rockwell: hey dad?

gordy: yes son.

rockwell: i wanna make a record.

gordy. that's nice son.

rockwell: no dad. i mean it. to prove it to you, i'm gonna call MICHAEL up!

gordy: ?????????????????????? ok son.

[Edited 2/16/11 2:54am]

More classic MJ enunciation.

MJJstudent said:

i wonder how this all went down:

rockwell: hey dad?

gordy: yes son.

rockwell: i wanna make a record.

gordy. that's nice son.

rockwell: no dad. i mean it. to prove it to you, i'm gonna call MICHAEL up!

gordy: ?????????????????????? ok son.

I heard that Rockwell didn't want any special favors from Motown,so he recorded this song on his own without even telling his father.Somehow,I don't believe that story I'm pretty sure that it was his father who convinced Michael Jackson to participate.

One thing about annoys me about this song: the fact that is credited to "Rockwell featuring the Jacksons".What exactly are the other brothers doing on this song?! The little "oh oh oh" part in the chorus?? This seems like yet another example of the brothers trying to latch themselves onto a hit record.Clearly,it is Michael's contribution that makes this song a hit.

SoulAlive said:

MJJstudent said:

i wonder how this all went down:

rockwell: hey dad?

gordy: yes son.

rockwell: i wanna make a record.

gordy. that's nice son.

rockwell: no dad. i mean it. to prove it to you, i'm gonna call MICHAEL up!

gordy: ?????????????????????? ok son.

I heard that Rockwell didn't want any special favors from Motown,so he recorded this song on his own without even telling his father.Somehow,I don't believe that story I'm pretty sure that it was his father who convinced Michael Jackson to participate.

One thing about annoys me about this song: the fact that is credited to "Rockwell featuring the Jacksons".What exactly are the other brothers doing on this song?! The little "oh oh oh" part in the chorus?? This seems like yet another example of the brothers trying to latch themselves onto a hit record.Clearly,it is Michael's contribution that makes this song a hit.

yes, i believe that is the case as well, with gordy bringing michael up to do the song, as a 'favor' or something. i only wish the conversation above happened.

someday, the brothers will get it together. marlon sort of stepped out when h initially left the jacksons; and tito seems to be doing his own thing at all. i wonder how jackie would be doing today, if he followed his dreams of playing sports.

Rockwell is a cool dude he messaged me on his facebook over the summer

here's his facebook page

http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100001281802746

[Edited 2/16/11 8:54am]

[Edited 2/16/11 8:54am]

Rockwell could have earned A LOT MORE if he had given this song to Michael.

awesome song anyway...

MJJstudent said:

i have the british edition (light blue and whie label with the 'M' logo). i love that song; it's timeless, especially since we actually ARE in an age where we're being watched everywhere.

the video gave me nightmares as a child, with that pot-bellied pig and the mailman...

and how many of y'all liked his cover of 'taxman'? no, seriously.

i wonder how this all went down:

rockwell: hey dad?

gordy: yes son.

rockwell: i wanna make a record.

gordy. that's nice son.

rockwell: no dad. i mean it. to prove it to you, i'm gonna call MICHAEL up!

gordy: ?????????????????????? ok son.

Jermaine asked Mike to sing on the song. Remember Rockwell was Jermaine's brother in law at the time and Kennedy (Rockwell) grew up with the Jackson brothers. Jermaine sings background on the song also. Berry didn't know anything about his son's record, and it was done without his knowledge. Berry's other son was in a band called Apollo which released an album on Motown in the late 1970's.

What exactly are the other brothers doing on this song?!

The only brothers on the song are Michael & Jermaine.

[Edited 2/16/11 13:00pm]

JoeTyler said:

Rockwell could have earned A LOT MORE if he had given this song to Michael.

awesome song anyway...

Not on Motown he wouldn't. It was said that they only paid Teena Marie $100 a week when she was on the label. Berry Gordy was notorious in avoiding paying his acts. That's one of the reasons a lot of the classic era acts left.

SoulAlive said:

One thing about annoys me about this song: the fact that is credited to "Rockwell featuring the Jacksons".

What do you mean by credited? Every record I've seen simply says by "Rockwell" without any of the Jacksons being mentioned.

great song Love both the album version and ultimix.

@ SoulAlive-I read that Michael does the chorus and Jermaine does "additional backing vocals"

mimi2 said:

great song Love both the album version and ultimix.

@ SoulAlive-I read that Michael does the chorus and Jermaine does "additional backing vocals"

Jermaine, I guess, is the one doing oh-whoa-oh. Everything else was Michael.

Timmy84 said:

mimi2 said:

great song Love both the album version and ultimix.

@ SoulAlive-I read that Michael does the chorus and Jermaine does "additional backing vocals"

Jermaine, I guess, is the one doing oh-whoa-oh. Everything else was Michael.

One of the few songs I loved when it came out. Now, I can't bear to hear it.

I remember Morris Day remade Somebody's Watching Me. It was in some Eddie Murphy movie for Disney. I can't think of the name of it right now, but it was about his family staying in a haunted house.

mimi2 said:

Timmy84 said:

Jermaine, I guess, is the one doing oh-whoa-oh. Everything else was Michael.

it certainly doesn't sound like him. it all sounds like mj. this song came out when i was a teen, and i don't remember jermaine or the jacksons being mentioned at all as being contributors - only mj.

if jermy got credit, i wonder if it was done as a 'favor' since it seems jermaine was the intermediary here? i was thinking about something similar when i was listening to 'shake your body' on my ipod. for a song that is credited to the jacksons, mj is doing an awful lot of the vocals, lead and backing, except at the very end of the song. it made me wonder whether the bros were brought in after the fact to put some of their vocals in to make it seem like a 'group effort' when it initially wasn't.

kibbles said:

mimi2 said:

it certainly doesn't sound like him. it all sounds like mj. this song came out when i was a teen, and i don't remember jermaine or the jacksons being mentioned at all as being contributors - only mj.

if jermy got credit, i wonder if it was done as a 'favor' since it seems jermaine was the intermediary here? i was thinking about something similar when i was listening to 'shake your body' on my ipod. for a song that is credited to the jacksons, mj is doing an awful lot of the vocals, lead and backing, except at the very end of the song. it made me wonder whether the bros were brought in after the fact to put some of their vocals in to make it seem like a 'group effort' when it initially wasn't.

"Shake Your Body" was all Michael except for nearing the end when they're like "dance, dance, shout" with Michael. "Heartbreak Hotel" featured no other Jacksons in the background vocals. It was all Michael except for the Waters doing the soprano whoops.

kibbles said:

if jermy got credit, i wonder if it was done as a 'favor' since it seems jermaine was the intermediary here?

I have Rockwell's album and Jermaine is credited on background vocal.

MickyDolenz said:

kibbles said:

if jermy got credit, i wonder if it was done as a 'favor' since it seems jermaine was the intermediary here?

I have Rockwell's album and Jermaine is credited on background vocal.

He's barely heard as it is anyways.

Timmy84 said:

MickyDolenz said:

I have Rockwell's album and Jermaine is credited on background vocal.

He's barely heard as it is anyways.

Supposedly Mike is singing on some Doobie Brothers songs. He's barely heard too.

MickyDolenz said:

Timmy84 said:

He's barely heard as it is anyways.

Supposedly Mike is singing on some Doobie Brothers songs. He's barely heard too.

Or he was erased.

MickyDolenz said:

Timmy84 said:

Someone titled it the 12". Someone said this is the album version.

The maxi single was the same as the album,

I've always seen that as pointless. It used to piss me off to get a 12 Inch home and find out that it was the same as the album version. I learned my lesson on that one a few times and started reading the minutes on the label while I was in the record store.