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As we pass the seventh year of a world without Michael Jackson, the yearning for new old music from his archive has not waned among the fan community. With two posthumous albums (one of which was severely botched) and some half-assed anniversary sets, one wonders if the King of Pop will ever be given the intellectual appreciation his music deserves.
The saddest part is that we have a pretty good idea of what’s in his vault. Former collaborators have come forward with a wealth of information and fans have lapped it up. While the impression is given that many tracks vocally incomplete, there is still a good amount that could be configured into some quality productions.
The Michael Jackson Estate, if you’re listening…
Chicago 1945
A song whose name is something of a legend in the MJ fan community. Although not connected to Smooth Criminal or Al Capone (as has incorrectly always been the rumour), it tells the story of the disappearance of two girls after going out one night. It’s a good representation of the lyrically darker themes Michael was exploring during the early Bad sessions along with the former mentioned songs and Do You Know Where Your Children Are – although he didn’t write this one. Steve Porcaro of Toto fame, who wrote the legendary Human Nature and the wholesome For All Time, penned this song for Michael during the Bad sessions. When the second posthumous album’s production began (Xscape, 2014), Porcaro was asked for permission to release the track, which he rejected out of the inevitability of it being remixed. While it’s sad that this means we won’t be hearing it anytime soon, it’s hard not to respect someone for maintaining that level of integrity.
Willing and Waiting
When Michael’s assistant engineer – who has heard almost every song from Michael’s golden era – lists an outtake as one of his favorites in a line-up including Jackson’s biggest hits, you know it must be something special. “A very pretty song - but I think Michael was looking to push things pretty hard on HIStory, Willing and Waiting was maybe a bit softer than the direction he was going” says Brad Sundberg. He also goes on to say that Babyface was “heavily involved” in its production. Given the amazing collaboration Michael had with On The Line and Slave To The Rhythm, I think we can safely assume that this is another track for the posthumous pipeline.
Al Capone (with Roger Troutman)
So far one of the gems the Estate has satiated the fandom’s lust for is the release of Al Capone (Bad 25, 2014). While it’s obviously a foetal version of Smooth Criminal, it still maintains enough uniqueness to be a stand-alone track. In 1986, nearing the Bad album’s completion, Michael sought out the legendary composer and Zapp band member, Roger Troutman. “Michael Jackson called me to work on Bad. He said he was impressed with my song ‘The Dance Floor’ and liked its guitar sound. I actually went to his house and worked with him.” Roger told Spin magazine in 1988. John Barnes recalls year later, “He worked with us on several early Bad tracks. It wasn't kept, but it felt and sounded great. Al Capone had Roger as a guest musician. The track was mostly done when he came in”. So, there you have it, imagine the version released on Bad 25 with another one of the greatest musicians that has ever lived and you might have a close approximation of this forgotten collaboration.
Hot Fun In The Summertime (2012 Reworked Version)
It seems that the Beatles weren’t the only catalog that Michael owned and liked to record from. Early reports of the Xscape album spoke of a posthumous collaboration with D’Angelo and Mary J. Blige. In addition to that, Questlove (drummer - The Roots) and Jesse Johnson (guitarist - The Time), Pino Palladino (percussionist), Eric Leeds (saxophonist – Prince, Madhouse) and John McClain as executive producer. Ultimately the track wasn’t finished in time for the album.
So why would we want the remix over the original? Michael Jackson and Prince never worked together, despite various opportunities arising over the years, leaving a gaping hole in pop history. While D’Angelo isn’t the carbon-copy of Prince that many have touted him to be, he’s the next best thing! Throw in Eric Leeds (an essential ingredient to any Prince production), a member of The Time and a metronomic drummer and nerd of the two icons - and you’ve got the right shade of purple. John McClain has also produced arguably the best posthumous productions (Behind The Mask, Do You Know Where Your Ch...n Are 2010, This Is It) that have kept pretty faithful to the original compositions – how the catalog SHOULD be treated. The original version has been confirmed by engineers as incomplete, so this is one case where it would make sense to have an amazing singer like Mary J. Blige to fill in the gaps.
Monster
In 2010, we saw the release of MICHAEL, the first posthumous effort by the Michael Jackson Estate. It didn’t come without its problems – songs were almost completely rerecorded, the configuration was a tad unconventional and the vocals for three songs sounded more like a Michael Jackson sound-alike, Jason Malachi, than it did Michael Jackson. One of the contentious songs shares a title with what could be one of the greatest tracks Michael never released. “Now, I guess Monster is the name of it - the hook I recorded, he sang "you created a monster"”, bassist and producer of Break of Dawn, Blue Gangsta and A Place With No Name tells the MJ Cast in a recent interview. He continues, “There was an orchestra laid out, huge amount of percussion... It was very experimental. It sounded like a very personal Michael Jackson song to me. It was like one of his SGT Pepper songs, that he went kind of 'art' instead of hitting us with 'pop'. He reached down to a different place with this song, it's more challenging to listen to.”
Apocalypse Now
During the Bad sessions, Michael would often think about adapting a military style dance routine, which he would later claim that Janet used for Rhythm Nation. He first used this in the 4D Disney experience, Captain EO (1986) and much later in They Don’t Care About Us (first recorded circa. 1990 with Bryan Loren). Drummer John Robinson recalls a percussion-oriented track that came about during the Bad sessions which he reveled to Rhythm Mag "There was a track I did called "Apocalypse Now" that I wrote six and a half minutes of military drum cadences for. I brought in Don Williams, Dan Greco and Bob Zimmitti. We recorded with four field snares, four piccolo snares, two sets of piatti and one gran casa. It was a very hip tune, but it never made the record”. With so many of Michael’s ideas carried throughout various projects, it would surely be a fascinating listen to hear one of the origins of Michael’s more mechanical-genre dance tracks.
Off The Wall – Uncut Album
As the multitracks slowly begin to creep out of the hands of collectors and producers from the session of this pinnacle album, we’re discovering that what made it onto the album is but a mere fraction of what was recorded. The extra adlibs from Rock With You, the guitars and party chants on Off The Wall, the full 7 minute version of Don...Get Enough, scratch vocals to I Can’t Help It, unused string prelude to She’s Out of My Life, the list goes on and on… The recent 40th anniversary edition would have been the perfect opportunity to put out a fresh take on the classic, which could have been the favoured version over the original! But we got chalk.
Quotes from Brad Sundberg and John Barnes have been taken from their Facebook posts. Source on Steve Porcaro is from an In The Studio With Michael Jackson seminar.
They just had a event called Shakespeare 400. They will discussing all aspects of mj's life forever. | |
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Michael Jackson & The PAnther Dance: No other African-American artist has dared such a thing, and no comparably popular white artist has even tried.
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I've posted it before, but still...
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I have to be honest, this person's analysis is confusing.
When I watched the premiere of this video's ending sequence, I was confused and was like, what in the world is going on.
Even his director John Landis said in between a take "stop, what the **** was that"....
it's all about point of reference.......
The message in of itself was noble, it SHOULDN'T matter what our ethnicity/cultural background/race/color is.....it SHOULDN'T
MJ's message was consistent from the very beginning, this is why I continued listening to his music after Thriller, and for historians to suggest he did not make accomplished music after Thriller would be an inaccurate assessment, the fact he never featured derogatory themes in his music was a major achievement, THAT should be celebrated
the problem is, the means he would start to project that message through physical manifestation is what ultimately undermined it, that's what this video showed and would come to intensify the racial discord in regards to him individually.
So much so, parents across the country wrote into MTV explaining anger and concern over the nature of the video content in that ending sequence, then afterwards, MJ issued a public apology and immediate released an edited version of that video that took out the very segment this article is raving about. Then we learn shortly after that he did all that to spark controversy and generate publicity for the release of his new album DANGEROUS
but he didn't have to edit out scenes or be controversial in his grounbreaking videos for CAN YOU FEEL IT and BEAT IT, when his message was truly unifying people, so much so, he was able to sway real life LA street gang members of all races to star in it and dance along beside him
now THAT was daring.
[Edited 11/8/16 4:47am] | |
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PatrickS77 said:
No, it was not. He had overcome everything that came before. HIStory was a hit. The HIStory tour was a hit. Even Invincible was reasonably successful, considering the circumstances. But Bashir started the last downward spiral. Not to nitpick or anything but I'd say Invincible was more than just "reasonably successful". It sold something like 10 million copies with very little promotion. You Rock My World got decent airtime on MTV at the time but I think I only ever seen the video for Cry once on TV. So to sell 10 million albums with that kind of promotion is really good, regardless of how much his previous albums sold. | |
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Yes but for him it was a failure.I dont know how much he was expecting to sell but invicible was just plain bad it wasnt good and he half assed the whole thing. | |
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heathilly said:
Yes but for him it was a failure.I dont know how much he was expecting to sell but invicible was just plain bad it wasnt good and he half assed the whole thing. I liked Invincible. It wasn't perfect by any means but there's a really good 12 track album in there. I'd take Invincible over History any day. There are some brilliant songs on Invincible. You Rock My World, Break of Dawn, Whatever Happens, Butterflies and the title track are really good. Are they as good as some of his 80's classics? I don't think so but how could anyone be expected to maintain that level 20 years on? Prince, Springsteen, Madonna, Guns N Roses, Bon Jovi etc all released their best music in the 70's or 80's. Calling Invincible a failure for Michael Jackson is like calling Musicology a failure for Prince or Magic a failure for Springsteen. Sure, they didn't sell as well as Purple Rain or Born in the USA but they're good albums in their own right and sold in good numbers for artists their age. | |
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Keep Calm & Listen To Prince | |
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7 Gems in Michael Jackson’s Vault
Always cry 4 love, never cry 4 pain. |
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Quite interesting, thanks. | |
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He wrote two songs both trash everything else was outsourced he clearly wasnt trying. The lack of effort is palpable [Edited 11/11/16 19:28pm] | |
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http://www.makingmichael.co.uk/single-post/2016/04/19/EXTRACT-Inside-the-Bad-sessions-and-the-split-with-Quincy-Jones "We may deify or demonize them but not ignore them. And we call them genius, because they are the people who change the world." |
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heathilly said:
He wrote two songs both trash everything else was outsourced he clearly wasnt trying. The lack of effort is palpable [Edited 11/11/16 19:28pm] He has writing credits on something like 14 songs and a producer credit on several more. Not only that but the album was something he worked on over a period of 4 years. You don't spend that kind of time on something you're not heavily invested in. If anyone showed a lack of effort it was Sony who barely promoted the album, hence "disappointing" sales figures, if you can call 10 million disappointing. | |
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yes he shared writing credits with 7 other people on ther songs... lets be real he out sourced most of those songs and he probaly had more input on privacy threatened the title track as those are topics he does. As far as the time and the money he spent. This was at a point in time where he went overboard trying to go bigger more producers more writers more more more just spending time and wasting money at ridiculous rates. And he turned out invincible. What an achievement. (sarcasm) | |
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heathilly said:
yes he shared writing credits with 7 other people on ther songs... lets be real he out sourced most of those songs and he probaly had more input on privacy threatened the title track as those are topics he does. As far as the time and the money he spent. This was at a point in time where he went overboard trying to go bigger more producers more writers more more more just spending time and wasting money at ridiculous rates. And he turned out invincible. What an achievement. (sarcasm) Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit. I get that you don't like the album but to call it a failure based on your dislike of it is a bit misguided, no? It sold really well. Ok, not exactly Thriller numbers but most artists in their prime would kill for that kind of a "failure". As far as reviews are concerned, they were the very definition of mixed. Some reviews were really positive, some were really negative and there were also plenty which were in between. That doesn't say failure to me. And so what if he was trying to collaborate with other people? That doesn't mean he was half assing it. He was collaborating with several big names because he wanted a hit. Not because he couldn't be bothered doing it himself. Since when did Michael Jackson ever attempt to be sole creator of an album? He wasn't the same type of artist as say, Prince, who could go into the studio by himself and come out with an entire album. He always collaborated with other people like Rod Temperton, Quincy Jones etc. | |
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The album sold well and had some good songs on it. Whether or not, it's someone's cup of tea is a matter of personal opinion. And that's all. "Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything." --Plato
https://youtu.be/CVwv9LZMah0 | |
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EmmaMcG said: heathilly said:
yes he shared writing credits with 7 other people on ther songs... lets be real he out sourced most of those songs and he probaly had more input on privacy threatened the title track as those are topics he does. As far as the time and the money he spent. This was at a point in time where he went overboard trying to go bigger more producers more writers more more more just spending time and wasting money at ridiculous rates. And he turned out invincible. What an achievement. (sarcasm) Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit. I get that you don't like the album but to call it a failure based on your dislike of it is a bit misguided, no? It sold really well. Ok, not exactly Thriller numbers but most artists in their prime would kill for that kind of a "failure". As far as reviews are concerned, they were the very definition of mixed. Some reviews were really positive, some were really negative and there were also plenty which were in between. That doesn't say failure to me. And so what if he was trying to collaborate with other people? That doesn't mean he was half assing it. He was collaborating with several big names because he wanted a hit. Not because he couldn't be bothered doing it himself. Since when did Michael Jackson ever attempt to be sole creator of an album? He wasn't the same type of artist as say, Prince, who could go into the studio by himself and come out with an entire album. He always collaborated with other people like Rod Temperton, Quincy Jones etc. I wasnt trying to be witty... But it was a failure he considered it a failure to be clear. I know fans like to justify this album because how he railed against Sony and stuff and it sold more than any other artist at the time. But with Mj he's not any other artist you can't use other artist successes and failures and quantitatively compare them to him. And to be clear the album is garbage to me because he half assed it his heart wasn't in it I can just feel the lack of effort in that whole project that being said some of the songs are ok. With History I could still hear the hunger and fire with earth song they don't care stranger in Moscow money. He was still reaching searching for something. I'm an artist myself so I'm sensitive to these things I can just feel him resting on his laurels on this album. And I just don't appreciate that. | |
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heathilly said: EmmaMcG said: Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit. I get that you don't like the album but to call it a failure based on your dislike of it is a bit misguided, no? It sold really well. Ok, not exactly Thriller numbers but most artists in their prime would kill for that kind of a "failure". As far as reviews are concerned, they were the very definition of mixed. Some reviews were really positive, some were really negative and there were also plenty which were in between. That doesn't say failure to me. And so what if he was trying to collaborate with other people? That doesn't mean he was half assing it. He was collaborating with several big names because he wanted a hit. Not because he couldn't be bothered doing it himself. Since when did Michael Jackson ever attempt to be sole creator of an album? He wasn't the same type of artist as say, Prince, who could go into the studio by himself and come out with an entire album. He always collaborated with other people like Rod Temperton, Quincy Jones etc. I wasnt trying to be witty... But it was a failure he considered it a failure to be clear. I know fans like to justify this album because how he railed against Sony and stuff and it sold more than any other artist at the time. But with Mj he's not any other artist you can't use other artist successes and failures and quantitatively compare them to him. And to be clear the album is garbage to me because he half assed it his heart wasn't in it I can just feel the lack of effort in that whole project that being said some of the songs are ok. With History I could still hear the hunger and fire with earth song they don't care stranger in Moscow money. He was still reaching searching for something. I'm an artist myself so I'm sensitive to these things I can just feel him resting on his laurels on this album. And I just don't appreciate that. Ok, fair enough. We'll agree to disagree. But for the record, I'm not trying to justify anything. I realise you may not have been talking about me personally, but I, for one, am not one of those fans of MJ (or any other artist, for that matter) who believes he can do no wrong and his personal battle with Sony is of no interest to me. I like most of the Invincible album because I like the music. Even if he was just resting on his laurels and wasn't bothered creating something of more value, I'd still feel the same way about it. | |
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I agree with you, the Invincible album feels like that. | |
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The track MJ worked on with Roger Troutman for BAD was called Tomboy. | |
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They worked on Tomboy and Al Capone. Always cry 4 love, never cry 4 pain. |
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So there's another version of Al Capone we haven't heard yet? The is article missing some other key unreleased tracks.. Buffalo Bill, Man In Black, as well as the Will.I.Am tracks. | |
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It's an opinion pieice. Not a definitive list. Always cry 4 love, never cry 4 pain. |
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Just listened to superfly sista the instrumental break in that song is complete euphoria. | |
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EmmaMcG said: heathilly said:
Yes but for him it was a failure.I dont know how much he was expecting to sell but invicible was just plain bad it wasnt good and he half assed the whole thing. I liked Invincible. It wasn't perfect by any means but there's a really good 12 track album in there. I'd take Invincible over History any day. There are some brilliant songs on Invincible. You Rock My World, Break of Dawn, Whatever Happens, Butterflies and the title track are really good. Are they as good as some of his 80's classics? I don't think so but how could anyone be expected to maintain that level 20 years on? Prince, Springsteen, Madonna, Guns N Roses, Bon Jovi etc all released their best music in the 70's or 80's. Calling Invincible a failure for Michael Jackson is like calling Musicology a failure for Prince or Magic a failure for Springsteen. Sure, they didn't sell as well as Purple Rain or Born in the USA but they're good albums in their own right and sold in good numbers for artists their age. Good comparison with p and Springsteen.. can't believe you like Invincible more than history though. I big into vinyl and earth song on vinyl is an event! I was lucky to meet the bass player on that track too. Rock my world is a classic though I agree with that. "Still Crazy 4 Coco Rock" | |
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aiden said: EmmaMcG said: I liked Invincible. It wasn't perfect by any means but there's a really good 12 track album in there. I'd take Invincible over History any day. There are some brilliant songs on Invincible. You Rock My World, Break of Dawn, Whatever Happens, Butterflies and the title track are really good. Are they as good as some of his 80's classics? I don't think so but how could anyone be expected to maintain that level 20 years on? Prince, Springsteen, Madonna, Guns N Roses, Bon Jovi etc all released their best music in the 70's or 80's. Calling Invincible a failure for Michael Jackson is like calling Musicology a failure for Prince or Magic a failure for Springsteen. Sure, they didn't sell as well as Purple Rain or Born in the USA but they're good albums in their own right and sold in good numbers for artists their age. Good comparison with p and Springsteen.. can't believe you like Invincible more than history though. I big into vinyl and earth song on vinyl is an event! I was lucky to meet the bass player on that track too. Rock my world is a classic though I agree with that. I never liked earth song. History has some very good songs but for me, it's Michael Jackson's worst album (excluding Blood on the Dance Floor). | |
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It is, i love the lyrics | |
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Monday, November 21, 2016
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MOONWALKING TO THE BANK WITH JOHN BRANCA
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by Phil Gallo
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Mega-Attorney John Branca Talks Estates, Legacies and Streams Both Digital and Monetary
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In September, John Branca and John McClain finalized one of the largest music publishing deals in history: The $750m sale of the Michael Jackson Estate’s 50% interest in Sony/ATV to Sony Corp. One of the most important business attorneys in the game, Branca is a genuine music guy—a sensibility shaped by his background as a musician—with a 360-degree understanding of the nuances of branding. Yes, Jackson represents something of a pinnacle in his career spent mostly at Ziffren-Brittenham LLP, but Branca is also the lawyer/strategist behind the deal that reunited Carlos Santana with Clive Davis and resulted in Supernatural, and the movement of the Rolling Stones to Virgin from Sony. He is currently working on a new catalog deal for the Bee Gees and another deal for the Beach Boys, the band that was his first client back in 1978. “I love working with legacy artists,” Branca tells HITS. “It’s what I grew up with; it’s what I appreciate.” As the co-executor of the Jackson estate, you are heavily involved in the multiple projects associated with him, the Cirque du Soleil shows, This Is It, the posthumous albums. Has your involvement with Jackson expanded what you do for clients, or is it just a highly visible example?
What John McClain and I really do with the Jackson estate is manage that brand. It’s not traditional legal work—we produced two shows with Cirque du Soleil: a touring show, Michael Jackson: THE IMMORTAL World Tour, and a permanent show in Las Vegas, Michael Jackson ONE. The tour is in the Top 5-grossing touring concert shows of all time and ONE has been one of the most successful shows in Las Vegas since it opened. We put out two new studio albums, the first with Rob Stringer, the second with L.A. Reid. What we do for the estate is not unlike what we do for an artist or a brand—we are involved with records, deal with touring and branding as well as overseeing various aspects of their career. It’s not different than the work we did when Michael was alive, in particular during the Thriller era, when Michael did not have a manager. On your end, what do you see as the key to all the Jackson projects? Do you see this continuing with other legacy acts? When we put out This Is It, some said, “Michael would never put this out. This is rehearsal footage.” We said, “We agree Michael wouldn’t have put this out when he was around because he would have finished it with a multi-camera shoot.” We wanted to show the world the real Michael Jackson. Thus, people really responded to it and it became the #1-grossing music documentary in history.
You managed the Beach Boys for their 50th anniversary tour, which obviously introduced them to new fans and bolstered their standing. How do you take that result from a short window of time and extend its shelf life? Is streaming playing a big role in introducing those types of acts to new audiences? . . Source: http://m.hitsdailydouble....;id=303931
John Branca I'm a little bit confused [Edited 11/22/16 0:49am] “The space between the notes, that’s the good part. How long the space is…that’s how funky it is or how funky it ain’t” - Prince | |
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