Michael Jackson: Michael Jackson's Music

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Critics say Michael Jackson album better than feared

Critics say Michael Jackson album better than feared – A sentimental video for Michael Jackson's new single "Hold My Hand" was released on Thursday as music critics paid grudging respect to the first album of new Jackson material since his death 18 months ago.

Heart-tugging clips from the King of Pop's performance archive, mixed with children singing and multicultural images of happiness, mark the four-minute music video for "Hold My Hand" -- a duet recorded with R&B singer and producer Akon in 2007 that is the first official single on the album "Michael".

It was released on Jackson's official website, www.michaeljackson.com, ahead of the December 14 debut of "Michael" -- a collection of 10 songs completed by various record producers after the singer's sudden death in June 2009 due to an overdose of the anesthetic propofol and other drugs.

Despite media skepticism and some dissent within Jackson family ranks, early reviews largely found "Michael" better than expected, if below the perfectionist standards the "Thriller" singer might have wished for.

"He would not have released anything like this compilation, a grab bag of outtakes and outlines assembled by Jackson's (Sony) record label," said Rolling Stone. But the magazine acknowledged that the songs were recognizably Jackson songs, adding that "'Michael' can be compelling."

Posters promoting launch of posthumous Michael ...

Posters promoting the launch of a posthumous Michael Jackson album titled 'Michael' are pictured in Hollywood December 8, 2010. The album contains 10 tracks and will be released on December 14, 2010.

USA Today said the collection of ballads, dance songs and R&B tracks, including collaborations with rapper 50 Cent and rocker Lenny Kravitz, "is a credible musical effort that can't be dismissed" and contained a few treasures.

Entertainment Weekly awarded the album a "B", calling it "certainly no great affront to his name", while The New York Times said it was a "miscellany of familiar Jackson offerings: inspirational, loving, resentful and paranoid."

Opinion in Britain -- where Jackson had planned a series of 50 comeback concerts in the summer of 2009 -- was generally more enthusiastic.

Music website NME.com said the track "Behind the Mask" was "an absolute revelation" on which "Jackson howls a solid-gold melody at his fearsome best."

Telegraph newspaper critic Neil McCormick said Jackson "bursts with verve and confidence" and said the album "may well be Jackson's best work since his Eighties glory days."

"It is certainly a great deal better than anyone had the right to expect...Jackson is finally about to get the comeback he craved," McCormick wrote.

"Michael" is the first album of new Jackson material since his disappointing "Invincible" in 2001, and the first in a $250 million deal between Sony and the executors of Jackson's estate to release 10 albums of new material through 2017.

Jackson's physician at the time of his death, Dr. Conrad Murray, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter, and he has pleaded not guilty to the charge. (Reuters)

New Jackson album: a thriller from beyond the grave?

New Jackson album: a thriller from beyond the grave? – Michael Jackson fans will this week finally get their hands on the pop icon's first record since he died, with huge sales expected despite lukewarm reviews and questions over its authenticity.

"Michael," due out Tuesday in the United States, comprises 10 songs the King of Pop was at various stages of completing when he died last year, and includes contributions from rapper 50 Cents, Lenny Kravitz and US singer Akon.

Two tracks have already been released online, the first of which -- "Breaking News," a fierce protest at how the media hounded the scandal-tainted singer -- sparked a fierce debate over whether it was really Jackson's voice.

Record company Sony -- which plans to release a series of new Jackson albums -- was forced to defend the album after fans and even some of Jackson's family members questioned the record's authenticity.

"We have complete confidence in the results of our extensive research as well as the accounts of those who were in the studio with Michael that the vocals on the new album are his own," it said in a statement.

Jackson's sister LaToya said bluntly that the record "doesn't sound like him." But more generally, purist Jackson fans question how some of the songs were completed, from material recorded sometimes several years ago.

Michael Jackson

A second song from a new posthumous album by late pop legend Michael Jackson, seen here in 1993, was released on Thursday, days before the beyond-the-grave record hits music shops around the world

At least one song, "Much Too Soon," was written at the time of Jackson's landmark 1982 album "Thriller," several stem from the time of his last album of new material, 2001's "Invincible."

The most recent track, "Band of Joy," stems from the months before Jackson's shock death in June, 2009 -- he planned to keep working on it in London in between a series of sell-out concerts in July and August, producers say.

Jackson is credited as writer of all but two of the songs -- "Another Day" by Lenny Kravitz and "Hold My Hand" by Akon, and producers are keen to stress how closely they kept to the singer's original intentions.

"While Michael was not there to complete the tracks as only he could, he had left behind a unique roadmap mapping out his creative vision in the form of notes and detailed conversations," they say in a 10-page media introduction, which spends two pages seeking to justify the album's authenticity.

Pre-release reviews of the new album -- reportedly the first of a 10-album deal over seven years, although that is difficult to confirm -- have been decidedly mixed.

"This is not a Michael Jackson album ... He would not have released anything like this compilation, a grab bag of outtakes and outlines assembled by Jackson's label," said Rolling Stone, although calling the album "compelling."

Entertainment Weekly gave it a "B" grade, saying: "As musical epitaphs go, Michael is a solid album, arguably stronger than Invincible and certainly no great affront to his name.

"But it can be hard to listen and not wonder what he would have done differently -- or if he would have wanted us to hear it at all."

In Britain, music weekly NME's reviewer said the album was saved by the last two tracks: "Behind the Mask" which he describes as "brilliant" and the Thriller-era ballad "Much Too Soon."

"Oh, it isn?t really very good, don?t be under illusions of that. But compared with the unnecessary, inauthentic and insulting mess it could have been ... ? Michael? can actually be considered something of a win," he says.

But, perhaps inevitably, the album is already a bestseller with fans, much like last year's film "This is It," made from footage of rehearsals for the London shows.

The album -- whose cover, in typical Jackson style, depicts him being crowned by cherubs with a biblical-looking star in the background -- was number 11 in Amazon.com's top sellers this weekend, ahead of its actual release. ( Agence France Presse )

Michael Jackson Wanted To Work With Lady Gaga

Michael Jackson Wanted To Work With Lady Gaga. Michael Jackson loved working with other artists. He and Lionel Richie wrote and performed "We Are The World," the song that brought together dozens of artists and raised millions to fight famine in Africa.

Throughout his career, Jackson worked on separate projects with the likes of Paul McCartney, Diana Ross, and Stevie Wonder.

But there is one artist he never had a chance to work with-Lady Gaga.

Jackson wanted to invite the "Paparazzi" singer to join him on stage during his "This Is It" tour, his former choreographer Travis Payne told RafflesEntertainment.

When Payne asked Jackson if he wanted to feature other artists in the show, the late King Of Pop loved the idea.

"Sure, they can all come as long as their schedules [permit]," Payne recalled Jackson saying.

Payne suggested Janet, Whitney Houston, Diana Ross, Mariah Carey, Missy Elliott, Usher, Justin Timberlake, Celine Dion, Sting, Seal, Bono, and Tina Turner.

Jackson was pleased with the list. But when Payne asked if there was anyone else he wanted to work with, Jackson named the 2009 breakthrough artist.

"[Michael] literally told me, 'You got to get into her,'" Payne said. "'She's good.'"

Jackson's admiration for Lady Gaga got Payne interested. "I started listening to her music more and going onto YouTube and looking at her performances, and I was like, 'You're right.'"

Ironically, in November, Payne received a call from Lady Gaga.

He initially thought getting the call was strange, but thought of his conversation with Jackson.

"I told her the story," Payne said. "Of course she got moved by it."

Payne ended up directing and choreographing Lady Gaga's performance on the American Music Awards, as well as her sets on "Ellen," "The Jay Leno Show," and "X-Factor." ( yahoo.com )

Separating the Artist from the Art

Separating the Artist from the Art. A funny sort of thing happened on Thursday when word of Michael Jackson's death started to sink in to our cultural psyche: We weren't sure how to react.

While it's true that scores of Jackson fans gathered outside the UCLA Medical Center where Jackson had been rushed by paramedics and the news propelled sales of Jackson's songs on Amazon, many of us hesitated. Reminiscences of Jackson's infectious hits were tempered by the ugly reality of multiple charges of child molestation, the man's seeming inability to cope with the world and his outre habits (children draped in veils, packing his one-time mansion Neverland with a village-worth of hideous life-sized dolls.)

The memory of Michael Jackson, King of Pop, was threatened by Wacko Jacko, increasingly reclusive and derided freakazoid.

A makeshift memorial outside Michael Jackson's Los Angeles home. (Getty Images)

But is it possible to honor one while continuing to back away from the other? To reconcile the very real disdain for the man while at the same time recognizing his music as every bit worthy of praise? And by admitting that we appreciate the art of someone we may find morally objectionable are we selling out our own ethics?

Michael Jackson isn't the first person to inspire the question. Writing about classical musicians who were openly anti-Semitic or aligned themselves with Germany's Nazi regime retired music critic Dimitri Drobatschewsky wrote:

Unfortunately, there are so many "unsavory characters" in the world of art, science, literature and general culture that if you boycotted their given genius, there would be precious little art left to enjoy.

And therein lies the rub. If one looks closely enough, uncomfortable realities can probably be found for many of pop culture's venerated artists -- big and small: Mel Gibson, who is slowly working his way back into Hollywood's mainstream despite his 2006 anti-Semitic, sexist rant. Woody Allen, who continues to attract A-list talent, critical praise and audiences for his films despite being roundly criticized for romancing and marrying his stepdaughter. Amy Winehouse, who despite an inability to pull herself from the clutches of addiction and really bad paparazzi moments, still has an undeniably beautiful and original voice.

Does an appreciation of "Billie Jean" or "Rock With You" mean we're giving Jackson a pass for what -- if nothing else -- were inappropriate relationships with minors? No. And here's why:

For many artists -- Van Gogh, Franz Kafka, Marilyn Manson -- art is an expression of one's demons. For Michael Jackson art -- in the form of pop music -- represented liberation from those demons.

Jackson's music wasn't in any way a reflection of his personal life. It was a place Jackson was able to supersede his timidity and failings -- to be "Bad" (meaning good), to look at "The Man in the Mirror" ("If you wanna make the world a better place," Jackson sang, "Take a look at yourself and then make a change.") and to label himself "Unbreakable." In no song did he encourage dangerous liaisons with unlawful partners or ask his listeners to follow him down the road to disfiguring plastic surgery. Jackson instead transcended his image as a man-boy prone to eccentricity and became the unchallenged King of Pop.

And that is the image that will stick for most of his fans. As D.C. resident Akil Wilson says in this video interview after hearing about Jackson's death, "Some people are better as thoughts than as actual physical manifestations ... this Mike that existed from the '90s on, he just wasn't a real person." ( washingtonpost.com )

The Music of Michael Jackson

The Music of Michael Jackson - The Man in Our Mirror - The Music: Fans Never Can Say Goodbye to His Distinctive Sound. Try, for a moment, to separate the art from the artist. Consider Michael Jackson's entertainment proffer in a vacuum-sealed space.

In that bubble, where Bubbles and all the peculiarities and plastic surgeries matter not one whit, you will find a man -- and, if you go back far enough into the archives, a child -- who was unquestionably one of the most transcendent performers in popular music.

He was Elvis with an androgynous tenor, Sinatra with a moonwalk and killer pop instincts, Prince with more mass appeal, John, Paul, George and Ringo with high-water pants, white socks and a single, sequined glove.

Jackson was a singular talent, even if he was sometimes derivative. He sang like Frankie Lymon by way of Smokey Robinson and Diana Ross, though his soulful, ingratiating voice sounded original and distinctive; to this day, it remains one of the most easily recognizable voices in the world.

Dancing with the explosiveness of James Brown and the smooth grace of Fred Astaire, Jackson was simply mesmerizing whenever he moved across a stage or TV screen -- never more so than on the 1983 special "Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever." The star-studded concert featured some of Hitsville USA's most legendary figures, but the night belonged to Jackson by virtue of his electrifying performance of "Billie Jean."

Who cared if he was lip-syncing? Those moves!! When he unleashed the gravity-defying moonwalk roughly 3 1/2 minutes in, it was over: Jackson had had his Elvis-(or the Beatles)-on-the-Ed-Sullivan-Show moment, producing the defining performance of his career.

It didn't hurt that "Billie Jean" was a truly potent single, a state-of-the art song built around a sharp, simple drum pattern, an indelible bass line and an undeniable melody. Jackson sang it mostly in that high, feathery tenor of his, but he occasionally slipped into falsetto, mostly to add his signature "HEE hee" vocal licks. The lyrics were no laughing matter, though, as Jackson was sneering about paternity suits.

His star power was staggering from the very start: The Jackson 5 crashed onto the pop radar in 1969 with "I Want You Back," an exuberant song about a guy who's having second thoughts about dumping his lover. Never mind that Jackson wasn't even a teenager when he recorded the lead vocal, and that he had a child's soprano; he sang it convincingly, his pleading voice exploding from the speakers.

When the brothers went on TV to sing the up-tempo song, the cherubic Michael was front and center as the featured singer who happened to be a dazzling dancing machine. How could you not be hooked?

As a child star, Jackson was a preternaturally gifted vocalist who had advanced emotional range, whether he was singing the aching, bereft "Never Can Say Goodbye" or the tender promise of a ballad, "I'll Be There."

When he finally went solo, his lyrical themes shifted, becoming more confrontational, hardened and paranoid -- an apparent side effect of not actually having a childhood to enjoy.

But more striking was how his sound developed.

Jackson's instincts as a songwriter, producer and recording artist were nearly unrivaled in the early stages of his solo career, when he and Quincy Jones were crafting of-the-moment, genre-spanning hits. A pop genius with a knack for accessible melodies and rhythmic hooks, Jackson officially introduced himself as a solo artist with 1979's "Off the Wall," whose lead single, "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough," was a slick, giddy amalgam of disco and funk coated with a pop sheen. Thirty years later, it's still a surefire dance-floor-filler for club DJs who need to send a jolt through the room.

Jackson's epochal "Thriller" album was produced and mixed to within an inch of its life yet managed to sound completely vibrant, whether it was the rhythmically complex album opener, "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'," or the tough-sounding gangland rocker "Beat It," which Eddie Van Halen sends into overdrive with a fleet-fingered guitar solo.

The latter song was Jackson's first rock crossover, but he was hardly a newcomer to color-blind pop; how fitting, then, that he'd be the artist to break through MTV's color barrier. (It was especially appropriate given that Jackson was elevating music videos from a mere promotional tool to an actual art form.)

Although discussions about Jackson's music often begin and end with "Thriller," he hardly withered away in the considerable shadow cast by that cultural juggernaut. The title track of the "Thriller" follow-up, "Bad," presented Jackson as a swaggering neo-soul man who was completely comfortable blending thoroughly modern sounds (synths, programmed drums) with a dash of classicism (horn charts and a wicked Hammond B-3 solo by organ master Jimmy Smith). By 1991, he'd switched it up again, jumping on the new jack swing bandwagon, in which he found himself riding shotgun alongside the movement's figurehead, Teddy Riley.

A glimpse into Michael Jackson's more than 40-year career, from the height of musical stardom to his bizarre personal life and sex scandal.

But Jackson eventually lost his place at the forefront of pop music; by 1995, his songs were starting to sound as though they'd been cryogenically frozen in a previous decade.

Still, in his heyday, he was the Michael Jordan of pop, the performer against whom all other wannabes were -- and continue to be -- measured. That's particularly true of high-voiced male singers who favor R&B and can't stand still onstage (Usher, Justin Timberlake, Chris Brown, etc.), though his considerable influence crossed gender lines: Beyoncé and Britney have both cited Jackson as one of their greatest inspirations.

Of course they did; Michael Jackson was a masterful performer whose prowess onstage, in videos and in the studio has never been matched in the pop space.

He was one of the greats -- not for nothing did the King of Pop moniker stick -- and his face is destined to be carved onto pop's Mount Rushmore. It's just too bad that so much of the discussion surrounding the tribute will be about how Jackson's nose should look on the monument. ( washingtonpost.com )

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