This Michael Jackson is the one I think I wanna remember. He still looked like a normal guy, he still had a serious afro, and his music was INCREDIBLE.
I got this album----yes, I said ALBUM---you know, with real vinyl and grooves and everything---back in I think 8th grade. And I spent COUNTLESS HOURS in front of the mirror trying to move like Jackson.
I wore this thing out. I carried it to every little dance that I got invited to. I took it with me when I visited my grandmother's house, along with my cool portable record player. I took it to my friends' house whenever I spent the night. Me and my buddies Duane and Lane learned every word of every song on this album (of course it helped that the lyrics were on the LP sleeve.) And being band nerds ourselves, we marveled at the skill of the horn players listed on the album credits. Those guys were awesome. Listen to the horns at the beginning of "Burn This Disco Out." OUTRAGEOUS!
Yeah, Michael Jackson became a freak. That's well documented. And I don't condone for one second the UTTERLY STUPID things that he did later in life.
But his music...INCREDIBLE. Really.
It was and still is a large part of the soundtrack of my life. I can remember what was going on in my life when "Beat It" was on the radio, when I bought "Bad," and when "Rock With You" was a top ten hit. When "Thriller" debuted on MTV, me and my friends all gathered around the TV to catch it...over and over.
It sucks when an icon of my youth dies. Makes me feel kinda old. But the thing about the whole Jackson circus is that I'm not the only one who feels this way. It's cool to see everyone else start to appreciate the music I listened to when I was 13 years old---and still do.
And if you're wondering....yeah, I DID LEARN TO DANCE...although my moonwalk is limited to when I'm wearing socks on some real slick carpet.
Here are my top MJ tunes:
Michael cryin' out for some LUV
Great slow dance song
I cannot be still when I hear this song
The video shows Michael almost bein' a real dude
Again, I can't listen to this song without cuttin' loose
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