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 Editor in Chief :

AUDI YUDHASMARA

email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.

Supported  by
MICHAEL JACKSON MANIA

JL Taman Bendungan Asahan 5 Jakarta Indonesia 102010

phone : 62(021) 70081995 – 5703646

mobile phone : 085692114641

http://michaeljacksonmania.wordpress.com/

 Editor in Chief :

AUDI YUDHASMARA

email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.

The album was released during a difficult transition period the young singer was experiencing due to vocal changes and a changing music landscape. Having been influenced by fellow Motown label mates such as Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder, Jackson had expressed an opinion on having material he wrote to be featured on an album with Motown. However, the label chose not to allow him that option.

Despite the cover of Jackson strumming an acoustic guitar, the singer did not play any instrument on the album and soon expressed his frustrations to his father, Joe Jackson, who later helped negotiate Michael and his brothers off their Motown contract in protest.

Since Jackson was on a world tour with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5, promotion on this album was limited. The Stevie Wonder cover, “With a Child’s Heart“, was released as a single. Jackson took two years to work on a follow-up album that focused on his maturing voice which became, Forever, Michael.

Track listing

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The album was Jackson’s fourth as a solo artist and would end up being his final album released with Motown before he and his brothers (The Jackson 5) left for CBS Records a year later. This album displayed a change in musical style for the sixteen-year-old, who adopted a smoother soul sound that would be a catalyst for Jackson’s later solo records on Epic Records.

Most of the tracks were recorded in 1974, and the album was originally set to be released that year. However, because of demand from the Jackson 5′s huge hit “Dancing Machine“, production on Jackson’s album was delayed until the hype from that song died down.

The album helped return Jackson to the top 40, aided by the singles “We’re Almost There” and “Just a Little Bit of You“, both written by the Holland Brothers (Eddie and Brian) of Holland–Dozier–Holland.

In 1981 Motown released “One Day in Your Life” as a single, coupled with the One Day in Your Life compilation album release, to capitalize off Jackson’s Off the Wall success on Epic. The single went to number one in the UK, becoming the 6th best-selling single of 1981 in the UK.

[edit] Track listing

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email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.

The record was a departure from Jackson’s previous work for Motown. Several critics observed that Off the Wall was crafted from funk, disco-pop, soul, soft rock, jazz and pop ballads. Jackson received positive reviews for his vocal performance on the record. The record gained positive reviews and won the singer his first Grammy Awards since the early 1970s. With Off the Wall, Jackson became the first solo artist to have four singles from the same album peak inside the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. The album was a commercial success, to date it is certified for 7× Multi-Platinum in the US and has sold 20 million copies worldwide.

On October 16, 2001, a special edition reissue of Off the Wall was released by Sony Records. Recent reviews by Allmusic and Blender have continued to praise Off the Wall for its appeal in the 21st century. In 2003, the album was ranked number 68 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. The National Association of Recording Merchandisers listed it at number 80 of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time. In 2008, Off the Wall was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Starting in 1972, Michael Jackson released a total of four solo studio albums with Motown, among them Got to Be There and Ben. These were released as part of The Jackson 5 franchise, and produced successful singles such as “Got to Be There“, “Ben” and a remake of Bobby Day‘s “Rockin’ Robin“. The Jackson 5′s sales, however, began declining in 1973, and the band members chafed under Motown’s strict refusal to allow them creative control or input.  Although the group scored several top 40 hits, including the top five disco single “Dancing Machine” and the top 20 hit “I Am Love“, The Jackson 5 (minus Jermaine Jackson) left Motown in 1975. The Jackson 5 signed a new contract with CBS Records in June 1975, first joining the Philadelphia International Records division and then Epic Records. As a result of legal proceedings, the group was renamed The Jacksons. After the name change, the band continued to tour internationally, releasing six more albums between 1976 and 1984. From 1976 to 1984, Michael Jackson was the lead songwriter of the group, writing or co-writing such hits as “Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)“, “This Place Hotel” and “Can You Feel It“.

In 1978, Jackson starred as Scarecrow in the film musical The Wiz. The musical scores were arranged by Quincy Jones, who formed a partnership with Jackson during the film’s production and agreed to produce the singer’s solo album Off the Wall.  Jackson was dedicated to the role, and watched videotapes of gazelles, cheetahs and panthers in order to learn graceful movements for his part. Jones recalled working with Jackson as one of his favorite experiences from The Wiz, and spoke of Jackson’s dedication to his role, comparing his acting style to Sammy Davis, Jr. Critics panned The Wiz upon its October 1978 release. Jackson’s performance as the Scarecrow was one of the only positively reviewed elements of the film, with critics noting that Jackson possessed “genuine acting talent” and “provided the only genuinely memorable moments.” Of the results of the film, Jackson stated: “I don’t think it could have been any better, I really don’t”. In 1980, Jackson stated that his time working on The Wiz was “my greatest experience so far…I’ll never forget that”.

In 1979, Jackson broke his nose during a complex dance routine. His subsequent rhinoplasty surgery was not a complete success, and Jackson complained of breathing difficulties that would affect his career. He was referred to Dr. Steven Hoefflin, who performed Jackson’s second rhinoplasty and other subsequent operations.

Release, singles and commercial reception

Writer, journalist and biographer John Randall Taraborrelli stated, “Fans and industry peers alike were left with their mouths agape when Off the Wall was issued to the public. Fans proclaimed that they hadn’t heard him sing with such joy and abandon since the early Jackson 5 days”.^[25]

On July 28, 1979, Off the Wall’s first single, “Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough“, was released. It peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number three in the UK.On November 3, 1979 the second single from the album, “Rock with You” was released, again it peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100. In February, the album’s title track was released as a single and went to number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and became a top 10 hit in four countries.  ”She’s out of My Life”, also reaching number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in June. Thus Off the Wall became the first album by a solo artist to generate four US top 10 hits.

Today, Off the Wall is certified 7× Multi-Platinum in the US for shipments of seven million units and sold over 20 million copies worldwide The album’s success lead to the start of a 9-year partnership between Jackson and Jones, their next collaboration would be Thriller, which is the world’s best selling album of all time.

Contemporary appeal

On October 16, 2001, a special edition reissue of Off the Wall was released by Sony Records. The material found strong praise from critics more than 20 years after the original release. Allmusic gave the record a five star review, praising the record’s disco-tinged funk and mainstream pop blend, along with Jackson’s songwriting and Jones’ crafty production.^[26] The publication believed, “[Off the Wall] is an enormously fresh record, one that remains vibrant and giddily exciting years after its release”.^[26]

In recent years Blender gave the record a full five star review stating that it was, “A blockbuster party LP that looked beyond funk to the future of dance music, and beyond soul ballads to the future of heart-tuggers—in fact, beyond R&B to color-blind pop. Hence, the forgivable Wings cover”.^[2]

In 2003, the album was ranked number 68 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.^[40] The National Association of Recording Merchandisers listed it at number 80 of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time.^[41] In 2004, Nelson George wrote of Jackson and his music, “the argument for his greatness in the recording studio begins with his arrangements of “Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough”. The layers of percussion and the stacks of backing vocals, both artfully choreographed to create drama and ecstasy on the dance floor, still rock parties in the 21st century”. In 2008, Off the Wall was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Sales

Track listing

Personnel

• Michael Boddicker – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
• Larry Carlton – guitar
• George Duke – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
• David Foster – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
• Gary Grant – trumpet, flügelhorn
• Marlo Henderson – guitar
• Jerry Hey – trumpet, flügelhorn
• Kim Hutchcroft – saxophone, flute, trumpet, flügelhorn
• Michael Jackson – lead vocals, background vocals, producer
• Louis Johnson – bass guitar
• Quincy Jones – producer
• Greg Phillinganes – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
• Steve Porcaro – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
• William Reichenbach – trombone
• John Robinson – drums
• Bruce Swedien – recording engineer
• Phil Upchurch – guitar
• Bobby Watson – bass guitar
• Wah Wah Watson – guitar
• David Williams – guitar
• Larry Williams – saxophone, flute

Horn and string arrangements by Jerry Hey and performed by The Seawind Horns, Ben Wright, Johnny Mandel.

Supported  by
MICHAEL JACKSON MANIA 

JL Taman Bendungan Asahan 5 Jakarta Indonesia 102010

phone : 62(021) 70081995 – 5703646

mobile phone : 085692114641 

http://michaeljacksonmania.wordpress.com/ 

 Editor in Chief :

AUDI YUDHASMARA

email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com 

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.

HIStory is the best-selling multiple disc album ever, with worldwide sales of 20 million (40 million in terms of units).^[2] The album won one Grammy for Best Music Video — Short Form for “Scream.” The first disc of greatest hits was reissued in 2001 as a single disc under the name Greatest Hits: HIStory, Vol. 1.

Recording

Recording started in September 1994 and would carry through the early spring of 1995. Jackson wrote the majority of the songs attacking the press for “scandalizing” him and gave messages to fans to not “feed into the tabloids”. One of the songs was “Scream“, a duet between Michael and sister Janet, who had agreed to do a duet with her brother after she felt that she “had made it to the top” and she didn’t fear that she’d “had to ride Michael’s coattails”. Other songs that attacked the tabloids included “Tabloid Junkie” and “This Time Around”. The Michael and Janet duet was the first of several tunes Jackson produced with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (“2 Bad”, “HIStory”, “Tabloid Junkie”) but not without additional help from the likes of Dallas Austin (“This Time Around”), R. Kelly (the lone ballad, “You Are Not Alone“), Charles Chaplin (“Smile”) and Jackson himself (“They Don’t Care About Us“, “Earth Song“, “Stranger in Moscow“, “D.S.”, “Money”, “Little Susie” with Jackson-arranged variation of Maurice Duruflé‘s Requiem as prelude). Jackson, in fact, dominated the production of the album though not fully incorporating serious issues into his music including racism, the ecology and his own personal travails (“D.S.”, in particular, was an attack on the district attorney of Jackson’s case, Thomas Sneddon, in which he is heard singing in the chorus despite the lyrics reading “Dom Sheldon”, possibly used to escape a lawsuit). Like on previous albums, Jackson wanted to feature guest stars. Other than his sister Janet, rapper The Notorious B.I.G. put down a rap verse in “This Time Around”, soul group Boyz II Men sung background vocals on “HIStory” and basketball star and sometime rapper Shaquille O’Neal put down a verse on “2 Bad”. While fourteen of the songs were new recordings, Jackson included an older recording of his cover of The Beatles‘ “Come Together“, which he had recorded during the Bad era. The version included on the album is an early fade of the original version.

HIStory was originally to be called “Decade”, which would include several previous Jackson hits and several new songs from the later part of his career. This was shelved and HIStory was eventually expanded into a two-disc set.

Controversy

HIStory remains Jackson’s most controversial album as seen by a number of events.

• The music video for “You Are Not Alone” was controversial in that it featured an almost nude Jackson and his then-wife Lisa Marie Presley. Additionally, two Belgian songwriters, brothers Eddy and Danny Van Passel, claimed to have written the melody in 1993. In September 2007 a Belgian judge ruled the song was plagiarized from the Van Passel brothers and the song was subsequently banned from airwaves in Belgium.
• Controversy arose when a verse in “They Don’t Care About Us” (“Jew me/sue me/everybody do me/kick me, kike me/don’t you black or white me”) raised suspicion that the singer was anti-Semitic, charges Jackson denied. To make up for it, he edited the verse on later issues of the album.
• The original music video for “They Don’t Care About Us” showed Jackson singing the song in a prison.MTV took the video off its playlist because it showed scenes of violence. Jackson and video director Spike Lee released another version of the video set in Dona Marta, a shanty town in Brazil, which was actually shot before the “prison version”. However, because of the filming location, one Brazilian politician accused Jackson of exploiting poverty to make money. The politician also alleged that Jackson needed and was given permission by drug traffickers to shoot the video.
• At the BRIT Awards in 1996, Jackson was given a special “Artist of a Generation” award. At the ceremony he performed “Earth Song” with a grandiose stage show, with Jackson portrayed as an allegedy “Christ-like” figure surrounded by adoring children. Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker mounted the stage in protest at the act. Cocker ran across the stage, lifting his shirt and pointing his (clothed) bottom in Jackson’s direction. Cocker was subsequently questioned by the police on suspicion of causing injury towards three of the children in Jackson’s performance, although no criminal proceedings followed. The performance saw the song and album rise back up the charts.

Critical response

	“This Time Around” Excerpt of the U.S. radio only release “This Time Around”. “Tabloid Junkie” Excerpt of the song, “Tabloid Junkie”.

The album received 5 Grammy Award nominations and won one, these were:

• “Album of the Year” – HIStory – Nomination
• “Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals” – “Scream” – Nomination
• “Best Male Pop Vocal Performance” – “You Are Not Alone” – Nomination
• “Best Music Video, Short Form” – “Earth Song” – Nomination
• “Best Music Video, Short Form” – “Scream” – Won

HIStory, arguably Jackson’s most conflicting album, revealed a “furious” pop icon worn by years of superstardom,with Jon Pareles of the The New York Times writing that “It has been a long time since Michael Jackson was simply a performer. He’s the main asset of his own corporation, which is a profitable subsidiary of Sony”. Some reviewers commented on the unusual format of a new studio album being accompanied by a “greatest hits” collection, with Q magazine saying “from the new songs’ point of view, it’s like taking your dad with you into a fight.”^[11]

In relation to “This Time Around”, James Hunter of Rolling Stone described it as a “dynamite jam…done with Atlanta R&B hotshot Dallas Austin that’s ripe for remixes”.Jon Pareles of The New York Times believed that Jackson “muttered” lyrics such as “They thought they really had control of Chris Willman of the Los Angeles Times said of “This Time Around”, “a tough, rhythm-guitar-driven track co-written and co-produced by hit-maker Dallas Austin that sports one of the album’s better grooves”.^[13] Fred Shuster of the Daily News of Los Angeles described “This Time Around”, “Money” and “D.S.” as “superb slices of organic funk that will fuel many of the summer’s busiest dance floors”.^[14]

Singles

Sales of HIStory were down from his previous albums Dangerous and Bad (although unit sales were higher). This has been attributed to the high purchase cost of HIStory and critics believe that the public purchased the singles over the album. The single sales of HIStory were collectively 10.45 million units, which was higher than those of Dangerous at 8.36 million units and Bad at 10.03 million units, even though the latter albums had more singles released from their track lists (eight and nine releases respectively, against the five from HIStory). Only the singles from the Thriller at 19.55 million units sold better than those released from HIStory.

• “Scream/Childhood” – Released as a double A-side the first single released from HIStory was “Scream”, sung and performed with his sister Janet Jackson. The single had the best ever debut at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and had a Grammy nomination for “Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals”. The music video for “Scream” is one of his most critically acclaimed winning three MTV awards in 1995 and a Grammy in 1996.”Scream” is currently the most expensive music video ever made. It sold 2 million copies worldwide.

• “You Are Not Alone” – was the second single released from HIStory and would become the first song ever to debut at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, (beating his previous single “Scream”). It reached #1 in various international markets, including Britain. It was seen as a major artistic and commercial success and received a Grammy nomination for “Best Pop Vocal Performance”. It sold 3 million copies worldwide.

• “Earth Song” – was the third single released from HIStory, and was accompanied by a well received expensive music video that was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1996 but lost to his earlier video “Scream”. The song topped the UK Singles Chart for six weeks over Christmas in 1995 and sold one million copies there, making it his most successful UK single, surpassing the success of “Billie Jean”. It sold 3.15 million copies worldwide.

• “They Don’t Care About Us” – It sold 1.75 million copies worldwide.

• “Stranger in Moscow” – was a success in Europe, reaching the top of the charts in Spain and Italy, #4 in the UK, #5 in Switzerland, #6 in New Zealand and #9 in Denmark. It sold 540,000 copies worldwide.

• “This Time Around”, a U.S. only radio release, peak at #23 on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart and #18 on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart purely off radio airplay

Chart performance

“HIStory” debuted at number-one on the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts selling over 391,000 copies in its first week.^[23][24] The album was certified seven times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on October 22, 1999 in recognition of 3.5 million shipments in the United States.^[25] Multi-disc albums are counted once for each disc within the album if it is over 100 minutes in length, in this case “HIStory” is 148:50 minutes long. It is counted twice meaning each album was certified platinum after 500,000 copies were shipped. The Canadian Recording Industry Association certified it 5× platinum after shipping in excess of 500,000 units.

In Europe, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry certified “HIStory” six times platinum, denoting six million shipments within the continent. Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number-one on the official albums chart and was certified four times platinum by the British Phonographic Industry for shipments of 1.2 million copies. In France, “HIStory” became Jackson’s fourth diamond-seller album after Dangerous (1991), Bad (1987) and Thriller (1982), denoting sales of over one million units. In addition, Germany was the European country where the double-disc set sold the most, over 1.5 million copies, being certified three times platinum by the IFPI.

“HIStory” has sold over twenty million copies worldwide  and, according to MSNBC, is the best-selling multiple-disc album of all-time.

Charts and certifications

Charts	Peak Position	Certification	Sales/Shipments
Argentina		Platinum[32]	200,000[32]
Australia	1	8× platinum[33]	560,000[34]
Austria	2	2× platinum[35]	80,000[36]
Belgium	1
Canada		5× platinum[26]	500,000[37]
Europe		6× platinum[38]	6,000,000[39]
Finland	3	Platinum[40]	61,352[40]
France	1	Diamond[28]	1,000,000[28]
Germany[41]	1	3× platinum[29]	1,500,000[42]
Netherlands	1	3× platinum[43]	240,000[36]
New Zealand	1[44]	9× platinum[45]	135,000[46]
Norway	1	Platinum[47]	40,000[36]
Sweden	3	Platinum[48]	60,000[36]
Switzerland	1	3× platinum[49]	150,000[49]
United Kingdom[50]	1	4× platinum[27]	1,200,000
United States[23]	1	7× platinum[25]	7,000,000

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Michael Jackson, except where noted. 

Credits

Production credits

• “Scream” produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson
• “They Don’t Care About Us”, “Stranger in Moscow”, “D.S.”, “Money” and “Little Susie” produced by Michael Jackson
• “This Time Around” produced by Dallas Austin and Michael Jackson, co-produced by Bruce Swedien and Rene
• “Earth Song” produced by Michael Jackson and David Foster, co-produced by Bill Bottrell
• “Come Together” produced by Michael Jackson and Bill Bottrell
• “You Are Not Alone” produced by R. Kelly and Michael Jackson
• “Childhood” and “Smile” produced by Michael Jackson and David Foster
• “Tabloid Junkie” and “History” produced by Michael Jackson and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
• “2 Bad” produced by Michael Jackson, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Bruce Swedien and Rene

Album credits

• Lead and Background Vocals: Michael Jackson
• Background Vocals: Zedric Williams, James Ingram, Siedah Garrett, Andrae and Sandra Crouch and the Andrae Crouch Singers; Carol Dennis, Jackie Gouche, Gloria Estefan, and Linda McCrary
• Child soloists:
  • “HIStory”: Leah Frazier
  • “Little Susie”: Markita Prescott
• Rap performances by R. Kelly, Boyz II Men: Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman, Michael McCary; The Notorious B.I.G. and Shaquille O’Neal
• Arrangements by Michael Jackson, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Dallas Austin, Bruce Swedien, R. Kelly, Rene, Jeremy Lubbock, Brad Buxer and Johnny Mandel
• Vocal arrangements by Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
• Orchestral arrangements by David Foster, Elmer Bernstein and Bill Ross
• String arrangements by Michael Jackson
• Keyboard arrangements by Michael Jackson
• Orchestras conducted by Jeremy Lubbock
• Horn arrangement by Michael Jackson and Jerry Hey
• Pianos: David Paich and John Barnes
• Keyboards and synthesizers: Randy Kerber, Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, David Foster, Steve “Yada” Porcaro, David Paich, Bill Bottrell, Dallas Austin, Glen Ballard, Rene, Brad Buxer, Simon Franglen, Greg Phillinganes, Lafayette Carthon, Michael Boddicker, Chuck Wild, Rob Arbitter, Gary Adante, John Barnes and Randy Waldman
• Synthesizer programming: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Simon Franglen, Steve Porcaro, Brad Buxer, Peter Mokran, Michael Boddicker, Chuck Wild, Andrew Scheps, Rick Sheppard, Rob Hoffman, Bobby Brooks, Jeff Bova, Chris Palmero, Jason Miles, Arnie Schulze and Gregg Mangiafico
• Drum programming: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Peter Mokran and Andrew Scheps
• Synclavier programming: Andrew Scheps and Simon Franglen
• Guitars: Eddie Van Halen, Slash, David Williams, Larry Clayton, Dean Parks, Eric Gale, Tim Pierce, Dann Huff, Paul Jackson Jr., Steve Lukather, Bill Bottrell, Jeff Mirinow, Rob Hoffman, Jen Leigh, and Trevor Rabin
• Drums: Ndugu Chancler, Jeff Porcaro, John Robinson and Bryan Loren
• Percussion: Michael Jackson, Ollie E. Brown, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Bill Bottrell, Buddy Williams, Bruce Swedien, Simon Franglen, Rene, Chuck Wild, Paulinho Da Costa, Nannette Fortier and Bobby Brooks
• Bass: Steve Lukather, Colin Wolfe, Louis Johnson, Nathan East, Terry Jackson, Doug Grigsby and Guy Pratt
• Synth bass: Bryan Loren
• Horns: Larry Williams, Jerry Hey, Gary Grant, William Reichenbach and Kim Hutchcroft

 Technical credits

• Executive producer: Michael Jackson
• Recorded and mixed by Bruce Swedien
• Additional Recording and mixing by Eddie De Lena, Steve Hodge and W.J.R.
• Technical directors: Matt Forger and Brad Sundberg
• Production coordination: Rachel Smith
• Mastered by Bernie Grundman
• Computer programming and technical direction assistance by Craig Johnson
• Additional synthesizer programming and sound design by Michael Boddicker, Chuck Wild, Scott Pittinsky, Bobby Brooks, Roberta Swedien and Darry Ross

Supported  by
MICHAEL JACKSON MANIA 

JL Taman Bendungan Asahan 5 Jakarta Indonesia 102010

phone : 62(021) 70081995 – 5703646

mobile phone : 085692114641 

http://michaeljacksonmania.wordpress.com/ 

 Editor in Chief :

AUDI YUDHASMARA

email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com 

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.

This album saw Jackson have even more freedom than he did in his two previous albums, Off the Wall and Thriller, as he wrote and composed nine of the album’s 11 tracks, and co-wrote and produced another; “Man in the Mirror“. The album, which saw the squeaky-clean pop idol adopt a street-tough image, continued Jackson’s commercial success in the late ’80s and won two Grammys, one for Best Music Video – Short Form for Leave Me Alone, and one for Best Engineered Album – Non Classical. Bad was ranked number 43 in the 100 Greatest Albums of All Time of the MTV Generation in 2009 by VH1. It was ranked number 202 in Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

History

Recording

Jackson began recording demos for the anticipated follow-up to Thriller a few months after the 1984 Victory Tour with The Jacksons. Recording took place between January 5, 1987 and July 9, 1987^[7] (except for “Another Part of Me” which was recorded for Captain EO in 1986). Jackson wrote a reported sixty songs for the new album and recorded thirty, wanting to use them all on a three-disc set. Longtime producer Quincy Jones cut these down to a ten-track single LP. The CD release also contained a bonus 11th track, “Leave Me Alone”.

Jackson wrote nine of the eleven tracks himself. Terry Britten (writer of Tina Turner‘s “What’s Love Got to Do With It“) and Graham Lyle wrote “Just Good Friends”. Siedah Garrett and Glen Ballard wrote “Man in the Mirror”. Stevie Wonder sings co-lead vocal on “Just Good Friends”, and Steve Stevens contributes the guitar solo for “Dirty Diana“.

However, while recording the tracks for Bad, there was some debate between Jackson and Jones on which songs would be put on the album. For example, they both had a hard time deciding on either “Streetwalker” or “Another Part of Me” (which was recorded for Captain EO in 1986) to be put on the album. Jackson wanted “Streetwalker”, whereas Jones wanted “Another Part of Me”. Ultimately, it was decided by Jackson’s manager Frank Dileo. According to Quincy Jones from “Bad: Special Edition”, there was a meeting among the three. In the meeting, Jackson played “Streetwalker” first, and Dileo was not impressed. But Dileo started to dance when “Another Part of Me” came on. This is what eventually put “Another Part of Me” onto the album.

“Bad” was originally intended as a duet between Jackson and Prince. A rivalry had developed between the two over the years, and Jackson’s plan was to leak stories to the media about rising tensions between himself and Prince, culminating in the release of the song. Prince turned down the project, explaining to Jones that the song “would be a hit without (him) on it”.

“I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” was supposed to feature a famous female singer. Reportedly Barbra Streisand, Aretha Franklin and Whitney Houston all turned down the offer, before Jones chose R&B singer-songwriter Siedah Garrett.

Reception

By the time Jackson released this album, sales of its predecessor, Thriller, had already reached forty million, raising expectations for Bad. Bad became the first of Jackson’s albums to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 where it remained for the next six consecutive weeks. The RIAA certified Bad for having sold eight million copies in the U.S. alone.^[8] In the U.K, the album sold 500,000 copies in just five days and is currently certified 13x platinum, for sales of 3.9 million, making it Jackson’s biggest-selling album in the UK. Globally, it is Jackson’s overall third best-selling recording, behind Thriller and Dangerous, with 30 million copies sold.^[9]

Jackson set another record with this album, becoming the first, and currently only, artist to have five songs to hit number one from one album.In July 2006, it was announced by the The Official UK Charts Company that Bad was the ninth biggest selling album in British history.^[11] It turned out to be the last collaborative effort by Jackson and Jones, as Jackson moved on to write and produce more of his own records, particularly with Teddy Riley, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Rodney Jerkins.

Rolling Stone stated that “even without a milestone recording like “Billie Jean“, Bad is still a better record than Thriller.” The magazine further went on to say that the “filler” content in Bad – including songs such as “Speed Demon”, “Dirty Diana” and “Liberian Girl” – is written by Jackson himself, making Bad “richer, sexier and better than Thriller’s forgettables.”

Despite the record’s success, in a poll of 23,000 U.S. citizens, released by Rolling Stone, Jackson won “worst album” for Bad and “worst single” for “Bad”. TIME gave the opinion that the singer was suffering a backlash in certain parts of the United States. The publication suggested that the singer’s media image was triggering the poll, not the music.

In 2001, a special edition of the album was released with three new songs and a new booklet containing lyrics and previously-unpublished photos.

In 2003, the album was ranked number 202 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Marketing

During the Bad period Jackson used marketing to his advantage, more so than he had with Thriller. A year before Bad, Jackson used several tactics to get the media interested in his short film, Captain EO, during the recording of Bad. Jackson played a space captain in the mini-film, which was produced by George Lucas. By the time Jackson released Bad, he produced a commemorative special on his life, “The Magic Returns”, which aired on CBS. At the end of the documentary, the channel debuted Jackson’s “Bad” short film, which featured then up-and-coming actor Wesley Snipes. Jackson’s marketing strategy, mastered by Frank DiLeo among others, also included Jackson producing another mini-movie around the time of the Bad World Tour. That film, Moonwalker, included performances of songs from “Bad” including “Speed Demon”, “Leave Me Alone” and “Smooth Criminal“, the latter two released as sole videos at the end of the film. Jackson also used the opportunity to write about his life up until that point releasing 1988′s Moonwalk. Jackson’s tour for Bad was a major financial success, grossing $125 million by the end of its tenure. Though Jackson furthered his stance as a global pop superstar, in the United States he failed to match to the sales of Thriller, causing some in the media to label Bad a “disappointment” in comparison.

Track listing

Re-issues of Bad feature a number of changes when compared to the original 1987 release:^[18]

• “Bad” has a modified horn arrangement.
• “The Way You Make Me Feel” has richer vocalizations and background vocals.
• “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” omits Jackson’s spoken intro.
• “Dirty Diana” is replaced with the 7-inch edit of the song.
• “Smooth Criminal” omits the dramatic breathing within the intro.

[Singles

1. July 1987 - "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" U.S. #1 / UK #1
2. September 1987 - "Bad" U.S. #1 / UK #3
3. November 1987 - "The Way You Make Me Feel" U.S. #1 / UK #3
4. January 1988 - "Man in the Mirror" U.S. #1 / UK #2
5. April 1988 - "Dirty Diana" U.S. #1 / UK #4
6. July 1988 - "Another Part of Me" U.S. #11 / UK #15
7. September 1988 - "Smooth Criminal" U.S. #7 / UK #8
8. January 1989 - "Leave Me Alone" UK #2
9. June 1989 - "Liberian Girl" UK #13^[19]

Chart performance

Certifications

U.S. sales

Credits

“Bad”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals: Michael Jackson
• Hammond B3 Midi organ solo: Jimmy Smith
• Synthesizer solo: Greg Phillinganes
• Drums: John Robinson
• Drum programming: Douglas Getschal
• Guitar: David Williams
• Saxophones: Kim Hutchcroft and Larry Williams
• Trumpets: Gary Grant and Jerry Hey
• Percussion: Paulinho Da Costa
• Synclavier keyboards, digital guitar and rubboard: Christopher Currell
• Synthesizers: John Barnes, Michael Boddicker and Greg Phillinganes
• Rhythm arrangement by Michael Jackson, Christopher Currell and Quincy Jones
• Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey
• Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson

“The Way You Make Me Feel”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals and finger snaps: Michael Jackson
• Drums: John Robinson
• Drum programming: Douglas Getschal
• Saxophones: Kim Hutchcroft and Larry Williams
• Trumpets: Gary Grant and Jerry Hey
• Percussion: Ollie E. Brown and Paulinho Da Costa
• Synclavier and finger snaps: Christopher Currell
• Synthesizers: John Barnes, Michael Boddicker and Greg Phillinganes
• Synthesizer programming: Larry Williams
• Rhythm and vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson
• Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey

“Speed Demon”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals and vocal synthesizer: Michael Jackson
• Midi saxophone solo: Larry Williams
• Drums: Miko Brando, Ollie E. Brown and John Robinson
• Drum programming: Douglas Getschal
• Guitars: Bill Bottrell and David Williams
• Saxophone: Kim Hutchcroft
• Trumpets: Gary Grant and Jerry Hey
• Percussion: Ollie E. Brown and Paulinho Da Costa
• Synclavier and effects: Christopher Currell
• Synthesizers: John Barnes, Michael Boddicker and Greg Phillinganes
• Synthesizer programming: Eric Persing
• Sounds engineered by Ken Caillat and Tom Jones
• Rhythm arrangement by Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones
• Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson
• Synthersizer and horn arrangements by Jerry Hey

“Liberian Girl”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals: Michael Jackson
• Drums: Miko Brando, Ollie E. Brown and John Robinson
• Drum programming: Douglas Getschal
• Percussion: Ollie E. Brown and Paulinho Da Costa
• Synclavier and effects: Christopher Currell
• Synthesizers: John Barnes, Michael Boddicker, David Paich and Larry Williams
• Synthesizer programming: Steve Porcaro
• Swahili chant: Letta Mbulu
• Rhythm arrangement by Michael Jackson, John Barnes and Quincy Jones
• Synthesizer arrangement by Jerry Hey, John Barnes and Quincy Jones
• Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson and John Barnes
• Swahili chant arrangement by Caiphus Semenya

“Just Good Friends”

• Written and composed by Terry Britten and Graham Lyle
• Vocal duet with Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder
• Synthesizer solo: Stevie Wonder
• Drums: Ollie E. Brown, Humberto Gatica and Bruce Swedien
• Drum programming: Cornelius Mims
• Guitar: Michael Landau
• Saxophones: Kim Hutchcroft and Larry Williams
• Trumpets: Gary Grant and Jerry Hey
• Percussion: Paulinho Da Costa
• Synclavier: Christopher Currell
• Synthesizers: Michael Boddicker, Rhett Lawrence, Greg Phillinganes and Larry Williams
• Rhythm, synthesizer and vocal arrangements by Terry Britten, Graham Lyle and Quincy Jones
• Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey

“Another Part of Me”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals: Michael Jackson
• Guitars: Paul Jackson, Jr. and David Williams
• Saxophones: Kim Hutchcroft and Larry Williams
• Trumpets: Gary Grant and Jerry Hey
• Synclavier: Christopher Currell
• Synthesizers: Rhett Lawrence and John Barnes
• Rhythm and vocal arrangements by Michael Jackson and John Barnes
• Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey

“Man in the Mirror”

• Written and composed by Siedah Garrett and Glen Ballard
• Solo and background vocals: Michael Jackson featuring Siedah Garrett, the Winans and the Andrae Crouch Choir
• Clap: Ollie E. Brown
• Guitar: Dann Huff
• Keyboards: Stefan Stefanovic
• Synthesizers: Glen Ballard and Randy Kerber
• Background vocals: Siedah Garrett, The Winans (Carvin, Marvin, Michael and Ronald Winans), The Andrae Crouch Choir (Sandra Crouch, Maxi Anderson, Rose Banks, Geary Faggett, Vonciele Faggett, Andrew Gouche, Linda Green, Francine Howard, Jean Johnson, Perry Morgan and Alfie Silas)
• Rhythm arrangements by Glen Ballard and Quincy Jones
• Synthesizer arrangement by Glen Ballard, Quincy Jones and Jerry Hey
• Vocal arrangement by Andrae Crouch

“I Just Can’t Stop Loving You”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Vocal duet with Michael Jackson and Siedah Garrett
• Bass: Nathan East
• Drums: N’dugu Chancler
• Guitar: Dann Huff
• Percussion: Paulinho Da Costa
• Piano: John Barnes
• Synclavier: Christopher Currell
• Synthesizers: David Paich and Greg Phillinganes
• Synthesizer programming: Steve Porcaro
• Rhythm arrangement by Quincy Jones
• Synthesizer arrangement by David Paich and Quincy Jones
• Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson and John

“Dirty Diana”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals and clave’ clapstick: Michael Jackson
• Guitar solo: Steve Stevens
• Drums: John Robinson
• Drum programming: Douglas Getschal
• Guitar: Paul Jackson, Jr. and David Williams
• Synclavier: Christopher Currell
• Synclavier synthesis: Denny Jaeger
• Synthesizers: John Barnes, Michael Boddicker and Randy Waldman
• Rhythm arrangement by Michael Jackson, John Barnes and Jerry Hey
• Synthesizer arrangement by Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones and John Barnes
• String arrangement by John Barnes
• Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson

“Smooth Criminal”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals and clap: Michael Jackson
• Drums: Bill Bottrell, John Robinson and Bruce Swedien
• Guitar: David Williams
• Saxophones: Kim Hutchcroft and Larry Williams
• Trumpets: Gary Grant and Jerry Hey
• Muted Steinway piano: Kevin Maloney
• Synclavier: Christopher Currell
• Certain Synclavier effects by Denny Jaeger and Michael Rubini
• Synthesizers: John Barnes and Michael Boddicker
• Chief of Police announcement by Bruce Swedien
• Michael Jackson’s heartbeat recording by Dr. Eric Chevlan digitally processed in the synclavier
• Rhythm arrangement by Michael Jackson and John Barnes
• Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey
• Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson

“Leave Me Alone”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson
• Solo and background vocals and vocal synthesizer: Michael Jackson
• Drum programming and synthesizers: Larry Williams
• Guitar: Paul Jackson, Jr.
• Synclavier and synthesizer programming: Casey Young
• Synthesizer: Greg Phillinganes
• Rhythm and vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson

“Streetwalker”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson

“Todo Mi Amor Eres Tú (I Just Can’t Stop Loving You)”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson and Rubén Blades

“Fly Away”

• Written and composed by Michael Jackson

[edit] Other credits

• Produced by Quincy Jones
• Co-produced by Michael Jackson
• Recorded and mixed by Bruce Swedien
• Additional engineering by Humberto Gatica
• Technical director: Craig Jonhnson
• Additional recording by Claudio Ordenes, Bill Bottrel, Matt Forger, Craig Johnson, Gary Olazabal and Brian Malouf
• Assistant engineers: Debbie Johnson, Claudio Ordenes, Brad Sundberg and Laura Livingstone

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MICHAEL JACKSON MANIA 

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http://michaeljacksonmania.wordpress.com/ 

 Editor in Chief :

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email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com 

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.

Music videos

As was becoming the standard for Jackson, the album’s music videos were among the most costly and innovative of their time. Several of the music videos taken from the Dangerous album had complex storylines and dance sequences, and featured cameo appearances by celebrities. The video for “Jam”, directed by David Kellogg, showed Jackson and Michael Jordan playing basketball and dancing together, while “Remember the Time” was set in an Ancient Egyptian palace, and starred Eddie Murphy, Magic Johnson and Iman as the pharaoh and his queen. “In the Closet” featured Jackson and supermodel Naomi Campbell as lovers. The director of the video was photographer Herb Ritts, who also photographed Jackson in a series of promotional shots for the release of the Dangerous album. A “Dangerous” video was filmed in 1992 by avant-garde director David Lynch, and considered a rarity among collectors. The video clip for “Who Is It” is notable as it was directed by David Fincher who later went on direct a number of films including Se7en, Fight Club and Zodiac.

“Black or White” was originally over ten minutes long, premiering simultaneously on November 14, 1991 on MTV, VH1, BET, and FOX. The video featured one of the earliest examples of computer-generated morphing. The last four minutes of the video also induced much controversy, as it depicted Jackson smashing store windows and destroying a car with a crowbar. However, this destructive behaviour was intended to imply a message of anti-racism and racist graffiti was added in later versions to make the violence more understandable. The music video was also controversial because of Jackson’s sexually suggestive dance, which included the crotch grab as well as zipping up his pants. MTV and the other music video networks decided to excise the last four minutes of the “Black or White” video for all subsequent airings, and Jackson issued a statement apologizing to anyone who had been offended, and explaining that he tried to interpret the animal instinct of panthers into a dance. The video featured Macaulay Culkin and an appearance during the morphing scene by young Tyra Banks and was directed by John Landis, also the director of the “Thriller” short film.

Special editions

Alternative editions of the albums became very rare, products almost exclusive for record collectors. The most notable was an edition released in 1992 that folded out to become a diorama.

An international re-release of the album (entitled Dangerous – Special Edition) took place on October 16, 2001, just two weeks before the release of Jackson’s studio album Invincible. Simultaneously, Special Editions of Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad were also released. For the occasion, Dangerous was digitally remastered and included a slipcase and a brand new 24-page colorful booklet with revised artwork and previously-unseen photos. The new edition managed to reach #108 in the UK charts (the only one of those four re-releases that didn’t enter the Top 75 there). Because of the constraints of Dangerous’ running time, previously unreleased songs were not included, however many of them were eventually leaked onto the internet along with various demos of other tracks that appeared on the album. In 2004, some of these leaked tracks were officially released on Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection (namely the “Dangerous” demo and “Monkey Business”).

Music awards

American Music Awards:

• Best Pop/Rock Album, “Dangerous”
• Best Soul/R&B Single, “Remember The Time”
• Special International Artist Award for record sales and humanitarian efforts around the world

BMI Awards:

• Two of the Most Performed Songs of the Year, “Black or White” and “Remember The Time”

Grammy Awards: Living Legend Award Guinness Book Of World Records:

• 25th Silver Anniversary Entertainer of the Year Award
• Outstanding Music Video, “Black or White”

Soul Train Awards:

• Best R&B Single, “Remember The Time”
• Best R&B Album, “Dangerous”

World Music Awards:

• Best Selling American Artist
• World’s Best Selling Pop Artist

Track listing

Singles

1. October 1991 – “Black or White” U.S. #1 / UK #1
2. January 1992 – “Remember the Time” U.S. #3 / UK #3
3. April 1992 – “In the Closet” U.S. #6 / UK #8
4. July 1992 (U.S.); September 1992 (UK) – “Jam” U.S. #26 / UK #12
5. August 1992 (Europe); February 1993 (U.S.) – “Who Is It” U.S. #14 / UK #10
6. October 1992 – “Heal the World” U.S. #27 / UK #2
7. February 1993 – “Give In to Me” UK #2 (Europe only single)
8. May 1993 – “Will You Be There” U.S. #7 / UK #8
9. November 1993 – “Gone Too Soon” UK #33 (UK only single)

Certifications

Chart positions

Supported  by
MICHAEL JACKSON MANIA

JL Taman Bendungan Asahan 5 Jakarta Indonesia 102010

phone : 62(021) 70081995 – 5703646

mobile phone : 085692114641

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 Editor in Chief :

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email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.

The album was to be the first release featuring all new tracks since Dangerous in 1991.In addition to production being handled by contemporary artists such as Rodney Jerkins, R. Kelly and former Jodeci member DeVante Swing, Hip Hop producer Dr. Dre was asked to produce, but declined

Promotion and singles

To help promote the album, a special 30th Anniversary celebration at Madison Square Garden occurred in September 2001 to mark the singer’s 30th year as a solo artist. Jackson appeared onstage alongside his brothers for the first time since 1984. The show also featured performances by Mýa, Usher, Whitney Houston, ‘N Sync, and Slash, among other artists. In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, Jackson helped organize the United We Stand: What More Can I Give benefit concert at RFK Stadium in Washington D.C.. The concert was aired on October 21, 2001, and included performances from dozens of major artists, including Jackson, who performed his song “What More Can I Give” as the finale.^[5] The album spawned three singles, “You Rock My World“, “Cry” and “Butterflies“, the latter of which did not have a music video. “You Rock My World” peaked at #10 in its third week on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and “Butterflies” later peaked at #14 on the same chart, and at #2 for 5 weeks on the R&B/Hip-Hop singles chart. “Heaven Can Wait” also charted at the bottom of the R&B/Hip-Hop charts due to radio airplay without an official release.

Reception

Commercial

Being his first studio album in six years (after 1995′s HIStory), expectations were high. Invincible competed a race for the top of the Billboard 200 with some other big releases, being Enrique Iglesias‘s new album Escape its biggest contender. In the end, Invincible won the top, selling 366,275 copies during its debut week, almost 100,000 copies more than the 267,000 sold by Escape. Jackson’s other big rival of the week, the first Backstreet Boys compilation (called The Hits: Chapter One), was relegated to number four. Invincible not only debuted at number 1 in the U.S., but also 12 other countries, and sold between 8 and 10 million copies worldwide. It received double-platinum certification in the US.However, the sales for Invincible were notably low compared to his previous releases, due in part to a diminishing pop music industry, the lack of promotion, no supporting world tour and the label dispute.

Commenting on the sales of Invincible back in late 2003, which were reportedly six or seven million then, Bernard Zuel of The Sydney Morning Herald stated, “Holly Valance or Delta Goodrem would think their Christmases had come at once if they sold five or six million copies of their albums worldwide. Michael Jackson did something similar in the past two years with his seventh solo album, Invincible, and he’s been branded a failure in the industry and the media. Unfair? Yes, of course, because his Invincible figures are better than those for 95 per cent of the thousands of artists released each year and would provide a healthy retirement fund for anyone. What’s more, that failure tag is consistently applied by comparisons with his 1982 album, Thriller which has sold about 50 million copies and its follow-up, Bad, that sold about 25 million copies. Anything after that is a failure in relative terms if you want”.

Critical

Reviews of Invincible were generally favorable, but there was a consensus that it was one of Jackson’s least impressive records, mostly because it was too long; nearly 80 minutes. Allmusic gave the record three out of five stars saying, “Ultimately, the record runs too long, losing steam halfway through…[It's] not enough to make Invincible the comeback Jackson needed…but it does offer a reminder that he can really craft good pop”.^[14] NME gave the record six out of ten, stating, “Invincible is a relevant and rejuvenated comeback album made overlong”. Rolling Stone gave Invincible three out of five stars, believing that the early R&B tracks were good, but the later ballads made the record too long. Reviewer Robert Christgau gave the album an A-, saying, “His skills seem undiminished…his funk is steelier and his ballads are airier, both to disquieting effect. At 78 minutes this is too long.” This was the same grade he gave Jackson’s landmark album Thriller when originally released.

Jackson and his supporters maintain that reviews were unfair, often discussing the singer’s perceived eccentric image and past troubles, or making him the subject of ridicule.NME called him “Michael ‘Actually Quite Scary Now’ Jackson”, a “Fucking freak” and “a bit of a wanker”.Allmusic brought up “[Jackson's] truly ugly public scandal, and swirling rumors about his diminishing finances”. Rolling Stone believed that “every song is full of grandiose desperation. It’s an excruciatingly self-referential place, worsened further by its namesake’s unmatched controversies and weirdnesses.”  Robert Christgau believed Jackson had a “grotesque life magnified by his grotesque wealth”. He was also of the opinion that Jackson singing about helping children was “offensive”.

Dedication to Benjamin Hermansen

Invincible is dedicated to the 15 year old Afro-Norwegian boy Benjamin Hermansen who was stabbed to death by a group of neo-Nazis in Oslo on January 26, 2001. The reason for this tribute has partly to do with the fact that the Oslo boy Omar (or Omer) Bhatti and Jackson were close friends, and Bhatti was at the same time a good friend of Benjamin Hermansen. The album was also dedicated to Jackson’s own parents and grandmother. In the album’s booklet, next to the image of a rose, it reads:

Michael Jackson gives “special thanks”:

This album is dedicated to Benjamin “Benny” Hermansen. May we continue to remember not to judge man by the color of his skin, but the content of his Character. Benjamin … we love you … may you rest in peace.

Track listing

[edit] Charts

The IFPI European Double Platinum Award includes sales in the following countries:

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom

With a production budget of $750,000, recording sessions took place between April and November 1982 at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California.^[9] Assisted by producer Quincy Jones, Jackson wrote four of Thriller‘s nine tracks. Following the release of the album’s first single “The Girl Is Mine“, some observers assumed Thriller would only be a minor hit record. With the release of the second single “Billie Jean“, the album topped the charts in many countries. At its peak, the album was selling a million copies a week worldwide. In just over a year, Thriller became—and currently remains—the best-selling album of all time. Sales are estimated to be between 47–109 million copies sold worldwide. Seven of the album’s nine songs were released as singles, and all reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album won a record-breaking eight Grammy Awards at the 1984 Grammys.

Thriller cemented Jackson’s status as one of the predominant pop stars of the late 20th century, and enabled him to break down racial barriers via his appearances on MTV and meetings with President Ronald Reagan at the White House. The album was one of the first to use music videos as successful promotional tools—the videos for “Thriller”, “Billie Jean” and “Beat It” all received regular rotation on MTV. In 2001, a special edition issue of the album was released, which contains additional audio interviews, a demo recording and the song “Someone In the Dark”, which was a Grammy-winning track from the E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial storybook.^[10] In 2008, the album was reissued again as Thriller 25, containing re-mixes that feature contemporary artists, a previously unreleased song and a DVD.

Thriller ranked number 20 on Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list in 2003, and was listed by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers at number three in its Definitive 200 Albums of All Time. Thriller was preserved by the Library of Congress to the National Recording Registry, as it was deemed “culturally significant”.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Michael Jackson, except where noted. 

[edit] Personnel

Supported  by
MICHAEL JACKSON MANIA

JL Taman Bendungan Asahan 5 Jakarta Indonesia 102010

phone : 62(021) 70081995 – 5703646

mobile phone : 085692114641

http://michaeljacksonmania.wordpress.com/

 Editor in Chief :

AUDI YUDHASMARA

email : audiyudhasmara@yahoo.com

Copyright © 2009, Michael Jackson Mania  Information Network. All rights reserved.