Michael Jackson

[RobB]

I guess unless you have just come back from the Antarctic then you'll now be aware that Michael Jackson has died,aged just 50.

Whatever one feels about his music and about Michael as a person,there is no doubt that another icon musical figure, like Elvis & Lennon before him, has met with a premature end.

The media has gone into overdrive (and overboard) naturally enough but i guess its to be expected. Unless Madonna has an early demise,this is really their last opportunity.

[alx5962]

As usual, each time an artist die, CDs sales go up. And today some MJ albums raised the first places of top selling albums.
I never understood this behavior, so weird to me [b)]

edit : I just read there's spam about MJ's death starting to spread... wick [b)]

[RobB]

As usual, each time an artist die, CDs sales go up. And today some MJ albums raised the first places of top selling albums.
I never understood this behavior, so weird to me [b)]

Me neither but Amazon are reporting brisk business.

Surely only the fans would be interested in buying his music and wouldn't they have the albums already?

I can only think that its non-fans on a sudden nostalgic kick.

[sound world]

Poor MJ,the victim of a terrible childhood. All his subsequent problems come back to that,plus the pressures of ridiculous fame,in the unsupportive milieu of the late twentieth century.
I heard the tracks off 'Thriller' far too often in the 80s,no doubt we're going to be plagued by them for the next few weeks in public places. Give me the early Jackson 5 any day-although,of course,that's where the rot started.

(And I'm sure everyone knows that Farrah Fawcett Majors has also died today.)

[blue]

Poor MJ,the victim of a terrible childhood. All his subsequent problems come back to that,plus the pressures of ridiculous fame,in the unsupportive milieu of the late twentieth century.

Absolutely. It was an extraordinary life, and I think his mental health just collapsed under the weight of it all, in the end. He had a lot to bear as a child, and yet provided such infectious joy to people whilst suffering through it. I find that quite heartbreaking, and it's the thing that's always kept me from feeling able to outright condemn him for the later adult behaviour. I think a lot of people feel that way.

I heard the tracks off 'Thriller' far too often in the 80s,no doubt we're going to be plagued by them for the next few weeks in public places. Give me the early Jackson 5 any day-although,of course,that's where the rot started.

I thought 'Thriller' was a brilliant album and still do, but again it was really the Jackson 5 and the first solo album 'Off The Wall' that I adored. When I was a kid in the 70s, every kid I knew adored the Jackson 5 and particularly Michael, he was an amazing talent. And then when 'Off The Wall' happened it was like he'd stepped into his birthright as a huge star, that album was massive at the time and you heard it everywhere you went. Last night while I was online I went to youtube and listened to 'Don't Stop Til You Get Enough', and felt exactly the same sheer joy as I did way back then. I was smiling and having a little bop sitting at my table, and for me that's the best tribute I can pay to the young Michael. People in the crowd outside the hospital in LA were dancing in the street to his music and I thought yep, that's exactly how it should be.

[blue]

Seriously:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrPTDU40hO4


Go listen. And smile and dance.

[RobB]

I thought 'Thriller' was a brilliant album and still do,

Along with the other seventy five million who bought the album I guess.

[blue]

Yep. I had my own copy, my mum had her copy, both my brothers had theirs .... surreal. I can't recall a single other album where that's happened. We were all into very disparate music in my family, but everyone wanted that album.

I've been thinking how curious and strangely affecting it is that, just as I loved him when I was a kid, so did my daughter. He's the only musical interest we've had in common.

[sound world]

Sure,Thriller has some great bits,but I just heard it far too often back then. Which has the ultimate effect of making me never want to hear it ever again. (Likewise Dire Straits,Graceland etc etc etc)

[blue]

Yeah, I can totally understand that, it just took over the world at one point.

[blue]

I don't know if it's the specific link I posted above, but one of the 'Don't Stop Til You Get Enough' links on youtube takes you automatically into the rest of the 'Off The Wall' album as each track finishes .... seriously, this is an AWESOME record.

'She's Out Of My Life' made me a little sad. Beautiful song and a great vocal. He didn't sing ballads all that much.

[picsou]

His music never got me! But, he was a great performing artist! This morning, on the French radio, a classic (etoile) dancer said he was amazed by MJ's dancing, he thought he was a real talent! It is just sad the way his life went so wrong.

[alx5962]

I just read he had a morphine overdose...
No idea if morphine can cause heart attack

[blue]

Well they're saying that he was having daily shots of Demerol recently, which is a morphine-derived painkiller and is known to have side-effects on the respiratory system and heart. Apparently after his doctor gave him the shot on Thursday morning he began to have problems breathing, and eventually went into cardiac arrest.

If that's the case, I wouldn't like to be that doctor, now. Rumour is that he has conveniently left the country.

It's also kind of heartbreaking to think that Michael was dependent on painkillers of that strength. He'd been training for his upcoming long run of shows at O2 in London of course, and people are saying that the combination of the physical strain of rehearsals and all the painkiler is what's done for him. I have to say, he looked so incredibly frail at the press conference where he announced the shows, it was hard to imagine how he could ever have done one performance, never mind 50.

[paul-pgss]

Thriller and Off The Wall aren't the albums I'll remember him for. I was just starting listening to music when the album Bad was released. I've played a tape with that album for hours during homework. Dangerous was his alltime high for me. Great tracks, and another beautiful ballad (Gone Too Soon).

Sad that he died so early, specially for his children. But I'm quite sure he wouldn't have released any groundbreaking album or song anymore.

And as for Madonna, if she would have died... I guess the hype would be even bigger. Because she managed to stay on top of the charts in the last years.