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Mike is BACK!
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The album, `Michael Jackson Number Ones', features 18 chartbusters.
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AT PRESENT, he is in the news for all the wrong reasons. But in the mid-Eighties and the Nineties, he was the most popular pop artist who wowed the world with his unique (sometimes dubbed feminine!) blend of vocals and energising music.
He is credited with introducing the `Moonwalk' dance step, and is known as the man who changes his style and look practically every time he releases a new album. After the mediocre success of his album `Invincible' in 2001, Michael Jackson is back with `Michael Jackson Number Ones' (Sony Music; CD: Rs. 299), a collection of 18 of his biggest hits spanning over the years1979 - 2003.
Michael began his career in music as part of the Jackson 5 band. His solo, `Off the Wall', was brought out in 1979, a little after a famous collaboration with Quincy Jones. At that time, the concept of a singer, songwriter, producer, and composer all rolled into one was unheard of.
When Michael achieved the feat of scoring four `number one' songs in just one album, the world made sure his next album, `Thriller', sold over 60 million copies, a figure which is sought after by most pop and rock icons even today. `Billie Jean', `Beat It' and `Thriller', which have won eight Grammys, are still hot favourites with any MP3 music collector.
`Bad' followed in 1987 and saw Michael outdoing his own record of maximum hits in a single album. I Just Can't Stop Loving You, The Way You Make Me Feel, Dirty Diana, Smooth Criminal and Bad became hits and Michael ruled the charts for a good 20 months. By now, his music began to sound more mature and the influence of rock and R&B were evident. In fact, Smooth Criminal has been recently rehashed by a modern rock band, Alien Ant Farm.
It was around 1991 that MTV came to India (Doordarshan devoted a two hour evening airplay slot for MTV), and one of the most repeated videos was Black or White from Michael's album, `Dangerous' (released in 1991). This was, probably, the first international song Indian listeners ever got to hear. Jam, Heal the World, In the Closet, and Dangerous were chartbusters even in India. In fact, the black album cover of `Dangerous' would still be fresh in the minds of hardcore international music fans. It was this album that exposed the soulful and sensitive side of Michael's music.
The track, Heal the World, is still played on FM stations on the World Environment Day.
The year 1995 saw the release of `History', a two-CD set, which contained the remix versions of his earlier tracks and a few new ones such as Blood on the Dance Floor and The Earth Song.
After a brief hiatus `Invincible', was brought out in 2001 and Rock My World hit the jackpot yet again. Though other songs in the album such as 2000 Watts were impressive, they failed to make the desired impact on the charts.
Now, with `Michael Jackson Number Ones', music lovers would get an opportunity to relive those golden years of Michael's music. The album features 18 tracks ranging from Don't Stop Till You Get Enough to Smooth Criminal and Rock My World. Michael Jackson has seen the musical tastes of the people changing over the years, but he has made sure his music has not changed. One hopes that he would continue making music.
A. VISHNU
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
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