Our Song for Sunday this week is Michael Jackson’s original demo of I Can’t Help It. I’ve spent the weekend in Nice and it’s been so warm and relaxing. Last night, I was at a port party and the DJ was killing it with some of the finest black music remixes you can think of. One of them was a remix of Michael Jackson’s original…
Thriller lived up to its name when it caused an 18-year phobia for one UK woman. Poppy Johnson was 5 years old when she first saw Michael Jackson’s Thriller. Upon seeing MJ’s transformation into a werewolf, Poppy became traumatised and carried the fear with her. Seeing or hearing Michael Jackson would cause serious symptoms including sweaty palms and shaking. Worse still, her parents are big…
There’s not one but two songs for this week’s Song For Sunday: Prince’s She Spoke To Me and Michael Jackson’s Call On Me. I was torn between Prince (for obvious reasons) and Michael Jackson for this week’s edition of Song for Sunday. But then I remembered it’s been 6 months since the last one so having two in one week makes up for it. Kinda….
Here’s a video of Michael Jackson on the set of the Black or White video just being Michael Jackson. I’m a huge MJ fan and I’d never seen this footage until today. While they waited for “reloads”, Michael had some funny moments with the dancers, John Landis and Derek, a Michael Jackson impersonator. So rare and candid.
This week’s Saturday Matinée features Michael Jackson rehearsing “The Way You Make Me Feel” during his Dangerous tour. The Way You Make Me Feel never made past the Dangerous tour rehearsals so this is all we have. It’s nice to see Michael in his natural habitat and away from interviews and protracted questioning. And let’s face it, the song is a classic.
And now for something unexpected – Michael Jackson vocals on a metal track. This is Acle Kahney’s “Trippin Clip”. We rarely cover rock or its various offshoots but we’re making an exception for this brilliant mashup. Acle Kahney is an audio engineer and musician and “Trippin Clip” is the result of some experimentation and a Michael Jackson acapella. MJ was no stranger to the rock…
Witness an incredible multi-instrumental cover of Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean starring Jacob Collier, Cory Henry, Jules Buckley and the Metropole Orkest. You don’t need to hear what I think about this, you just need to hear it. All I will say is it made me ugly cry from 0:00 to 8:10. Arranged by Jules Buckley and the Metropole Orkest in celebration of the legendary Quincy…
Nigerian-born, Montreal-based producer Teck-Zilla brings us “Joe Jackson Kids”, an instrumental tribute to the Jackson 5. Just when you thought you’d heard every J5 sample, along comes Teck-Zilla. As you’d expect, Michael features prominently in the way of vocal samples but that doesn’t take away from the stonking beats, wonderfully varied in rhythm and texture. “I got the title from one of my favourite Jeru…
Your fave may “never” but it helps to be critical of them. Here’s why. Having a newborn means you lose those sweet moments of sleep you used to take for granted (particularly if you’re nocturnal like me). I missed all of Superbowl 50 in substitute for much-needed rest and with it the Halftime Show. Now, it’s not usually something I tune in for; most of…
On this day in 1983, Billie Jean went to #1 on the Billboard chart. Here’s a short behind the scenes look at the video for this week’s Saturday Matinée. Another short one for this week but nevertheless iconic and influential for many reasons. Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean was arguably the best single from his seminal Thriller album and for many (including myself) the greatest pop…
