By Anthony Kuzminski
I’m at will call outside the Marcus Amphitheater in Milwaukee picking up my passes for the Soraia and Bon Jovi show that will inaugurate the opening of Summerfest. One of the guys in line tells me that Michael Jackson died. I can see he has been indulging in some summer fun and I’m not sure if he’s telling me the truth. I call my buddy Johnny who lives in LA, but grew up in England. Being a huge Michael Jackson fan, I ask if he heard anything and he tells me that TMZ is reporting it and that it’s either true or the biggest hoax of all time. Once we make it through the gates, the whole place is abuzz with the rumor and I soon found out that it wasn’t a rumor but the truth. The amount of discussion occurring at the event was staggering. Not since Princess Diana has there been a death that punctuated so many people. Beneath the TV movie of the week that his life has taken on the last fifteen years, was a very sad, incredibly talented and tortured soul who created music that wasn’t just revolutionary for its time, but will continued to be listened to for decades to come.When Thriller hit, I was far too interested in the Chicago Cubs, Return of the Jedi and GI Joe action figures to really ever give it a chance. However, I specifically remember Lulu Fleming’s Michael Jackson pin on her school uniform. Even though I didn’t know the music, I knew who he was. For someone who has obsessed about music for over two-decades, I was among the last in my grade school class to get into music. While I was aware of Thriller it wasn’t until Bad in 1987 that Jackson really pulled me in. By this time, Jackson was experiencing a bit of backlash. It’s inevitable when you sell 40-million records of one record. It’s hysterical to see acts these days pepper press releases with hyperactive adjectives and stats where over a twenty, thirty or forty year career they sell twenty-thirty-forty-million records. Michael Jackson sold 40-Million copies of Thriller in the first three years of its release, all on cassette and LP. Throw in worldwide sales of singles, CD’s, remastered CD’s and you get total worldwide sales that top 100-million. No one - not Madonna, Prince, Bruce Springsteen or Britney Spears - could even touch this level of success. The question is how does anyone top this? You don’t, but that didn’t stop Jackson from trying. Released on August 31, 1987 Bad was in many ways a stronger record than Thriller but it lacked a single as big as “Billie Jean” or “Beat It”. However, the album’s most successful single, “Man in the Mirror” was what made me take notice. At this time, everyone in my school was getting into acts like Metallica and Iron Maiden, so someone like Michael Jackson appeared to be very five-years ago, but this all changed on the 1988 Grammy’s.
I’ve read dozens of articles about the Motown 25 special from 1983 where Jackson did his solo performance of “Billie Jean” and did the infamous moonwalk. It is one of the greatest TV moments ever, but so is his “Man in the Mirror” performance. “Billie Jean” was about astounding the crowd with a brilliant single and dance moves no one knew were possible. But “Man in the Mirror” was about soul. The song had just been released as a single, but the performance of the song had people buzzing for weeks. At that Grammy telecast, Jackson was shut out and many people felt that if people could have changed their votes, they would have after witnessing the performance. I would have. Music lives within each of us, but when you see a performer deliver a song as if their life depended on it, it opens your eyes even wider. Jackson was one of the most popular people on the planet at this time, but you would have thought he had something to prove with the performance. His vocals, dance moves and body movements poured out of him like an exorcism of sorts. Even if you felt he was passé, there was no denying the intensity of his performance. This is what I love about Bad. There was no way it could topple Thriller but Jackson tried and the sheer thrust of his ego makes this album such a wild ride. The album had five number-one songs, the only album to ever accomplish this. Alas, it was the last time Jackson would work with Quincy Jones. The decision to move on from Jones I would view as a mistake. Even though Dangerous would sell ten-million more copies worldwide than Bad I found it to be incredibly uneven and lacking the barrage of hits that his three previous albums had.
As time moved on, Jackson fought hard to top himself and while there’s nothing wrong with this, he lost himself in the process. A book could be written about the issues Jackson faced in his life and I won’t even go into them here, but I’ll always remember him for his music first and foremost. What saddens me is that he was so obsessed with being on top of the world and with success, he confused it with personal love and artistry. As I mentioned earlier, no one else on the planet could touch his success and despite this, it was never enough for him. This comes from deep seated resentment and a lack of true love from his family during his formative years. As a result, he had too many people whose livelihood depended on his bank account. As Jackson continued to make albums throughout the 1990’s and 2000’s, his eyes wandered from being creative and stayed completely focused on staying popular even more so than relevant. When you think about what he accomplished throughout his entire life it’s a staggering legacy. I only wish someone had reached out to him, shown him genuine love and helped steer him back on course. Despite the tabloid headlines and his troubles, the world lost an artist last week who transformed the world the same way Elvis and the Beatles did and his lack of absence from our planet is our loss. He became a prisoner of his own success much like Howard Hughes and despite all the love and hope he instilled in people with his music, no one was able to show him the same and that is why his life will always be viewed as one unfulfilled, because in the end, without experiencing genuine love, no amount of record sales, sold-out stadiums or awards will ever suffice.Anthony Kuzminski is a Chicago based writer and Special Features Editor for the antiMusic Network and his daily writings can be read at The Screen Door and can be contacted at thescreendoor AT gmail DOT com.
