Epilepsyzambia Blog For Music

Nearly after five years after the thrilling success of the album “Thriller”, Michael went on to release his seventh studio album named “Bad” on August 31, 1987 under Epic/CBS records. Michael had more artistic freedom which is evident from the fact that he wrote and composed nine of the eleven tracks of the album. Though this album could not reach the heights achieved by “Thriller”, it still went on to sell over 30 million copies worldwide. It is believed that Michael had written about sixty songs for the album and he had composed for about thirty songs. Reportedly, Michael wanted all thirty songs to be published on a three disc set. It was his longtime producer Quincy Jones who cut down the album to ten tracks. A bonus 11th track was later released as a single.

As Michael made his acting debut, he was fortunate enough to meet Quiney Jones who was doing the musical score for the film “The Wiz”. Soon, they both became friends and Jones agreed to produce the next album of Michael. It was the fifth studio album by Michael and the album was titled “Off the Wall” which included ten singles. Four of the singles from this album peaked in the top 10 of Billboard Hot 100. Michael became the first solo artist to achieve this record. This album gave him the first Grammy award. Michael also won three music awards for his solo efforts in American Music Awards in 1980. The most acclaimed singles from this album are “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough” and “Rock with You”.

After making “Dangerous”, Michael decided to merge his ATV Music catalog with Sony’s publishing division. He received half the ownership of the merged publishing. “History” is the ninth album to be recorded by Michael Jackson. It is actually a double album with the first album full of singles and the second part is a studio album. This double album remains the highest selling multiple album of all time. In spite of the commercial success, “History” remains the most controversial album due to the turn of events before and after its release. Most of the songs composed by Michael had references to the press and tabloids for the propagation of false stories about him. The album also conveyed the message to his fans not to believe in them.

Like any parent wishing to bring up their children with discipline, Joseph Jackson was a strict father who ruled the Jackson family with an iron rod. It is believed that Michael had a difficult relationship with his father. Like any kid, he was mischievous playing pranks with his brothers and sisters. One fine example that can be mentioned is by putting spiders on his sister La Toya’s bed. Michael used to suffer the wrath of his angry father. At times, Joseph even turned violent with the kids. Once, when Michael was asleep, Joseph wore a fright mask and climbed into his room through the window just to teach Michael that he should not leave his window open when going to sleep.

Michael Joseph Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana on August 29th 1958. This place is also home to the Jackson family. Popularity of the city of Gary, Indiana, an industrial suburb of Chicago can be compared as before and after Michael Jackson. It was a place known for its steel mills and other industries. The city was so named after the chairman of U.S. Steel, Elbert H.Gary. History says that sand in Gary and on its beaches was mined for the manufacture of glass. The 2000 U.S. census report states that Gary has the highest percentage of Afro-American residents among U.S. cities with a population of 100,000 or more. A particular study rates Gary as the second most liberal city in U.S. next only to Detroit.

After “Off the Wall” went on to become commercially and critically successful in 1979, Michael released his sixth studio album on November 30, 1982 and was titled as “Thriller”. This album consisted of nine single tracks. Among them, the most memorable are “The Girl Is Mine” and “Billie Jean”. Till date, “Thriller” remains the highest selling album of all time with about 110 million copies sold worldwide. The recording sessions for the entire album went on for over seven months. Also, the budget for producing this album was a whopping $750,000. Of the nine tracks, four of them were written by Michael. And this spectacular album won eight Grammy awards in 1984. “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin” is another track that deserves special mention in this album as it received critical acclaim.

The genius within Michael had brought name, fame and fortune during the 1980’s when he was at his career peak. But along with it, came rumors about him in tabloids and also his bizarre behavior. During this time, it was becoming evident that his face was changing in a dramatic way. The shape of his nose and face started changing and his skin tone also started becoming pale. Reports indicated that he had undergone many cosmetic surgeries to change the entire appearance of his face. There were also rumors that he had bleached his skin. But, Michael himself revealed that he suffered from a disease called vitiligo, a skin disorder which changes the pigmentation and causes white blotches to appear.

After the stupendous success with “Bad”, he signed a contract with Sony for a 15 year period, 6 album deal. He went on to record his eighty studio album named “Dangerous” which was later released on November 26, 1991. This album has about 32 million copies sold worldwide. It is accepted that “Dangerous” is the second best-selling album after “Thriller”. Michael had spent about 16 months for the recording of the album making it the most extensive recording project of his career at that time. This album comprised of about 14 tracks. “Dangerous” was a highly anticipated album with the incident at Los Angeles Airport being the proof for it. Armed robbers stole about 30,000 copies even before the official release of “Dangerous”.

As Michael was on the Australian leg of World Tour, he met dermatologist Deborah Jeanne Rowe. Michael first met Rowe in 1980’s when he was diagnosed with vitiligo. She catered to the illness of Michael during that time. On November 14, 1996 Michael and Rowe married. On February 13, 1997 Michael Jackson became father when the couple gave birth to their first son Prince Michael Jackson Jr. and the following year on April 3, 1998 they gave birth to a daughter Paris Michael Katherine. The couple got divorced in 1999 and Rowe gave full custody of the children to Michael. His third child nicknamed Blanket and called Prince Michael Jackson II was born in 2002 with the identity of the mother remaining a mystery.

When the Jackson Brothers musical group was formed, brothers Tito, Jermaine and Jackie were the lead vocal performers with Michael and Marlon doing the role of backup musicians playing bongos and tambourine. The band of Jackson Brothers played mostly in talent shows and nightclubs. Michael had the unique combination of strong stage presence; brilliant vocal abilities and scintillating style of dance which helped him climb the ladder of the group. Slowly, he started performing the backup vocals and involved in dancing as well. One fine morning, when he was making his bed, his mother Katherine overheard him singing. By 1966, when he was just eight years old he took on the lead vocals with his brother Marlon. The band Jackson Brothers evolved into Jackson 5 with Michael at the helm.