Monday, June 29, 2009

Remembering Michael Jackson

As the world continues to mourn the loss of Michael Jackson, I thought I would do at least one more post dedicated to the legendary artist. Over the weekend, I'm sure you heard a lot of "Thriller", "Billie Jean", "Man in the Mirror", "Rock With You", and many other popular hits on either the radio, television, or inside a night club or bar somewhere. Everyone has their favorite MJ songs, as many of the ones I just mentioned were favorites of mine growing up as young kid and still are. That being said, as I've gotten older and I've had more of a chance to digest a lot of MJ's music, I've found that some of his 70's era music with The Jacksons is what I find I've been listening to more as of late. Two songs specifically come to mind, the 1973 The Jackson 5 loft classic "Hum Along and Dance" and The Jacksons' 1976 album cut "Living Together". The two tracks, which don't receive enough praise in my opinion, showcase the diversity in the group. "Living Together" is more of a Philadelphia-style soul track, while "Hum Along and Dance" is a harder edged funk track that could of easily been written by a group like Barrabas (Rare Earth actually did do a version of this song). Both I find work well in a disco set, as does many of Michael Jackson's other songs. With as many chart topping songs as "The King of Pop" has had throughout the years it's easy to focus on those classics, however I think we can't forget about some of the lesser known, but brilliant, tracks that helped round out the music legend's amazing and influential career. Michael Jackson...you will be missed by many!

The Jackson 5 - Hum Along and Dance



The Jacksons - Living Together


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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

"...Play it Tito !"

This has been one of my favorite Jacksons song since I first heard it during my 80's Paradise Garage days. I can hear the Frankie Crocker WBLS mix with Land of Hunger at the 4:25 mark! This song finally brought me out of the shadows to say thank you for the amazing beats you've shared with us over the years. Your taste is superb and always leaves me with a smile! - Brian

Anonymous said...

WOW! I AM CERTAINLY GLAD THAT WE DON'T HONOR ALL CHILD MOLESTERS WHEN THEY DIE. IF U SCRATCH THE SURFACE HIS SINISTER EVIL IS VERY APPARENT. I KNOW HE WASN'T CONVICTED IN A COURT OF LAW, BUT, NEITHER WAS OJ. NOW, THEY'RE BOTH EXACTLY WHERE THEY NEED TO BE...MY OPINION... ANYWAY, LOVE THE GROOVES YOU SO GENEROUSLY SHARE. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!

Pat Les Stache said...

I sure do wish that people who leave controversial comments, like the one listed above this one, would be at least willing to leave an identity instead of going by the easy-to-hide-behind Anonymous name. I think going "Anonymous" is fine for certain subjects and for certain posts, however if you are going to stomp on a recently passed person's grave and call him a child molester without any proof or any facts, I think that at least you should be willing to stand by that claim by identifying yourself. Everyone has their take on Michael Jackson, some good and some bad...however, here on this blog, we try to focus on the music and with that being said there's hardly an argument out there that says this guy wasn't a musical icon. I'm sure when it's all said and done, a lot of us will have things in our closet that we won't be proud of, however I think it's important to look at an entire life of a person and what they did for society rather than the unproven "rumors" that will always exist with a person of such fame.

Basically next time...identify yourself if you want your claim to hold any weight on this site.