So who wrote "On the line"?

[kreen]

When "On the line" was first released in 1996, on some maxi single, it was credited to Babyface.

But when it came out again on the Ultimate box set in 2001, the credit was switched to MJ.

It looked like a mistake -- there are others on the set -- but the copyright notice for the song does list MJ as sole writer. Except that the notice is from 2001.

My guess is that the song really was written by Babyface -- it sounds like his style -- but that a copyright was mistakenly claimed for it in 2001, under MJ's name.

Has the question ever been put to Babyface himself?

 

[ChrisC]

Sounds like a Babyface song. He is singing on it.

The booklet in the Ultimate Collection was littered with errors as I recall.

 

[#MJforever57]

On The Line. ... Written by Babyface, and originally recorded by Michael for the Spike Lee movie ... Get On The Bus promo CD, as a potential Oscar nominee, for Best Original Song.

 

[kreen]

On The Line. ... Written by Babyface, and originally recorded by Michael for the Spike Lee movie ... Get On The Bus promo CD, as a potential Oscar nominee, for Best Original Song.

Yeah, but what about the copyright notice that says "On the line : Words and music by Michael Jackson"?

 

[#MJforever57]

That got to be an error. Maybe because Michael originally recorded the song they though he wrote it to. To Babyface it really doesn't matter to him.