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Should HIStory have been a single album?

Tony R

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I've always been a bit annoyed that History had that CD of Greatest Hits with it.

1. It meant all reviews compared the first 15 tracks to the second, which was unfair.
2. It made it look like MJ or Sony didn't have enough faith in the new songs to sell on their own.
3. It bumped the price up by 50%, so prohibited sales. Especially in the more casual music buyer.
4. Slightly separately, The Greatest Hits of MJ should be one of the biggest sellers ever, but between History, Number Ones, Essential we have too many. There should just be one.

What do you think? Should it have been a single CD just called HIStory?
 
Well, I don't think it was a tactical move on MJ or Sony's part to package them together to help shift extra copies. If anything, it put people off due the high price tag (I remember HIStory costing well over £25 when it first came out).

I think there were plans in place to put out a GH compilation of some sort even before Dangerous (wasn't there going to be an album called Decade with GH and a few bonus tracks?). I think a GH was always on the agenda, way before the allegations hit, but I doubt MJ wanted his first release after 1993 to be a GH compilation, so in that respect I think it was a wise move to release HIStory alongside it.

In the end though, I don't think it did the second disc any favours having a whole disc of old material tacked onto it. I remember a lot of cynical critics trying to diminish HIStory's success at the time by saying "it only sold that much because of the greatest hits" which was utter bull, as the album and its singles was a huge success story in its own right outside of the States (and even in the US at first).
 
Yes exactly. I think if Decade had gone ahead it may be one of the biggest ever, like Queens Greatest Hits (number 1).

But bear in mind that History is in effect a concept album, a lot of that is lost when you add on disc one.

Other stuff I also disagree with include that merchandise booklet inside. Pretty tacky.
 
I think it was a tactical mistake to package the new album with a GH album, it only hightened its price.
 
Tony R said:
I've always been a bit annoyed that History had that CD of Greatest Hits with it.

1. It meant all reviews compared the first 15 tracks to the second, which was unfair.
2. It made it look like MJ or Sony didn't have enough faith in the new songs to sell on their own.
3. It bumped the price up by 50%, so prohibited sales. Especially in the more casual music buyer.
4. Slightly separately, The Greatest Hits of MJ should be one of the biggest sellers ever, but between History, Number Ones, Essential we have too many. There should just be one.

What do you think? Should it have been a single CD just called HIStory?
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HIStory was originally designed to be a 3-disc set.

Also, MJ wanted the greatest hits tied with his new ones in order to make a new start of his career.
 
what is about 'HIStory: Past, Present & Future, Book I' you don't understand? it's HIS story, plus also paving the way for his future work.. ''the best is yet to come'' he felt very strongly about that.
 
Why wasn't Smooth Criminal included on the greatest hits disk? That's something I'll never understand
 
yes cause the new songs were over shadowed by the old songs that were already worldwide hits.
 
Zakk said:
what is about 'HIStory: Past, Present & Future, Book I' you don't understand? it's HIS story, plus also paving the way for his future work.. ''the best is yet to come'' he felt very strongly about that.
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You really come across rude sometimes Zakk.

Of course I understand it, what with me not being am idiot and everything. But I've explained why I don't agree with it by my original post.
 
I don't agree with the GH and never rip it but it fits the theme of the album. HIStory sales could have doubled if the price was half, to sell 20 million given price and circumstances it's incredible. My favourite album for sure.
 
respect77 said:
Yes, it's odd that The Girl Is Mine is there, but Smooth Criminal is not.
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SC probably charted lower as was a late single from a Bad whereas TGIM was first, but still would seems a strange way of doing it.
 
It should have been released in two versions.

1 version exactly as it was released - 2 disc - 1 GH - 1 New songs

BUT - 1 versions only with disc 2 (new songs) should have been released too!

Hardcore fans would have bought both versions and casual fans would just buy the new album which would be a lot cheaper.

- It would have sold a lot better that way.
 
Oh, don't get me started on HIStory disc one tracklisting. No Smooth Criminal, no Dirty Diana, no Human Nature. Absolutely rubbish greatest hits imo. I also feel Dangerous wasn't represented well either.
 
I think they should've held off on releasing a greatest hits until after HIStory.

HIStory could've been a two disc album featuring Morphine, Superfly Sister, Ghosts, Is It Scary and Why solo version. Let the new music stand on its own two feet. Then release a shitty remix album if they must in 1997. Round off the nineties by releasing a double disc greatest hits in 1999 with two new tracks (On The Line and Blood On The Dancefloor).
 
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respect77;4077998 said:
Yes, it's odd that The Girl Is Mine is there, but Smooth Criminal is not.
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He was telling his story.
The girl is mine, he married Elvis Presley´s daughter.
 
Yeah, I think the album would have had a bigger impact and be a stronger statement if it had been a single disc. I also think a Greatest Hits package on its own (perhaps in 1998 or 1999) could have been more succesful, especially if MJ would have been willing to promote it separately through interviews (such as the 1999 MTV interview), TV specials and so on.
 
MIST;4078014 said:
He was telling his story.
The girl is mine, he married Elvis Presley´s daughter.
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I don't think the song choice was autobiographical on the first disc.
 
I think it WAS a tactical move, most definitely. Why else would an album of original material come with a disc of hits?? There's two sides to the coin, In one sense, it would have actually appealed to a lot of people because for the first time ever, a collection of MJ hits is officially available, & for the long-term fans, a brand new album.
On the 22nd of May 1995, a $30 million promotional campaign was launched on MTV with the four minute HIStory Teaser short-film. The album had to recoup money. On Michael Jackson's level, whether people like it or not, marketing has to come into the equation. Remember those nine 10-meter statues of Mike that floated down rivers & adorned different locations in mid-June of that year? Well, those guys had to be paid for. To do things on that level, you've got to make sacrifices and can't completely overindulge yourself in artist choice. Perhaps a disc of hits was used as some sort of collateral? A sketch for the album sleeve was drawn by Drew Struzan for consideration, but Sony went with an illustration by Nancy Donald.

I think after the first batch of singles, Scream/Childhood, YANA & Earth Song the Christmas #1, TDCAU, the first day sales (100,000+ in two days, more than Pink Floyed & Bjork combined), 360,000 in America in the first week, smashing the previous record held by The Beatles Live At The BBC, Sony at some point should have said "this record is a beast. It's proved itself beyond doubt, lets give it a stand-alone release. It was #1 in 27 countries around the world & is one of (if not the) biggest selling double disc-sets ever.
 
So many songs didn't make the cut of disc 1, but you can only fit so much there.
And he probably wanted a good mix of each era and also be 15 tracks to match 15 on disc 2.

Simply because number ones has dirty Diana and smooth criminal, it's better.
 
AtlasAir said:
So many songs didn't make the cut of disc 1, but you can only fit so much there.
And he probably wanted a good mix of each era and also be 15 tracks to match 15 on disc 2.

Simply because number ones has dirty Diana and smooth criminal, it's better.
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Number Ones is MJ's biggest selling hits package, off the top of my head, somewhere in the region of 7million? Or is it more?
 
aazzaabb said:
Number Ones is MJ's biggest selling hits package, off the top of my head, somewhere in the region of 7million? Or is it more?
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You're right but The Essential is so much better. If you can get past the single edits. Stick on Give In To Me and Jam and it's almost perfect.

It's just too long for the casual fan I guess. But it really is the full story with J5 and Jacksons biggest hits also.
 
I did read somwhere that Michael wanted to release it with only 1 disc but Sony convinced Michael to have 2. Most likely it had the old songs because Sony wanted to remind people how good Michael is because this was after the accusation.
 
Tony R said:
You're right but The Essential is so much better. If you can get past the single edits. Stick on Give In To Me and Jam and it's almost perfect.

It's just too long for the casual fan I guess. But it really is the full story with J5 and Jacksons biggest hits also.
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You always championed The Essential and I always championed the KOP 3-Disc Deluxe UK Edition lol. I don't actually own The Essential but was looking at it again yesterday. I might pick that up next week. Buying the same songs again! It never ends! :D
 
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