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Create a Michael Jackson album per theme

Haven't really thought this out but an unplugged album would be amazing, also featuring covers maybe:

MTV Unplugged
Michael Jackson

1. The Way You Make Me Feel (jazz version)
2. Who Is It
3. She's Out Of my Life (Demo version)
4. Gone Too Soon
5. Billie Jean
6. I Can't Help It
7. Remember The Time
8. Earth Song
9. They Don't Care About Us
10. Will You Be There
 
Victorious said:
Haven't really thought this out but an unplugged album would be amazing, also featuring covers maybe:

MTV Unplugged
Michael Jackson

1. The Way You Make Me Feel (jazz version)
2. Who Is It
3. She's Out Of my Life (Demo version)
4. Gone Too Soon
5. Billie Jean
6. I Can't Help It
7. Remember The Time
8. Earth Song
9. They Don't Care About Us
10. Will You Be There
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First of all, re your Songs of Praise album, I forgot to say how much I love that title. It's perfect. Doubly perfect with Michael being a Christian - or, at least, a person of faith. I know he left JW but he didn't abandon his faith, as far as I can tell. So the title really works.

And this unplugged thing - yes, please! In my fantasy world - which is perfect, obvs! - Michael is happy to do some sort of unplugged project whether it be a live show or an album or whatever. I don't follow every aspect of Michael's career plus I don't watch award shows so hadn't ever seen the 1988 Grammy's performance in its entirety. So when I saw TWYMMF on TII I thought that was a new arrangement. I was SO excited. Then when the song goes back to the normal version I was crushed with the disappointment. Such a lost opportunity, imo.

This is a good track list. I would slightly change it if I was doing my own version but it's a great idea.
 
zinniabooklover said:
[…] So when I saw TWYMMF on TII I thought that was a new arrangement. I was SO excited. Then when the song goes back to the normal version I was crushed with the disappointment. Such a lost opportunity, imo. […]
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Interesting. You wanted it to continue in half tempo all the way through?

The opportunity you’re mentioning, was it to present the song in a completely new way?
 
zinniabooklover said:
And this unplugged thing - yes, please! In my fantasy world - which is perfect, obvs! - Michael is happy to do some sort of unplugged project whether it be a live show or an album or whatever. I don't follow every aspect of Michael's career plus I don't watch award shows so hadn't ever seen the 1988 Grammy's performance in its entirety. So when I saw TWYMMF on TII I thought that was a new arrangement. I was SO excited. Then when the song goes back to the normal version I was crushed with the disappointment. Such a lost opportunity, imo.

This is a good track list. I would slightly change it if I was doing my own version but it's a great idea.
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Yes I also absolutely loved the jazzy, slow intro and hope someday it turns out he recorded the whole song like that! Just some 'jazz' brushes, a double bass and Michael!
 
Victorious said:
Yes I also absolutely loved the jazzy, slow intro and hope someday it turns out he recorded the whole song like that!
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This is exactly what I want. I can't see why he wouldn't be able to sing it live all the way through. I don't mean for TII. Don't wanna get into that, it's way too complicated, lol. I'm only talking about my fantasy unplugged concert, not RL. That arrangement is perfect for his voice. It's also wildly more seductive, imo, but that is probably a minority opinion!

Victorious said:
Just some 'jazz' brushes, a double bass and Michael!
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Oh, now we're talking. Perfect scenario. A handful of songs like that, another handful maybe just with piano. I can never decide if I'd like a few numbers with a really small chamber orchestra type of set-up. Or is that adding in stuff that isn't really needed? So many decisions! This fantasy unplugged show is going to be quite short. Nothing that is physically exhausting for Michael. Just him and some real instruments. Nothing programmed.

Agonum said:
Interesting. You wanted it to continue in half tempo all the way through?
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Yeah, just keep that gorgeous, slow, jazz arrangement going. It's such a brilliant treatment, I think it shows a whole other side to Michael.

Agonum said:
The opportunity you’re mentioning, was it to present the song in a completely new way?
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No, just the jazz treatment. For me it actually was completely new bc I never watched the Grammy performance in full. It was ages after that I found out that Michael repeats a lot of what he does in his live shows. It's not just the song itself, it's also how he moves, his physicality when he sings it like that. It opens things up so much.
 
zinniabooklover said:
[…] No, just the jazz treatment. For me it actually was completely new bc I never watched the Grammy performance in full. It was ages after that I found out that Michael repeats a lot of what he does in his live shows. It's not just the song itself, it's also how he moves, his physicality when he sings it like that. It opens things up so much.
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Sure, I can buy that. But at the same time, I fully understand why he changed into the album arrangement a bit in. He wanted to please the fans, many of which no doubt wanted to hear the midtempo groove they knew from the record.

zinniabooklover said:
[…] It was ages after that I found out that Michael repeats a lot of what he does in his live shows. […]
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??
 
Agonum said:
Sure, I can buy that. But at the same time, I fully understand why he changed into the album arrangement a bit in. He wanted to please the fans, many of which no doubt wanted to hear the midtempo groove they knew from the record.
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I understand the whole TII thing, the fans voting for the songs they wanted to hear etc etc. I still think it was a lost opportunity to not keep going with the jazz arrangement. But, I get it.
 
zinniabooklover said:
I understand the whole TII thing, the fans voting for the songs they wanted to hear etc etc. I still think it was a lost opportunity to not keep going with the jazz arrangement. But, I get it.
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I believe the venue wasn’t right for an all throughout slow interpretation. Having said that, I would have loved for Michael to go on a scaled-down tour, performing in smaller clubs and what have you. A bit like Dylan, you know? And this, I think, would have been the perfect backdrop for presenting familiar songs in unfamiliar versions. Again, I cannot help but compare with Dylan.

Of course, this hardly would’ve been possible during Michael’s lifetime. He always was this megastar – just imagine the fans that no doubt would have been flocking outside that random homestead farm that Michael happened to have a smaller concert scheduled for.

If only Michael could have lived to grow old; this kind of thing would have been perfect for a seventy-something old Michael. But then again, I’m still not sure if his megastardom would have made it an easy endeveour.
 
Agonum said:
I believe the venue wasn’t right for an all throughout slow interpretation.
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Well, this is why this is really just my fantasy and not RL. Actually, I think the jazz version of TWYMMF could have worked at the O2 but it wasn't to be. A 20,000 capacity venue is small by Michael's standards so I think it could be done, especially with the right lighting design and stage set, to create an illusion of intimacy. As a showcase for his fabulous voice, it would have been a great moment.

Agonum said:
Having said that, I would have loved for Michael to go on a scaled-down tour, performing in smaller clubs and what have you. A bit like Dylan, you know? And this, I think, would have been the perfect backdrop for presenting familiar songs in unfamiliar versions. Again, I cannot help but compare with Dylan.

Of course, this hardly would’ve been possible during Michael’s lifetime. He always was this megastar – just imagine the fans that no doubt would have been flocking outside that random homestead farm that Michael happened to have a smaller concert scheduled for.

If only Michael could have lived to grow old; this kind of thing would have been perfect for a seventy-something old Michael. But then again, I’m still not sure if his megastardom would have made it an easy endeveour.
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This is the problem. My fantasy of an unplugged show constantly collapses under the weight of Michael's fame and megastardom. I don't know how you get around that. I'm sure it must be possible but I can't actually envisage it. Forget whether he would even want to do it, just on a practical level it would be challenging, to say the least.
 
Michael did not want to please the fans, he wanted to please the masses. The fans wanted something different, at least I did.
Dylan got booed when he changed his live act and he was on top of the world when he did that. It didn’t keep him down and the fans didn’t boo for long either.
Radiohead went from being most popular rock band to an electronic influenced band But this has not turned away a lot of fans
Of course a change will alienate some fans but they will return or new fans will come.
The Beatles were even more punk, they just stopped touring altogether 😂 fuck the fans!
 
filmandmusic said:
Michael did not want to please the fans, he wanted to please the masses. The fans wanted something different, at least I did.
Dylan got booed when he changed his live act and he was on top of the world when he did that. It didn’t keep him down and the fans didn’t boo for long either.
Radiohead went from being most popular rock band to an electronic influenced band But this has not turned away a lot of fans
Of course a change will alienate some fans but they will return or new fans will come.
The Beatles were even more punk, they just stopped touring altogether 😂 fuck the fans!
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All of this.
 
filmandmusic said:
Michael did not want to please the fans, he wanted to please the masses. The fans wanted something different, at least I did.
Dylan got booed when he changed his live act and he was on top of the world when he did that. It didn’t keep him down and the fans didn’t boo for long either.
Radiohead went from being most popular rock band to an electronic influenced band But this has not turned away a lot of fans
Of course a change will alienate some fans but they will return or new fans will come.
The Beatles were even more punk, they just stopped touring altogether 😂 fuck the fans!
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I’m not sure where you’re getting at with “the masses”, it seems like an odd distinction to me. The fans were first and foremost for Michael. He loved us very much, and I’m sure that if he knew that all of his fans wanted him to do, say, an unplugged setlist, then he would’ve done it.

But that’s the thing. I’m pretty sure you’re not talking on account of all of his fans when you say there was a demand for something different. A perfect example would be Billie Jean. I believe most fans wanted the iconic type of performance, with the fedora, moonwalk and so on. We are creatures of habit, after all.

Edit: Tempus correction.
 
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@Agonum

With masses I mean the tens of thousands of people who only have a passing interest or a casual interest in MJ’s music. This is the vast majority of people watching mega stars in concert. It are also these people that are the first to start complaining when artist x or y does not play the hits or if they play them in a different arrangement.

Imagine you buy tickets as a casual for a prince concert and he plays 20 album tracks that are known only to his die hard fans. Prince did stuff like this in his last 20 years on tour.

A concert should be like a journey, you don’t know what you’re getting into.
Last year a Belgian artists took the stage for 7!!! Straight hours, performing his entire discography and cover songs at a a free concert. Awesome.

These artist don’t take into account what the masses want. I heard musicians on MJ’s tours also found it was monotone and somewhat disappointing that he wasn’t more adventurous.

If you ask me he wasn’t fully aware of what his die hard fans really wanted. Imagine rehearsing or performing the Motown medley for the umpteenth tine. The damn performance went unchanged since 1973 or so.
 
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filmandmusic said:
Michael did not want to please the fans, he wanted to please the masses. The fans wanted something different, at least I did.
Dylan got booed when he changed his live act and he was on top of the world when he did that. It didn’t keep him down and the fans didn’t boo for long either.
Radiohead went from being most popular rock band to an electronic influenced band But this has not turned away a lot of fans
Of course a change will alienate some fans but they will return or new fans will come.
The Beatles were even more punk, they just stopped touring altogether 😂 fuck the fans!
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:cry: no thats ...no , we were a family :(
 
filmandmusic said:
With masses I mean the tens of thousands of people who only have a passing interest or a casual interest in MJ’s music. This is the vast majority of people watching mega stars in concert. It are also these people that are the first to start complaining when artist x or y does not play the hits or if they play them in a different arrangement.
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Still not buying the “the masses” argument. It gets especially confusing since you’re obviously furthermore categorizing the fans into “die-hard fans” and—implicit—(regular) fans.

I for one believe that if you attend a Michael Jackson concert, then you are probably a fan. And by ‘fan’ I certainly don’t mean to say ‘fanatic’, but rather a person that enjoy the music in question.

If Michael were to give a concert during, say, the HIStory tour, where all of a sudden Billie Jean wasn’t in the setlist, I can guarantee that the outrage would be heard from all sections of the audience. The same goes for if Billie Jean suddenly were performed in a polka arrangement.

filmandmusic said:
Imagine you buy tickets as a casual for a prince concert and he plays 20 album tracks that are known only to his die hard fans. Prince did stuff like this in his last 20 years on tour.

A concert should be like a journey, you don’t know what you’re getting into.
Last year a Belgian artists took the stage for 7!!! Straight hours, performing his entire discography and cover songs at a a free concert. Awesome.

These artist don’t take into account what the masses want. I heard musicians on MJ’s tours also found it was monotone and somewhat disappointing that he wasn’t more adventurous.
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I get a feeling you put too much of yourself into this. Meanwhile, I’m convinced that most of the fans really wanted to hear the songs the way they knew them. Those who didn’t, they’re a minority.

That doesn’t mean I disagree with you in regards to how cool it was of Prince to do those kind of concerts.
 
zinniabooklover said:
This is the problem. My fantasy of an unplugged show constantly collapses under the weight of Michael's fame and megastardom. I don't know how you get around that. I'm sure it must be possible but I can't actually envisage it. Forget whether he would even want to do it, just on a practical level it would be challenging, to say the least.
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Maybe, but one episode of MTV unplugged would have been very possible I guess and imo it would have been such an awesome opportunity to let the world enjoy his live vocals (and maybe even some dancing) without special effects, back-up dancers or stage lights!
 
Victorious said:
Maybe, but one episode of MTV unplugged would have been very possible I guess and imo it would have been such an awesome opportunity to let the world enjoy his live vocals (and maybe even some dancing) without special effects, back-up dancers or stage lights!
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But then , M was all about ..Special effects, back up dancers (The dance) and stage lights...Thought he created intrigue and stories.
I could not see him do that you know. :unsure:Maybe ive been conditioned, But to me that is like Edder Vedder territory or worse Cobain. All that 90s stool sitting :rolleyes:............Boring.
no?
 
wendijane said:
But then , M was all about ..Special effects, back up dancers (The dance) and stage lights...Thought he created intrigue and stories.
I could not see him do that you know. :unsure:Maybe ive been conditioned, But to me that is like Edder Vedder territory or worse Cobain. All that 90s stool sitting :rolleyes:............Boring.
no?
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Well yes and no. Maybe Michael himself loved to put on a spectacle with special effects, back up dancers and stage lights but I think the fans and general public wanted to see HIM perform live and wouldn't necessarily miss all that stuff that much imo. The power of human talent and interaction. (one of the reasons why the History tour was bland in comparison to a Bad Tour imo: no live vocals= no audience connection)

I said 'maybe even some dancing'; because songs like TWYMMF or Billie Jean would be cool to see in a stripped down dance version (BJ already has that one single light vibe). However 'stool sitting' alone would be enough too; MJ doing his ballads and favourite covers.. beautiful!
And I think it would have shut up a lot of people who claimed he couldn't sing anymore
 
Victorious said:
Maybe, but one episode of MTV unplugged would have been very possible I guess
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Yeah, doing the unplugged thing on tv gets around problems re size of venue vs. the number of fans wanting to attend. Plus it's saved for all time and can be broadcast everywhere.

Victorious said:
and imo it would have been such an awesome opportunity to let the world enjoy his live vocals
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Exactly. 'Live in Mexico 1975' is awesome but it's not enough. And mature Michael delivering live vocals, omg, that would be beautiful. People who wouldn't want to go to a show would happily watch a tv performance so that works.

Victorious said:
(and maybe even some dancing)
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I'm in two minds about the dancing. I don't think you can stop Michael from moving so maybe there has to be some but I would prefer the dancing to take second place to the live singing. Especially as it would be a one-off (maybe!). Michael can dance but hopefully not overtax himself, I want him to look after his health.

If the show includes new arrangements of songs maybe Michael's dancing could be more low key and wouldn't be so draining for him. I haven't really worked out the details, lol. I'm more focused on the vocal side of things and songs being done differently. Or songs being included that don't normally get onto the set list. That's what I'm fixated on!

Victorious said:
without special effects, back-up dancers
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I have no problem saying goodbye to all of this.

Victorious said:
or stage lights!
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I want good lighting design but nothing huge or melodramatic. Sometimes simple designs work best. I want the emphasis to be on Michael's voice.

I'm getting carried away, lol.
 
Who would have thought Michael to do a signing session in 2001 for Invincible? Nobody, yet it happened, it was possible. The fans were very decent, only very few lost their control.

Small venues, other setlist, other arrangements it was all possible if he wanted to, tickets would sell, everybody would be interested.
I remain curious about "one night only" in 1995 but I am not surprised it fell through in the end, so many changes all at once Michael clearly did not feel comfortable about it.

@wendijane I'm just stating my opinion on Michael touring, I'm not arguing with anyone and I'm certainly not mad at anyone. Michael Jackson is nr 1 and will always be but as a live artist I eventually felt let down. No big deal...
 
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