Latest on MJJC

Michael's darkest song

"Give In to Me" and "Little Susie", definitely dark
 
I always hate it when people lump Michael in with artists like Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Usher, Justin Timberlake etc. If people took the time to actually LISTEN to Michael's songs they'll see that he is universes above those artists
 
MJresearcher said:
LOL!!! Well, children and music boxes can sound pretty creepy which is probably why they're used in so many horror movies.

Threatened is pretty dark, I like how it sounded during rehearsals for This Is It, they made it sound even darker :D

I like the fact that MJ wasn't a sugary pop artist, he was someone who liked to do things differently rather than stick to a stereotype, he did what a lot of people are afraid to do: be an individual.
Click to expand...

Little Susie is not only dark and creepy, it's haunting. My heart went after her because as far as I heard/read, that little girl existed. I believed Michael's anguish, heartbreak, pain, sadness, he transmitted those emotions masterfully even though it depresses me. I really wanted to punch that person who said Little Susie was awful in another thread, he/she couldn't be more mistaken.

That combination on TII made me appreciate more Threatened and actually I paid attention to the lyrics which are even scarier and darker than Thriller.

Probably he was made to be one in the Jackson 5 years, Motown just followed a proven sucesful formula but he certainly wasn't in his adult career at all. Even with Blues Away he was showing signs of depression.
 
Snow White luvs Peter Pan said:
Probably he was made to be one in the Jackson 5 years, Motown just followed a proven sucesful formula but he certainly wasn't in his adult career at all. Even with Blues Away he was showing signs of depression.
Click to expand...

Exactly. Even his first self-penned song is very telling. And it's anything but some sugary sweet pop/disco song. People really should listen to the lyrics of his early songs - such as the ones on Destiny, because MJ was always telling us things about himself and the world ever since he was 18-20. I was listening to some current artists yesterday (Bruno Mars mainly) and I was thinking about how he is OK, but did he ever make a song with lyrics something to say? I mean all his songs are about either romance or party. I'm not singling him out, because he is actually one of the better current pop artists IMO, but some of these guys - like Bruno or Justin Timberlake etc. are close to 30, or even past that - and they are yet to say anything meaningful in their songs other than let's party and "baby, you are so pretty I want to **** you". It's like artists do not have much to say any more.
 
Snow White luvs Peter Pan said:
My heart went after her because as far as I heard/read, that little girl existed.
Click to expand...

Great comment, and I believe this myself. Berry Gordy once said that Levi Stubbs "Made Bernadette come to life." and that he could actually see the girl he was singing about.

Michael definitely did the same here, and I can vividly picture the girl lying on the ground the same way I saw her back in 1995.
 
This girl lived in vain
Her face bear such agony, such strain...
Click to expand...


Father left home, poor mother died
Leaving Susie alone
Grandfather's soul too had flown...
No one to care
Click to expand...

I think little Susie is the darkest song for me.
I assume she lived with her grandfather, a grandfather with no soul.
A man who didn´t feel compassion.
She was abused for a long time before she died and noone cared or acted too late.

It´s a song about childabuse and that´s really dark and scary.
Too many children are killed by their parents or relatives who should be there to protect them.
 
respect77 said:
Exactly. Even his first self-penned song is very telling. And it's anything but some sugary sweet pop/disco song. People really should listen to the lyrics of his early songs - such as the ones on Destiny, because MJ was always telling us things about himself and the world ever since he was 18-20. I was listening to some current artists yesterday (Bruno Mars mainly) and I was thinking about how he is OK, but did he ever make a song with lyrics something to say? I mean all his songs are about either romance or party. I'm not singling him out, because he is actually one of the better current pop artists IMO, but some of these guys - like Bruno or Justin Timberlake etc. are close to 30, or even past that - and they are yet to say anything meaningful in their songs other than let's party and "baby, you are so pretty I want to **** you". It's like artists do not have much to say any more.
Click to expand...

I'm not versed on Bruno's and JT's music but I figured out they don't have anything interesting or meaningful to say in their songs by listening to some of them even though JT is 34 years old already and Bruno will turn 30 this year but Michael began when he was 18, showing how remarkable his sensitivity and maturity were in that period of his life.
 
Last edited:
Here's a thought that occured to me today.

For dark songs, how about Smooth Criminal?

It is a song about assault & murder and yet because of the upbeat tempo & the gangster theme we tend to forget this. I bet there weren't many songs hitting #1 in America in the 1980s that had this type of theme.

"He came into the apartment, left bloodstains on the carpet
She ran underneath the table, he could see she was unable
So she ran into the bedroom
She was struck down, it was her doom"

The Girl Is Mine it ain't.
 
Tony R;4072708 said:
Here's a thought that occured to me today.

For dark songs, how about Smooth Criminal?

It is a song about assault & murder and yet because of the upbeat tempo & the gangster theme we tend to forget this. I bet there weren't many songs hitting #1 in America in the 1980s that had this type of theme.

"He came into the apartment, left bloodstains on the carpet
She ran underneath the table, he could see she was unable
So she ran into the bedroom
She was struck down, it was her doom"
Click to expand...

Well, the same can be said about Billie Jean. As Blender magazine put it: "one of the most sonically eccentric, psychologically fraught, downright bizarre things ever to land Top 40 radio… a five-minute-long nervous breakdown, set to a beat.”. BTW, it was in their list called "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born" and Billie Jean was at #1, so it wasn't said as a bad thing. ;)
 
respect77;4072716 said:
Well, the same can be said about Billie Jean. As Blender magazine put it: "one of the most sonically eccentric, psychologically fraught, downright bizarre things ever to land Top 40 radio… a five-minute-long nervous breakdown, set to a beat.”. BTW, it was in their list called "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born" and Billie Jean was at #1, so it wasn't said as a bad thing. ;)
Click to expand...
That is a GREAT description of the song-same could be said for "Heartbreak Hotel". Both dark, dark, dark.
 
Come on - we're listing everything now.

We're talking about dark subject matter, not simply relationships or victimisation.

Dark to me means, things to do with an under-culture such as violence, abuse, chaos.
 
Then Morphine - that has to be one of the darkest songs he ever wrote...


- maybe Streetwalker is kind of dark i an way too. :)
 
For some reason the last page of this thread reminded me of this.

 
Be Not Always and Little Susie would have to be the ones for me. I actually think it's amazing when an artist can tap into those darkest corners of the human existence and channel them in such profound and exquisite expressions. There's almost a redemptive quality to the pain captured in song.

I've noticed that Little Susie is getting a lot more appreciation nowadays, at least around here; that's very encouraging. It is really is one of Michael's greatest artistic achievements and statements. For me it is a very special song, perhaps a bit too special...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top