Michael Jackson steps into his own spotlight with the help of Quincy Jones from the Wiz album. It’s not his solo debut, but it may as well be. The pop star is allowed artistic control of his music for the first time in his career. From the start, it’s clear the album’s main job is to get people onto the dance floor. Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough, it goes, or at least until you Burn This Disco Out. It’s an all-night groovefest with funky instruments and suave falsettos.
Most of the songs deal in romantic love. Stevie Wonder provides a slinky jazz ballad about how some people Can’t Help but love other people in that way. It’s a bit of an anticlimax because the clunky chorus can’t compare to the vibe of the verses. It’s better than Paul McCartney’s submission though; a silly song entitled Girlfriend that has Michael Jackson threatening to tell her boyfriend what they’ve been doing if she doesn’t come clean on her own.
The best song is, ironically enough, the one you can’t really dance to. It’s a ballad entitled She’s Out Of My Life, about a girl who might’ve hung around after two years if only Michael Jackson had expressed to her how much he loved her. It’s a good thing there are so many other girls in the club, which seems to never stop playing Michael Jackson songs. Heartbroken or not, all the guy has to do is walk up to the next one and pull her off the wall to make her his.
my rating : 4 of 5
1979