Tag: news

audio review : Tabloid Junkie ( song ) … Michael Jackson

Pay attention to the bridge, where Michael Jackson throws a fit about “everybody” gossiping. He rants to himself, his words loud enough for us to hear but not distinguishable enough to understand, over a pulsating beat with news reports rattling-off in the background. By the end, he’s not even making sense. He’s just caught-up in the music.

It’s an unguarded display of artistry, the type that probably would’ve never seen the light of day before the History album; a song set that follows several months of public hoopla regarding the well-publicized child molestation charges he vehemently denies to this day. It also follows years of scrutiny about him being a “strange” man in general.

Some people still believe he sleeps in a hyperbaric chamber or that he made an offer to buy The Elephant Man’s bones. Both rumors are addressed here. It’s Michael Jackson’s official response to the Tabloid Junkie; anyone so hooked on reading and watching tabloid journalism that it’s gotten to the point where they believe the stories to be true.

my rating : 4 of 5

1995

audio review : History ( album ) ... Michael Jackson

video review : Deep Impact

video review : Deep Impact

The premise is captivating. A huge comet is headed toward Earth and will hit in less than a year, which means most, if not all, people will die. It’s a extinction-level event; an “Ele”, as some unimaginative government official dubs it. But such a thing is hard to take in. Earth hasn’t had one since the dinosaurs, after all. So an MSNBC news reporter named Jenny Lerner carries on with her job, looking as lethargic as ever, as the end of the world grows near.

A decision she makes near that end is stupid, but it’s the boy who discovered the comet while looking thru a telescope in astronomy class who’s the ultimate idiot. His impeding doom is a secondary concern for him. He cares more about the classmate he’s fallen in love with. Time wasted on such trivial silliness instead of more hardcore realism; The President addressing the nation are the best parts; cushions the blow with a layer of schmaltz.

my rating : 3 of 5

1998

a 7 Action News article : Detroit Liquor Store Owner Gunned Down Outside Store

a 7 Action News article : Detroit Liquor Store Owner Gunned Down Outside Store

Detroit Police are on the scene of a fatal shooting at a liquor store on the city’s west side.

It happened outside the Medicine Chest Liquor Store on the 9000 block of Dexter. The store owner, Faraj Dally was shot and killed as he was about open store this morning.

According to witnesses, the victim pulled up in a navy blue jeep and was gunned down before he reached front door of store, a mere 15 feet away. The suspect was seen taking something from the jeep, presumably cash.

The victim, who neighbors call Freddie was shot in the head. They say he was always helping everyone in the neighborhood and was good about extending credit.

His employee who normally helps him open on week days was across the street at a Coney Island when she heard two shots. When she came out of the restaurant Freddie was down on the pavement and the suspects were leaving.

The suspect is described as a black male, 190 lbs, 5’8″-5’10” wearing a black hoody, jeans and a scarf over his face. There is no description of the driver at this time. The two were in a black Dodge Journey.

Some believe Freddie may have been targeted. He often carries large amounts of cash on the first of the month after cashing the store’s checks.

2012

wxyz.com
 

roncelmaxwell :

Sad and Senseless.

audio review : History ( album ) … Michael Jackson

audio review : History ( album ) ... Michael Jackson

Presented amidst a promotional campaign comparable to the second coming of Christ with movie theater trailers and 32-foot statues, Michael Jackson’s History album hits the world of popular music like nothing before it. It’s the most important album by the most important song artist, the presentation seems to suggest, and you just have to hear it.

With that, it should be the happiest of times for The King Of Pop, but there’s a dark cloud overhead and a bitter tone to most of these songs. “Stop pressuring me,” he Screams on his long-awaited duet with Janet Jackson, “Stop fucking with me!” The siblings take turns firing back at the slanderous news media, though it’s Michael who’s been under attack.

Biased journalists have partaken in what seems like a worldwide conspiracy to ruin his name, especially since he’s been publically accused and investigated, but not actually charged, with molesting one of his Neverland boy friends. It’s a case that was eventually settled out of court for a lot of dough. That convinces a lot of people that he’s guilty.

Some people are smarter than that. We wonder what kind of parent whose kid was sexually abused pursues cash over justice. So we nod our heads as he sings about people who’ll do “anything” for Money; the best part of the album is the last chorus section of this song; or Tabloid Junkies who believe “everything” they read in a magazine or see on the TV screen.

There’s even a song about Tom Sneddon; the prosecutor responsible for trying to put him in prison. “You know he really tried to take me down by surprise”, Jackson ponders in the angry and strained vocal style he’s taken on over the years. It’s a stark contrast to the tender crooning he does on Childhood or the ballad about the ghost girl he refers to as Little Susie.

The album would be better without the cover songs; Come Together by The Beatles and Smile by Nat King Cole, which, on a Michael Jackson album, amount to mere filler. He also repeats the Dangerous blunder of featuring rappers, though The Notorious BIG, who’s surprisingly allowed to refer to Michael Jackson as “my nigga”, provides a remarkable verse.

Even on that song, Mike is in defense mode, paranoid about people being out to “get” him. I commend him for addressing the scandal that would’ve been the elephant in the room if this were an album of romantic love songs, but the amount of time he spends on it takes away from the History concept, which is supposed to be about his legacy as a whole.

The message of the title song, which samples historic audio bits like Martin Luther King’s I Have A Dream speech, is to live your life to the fullest and be the best you can be. It’s advice Michael Jackson certainly has the credentials to give, but he’s doing a lot of polishing to keep his crown from tarnishing and that’s starting to affect the quality of his music.

Most of these songs are good, but none of them are great. Some of the songs on his previous album are great. That makes History a disappointment after Dangerous like Bad was after Thriller. It’s unusual to be disappointed by good albums, but Michael Jackson has set unusually high standards for himself. I guess that just comes with being The King.

my rating : 4 of 5

1995

Though this album is promoted and presented as a double album; Michael Jackson’s most popular songs from the Past and new songs from the Present; my review is limited to the new songs.