Part I of III
Early this summer another black man died with needle marks in his veins. It’s not that I was shocked when I heard the news that Michael Jackson had passed. I was really surprised he lived this long. Sure, like many others I became misty-eyed. Two images of Michael automatically came to my mind as I was on the I-90W headed to Cleveland listening to announcers read the TMZ press release; My first recollection of Michael and his brothers on that 1969 "Ed Sullivan Show" and Michael’s still unbeatable solo-performance on that "Motown 25" Anniversary special. Those two images were of a young Michael, healthy Michael, black Michael. How many of us blacks wish Michael continued to look like that, for our own gratification. Were that the case this might be a completely different story, but coming around the corner was-sadly enough- naive Michael.
It’s no accident that the major media has once again focussed on Dr. Conrad Murray after a 2-to-3-week lack of exposure. From the beginning of this episode I got the feeling the African-American physician was/is being used for something. This is just as important to discuss as it is unpleasant to write, because what happened to Michael between then and now settles the whole issue as to why he’s gone. Beneath the smokescreen of legwhips, Moonwalks and tight spins lay the mind of what would become the greatest recording genius and ruthless business genius of all time. I use "ruthless" in a good way at this point. Consider how the recording industry has run their mind-game on so many black artists. Michael flipped the script and in the long run it cost him his life. Quincy Jones no-doubt was the source of much of Michael’s early business knowledge. Jones wasn’t just a great musician/writer/producer/arranger. He learned from people like Ray Charles, protecting your music, protecting your master tapes. Jones’ jazz group the "Jones Boys;" Eddie Jones and Reunald Jones toured the US and Europe to great acclaim, but they lost money. As the story goes, Q had to learn the difference between music and the music business. Mercury Records would loan him money and gave him a promotion to run their New York office, becoming Vice President in 1964 Around this time he founded the Institute for Black American Music (BAM). Nothing to sneeze at for a black man during the Civil Rights era.
Michael was 6-years-old in ‘64 and already leading his family’s R&B group even though he was the youngest. By the time the Jackson Five became hitmakers for Motown and then Epic, Michael would record a few solo albums and would eventually become a surviving icon who made it through the ‘70’s, and early ‘80’s. Unlike Lennon, Marley and Gaye, Jackson didn't change to the political message. Body Politics was his thing, songs about rats and he’ll be there evolved into songs about women he didn’t sleep with (Billie Jean, Dirty Diana), or girls he admired from afar; Liberian girls, librarian girls, it didn’t matter. There would be no libertine girls for Michael. Soon to be followed was a wave of plastic surgeries. What the first 3 had in common for the most part is having undergone intense government surveillance and the eventual assassination. They can’t kill us fast like they used to. Today they do it slowly so as to prevent the backlash of political unrest and awakening. Read the rest of this essay very carefully.
You may think I’m poking fun, but realize the genius of making songs about celibacy and detachment into the greatest recordings of all time. Only with Michael and only under the production of Jones could that have happened. In 1980 Michael was already earning a record 37% royalties per album. His lawyer John Branca negotiated the deal. During this period Jackson was already close friends with ex-Beatle Paul McCartney, even recorded a couple hits together. It was his discussion with McCartney that watered his appetite for royalties and music catalogues (according to Wikipedia, McCartney was earning $40 million per year on songs by other people). When ATV Songs went up for sale Jackson jumped at the opportunity but not before contacting McCartney first. ATV owned the copyright to thousands of popular songs including most of the Beatles and Elvis Pressley music.
McCartney was at first not interested due to the high price, but changed his mind and tried to put on a late rush with the surviving Beatles and John Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono in tow (He must have been nagged by Lennon’s ghost). At any rate McCartney pulled out and Jackson won the bidding.
