Mother Theresa, like Farrah, got her thunder stolen in death by choosing the absolute worst day on earth to die noticeably. For MT it was Princess Di who shat on her parade, (no one even knew she died), and Farrah only got a 1/2 day of attention before MJ swooped in and gacked. If MJ had gone earlier in the day, people would be unaware that FF died.

Yes actually. But JT isn't making music for middle aged white guys. You've obviously never seen him perform. He's very talented. So is Chris Brown, Ne-yo, usher and many others. THey have all been influenced by Michael Jackson, have a huge fan base and you've probably never listened to them. I'd venture to guess that Current R &B isn't your music of choice.

People here hate rap, most said it wouldn't last, it's a passing fad. Well guess what. It's still here and will be here in 25 years. Just because it's someone or a genre that you don't like, doesn't mean it isn't significant in music history

Actually he did write songs. :rolleyes:

I agree completely with the first part.

But you are completely wrong about the second part, you just don't really know it.
My kids are 6 and 8 and loves MJ's music and videos. The people who are influenced by his music are not musicians or artists that you listen to. Thats like me saying some famous or pioneer in country music hasn't influenced others, when I don't listen to the type of music in the first place.

I have to confess to having never bought Thriller, other than the 45 of Beat It. But I do know those songs and a few of MJ's later ones. I'm not totally ignorant of his music. Since he wasn't a musician, I don't really see how his music is inspiring other musicians or will in the future. Just because I don't take Justin Timebrlake as serious music doesn't mean I don't think he has talent. I know his guitarist, Greg Howe, who also did a tour with MJ. Believe me, Justin ain't writing that stuff. I doubt MJ did either, even if his legal and record company folks had him credited as such on all his albums.

I listen to plenty of music that was made before I was born - mostly Led Zep, The Who, Yes, Hendrix, Beatles, etc. That stuff is timeless. We all know musicians who first picked up an instrument because of those guys. I know countless non-pro musicians. I don't know any non-pro dancers. Maybe I just run in the wrong circles. But I never ever met anyone whose goal in life it was to be able to dance like MJ or to hire an army of handlers, dancers and songwriters to help make him into a star.

Sorry, I'm not clear on what you're saying. Surely you don't mean PM is a founding father of rock, he was way too late and freely admits as to whom he looked up to. BW was very clever, but not a founding father either. He did many things that stand alone of their incredible merit and so did PM.

But to state that either of these cats was a founding father is silly.

On topic, MJ also did some things that will stand the test of time.

And, you say you never heard of someone who hired people to "make" them into a star. Perhaps, but hundreds of acts have had all the coaches and image formers, from the Motown artists to Britney Spears.

I'd like to conclude that Micheal Jackson was a musical act. He came from an act and formed his own. He was a tireless perfectionist, but he was honing his act. Off stage, he was totally lost. If we can separate MJ, the act from MJ the person, we could probably have a decent conversation.

Statements like this just fall into the rubric of "everyone is entitled to their opinion". All I'm pointing out, I guess, is that most people considered great or brilliant in music would not share your opinion. Does that make it wrong? To most people, yes. But it's an opinion.

When you say that MJ was "not a musician", I say so what. There are about a billion people on earth that can play an instrument or at least learn to if they wanted. Great talents of any stripe of artists are rare. Musicians are a dime a dozen. There are incredibly talented players laboring away as hired guns in studios everywhere. They are plentiful. Great performers and/or singers are rare.

As for Justin Timberlake, I've never intentionally listened to his stuff since it isn't my cup of tea and I'm way too old to be in his demographic but I've heard that he's extremely talented. Why be a hater? I've never got that. :rolleyes:

Sharpton on his way to LA to see the Jackson family and discuss simultaneous memorial services around the world.

This is BS.

Why the fuch do you care? Go outside. It's probably nice out where you live since it's summer. Get a life. You never know when it's going to end. :)


Disclaimer: I've been outside in the sun all day, just taking a break before heading back outside to the pool. :cool:

I don't care! but thanks for caring. I'm sitting down to dinner and just watched the national news. It dinner time back east.

I have never purchased anything of his, neither have many of my friends. We all wondered who the hell was buying these albums because no one in our circles were.

I lived in the era of the height of his popularity, I graduated HS in 1984. We had to endure all the glove wearing sequin jacketed copy cats walking around with their jerry curled hair and skin tight pants. They were in the clubs, we laughed at them, they were in our school, we laughed at them. That guy in the Adam Sandler movie the Wedding Singer with the glove and jacket, yeah it was funny and it was true.

I never liked his music never thought he was a big deal, so much better talent out there.

If record sales and ticket sales for shows are the only indicator for talent then folks, I am afraid Hanna Montana is our MJ of modern day, she is a "talent" powerhouse.


As this quote says, best career move the man could make.

It's going to be really hard to argue with this as time passes.

Ian

He was the greatest performer of all time.....period. Next would probably be Elvis at a close second. FWIW.

I always chuckle when I see a performer/artist/etc labeled like this. How the hell do we know? Maybe there was a singer/dancer babe in Persia in 188 BCE that was far better. The 'rock & roll' age didn't invent performing or songwriting . . .

Ian

obviously you have never seen spike jones and his city slickers.

So what exactly is the point of your post? That you know more about talent than anyone else?

Fact is that people around the world are mourning MJ's death in a manner that few deaths have been mourned in recent memory. Obviously the guy touched a lot of people with his music in a way that you are unable to comprehend.

So why not just let it go? Why not just respect the dead? Why just not STFU?

If there was a performer in Persia that was better we would all have heard about him. But on the flip side people in Persia know about Michael Jackson as the KIng of Pop.

I should clarify that I was never a Michael Jackson fanboy. In the 1980s I was very into jazz, going to the jazz clubs in LA and listening to John Coltrane, Sweets Edison, Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman, Sarah Vaughn, Billie Holiday, and so on. My rock, when I took a break from jazz, was either 60's classic or New Wave. I was much too cool for "Thriller", never owned it, the only thing more shameful to have in my record collection would have been "Saturday Night Fever" or Bee Gees, ABBA, etc. But when we went to dance clubs, "Billie Jean" was what you wanted to hear, because it was infectious and danceable. And 25 years later, his influence is still everywhere.

I'm still not a Jackson "fan", although I confess nostalgia is making that type of music more interesting lately. But, putting aside my own personal tastes, and just looking objectively at how pop and R&B developed - we've lost one of the greatest performers.

I wonder if he could have come back, if he could really have performed at the London shows he was training for. 50 y/o - sure, crusty old rockers can keep playing until they can't stand anymore, but Jackson's act was different.

I am voting Spike Jones also.
Much more talant, did every show live. Was real.

I am sorry, how many posts have you read from me on this subject?

Let what go? I chimed on my opinion on the man as an artist. My opinion as the man as a predator are much more disrespectful.