Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, died today at the age of 50 of suspected cardiac arrest. Seemingly out of nowhere, this leaves a void in the field of music that will never forseeably be replaced.
What makes me most sad about his death, of course occurring just before he was supposed to make his "comeback" by performing fifty shows in London, is that a whole generation of children are growing up not knowing who Michael Jackson is, or worse, only knowing of him as a scandal-plagued former star.
Before MTV turned to suck they actually played things called music videos, which had the novel idea of taking a hit single and adding visuals. The first music video I remember seeing was Madonna's "Like A Virgin", which needless to say had a profound effect on my life. Shortly thereafter I saw the unquestionable zenith of the music video form, Michael Jackson's "Thriller". Seeing something so epic in scale coupled with such a powerful song is jaw-dropping, and deserves it's own award as the video that launched MTV into its own being (for better or for worse) and videos since have never even come close to its perfection (incredible even when just considering how technology has advanced in twenty-seven years).
The album Thriller is still the number-one selling album of all-time last time I checked (over The Eagles' Hell Freezes Over) and the singles on it are astounding. Billie Jean and Beat It are two of the best singles ever and have not aged at all. I feel an underdog sense of respect for his first solo album, Off The Wall, which featured incredibly happy and catchy tunes such as Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough and The Way You Make Me Feel. Michael's work as the star of the Jackson 5 when he was such a young child is both heartbreaking and awe-inspiring to watch- knowing how his father treated him while also respecting his voice that is so completely ridiculous for a child of that age to have.
Today when I went out to dinner I had the horrible experience of listening to a father explain to his 6-7 year old daughter who Michael Jackson was. Not so sad was that she didn't know- she's very young and at that point it's his responsibility to educate her- but the father had to explain Michael to her in relation to Miley Cyrus and The Pussycat Dolls. If you're old enough to listen to that crap you should have a near-doctorate in Michael, and I thought of all the other kids her age and younger who will probably only discover him in their 20s. It's a depressing thought, and with the death of the undisputed King of Pop, who was so famous that people spent their lives and made their livings impersonating him, a large fraction of my childhood has vanished. To remember him I have selected five videos: 1. His performance with the Jackson 5 on Dick Clark's American Bandstand of "I Want You Back"; 2. His video "Billie Jean"; 3. His video "Beat It"; 4. His video "Thriller"; and 5. His performance at the 1995 VMAs which lasts for ten minutes and features a medley of some of his greatest songs.
Image found via Google; videos found on Youtube.
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