Michael Jackson – Pop life and death

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| Posted in Music Technology

michael jackson thriller coverMy phone lit up with texts around 11.00 last night. Michael Jackson, the ‘King of Pop’ had died they said. I didn’t really get to sleep until gone 3a.m, quite simply because all the thoughts about how Michael’s music had touched my life we’re going round in my mind. I wasn’t a ‘fan[atic]‘ in that sense of the word, but he did have a significant influence in my personal music production direction – the sheer behemoth that was his talent and genius meant that he was an artistic constant for many years.

His personal troubles, trials and tribulations, the media carnage about his ever changing appearance and (excuse the pun) ‘off the wall’ antics, were never my concern. All I have ever focused on is his voice, his song-writing, his performance and the iconic albums he has made in association with such mega-Producers as Quincy Jones etc. My early DJ‘ing days recall the ubiquity of the ‘Off the Wall’ album, especially ‘Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough’; the anticipation and realisation of the ‘Thriller’ video (and the entire album); the gigantic window display inside, and the queues outside London’s Tower Records, all for and waiting to buy ‘Bad’ – and even that didn’t disappoint..

Michael JacksonDuring the ‘megamix’ craze of the late 80′s, I was asked by DMC (the Disco Mix Club) to create a 4 sided double album of Michael’s earlier works both as a young solo artist and together with the ‘Jackson 5′ (using tracks primarily sourced from Motown’s catalogue). Imagine this, a boy from a Yorkshire town with tracks on my mixing desk for a Michael Jackson public release.. Granted, it (and I) wasn’t Quincy sat in an L.A. recording studio, but I was proud to have at least this one association with the ‘King of Pop’.

michael jackson smooth criminal lean

I reckon next to James Brown, Michael’s grooves, basslines, melodies and microphone dexterities must be amongst the most sampled, bootlegged and remixed DJ targets for the past 30 years. And in my gigs this weekend, I too will join the other [no doubt] thousands of other DJ’s dropping M.J. tributes in their sets. There’ll be flashback memories of that Motown Anniversary ‘Moonwalk’, the Smooth Criminal ‘Lean’ and the awesome crowd leading ‘Thriller’ routine. Let’s not forget how this dude could dance after all!

As for the music, I’d encourage everyone to look further back into Michael’s studio recordings, pre-’Off The Wall’, and post ‘Bad’.. Seek out his album collaborative work that you may have overlooked.. and just listen to ‘His’ voice, the production talent and incredible musicianship that, for most of his tortured, troubled life, has always surrounded him. Rest in Peace Michael xx

About Paul Dakeyne

Paul Dakeyne has written 592 post in this blog.

Paul Dakeyne is a DJ/Producer who has dedicated the past two decades of his life to dance music production and DJ'ing. For six years, he toured globally for the world famous Ministry of Sound and has played DJ sets for the likes of U2 and for the legendary, Kraftwerk, Although remixing around 250 records in his career, as an artist in his own right, Paul landed one of dance music's seminal crossover moments with his "18 Strings' monster hit by Tinman - scoring a UK top ten in 1994. He also co-wrote and produced the music for BBC's Watchdog and Crimewatch when they were both revamped in 2001 and '06 respectively. His other career highlights have included an A&R stint for Mercury Records, lecturing in 'DJ culture and music technology' and creating mash-up mixes for Radio 1's, Chris Moyles. Paul joined the DV group in 2003 leading to his role as blog and feature author here at the DV Mag.

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3 Comments

3 Responses to “Michael Jackson – Pop life and death”

  1. Graham says:
    June 26, 2009 at 11:09

    Working in a warehouse today with the radio on. It is all Michael Jackson. it is amazing just how many songs there are that are instantly recognised. It is also sad that someone has to die before we really appreciate what we had

      

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  2. Mike says:
    June 26, 2009 at 19:53

    More than any influence in the world of music to date, over 30% of twitter pays tribute to the king of pop and so do I…

      

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  3. Neil says:
    July 5, 2009 at 15:01

    Check out DJ Yoda’s tribute to MJ on Radio 1′s mini mix. Its well worth a listen :

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/r1mix/

      

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