Paradoxically, I was bitten by the Michael Jackson bug at a time when I was seriously getting into jazz. And while my record collection at the time was a strange assortment of eclectic jazz and progressive rock, I couldn’t stop listening to youngest member of the the Jackson 5′s first adult album, Off the Wall. Obviously, I wasn’t alone.
Aside from its pure brilliance and the instantaneous and visceral response it evoked, it took some time to realize, with the mix of Quincy Jones’ production and the presence of so many great musicians and compositions, that Jackson was redefining popular music.
As the media and Jackson’s entourage clouded recent public perceptions of the man, like Ellington and Einstein, I’m confident that future generations will come to more fully comprehend his genius and contributions to the world. He gave so much to us and yet in his final years he was seemingly always on trial, literally and figuratively.
As I write this, many are wondering what caused the heart attack that took his life. I think my wife summed it up best after first hearing the news when she turned to me and said, “Michael Jackson died of a broken heart.”
–Michael Fagien
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This is a perfect example of why I love your magazine. a short but poignant ‘note’ that really says more than alot of the rhetoric and sensationalism you get in other media these days. I think it a bit ironic that the feelings I have about Michael, “the King of Pop” would be summed up so well in a Jazz magizine. Or maybe not ironic at all but indicative of the influence he had on so many. A broken heart indeed from being so misunderstood.
My musical tastes in the 1970s into the early 1980s paralleled Michael Fagien’s. And though I never was a fan of Michael Jackson, I did say some 26 years ago that “Thriller” was a pretty good album and placed it in my collection. I still feel this way. Then again, Quincy Jones has always been able to do magic! Rest in peace, Michael.