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Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection

Michael Jackson

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Album Review

Released only a matter of days after Michael Jackson's tragic June 2009 passing but in the works long before that, Hip-O Select's Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection collects the entirety of his solo recordings for Motown in a triple-disc set. Although Michael had some major hits during this period — notably "Got to Be There," "Ben," and "Rockin' Robin," all Top Five hits on both the pop and Black Singles charts — it's fair to call these years Jackson's awkward adolescence, perched partway between the preteen dynamo of the Jackson Five and the cool, confident entertainer of Off the Wall. Certainly, Jackson wasn't in artistic control on these four albums — Got to Be There and Ben, both from 1972; 1973's Music & Me, 1975's Forever, Michael — not picking the songs or having a hand in the arrangements, a point hammered home on Farewell My Summer Love where the vocal tracks of unreleased cuts were set to new, modern backing tracks in 1984 at the height of Thriller mania. Farewell in all its awkwardness is here, along with the original superior mixes of nine tracks and Looking Back to Yesterday, another Motown cash-in of unreleased recordings released at the peak of Jackson's popularity. Motown effectively emptied their vaults of rare Michael Jackson material during this time so there's nothing new here for collectors, but much of this material has been out of print for a long time, so it's useful putting the somewhat forgotten recordings of a major artist back in circulation even if the music doesn't hold any new insights. Essentially, these three discs confirm the basic narrative of Michael Jackson's career to be correct: he was drifting at Motown as a solo artist, trapped both by his adolescence and the unwillingness of the label to give him anything to do other than follow shifting trends from bubblegum soul to disco (in this sense, the stiff synthesized productions on Farewell don't seem out of line, they're merely another step in Motown's continued march through fashion). Naturally, the aforementioned big hits retain their power and there are some gems scattered throughout each of the discs — and those gems come entirely from Jackson's pure, natural charisma — which may be reason enough for serious fans to get this handsomely produced set, but this is more interesting as a history lesson than it is as entertainment.

Customer Reviews

This is it!

The complete recordings from the Got To Be There, Ben, Music & Me, and Forever, Michael albums during Michael Jackson's earlier solo career. As in the song, "In Our Small Way" Michael Jackson had the nack of singing these songs as if he was an old soul, that's why he will forever reign as the King of Pop.

The KING

Michael you are the BEST and always will be!! NOBODY can ever fill your shoes. You will never be forgotten! I Love Elvis too, he was the king who got the world going, but then you came along and shook the whole world for 42yrs that i know of. It was great growning up with you. I will alway love you!!

Fabulous!

Michael has a voice of an angel! We love you! R.I.P.

Biography

Born: August 29, 1958 in Gary, IN

Genre: Pop

Years Active: '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, '00s

Michael Jackson was unquestionably the biggest pop star of the '80s, and certainly one of the most popular recording artists of all time. In his prime, Jackson was an unstoppable juggernaut, possessed of all the tools to dominate the charts seemingly at will: an instantly identifiable voice, eye-popping dance moves, stunning musical versatility, and loads of sheer star power. His 1982 blockbuster Thriller became the biggest-selling album of all time (probably his best-known accomplishment), and he...
Full Bio

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