I remember the first time I heard Michael Jackson. One summer in the early ‘90s, my sister and I stumbled upon a Jackson 5 vinyl that belonged to our mother. For hours on end, we would spin “ABC” on her tangerine-and-vanilla colored record player from the 1960s. We soon compiled a collection of tapes and gathered the neighborhood kids around a boombox, attempting to imitate his dance moves in choreographed recitals. That was 15 years ago. Now, Jackson is dead, but the King of Pop lives on in our iPods and dance moves.
Michael Jackson first entered the music scene in 1968 when Steeltown Records signed his band of brothers, The Jackson 5. Through the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, they produced hits like “I Want You Back,” “ABC” and “Dancing Machine” on the legendary label Motown Records.
Jackson embarked on a solo career that escalated with his 1979 release, Off The Wall. On that album, he collaborated with producer Quincy Jones to create an obvious jump away from the R&B style of The Jackson 5 and into pop. He again teamed up with Jones in 1982 to create Thriller, the best-selling album of all time, with total sales estimated to approach 109 million. The single, “Thriller,” morphed the concept of music videos into an art form. His 14-minute mini-movie broke records in cost, special effects and creativity. This album also provided fans with the seemingly impossible moonwalk, first performed in the video for “Billy Jean.”
“When you’ve got [Jackson] singing and Quincy Jones producing, you are going to get a solid album,” said William Logan, album salesman at Austin’s Cheapo Disks. “Those albums are timeless.”
Throughout his 41-year career, Jackson sold around 750 million records, won 13 Grammy awards and impacted millions. After his peak in the early ‘80s, he continued making chart-topping albums like Bad and Dangerous. From his iconic dance moves to breaking down racial and musical barriers in his various collaborations, Jackson was everything King of Pop symbolized.
“He was a star to be reckoned with right from the beginning,” said John Kunz, owner of Waterloo Records. “He went on to become one of the biggest stars ever across the world. His music touched everybody.”
Top-10 songs: Michael Jackson
1. “Thriller”
2. “Billy Jean”
3. “I Want You Back”
4. “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough”
5. “Black or White”
6. "Beat It”
7. “Smooth Criminal”
8. “The Way You Make Me Feel”
9. “You Will Be There”
10. “Bad”
