Off The Wall: Michael Jackson's Original Album And The Documentary "Michael Jackson's Journey From Motown To Off The Wall" Set For Release As A CD/DVD Bundle On February 26, 2016
JACKSON'S OFF THE WALL "INVENTED MODERN POP AS WE KNOW IT"

NEW YORK, Jan. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On February 26, during Black History Month, the Estate of Michael Jackson and Sony Legacy Recordings will release exclusive CD/DVD and CD/Blu Ray editions of Michael Jackson's revolutionary 1979 recording, Off The Wall. The package will include the original version of the album bundled with the new documentary Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall, directed by Spike Lee. The documentary will make its world premiere at Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2016, and its world television premiere on SHOWTIME on Friday, February 5th at 9 P.M. ET/PT on-air, on demand and over the internet. After its premiere on SHOWTIME, it will be broadcast in territories around the world.

THE ALBUM – The importance of Michael Jackson's Off the Wall cannot be overstated. Recorded when he was just 20 years old, the album heralded Michael's stunning emancipation as a singular musical force and creative visionary. It smashed the ceiling on record sales for black artists, ushering in an exciting new era of R&B-to-pop crossover airplay, chart, marketing and sales trends not seen before in modern pop music. It's the record that "invented modern pop as we know it," wrote Rolling Stone. For fellow black artists of the day, Michael served as an illuminating inspiration.

To Black America, Off The Wall transcended music and entertainment altogether. The success of the album marked a level of national and international achievement that conjured pride in a culture that as late as the end of the 1970s was still fighting for the kind of social acceptance that Michael's album received. Because of Off the Wall's indelible influence, 21st century artists as disparate as Beyonce, Pharrell, Kendrick Lamar and The Weeknd all have a blueprint they turned to for creating their superstardom.

Written by Michael Jackson, the first single from Off The Wall, "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough", was Michael's first Grammy and first single to hit #1 in the U.S. and internationally as a solo artist. With the singles "Rock With You", "Off the Wall" and "She's Out of My Life" Jackson became the first solo artist in history to have four singles from the same album peak inside the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. The album was an enormous commercial success; as of 2014 it is certified eight times platinum in the United States and has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.

The Music: "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough"; "Rock With You", "Workin' Day and Night"; "Get on the Floor"; "Off the Wall"; "Girlfriend"; "She's Out of My Life"; "I Can't Help It"; " It's the Falling in Love"; "Burn This Disco Out".

THE DOCUMENTARY – Produced by Spike Lee, John Branca and John McClain. For Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall, director Spike Lee assembles a wealth of archival footage, including material from Michael's personal archive, interviews with contemporary talents and family members, and Michael's own words and image to create this insightful chronicle from the star's early rise to fame through the release of this seminal album. A look at a chapter of his career that is rarely examined, Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall allows audiences to travel with Michael as he gets his start at Motown, strikes a new path with CBS Records, and forges a relationship with legendary producer Quincy Jones. An illuminated portrait emerges of how an earnest, passionate, hard-working boy would become the "King of Pop."

Partial list of interviews: Lee Daniels; The Weeknd; Pharrell Williams; Misty Copeland, Kobe Bryant; Mark Ronson; John Legend; Questlove; Katherine Jackson; Joe Jackson, Marlon Jackson, Jackie Jackie L.A. Reid and more.

For future Michael Jackson and Off the Wall news, including upcoming pre-order information:

MICHAEL JACKSON:
Website / Facebook / Twitter / Newsletter

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160106/319909
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20060130/LEGACYLOGO

SOURCE Legacy Recordings

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-relea...300200870.html



http://themichaeljacksonarchives.tumblr.com/

has to say, i gotta hear from that Chap on this project big time.

looking forward to it of course.

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

with which he was involved as a songwriter. even though one of those songs is inconsequential ('Burn This Disco Out'). meanwhile MJ himself wrote another 30% including the smash hit 'Don't Stop Til You Get Enough' which is easily one of my favorite MJ songs of all time. Rod is good but nothing he wrote on this album matters to me as much as what MJ wrote on it.

so yeah i agree it'd be cute to hear what he has to say about his relatively minor role in creating this album since i can't hear what MJ has to say since he's dead.

fuck you.

Off the wall title track and Rock with you were both top ten tracks that's 50% of the main tracks right their.

and how Quincy Jones took Rod from Heatwave and into his camp is worth hearing and how Him and MJ connected,etc..


your so called 30% take on Rod Temperton,is comical since "Rock with you" alone rivals any song that MJ wrote on that album including "Don't stop til you get enough"

and MJ was a good songwriter, however Rod Temperton just took the stuff he did with Heatwave
and gave it to MJ.

it worked,but not everybody could give MJ a money track
and compliment his style.

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

>Off the wall title track and Rock with you were both top ten
>tracks that's 50% of the main tracks right their.

yup.

fuck you.

girlfriend was a cover of Paul Mccartney and wings

its the fallen in love was a cover from carol Beyer seager


i can't help it was a cover as well which Stevie WOnder composed

shes out of my life was the odd man out written by tom Bahler who composed the song about his break up with Karen Carpenter.

but anyway MJ and Rod had the bulk of the main cuts.

on thriller MJ wrote 4 cuts and Rod wrote 3.

funny how they were the main cats

but you most be a politician with your subjective numbers moving

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

7 originals = 'main cuts' as you put it.

Rod wrote 3.

but originally you said he wrote 'Rock With You' and 'Off the Wall' which amount to 50% of the album's main cuts.

okay.

anyway, you also said Rod claimed he was the album's real producer. i'd like to read that or watch it. can you show me where he said that?

fuck you.

sound like Heatwave outtakes. Johnny Wilder could have sung them cuts.


ROck with you and Off the wall were top ten hits money cuts.

Rod also wrote burn this disco out.

the original demos really had more of that heatwave thing, until Quincy put his texturizer over them.

but aside from MJ, Rod was the main songwriter on Off the wall and thriller.

Rod ain't gonna come out and say it in public, however if you know his chord progressions and melodys and groove then you can hear his obvious sound which QUincy Jones took the credit.

Rod did the same thing for Herbie Hancock's project back in 79
and then with George Benson.

i lived, breathed and understood the Off the wall era. however with strong q tips and putting things together i knew that rod temperton had more of a hand in the production,than given credit.

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

>sound like Heatwave outtakes. Johnny Wilder could have sung
>them cuts.

So?

>ROck with you and Off the wall were top ten hits money cuts.
>
>Rod also wrote burn this disco out.
>
>the original demos really had more of that heatwave thing,
>until Quincy put his texturizer over them.

No surprise. That doesn't mean Rod was the producer. In fact it means Rod was NOT the producer.

>but aside from MJ, Rod was the main songwriter on Off the
>wall and thriller.

I agree. Each wrote 30% of OTW. Imo, MJ's songs >> Rod's songs.

>Rod ain't gonna come out and say it in public, however if you
>know his chord progressions and melodys and groove then you
>can hear his obvious sound which QUincy Jones took the credit.

I can tell Rid wrote 3 songs. The remaining 7 songs don't sound like Rod or Heatwave.

>Rod did the same thing for Herbie Hancock's project back in
>79
>and then with George Benson.

Yes he wrote many songs for Quincy's productions.

>i lived, breathed and understood the Off the wall era.
>however with strong q tips and putting things together i knew
>that rod temperton had more of a hand in the production,than
>given credit.

Rod must've also produced Heatwave records without credit. Bc the notes say the group's hits were produced by Barry Blue or Phil Ramone and NOT Rod. Rod is credited as songwriter - like on OTW (and Give Me the Night and Lite Me Up, btw).

fuck you.

ok got that out of the way.

Phil Ramone was the producer on those Heatwave records so the credit says. however we know that credits ain't always what you see.

Rod Temperton had the whole groove and basics of said cuts for MJ period.

MJ fans already know how MJ felt about Quincy Jones, because he said that Q didn't do much of nothing in the studio, however Q was the brand name before Brand in the modern context became chic to say.

Q had his team which then included rod Temperton. but the songs were already done and given to MJ. Q didn't tweak what rod had done,however credits say otherwise.

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

of any songs on Off the Wall, or that Rod claimed he was the real producer.

cool.

fuck you.

and a smart aleck jive turkey like you can't understand the obvious in musical tone and composition. i know how Quincy Jones got down

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

fuck you.

its in the ears.

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

okay.

fuck you.

do the mental reality

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

I hope the cd has the original album cover.

Bumpin in the STEREO:
Gladys Knight&The Pips
Mem Nahadr-Femme Fractale
Krystal-Gettin Ready
Carmen Rodgers-Stargazer

I'd love that.

This post was paid for by the following.

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www.debunkthemyth.org
http://dashaunworld.wordpress.com/
www.mothergreen.com

Remember MJ The Great!
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http://themichaeljacksonarchives.tumblr.com/

to the press release, they sent out an email to several fan sites and organizations about the release, including the decision not to include any bonus material like demos, unreleased songs, alternative mixes, or remixes (which has a lot of fans upset) using the excuse that MJ did not write or record a lot of material for it like he did for his later albums, which is partially true as MJ was busy with touring and promoting Destiny while going back to LA on off days to record the album.

Thing is, there are unreleased songs like Sunset Driver (which was released in 2004), You Told Me Your Lovin', Under Your Skin, You Not Me and a couple others along with demos like the ones for She's Out of My Life, Don't Stop, and Working that have already been released. Those four tracks could be slapped on the CD

I assume the current legal situation between Quincy and the MJ estate plays a part

http://themichaeljacksonarchives.tumblr.com/

fuck you.

Can't get the documentary w/o the CD.
And I want the documentary so...

https://digife.com

fuck you.

https://digife.com

No cop. Although I liked the Bad 25 release for all the extras, the remastering of the OG album was squashed to hell and sounds awful.

The 2001 remasters sound decent, but the Bad 25 and Thriller 25 are awful.

_______________________________________
Good people, good lovin
Good music in my life, it makes me happy

http://www.mixcloud.com/adotsizzle/

What I'm holding out for are multi-channel mixes to be released on Bluray, DVD, SACD, etc.

He's got my money for Off The Wall at least 5 times, the 6th will be on my terms

------------


Gone: My Discogs collection for The Roots:
http://www.discogs.com/user/tomhayes-roots/collection

>What I'm holding out for are multi-channel mixes to be
>released on Bluray, DVD, SACD, etc.

..i think..

====================================
Life in the completeness of its unity is negative. (c) ABK

but demos and songs recorded and intended for the album, hell yeah.

basically, if they did Bad 25 I would be down with it

Bad 25 was a good collection (would have been better if they went with OG 1987 pressing version of the album)

...the cd again with no bonus tracks, that's wack, they can keep the version with the bonus dvd, once I watch it I got the same cd that's been issued by Sony for the past 30 years.

https://tinyurl.com/y4ba6hog

---------
"We in here talking about later career Prince records
& your fool ass is cruising around in a time machine
trying to collect props for a couple of sociopathic degenerates" - s.blak

for this.....

YEP!

GOAT of his era......long live Prince.....God is alive....

Am I alone in my lack of excitement over remastered material in general? The Beatles mono set is the ONLY example that I thought was a significant enough upgrade on the material to warrant a re-purchase.

Anyone got examples of a re-mastered/re-mixed anniversary type release that is absolutely essential and added value to the original? I'm sure there's more than just the Beatles.....I just never buy this type of stuff.

My boss always says they should replace the term 're-mastered' in these ad campaigns to 'unnecessarily louder'.

>My boss always says they should replace the term 're-mastered'
>in these ad campaigns to 'unnecessarily louder'.

MJs 2001 remasters are decent but I still prefer my older MJ CDs. Depending on the edition, a few of those Marvin Gaye re-releases sound nice. Louder, but not too loud. Its obvious they actually took some time with those

I haven't found any that are "necessary" but I like the extra tracks, special edition books etc. It also works better when the MP3s are on random so I don't have to mess with the volume as much

_______________________________________
Good people, good lovin
Good music in my life, it makes me happy

http://www.mixcloud.com/adotsizzle/

>Anyone got examples of a re-mastered/re-mixed anniversary type
>release that is absolutely essential and added value to the
>original? I'm sure there's more than just the Beatles.....I
>just never buy this type of stuff.
>

Good examples for me ware the Marvin Gaye deluxe releases. They almost always added tons of material that wasn't available previously.

The most significant of the re-issues were the What's Going On 40th Anniversary, which came with a vinyl of the "Original Detroit Mix" that sounded perfect on my turntable and then had 2 CDs of unreleased songs from sessions during that era. Mind you, this is after 2 previous re-issues of What's Going On that I also bought.

http://www.amazon.com/Whats-Going-Anniversary-Super-Deluxe/dp/B004V7XWEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452541810&sr=8-1&keywords=marvin+gaye+what%27s+going+on+40th


Another one was the re-issue of Trouble Man that had the movie score too that wasn't released previously and was re-mastered.

Motown did a pretty good job re-mixing/mastering all of Marvin's albums from What's Going On to In Our Lifetime. I think David Ritz had a lot to do with that since he was there with Marvin during all of that time as his personal biographer.

_______________________________________
http://thebums.bandcamp.com
http://dickgrayson526.podomatic.com

shit was FIRE...Great interviews...The archival concert footage of the 70's Jackson shows and the Triumph tours were "movie" quality....Spike kicked ass on this one...The mystery of MJ is unwrapped....

GOAT of his era......long live Prince.....God is alive....

splain????

U just get to see that MJ wasn't some alien that was beamed down to earth...Dude was CUT THROAT...lol

But more than that he put in the work....The documentary basically laid it out...MJ worked harder than everybody else. He understood the little things add up...

GOAT of his era......long live Prince.....God is alive....

that is why i found it insulting when you and some other media types only made a big deal out of his music videos. they were important to his legacy,however the man was Music first and foremost.

i already knew how detail MJ was. Gamble and Huff, all the Motown cats said the same thing.

he was ruthless as a Music Artist and as a Businessman.

He knew what he wanted and he knew how far he could go
and he wasn't afraid.


believe me how Jackie wilson ended up Messed with MJ back in the day
and other Black Artists.

he also vowed by any means necessary to get it all out.

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

https://youtu.be/F54kIhEQ7p0

http://themichaeljacksonarchives.tumblr.com/

http://boundless-expression.tumblr.com/

http://themichaeljacksonarchives.tumblr.com/

During the part when they played Workin Day and Night live one of the Jackson had his shirt off and all sweaty... I swear I've never seen someone so toned, or with abs like that. I thought to myself whatever Jackson that is has to be gettin some top tier pussy lol.

My thoughts on the Doc, overall it was good. Started off great, it was not as good as Bad 25. Every time I saw Rodney Jerkins I cringed. I know Rodney was MJ's people's but that era in Mike Career I don't even count. Yeah Jerkins is terrible. Lots of the people they interviewed I could have done without (WKND) I love you Ms. Perez but she was on screen too much. Bad 25 was amazing IMO this was good but seemed. kinda incomplete. But I'm still gonna get it on DVD

they should get people who either were around back then or acts who have records that are classics to speak on said greatness.

its like if their was a documentary on "there's a riot goin on" and the best they can get for Sly Stone would be some grapefruit head turkey like Will I Am. they never get these things right.

truth is all you need is the music and performances.

can't nobody alive now except for Stevie Wonder know the dues
and heighs that MJ made
and did.

Spike is a doing a great job highlighting the Musical genius and greatness of MJ and lets make this clear nobody was seeing his 80's zone or late 70's through early 90's.

destiny through dangerous he was on a musical mission.

Spike will do a great job,but some of these lames they have talking with no hits or being cornball acts is forgettable,

mistermaxxx R.Kelly, Michael Jackson,Stevie wonder,Rick James,Marvin Gaye,El Debarge, Barry WHite Lionel RIchie,Isleys EWF,Lady T.,Kid creole and coconuts,the crusaders,kc sunshine band,bee gees,jW,sd,NE,JB

Miami Heat, New York Yankees,buffalo bills

>During the part when they played Workin Day and Night live
>one of the Jackson had his shirt off and all sweaty... I swear
>I've never seen someone so toned, or with abs like that. I
>thought to myself whatever Jackson that is has to be gettin
>some top tier pussy lol.

https://digife.com

now I need to get that BluRay.

I enjoyed it. Actually watched it again Sunday.

I loved all the footage from the Jacksons' concerts. All in all,I enjoyed it

I don't think it's nearly as great as Bad25 though. Bad may just be my least favorite MJ album, but I loved that doc so much because it really dove into the creative process of the album. It touched on the more technical aspects of the album and I've always been big on seeing the creative processes of artists.

Being a huge MJ fan, I didn't get much new information. I knew the story as they were telling it. I would've preferred a doc that went deeper into the creative processes of the songs, but Spike chose to cover the 10 or so years prior for 45 min, and OTW itself for the next 45.

I'll probably cop the the CD/Blu-Ray set at some point down the line. It's not a must have because it lacks the extras thatI'd like to see. I'd definitely recommend it though.

_______________________________________
Good people, good lovin
Good music in my life, it makes me happy

http://www.mixcloud.com/adotsizzle/

i really dug this doc.
My favorite part,,, well, ONE of my favorite parts was the note he had written to himself back in the late 70's i believe...the one where he basically road-mapped and strategically detailed the steps he planned to take and the work he'd have to put-in in order to fulfill what would indeed become his actual destiny...and as we know, he ultimately DID that. ALL of it. i had never heard that story or seen that note before...

i really enjoyed the doc a lot. love the audio clips and the rare footage and interviews of Mike, many of which i had never seen or heard. the ones where he discusses his creative process and drive...the interviews where he (and others) discuss how he loves to LEARN...i love that shit...

i want even more of that...i want the FULL interviews. Maybe, if they're smart & if we're lucky, they'll put extended uncut interviews and footage on the blu ray or something?

i also want to get more details about the creative process...i'm talking IN THE WEEDs of how each of those songs came to be. (would love love LOVE a doc that TOTALLY focused ALL of its attention on that 'in the weeds/creative process' for both "Off The Wall" and the Jacksons "Destiny" albums while some of the co-creators are still around to reveal some of the behind the scene nuances...

unfortunately we've already lost Mike and several of the musicians who were key to some of that great stuff (David Williams who died the same year Mike did)...so, very sadly for me, there are some stories and details we'll NEVER know....i get genuinely depressed knowing that. i LOVE hearing about the creative process....the choices made to do something 'this way' versus 'that way', and the reasons and inspirations behind those choices....i love hearing that sort of thing...

we have to find some way to make this happen...

footage too but for some reason, his estate is holding onto it all




http://themichaeljacksonarchives.tumblr.com/

not sure what that was about.

“So back we go to these questions — friendship, character… ethics.”

lots of great footage.... wish we had some official releases of concerts from that era on DVD..... Mike in is prime is unmatched...

But it was well put together...obviously would have been cool to have Rod Temperton talk, but otherwise great job by Spike Lee...

he should a follow up that covers Thriller...Victory tour..and the Bad album and Michael's first solo tour...

http://boundless-expression.tumblr.com/

http://themichaeljacksonarchives.tumblr.com/

I haven't seen it yet, but I imagine they didn't get him.

https://digife.com

talked about him but not to him

*smh*

fuck you.

but I was still holding out hope that they'd interview him for this

-enjoyed the talk about the Stevie Wonder track
-randy on bongos!priceless!
-Greg Phillingaines is that dude!
-mj was teaching us with the rock with you video

Bumpin in the STEREO:
Gladys Knight&The Pips
KING-We Are King
Babyface-Return Of The Tender Lover
Rick James-Street Songs

I realized I don't have a lot of MJ's music pre-Off the Wall.
great concert footage - I need to find a list of all the performances used and get those videos
too much kobe, rodney jerkins imo
wanted it to be more in depth but great nontheless, I learned a lot

I'm not going to post a 3000-4000 word piece on this site...I'll just bless y'all with an excerpt of Spike talking about the new MJ project. Very illuminating stuff....I hope he gets the dance to a documentary on Thriller...

--

Spike Lee: 30 Years Of Fightin’ The Power
Written By K. Murphy
February 26 2016

Excerpt:

When we met up with Lee we found him to be in jovial spirits. Our conversation ranged from the Oscars’ woeful diversity issues and the Presidential campaign circus of Donald Trump to the respectable return of his beloved New York Knicks. But first things first…Lee’s Off The Wall film—which features an embarrassment of riches of interviews including the Roots’ Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, fellow movie director Lee Daniels, new age R&B crooner the Weeknd, British music man Mark Ronson, and super producer Pharrell Williams as well as MJ’s family Katherine Jackson, Joe Jackson, Marlon Jackson, and Jackie Jackson and iconic Off The Wall producer Quincy Jones.

It’s the second installment of what Lee hopes will be his definitive documentary trilogy on the world’s greatest entertainer (Spike wants to tackle the making of MJ’s 1982 commercial juggernaut and best-selling album of all time Thriller following Michael Jackson’s Journey from Motown to Off the Wall and 2012’s Bad 25). For Lee, it’s quite simple. Michael Jackson is the standard for all who dream of making their mark on this world and beyond.

VIBE: The defining theme of your Off The Wall documentary is the demystification of Michael Jackson. We have this idea of MJ as this otherworldly performer who was beamed down from another planet. But you present Michael as a gifted singer who also happened to be pretty hardcore when it came to perfecting his own craft and studying the greats. How important was it to get the idea across that Michael Jackson wasn’t just getting by on natural ability and that he was arguably pop music’s most obsessive worker?

Spike Lee: With this Off The Wall documentary we definitely wanted to show how much of a hard worker Michael was. There’s a note that he wrote that we featured in the movie. Michael said: “To be great, study the greats.” Let me just say that I really hope that younger artists see this film because Michael had otherworldly talent, but he worked at his craft. And I think that is something that’s being lost to young artist.

How so?

I’m not trying to sound like some old fuddy duddy grandfather, but it’s about the work ethic; that elbow grease; that get-up-and-go. I think we are losing craftsmanship because everybody wants to get to their destination over night without putting in the motherfucking work. You gotta work. Like Verdine White (of Earth Wind & Fire) said in the documentary: If you love what you do, it’s not work. That’s something that the writer Dream Hampton also emphasized as well in the film.

Black artists, especially, are viewed as having some magical, natural gifts…

Right. So often with black artists and athletes there’s this crazy notion that we just—to coin a phrase my sister Beyonce—woke up like this . Nobody didn’t wake up like this. We didn’t come out of the womb dunking or singing or dancing. People put in work. They had the talent, but they put in the work. And Michael embodied that. He was working, perfecting his craft.


You were able to get your hands on some pretty rare archival concert footage from the J5 days and the Jackson’s Destiny and Triumph tours. Can you talk about how open John Branca and John McClain were in terms of opening up the Jackson estate’s vast video collection to you for the Off The Wall documentary?

We did a documentary before this on the Bad album, which was called Bad 25. Hopefully, God willing, I get to do one on Thriller. But that’s the appeal of these films. It’s not going to be a very interesting documentary if we show videos that people have seen a million times already. You want to see stuff for the first time.

How did the experience of filming the Off The Wall documentary differ from the Bad 25?

With the Bad 25 documentary, you are dealing with an artist following the best selling album of all time. Off The Wall is a very different time. People weren’t sure about Michael, but he was. There is more of an innocence of Michael hooking up with Quincy during the making of The Wiz going into his first adult album apart from his brothers. So there’s a lot of new milestones and I think that is definitely reflected in the music. Off The Wall is so joyful and free, whereas Bad 25, which I love as well, was basically Michael saying, “We are going to sell more records than Thriller!” *Laughs* It’s two different mindsets.

Are you in the camp that believes Off The Wall is Michael’s finest artistic statement?

I love them all…but there is such an innocence that you hear on Off The Wall that you don’t hear on Thriller or Bad.

Michael was very ambitious and even at times quite cutthroat when it came to breaking away from brothers. Did that aspect of Jackson come through for you?

I wouldn’t say Michael was cutthroat. He just wanted to fulfill his artistic vision. And that vision was not going to be singing and writing songs with his brothers, who he loved dearly, for the rest of his life. He wanted his own individual expression of who he was. I don’t think that’s cutthroat to me.

Full piece: http://www.vibe.com/featured/digital-cover-spike-lee/

GOAT of his era......long live Prince.....God is alive....