By the time I started paying attention to Michael Jackson, his persona was already beginning to overshadow his musical achievements.I was in elementary school in the late ‘80s, when he was the butt of many a brilliant playground joke about plastic surgery or homosexuality.He had released Bad by that time, and his recent videos were all over MTV and VH1.I thought the songs and videos were good enough, but somehow, none of them ever really got me.I was more familiar with Weird Al Yankovic’s “Fat,” a parody of Bad, than I was with the original.I guess the turning point was the Smooth Criminal video – an extended 1930s-gangster-speakeasy-sci-fi fantasy set to music, in the tradition of the cinematic Thriller video.Even that one went over my head the first few times, but at some point, it definitely clicked.
I started looking forward to seeing the video, and I actually got excited about the others, despite having been watching them for months.I dug up the cassette copy of Thriller that my parents had bought when it was popular (a testament to Michael’s universal appeal!).Soon enough, I went to Target and bought my own cassette tape of Bad.I traded my favorite pair of sunglasses to one of my good friends in exchange for a jacket that looked like the one Michael wore in the Thriller video.I started imitating his dance moves – mostly for laughs, but they were fun to try (I was good enough at dancing like him that I would get requests from friends).As it turned out, the Smooth Criminal video was only a small segment of a movie called Moonwalker, in which Michael indulged in his own mythical image through music videos, a montage of his career, and various short films featuring live action mixed with cartoon props, claymation, and visual effects.I had a video about his life story, but even with James Earl Jones narrating, it paled in comparison to Moonwalker.At one point, I tried to read Moonwalk, his autobiography.I don’t remember finishing it.The transcendent, super-human Michael Jackson was a lot more fun than the real one.
A few years later, when the Black Or White video premiered on Fox, I watched, along with all the other fans, as Michael gave us three or four minutes of joyous globe-trotting and cross-cultural dancing to the catchy single, followed by four or five minutes of him dancing in a back alley with no music, grabbing himself, and vandalizing the scene.Of course, everyone threw a fit the next day, he apologized, and the edited first half of the video became the hit we all expected.
Then the bomb dropped.Michael was accused of being a child molester.Unfortunately, it wasn’t just another standard tabloid story.We all wanted him to be innocent, but nothing else he’d done up to that point gave us much reason to think he was.
He was eventually cleared, but it was never the same after that.He married Lisa Marie Presley, kissed her on the MTV Video Music Awards, and then they divorced about a year later.Some of his lyrics generated controversy.He got more plastic surgery.He married again and had some children.He made some more music.People made child molester jokes all the while.
At one point when I was in college (and had lost track of what he had been up to), he began what appeared to be a comeback.By that point, I think people were ready to put aside some of the ridicule and celebrate his magic as a performer once again.A new album and some live appearances made it look like he might have a chance of salvaging his reputation, at least to some extent.However, he soon made the news again by dangling his infant son from a balcony while cameras were rolling.Not long after that, he was charged once again with molesting a child.Everything fans had been trying to forget (for an entire decade) resurfaced, and it was hard not to feel like it was really over this time.Sad as it was, it was also hard to care.
He treated the court appearances like publicity stunts, and he looked even worse than he had before.Eventually, it came to light that he was in serious financial trouble.Neverland Ranch (his theme park) closed, and he auctioned off much of his memorabilia.Some special edition re-releases of his albums helped shift the focus once again, but it was hard to revisit his prime when the current reality was what it was.
He recently celebrated his 50th birthday by watching cartoons with his children, apparently still trying to reclaim the childhood he said he never had.He was on the eve of another tour when he died last week.I imagine that’s the way he wanted it.Had he toured again, everyone would have said that the performances were great, but not like they used to be.For a man who used his superstardom to insulate himself from his pain and loneliness, that probably would have seemed even more unbearable than dying suddenly and unexpectedly at 50 years old.
When I heard the news, I was not only surprised that he was no longer alive, but also that I was actually very moved by it.Somewhere in the back of my mind, I guess I still had to admit that it was like losing an old friend.I’m guessing a lot of people felt that way, though I’m sure none of us had a clue.That was the source of his confusion, and it’s what kept him larger than life in our eyes.
Last Saturday, Marika and I joined Nathan and Liz in going to see Neko Case at the Ogden Theater in Denver. Three of the last four big name shows we’ve attended have been at their urging, and it has definitely paid off to take their advice!
The opening act was Joey & John, from the band Calexico. A guitar and drums duo, their sound was much fuller and their impact far less visceral than might be expected. Rather than exploiting the garage rock sound of bands with similar lineups, their sound was slow-building, often atmospheric country-rock. Having long figured that Calexico was one of those eclectic bands I would probably love if I would just take the time to hear them, I was surprised at what a comfortable sound Joey & John created. It was the same “driving alone on the highway in the middle of the night” sound that many roots rockers seek, but it was played superbly. Partway through their set, they were joined by a harmonica player, their combined powers creating the most intense music of the evening.
Neko’s performance was every bit as solid as I hoped it would be. Her voice is one of a kind, a soaring classic country voice in an indie-folk-rock context. A second vocalist, Kelly Hogan, provided harmonies, complementing Neko perfectly. Various images – everything from ghostly silhouette cutouts to a building in the process of being demolished – were projected onto a screen behind the band, enhancing the visual element and adding another dimension to the imagery in the lyrics.
While she and the band were in command the entire time, the tone was very relaxed. The interaction with the crowd was so casual, in fact, that Neko gave up performing the opening lines to Middle Cyclone (the title track of her most recent CD) after being derailed not once, but twice, by her own laughter. A joke that had started onstage had been passed back and forth between the band and the crowd until there was no room in anyone’s minds for an introspective ballad. As it turned out, Middle Cyclone was performed as the final song during the encore, bringing a very fitting close to the evening.
Our tickets were general admission, and we found spots up front before the show started. It was pretty crowded, and it only became more crowded as the evening went on. Thus, my only complaint was that it was the hottest, most crowded show I’ve ever attended. After a long week of packing, moving, cleaning, and a bit of demo in the new house, it was exhausting to stand in one place so closely packed together. I guess that’s the price we had to pay for a chance to be up close to such an excellent performer.
I have invited Nathan to be an author on this blog. While I don't expect that he will write often, I am anxious to have him share his reviews of the concerts we attend occasionally. Last Saturday we went to Denver to see Neko Case at the Ogden Theater. Nathan's first post will be a review of that concert. He will publish it later this week so stay tuned!
