Am I the only 30-something who was oddly verklempt when she found out that Michael Jackson died today? I don't know what it was, exactly, except that he was a part of my childhood and adolescence in a way that no other musical artist was. (Don't get me wrong, I do love me some Jon Bon Jovi, but there was something about MJ that set him apart from other musicians.) I think maybe it was the posters that Mary Ann Echols' sister had plastered all over her walls. His was the first poster I ever saw, the first music video I ever saw, and he had pretty much the sweetest dance moves ever (less the quintessential grabbing of himself, which I really could have lived without... but apparently he couldn't).
I talked to Cousin Julie tonight and we reminisced about Thriller and The Moonwalk. And I talked to my friend Jo, and we were a little teary together, too. I think it must be those little bits inside of me that were around in 1987 that are oddly saddened that he's gone. And more than being sad that he's gone, I'm sad for the kids 10 years younger than me who never knew how cool Michael Jackson was. He had such an immense amount of talent. His music and his dancing revolutionized the Pop music genre.
Tonight I watched some old music videos (Bad and Beat It, with a little bit of Billie Jean and Thriller thrown in for good measure) and was amazed, again, at what a dancing machine he was. He was popping before anyone else was, but it was The Moonwalk that has always truly blown my mind. So, here's a little goodie for those of you who are old enough to remember him from the glory days when he wore a red leather jacket and one glove. Enjoy!
6 comments:
Ahhh, I spent sooo many hours in front of my DVD player trying to learn every dance move of his possible (I was a little like Napolean Dynamite in that sense.) Let's all name our favorite MJ songs...mine would be dangerous, smooth criminal and Scream w/ him and Janet!
I am very much with you. I've been tearing up since last night...then I'll Be There rolled around on my iPod :( I'll never forget listening to the Thriller album so much that I wore out my tape of it! RIP The King of Pop
RIP The King of Pop, no kidding, Tiff. I'm so wishing I'd used that as the title of my post now. I logged on to FB last night and one of my high school friends had written that he hoped that MJ would be remembered for his musical and dance contributions and not for the lawsuits and craziness. It's funny, because I think anyone of our generation is going to remember the music, hands down. Not that we didn't know he'd gotten nutty (because, hi, how could you miss that?!), but his music was such a part of our growing up that he is part of us. He really was a nutter, but... with his entire life lived in the spotlight, how could he not be, really? Bless him.
He was an amazing artist! Yes, his personal life was twisted and weird. But I liked him because of the ARTIST that he was. The man could dance like no other and he had some great songs to work with, too! I loved Thriller and Beat It! I remember trying to stay up to watch Friday Night Videos, just to catch his videos! RIP, Michael -- may your legacy be your music and dance moves!
I think it is nice to finally be able to look past his lunacy and go back to the things about him that were great. In that sense, some good comes from his death.
And...good gads....I hope he's found a little peace.
Jim and I, too, have been thinking back to our childhoods, that would not have been the same without Michael Jackson. As we watched "So You Think You Could Dance", I was able to really realize how much Michael J has evolutionized dance. I truly don't think dance would be the way it is without MJ. It is amazing to think how MJ will always and forever be remembered for his talents and how he changed the world of dance forever.
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