Long live the King...of Pop

Its kind of a weird thing really. He hasnt had an album in ages, and you dont really hear much about him these days... hopefully he feels like he escaped the hounding of the press in the end. Still it is a strange day knowing there will now, for certain, never really be a new Michael Jackson album. He was set for somewhat of a comeback this summer, but whether another album exists or not...

So strange how his death mimics Elvis', as so many events of his life did. Elvis too was hounded by the media, stories circulated of weird happenings and behaviours. I think Michael suffered harsher criticism simply because society is more comfortable with that now. I felt bad for him when he underwent all the scrutiny, all the violent syllables pointed in his direction. The media made a monster of him, and I dont think he deserved that, I was of that opinion from the beginning. I have always loved his music, even the later stuff that a lot of people dont. I appreciated the effort he put into his work, in interviews you could tell he just really knew how to make music and that is all I cared about.

Well that is what I cared about the most. No one is a saint, I know that as much as anyone, and I dont expect that of anyone. I dont need Michael Jackson to be perfect to enjoy his tunes. I dont need him to live up to my expectations of a persons life to recognize that, like Mozart before him, he was exceptionally gifted from a very young age. Sadly, like Wolfgang, he only burned brightly for a short time before falling rather hard into eternity.

I heard on the radio this morning that MJ sold 40 million albums in one year, 1983. That is absolutely staggering. Especially when you consider this was not a man who sang other people's songs. He wrote for himself, was in on the production and provided the vision for most of his videos. I know he wasnt a one man band, but he was more involved in his music that any of the pop stars today. 40 million albums. Think about that.

I will continue to listen to his music, no doubt my kids will think of it as "dad's oldies music", but I will relate to them what a powerhouse the king of pop was. I will ask them to listen with, to watch the "old videos". At the same time I will wonder who will replace him, who will be the next manic genius our eyes fall on? Who will be the next subject of our prying admiration? I cant say it is a title I would wish on anyone.

The King is dead. Long live the King.