Michael Jackson
History: Past, Present And Future, Book I

THE REVIEW

I find it seriously difficult to write a review of a deceased artist; my sense of pity and compassion (and probably that of others) towards an individual who is no longer here could greatly undermine my true opinion of the work being analyzed. Especially if the artist in question is named Michael Jackson. I will still try to be consistent with my thoughts.

In this review, I would like to talk about "HIStory: Past, Present And Future, Book I", Jackson's most controversial work, the dirtiest, the angriest, the most direct.

The album saw the light in 1995, two years after the scandal involving sexual molestation that the King of Pop allegedly inflicted on a minor. A very serious accusation, especially for someone like Michael, targeted by tabloids even before "Bad" (1987) was released. His questionable sexuality, the mystery surrounding the lightening of his dark skin, the gossip about his cosmetic surgery, were just some of the rumors that had long tormented the artist, who had already made efforts to musically express his disapproval: "Leave Me Alone", a bonus track from the album "Bad", was a timid attempt to ridicule all these pseudo-slanders.

But now things had heated up: the 1993 scandal threatened to wither a career that anyone would describe as "exceptional" and deserved the gallows. So what to do to turn the tide? First, begin to silence voices about the singer's alleged homosexuality by unexpectedly marrying Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis's daughter. Then start working hard again and produce a protest album, a "concept album" about the false world of tabloids, regaining the lost audience.

The intent was noble, and the results did not take long to appear: "HIStory" represents Jackson's quintessential protest and anger album, a real attack against the media. The lyrics, in fact, abound with irony, sadism, disdain, and shame towards a world corrupted by virtuality and drunk on false scoops.

The novelty of this work is striking: a double album (a rare thing at the time) in which Jackson first stops to recap his career (HIStory Begins) and then resumes the race (HIStory Continues). The first disc contains all (or almost all) the successes of the King of Pop, Billie Jean, Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough, Bad, Black Or White, Smooth Criminal. Due to the incredible amount of hits accumulated in only four studio albums (Off The Wall, Thriller, Bad, Dangerous), many successes were scrapped (same fate shared by The Immaculate Collection by Madonna), yet the catalog is fully valid.

What is of interest is the real novelty, contained in the second disc (HIStory Continues). It starts with Scream, sung (or rather screamed, as the title suggests) with little sister Janet, who was experiencing her golden period during those years. The track, which many consider similar to Jam (Dangerous, 1991, ed.), was released as the first single along with Childhood, one of the tearjerker and intense ballads of the album. Scream is perhaps the fiercest and most sincere critique of the media and tabloids that Jackson accuses of "pressing him" (the stamp is pressuring me); the video used to accompany the track will be the most expensive music long-form video in history, featuring the Jackson siblings inside a spacecraft in the style of "2001: A Space Odyssey", performing various actions, from playing strange video games to destroying electric guitars.

The voice of protest against the media world is strongly heard in the tracks Money, Tabloid Junkie, 2 Bad, This Time Around (with the special collaboration of Notorious B.I.G.), in which Jackson repurposes the New Jack Swing style in a more current and contemporary key, extending it with a bit of modern r'n'b, soul, and even rock. One track I particularly favor is D.S., a song with rock accompaniment by Slash (in fact, it somewhat resembles Black Or White) in which Jackson attacks Dom/Tom Sneddon, the policeman who had ordered him during the 1993 scandal to strip completely for an analysis of his private parts, which would have been crucial in the investigations. This episode left in Michael, already an extremely fragile and weak man, an indelible negative memory.

The topics of racism, environment, and freedom are also addressed: the songs They Don't Care About Us (accompanied by two videos: the "Prison censored version" and "Rio De Janeiro" uncensored version) and Earth Song represent the firm opinions of the King of Pop on the matter.

The singer's solitude during his tours and his very existence, oppression, depression, and distance from his paradise are lamented in the wonderful Stranger in Moscow, where a whispering voice is perfectly audible, delivering some phrases in Russian.

A slight air of carefreeness can be slightly perceived in the numerous ballads: You Are Not Alone (dedicated to then-wife Lisa Marie Presley), Childhood, Smile, Little Susie. The album also contains a pleasant cover of Come Together by Lennon, which Michael had already presented during the distant Bad Tour, visible in his film Moonwalker.

"HIStory" is a difficult album, where Jackson shelves the frivolity and simplicity contained, for example, in The Way You Make Me Feel, Smooth Criminal and Remember The Time, towards a search for something more concrete and important: the freedom to live, to exist as a simple person and not as Michael Jackson.