Via Wikipedia: "Billie Jean" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson. It is the second single from the singer's sixth solo album, Thriller (1982). It was written and composed by Jackson and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. There are contradictory claims on the meaning of the song's lyrics. One suggests that they are derived from a real-life experience, in which a female fan claimed that Jackson (or one of his brothers) had fathered her twins. However, Michael Jackson stated that "Billie Jean" was based on groupies he had encountered. The song is well known for its distinctive bassline played by Louis Johnson, the standard drum beat heard in the beginning, the repetition of "Billie Jean is not my lover" towards the end of the song and Michael Jackson's vocal hiccups. The song was mixed 91 times by audio engineer Bruce Swedien before it was finalized, though he reportedly went with the second mix as the final product.
The song became a success; it was one of the best-selling singles of 1983 and is one of the best-selling singles worldwide. The song topped both the US and UK charts simultaneously. It also topped the charts of Switzerland and reached the top ten in Austria, Italy, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden. "Billie Jean" was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 1989. Rolling Stone magazine placed the song in the 58th spot on its list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Michael Jackson Lived: Aug 29, 1958 - Jun 25, 2009 (age 50)
The song became a success; it was one of the best-selling singles of 1983 and is one of the best-selling singles worldwide. The song topped both the US and UK charts simultaneously. It also topped the charts of Switzerland and reached the top ten in Austria, Italy, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden. "Billie Jean" was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 1989. Rolling Stone magazine placed the song in the 58th spot on its list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Michael Jackson Lived: Aug 29, 1958 - Jun 25, 2009 (age 50)
3 comments:
Topped all those chart?
It topped my chart instantly. And I couldn't even hear the whole thing.
I heard it in a cab in SLC on the way to the airport and the other people in the cab wouldn't shut up. So I sat there miffed without any argumentation because we were there to ski and have fun after all, and still satisfied that I'll be hearing it again soon enough even as the other cab riders didn't recognize greatness when they heard it at least enough to pipe down and listen.
And the second time on t.v., this act, with the dance moves and I though, oh man, this is beyond outstanding. I recognized the moonwalk as a Marcel Marceau move from decades previously. Jackson must have studied that. The mime acted out closing a window with the wind pushing him back. An electric fan made the light curtains flap.
Then later the owner of La Petit Gourmet and its sister business next door the Sweet Soiree, in Glendale facing the park and now owned by his nephew, invited un groupo muy grande de su amigos mas favoritos to ground level seats at the arena to see the show along with a bunch of other less famous songs. And boy, was that fun. There were a lot of us. And that taught me; this guy is really f'k'n rich! How absurdly profligate. But it really was fun. Bill was rather old then and he died shortly thereafter so the whole thing was probably a huge last hurrah. Thank you, Bill.
I never appreciated Marcel Marceau. Still don't. But he did invent this move. So there's that. (It doesn't make up for all the rest of the crap.)
Did you see the western guitar cover of this song on Ace? Very good. But if you're going to do a cover it should be better than the original. Don't you think?
Nah. He's just playing. A different style.
It's an anniversary of his passing today. I can remember when I heard the sad news like it was yesterday.
You remember The Day The Music Died, but him?
At the time the record was out, SNL did a bit with Eddie Murphy as Jackson, the tagline of which was, "You know I would never do that to a girl".
Brought down the house, of course.
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