Michael Jackson: Perfection Forever Out of Reach

Posted by Michael on June 26, 2009 under Personal | Read the First Comment

How did I overlook “Thriller” and “Bad” in my list of Top 10 Pop Albums of All Time? Those two are definitely in there, and “Dangerous” is damn close.

I guess like so many others, I fell victim to the media’s picture of him over the past 12 years… and starting to forget the amazing, consummate artist and songwriter he was.

“Thriller” hit the public zeitgeist just as I was starting to develop my own musical tastes and identity, and it must be hard fro anyone under the age of 28 or so to truly comprehend the impact he had on my entire generation. I never considered myself a big fan. I had all his tapes/CDs, etc… of course, and I enjoyed his albums and hits. But I think he was SOOOO massive, that I felt he didn’t need MY undying fanship, so I poured it on other artists.

The news yesterday of his death rewrote my history in one evening. His music has always been in my life, and like family, perhaps I took it for granted. But a man with talent like his should never be taken for granted. As I read all the tributes, I’m also struck with an emerging theme: While the man was amazingly talented, he also WORKED hard to hone his craft,  to the detriment of every other aspect of his personal life. He didn’t take his talent for granted, why did I?

The stories remind me of why I got hooked into creating music. I liked it because there was no such thing a a “perfect score” or 100%. Academic classes were too easy for me, and it was all to easy for me to slack while I got my straight “A”s. But I knew I would NEVER be able to slack in music. There would ALWAYS be room to get better. I was right, I’ve been doing this for over 20 years, and I’m still finding ways every day to improve.

I was puzzled why Michael Jackson’s death hit me so hard. (It didn’t really kick in until I finished a session with a client.) Looking at it, I think it was because I knew Michael Jackson was after the elusive “perfect score.” Even after Thriller, he thought he could “Beat It” and worked himself harder than anyone else could to achieve the impossible.

Now, forever out of reach.

Bob Baker’s Indie Music Promotion Blog: The Future of Digital Music for Indie Artists

Posted by Michael on June 18, 2009 under Misc | Be the First to Comment

Bob Baker’s “Buzz Factor” always has good advice for the musician looking for promotional ideas, for instance, check out this article…

Bob Baker’s Indie Music Promotion Blog: The Future of Digital Music for Indie Artists.

Review: The Black Eyed Peas – The E.N.D.

Posted by Michael on June 11, 2009 under Reviews | Read the First Comment

As a music producer, part of my job is to stay up on what’s current. I love popular music, so this isn’t really a chore. But I have to say that “Boom Boom Pow” by the Black Eyed Peas leaves me completely puzzled by it’s success.

Quite frankly it reminds me of my fraternity days. A bunch of people with no musical talent in a room getting high… rapping crappy nonsense, looping a cheap drum machine and holding a single key down on the keyboard… occasionally doing a random, pointless and non-musical noodling synth solo… toking up and going “that is soooo cool man!” Read more of this article »

Give the engineer some « Loren Weisman’s Blog

Posted by Michael on June 9, 2009 under Recording Tips | Be the First to Comment

Here’s a great article about what the mix really does for your song and why you should really budget for it. Of course, when you work with me you get a package price and no surprises!

Give the engineer some « Loren Weisman’s Blog.