Michael Jackson...

I would agree that Elvis' death was a much bigger 'event'.

If the joke was about Ascot, I received it todayand I will put it in the jokes section if anyone wants to see it. I thought it was funny and not untypical of the kind of things that are circulated when a celebrity dies, irrelevant of who they were or what they did or didn't do. I received one a while ago about Jade Goody beating a David Blaine record - I thought was really funny but I still gringed when I read it.
 
Did Elvis write and produce his work like Jackson did?

To get into context of what he achieved at his peak...Thriller is the worlds biggest selling album ever of a 100 millions plus sales...that is over double the size of anyone else.
 
I am not arguing the merits of either as an artist, musician, entertainer, talent or anything else in favour of either - just my recollection of events when Elvis died was that there was much more 'hysteria', hype, questions about his death, his life, his 'everything'. It was a long time ago and maybe time has distorted my memories of it. However, I suspect with the media the way it is now as opposed to then, and some of today's events, the Jackson story will run for longer.
 
Is that Thriller written by Rod Temperman and produced by Quincy Jones?

Look, he was an above-average performer who had dubious relationships with children. Put it on his grave stone.
 
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Jackson's influence on production is unlikely to have been that great given Quincy's enormous skills in that area and the fact that the sound was pretty close to his trademark anyway. Ai no corrida and razamatazz by Quincy Jones himself, being perfect examples

It is rod Temperton betsmate! From....Cleethorpes! A highly influential writer in the genre of course

Would also suggest that Elvis kick started far more careers than MJ did. Now, thats partly because (as EC says) it was a sign of the times, but whereas john lennon amongst many other great artists worshipped him....not sure many present day "great" artists (if there are any i suppose) "worship" MJ

but its fair to say theres nothing wrong with great presentation and performance
 
Galileo said:
Did Elvis write and produce his work like Jackson did?

To get into context of what he achieved at his peak...Thriller is the worlds biggest selling album ever of a 100 millions plus sales...that is over double the size of anyone else.
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I'm no Elvis fan - but you are right he didn't write and produce - he just helped to change the whole course of popular music - which is a bigger deal..i believe

Record sales..yes impressive on one album - had some publicity behind it though yes?

People who are influencial and themselves create genres don't trade off the back of one album either..they put out a slab of work that covers many albums...yes I know he made other albums..but that is the one most folk talk about.

MJ hasn't changed the course of music..he was a great entertainer...as was Elvis..but Elvis also influenced far more people including the biggest band the world has ever seen...not my opinion that..just fact. If he had turned that album out on his own it would have have elevated him a little...but he is a one trick pony..a performer.

If we want to talk about record sales:

The Beatles - 1billion+
Elvis - 1 billion +
MJ - 800 million

when you look at each artist and how much TV coverage they got..then you could argue that MJ got a thousand times more coverage than both E & Beatles when in their heyday..no MTV in the 60's..just a few half hour music shows..which whittled down to just TOTP alone in late 60's....how many sales would they have had with the media circus of the 80's..MTV etc behind them?..staggering to think about it

I'll throw in a minority band..comparatively - Led Zeppelin ..200 million sales - not a mainstream music..certainly not in their heyday - they never appeared on TV once - very little play on the radio either..wikipedia also states that that figure could be a lot more due to them being an old act...I'd certainly have zep in the 500 mill area.

you compare that to the other 200 million sales stars..all had massive coverage - zep..no publicity...thats impressive...obviously a little biased here :)..but not many bands have done what they did re publicity and had such massive success...how many genres did Zep create?..and no..I don't like all the genres created either. They have probably recorded 5/6 of the greatest rock albums of all time..in 11 years..plus a few more that were still better than most other bands best. :)

I'm not putting any of theses artists down..they are all giants ..but to cite one album from someone who was around in the media overloaded 80's...as sold more than anyone else..is not really putting them all on a level playing field is it?

publicity is key to an artist's success..not all artists were as lucky as MJ in this respect..twas a different world in 50/60/70's
 
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As I was about to reply to your post below mine on the last page ec1.....!

The 60's was the era of the cold war and racially segregation, the eighties was the end of the cold war and the hollywood era!

The type of energy Jackson displayed in the 80's would have only come off Russian nuclear powerstations in the 60's!
 
I take on board what you are saying, but Thriller was released in 1982 and absolutely nobody has come close since.

Think the term going around in circles comes to mind here....clearly the guys music had an impact on huge numbers and plenty of others it did not.
 
respect your opinion Gal..you are talking as I am..about what has happened in your generation

you are right..since then we have spiralled downwards in lots of ways..there were still lots of great bands from 82 onwards though..but album sales wise hard to argue with

going back to the 60's though....:lol:
 
crikey

just looked down that list on wiki

Nana Mouskouri 300 million

wtf is that about? :blink:

whole of greece must have bought her stuff a few times

she had a show on TV in the 60's as well..just shows what exposure can do :p
 
Led Zep didn't release singles or court television but they did tour their arses off and must have played every town in America. Far cry from The Beatles in their creative heyday.

I'd be amazed if the likes of Beyonce, Justin Timberlake and the Black Eyed Peas (to name just three huge acts of today) weren't massively influenced by MJ.
 
I could live without those three mind you Gareth, particularly Justin:blink:

aye..Zep were a busy band..in one year..69 they played 200 odd concerts and churned out there first two massive albums..no sitting about in a studio with yoko poko for them...busy with the parties as well :whistle:

i'm not a big zep fan mind you :rolleyes:
 
Take no notice ec, I was on about a nice long post I lost in cyber space regarding the difference between the 60's and 80's.
 
I found his dad a little wanted talk about his new record label your son's just died ffs.

he seemed more intrested in how much money he could make,
 
and englebert whatisname outsold the Beatles at one stage

If i was to list black musicians (and it is a bit silly catergorising in this way) who were more influencial in terms of sound than MJ, would say Stevie, Curtis Mayfield, George Clinton, Niles rogers (Chic etc), james brown, the producers at philly, Ray Charles, Quincy (yes) and probably quite a few lesser known ones who kicked started various genres

Thats leaving aside, bird, miles, louis and coltrane...and all the blues guys

Would also suggest mary J, grover washington and EWF too maybe. Marvin perhaps

temptations , ojays...its a great list
 
if i remeber rightly...thriller was a bit of a slow burning album until the video came out, Maybe my mate had it on import....

Its funny thinkjing back to what wre the big influences. Take punk. I was 15 in SW london, which was the epicentre of that genre in 1976/7 and saw most of the bands. Good mate of mine was on the back cover of the first british punk album (i think) lLive at the Roxy. Before anyone asks, striaght legs jeans and short haircut was enough to not get served anywhere rather than pins and spiked hair at that time.

Anyone remember the Teds and the bicycle chains too? was quite a few of them about (always from Hayes i recall) and always after it

Saw most of the bands in early days (before drifting back to soul/funk and better looking girls). Clash were shockingly bad really but Stranglers (with the pub rock influence) superb (although wasnt done thing to say so then)

And which band kick started it? Pistols? Maybe ....Damned and their New rose....maybe... New york dolls?

but for me,first to kick against the Genesis and ELP's of that world..were

Eddie and the hot rods...

Remember them?
 
Warbler said:
I'm still struggling to see what Jacksons 'real' contribution is though other than performance and presentation.
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I think his real contribution was through his dancing that complimented his music and rather outlandish style of design. Not many people would have been able to have stood up and do what he did at the Motown 25th anniversary the night he sung Billie Jean. He had no one teach him, he just did it.

Also it would be fair to say he really was one of the first to bring the video music clip to a higher level.
 
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