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August 27, 2010
BY BOB KOSTANCZUK, (219) 648-3144
There is credence to what Jennifer Batten says about Michael Jackson.
After all, she snapped off guitar licks for him.
"I call him a creative tornado," Batten, who toured extensively with Jackson, recently said.
"He's all about the creativity in every aspect -- music, dance, visual ... everything," she continued.
Batten backed up the "King of Pop" on guitar during his mammoth "Bad" and "Dangerous" tours.
So it's appropriate that she'll discuss the late, great Gary native from 10 to 11 a.m. Saturday at the MJFanvention -- a fan celebration at the Radisson Hotel in Merrillville.
Tonight, Batten will give an intimate concert at Front Porch Music in Valparaiso.
Her own works have included electronica and vocal samples, as well as traces of African, Scottish and Caribbean sounds.
Batten certainly toured the planet with Jackson, who died last year at the age of 50.
Following the "Bad" and "Dangerous" tours, she again wielded the guitar for Michael while he undertook a lengthy global road trip in support of a greatest-hits compilation.
Batten said general perceptions about the singer can be inaccurate on many counts.
"I think, basically, the public doesn't know anything about him and they just take home what they hear from the news and rumors," the Oregon resident said. "I would just say he's the sweetest guy in the world."
Being with the legendary entertainer on the road was easy.
"He was just always kind to everyone and gave everybody first-class treatment," the guitarist said.
Batten's website says she was selected from more than 100 guitarists to play in Jackson's touring band.
Why does she think she was chosen?
"I never asked, I was never told, but I would assume it's because I knew the 'Beat It' (guitar) solo," Batten said in a phone interview this month. "I had been playing that for years in a Top 40 band."
It was 23 years ago that Batten auditioned for Jackson's band.
While in the Far East, the pop icon paid a personal compliment to Batten.
"We were in Japan, and he came up to me and said he really liked how I was playing the 'Beat It' solo," she recalled.
Batten's proficiency on guitar caught the ear of Jeff Beck, one of the all-time masters of the rock instrument.
In 1998, Beck asked her to join his band.
She recorded and toured with Beck.
http://www.post-trib.com/lifestyles/263815...ist0827
BY BOB KOSTANCZUK, (219) 648-3144
There is credence to what Jennifer Batten says about Michael Jackson.
After all, she snapped off guitar licks for him.
"I call him a creative tornado," Batten, who toured extensively with Jackson, recently said.
"He's all about the creativity in every aspect -- music, dance, visual ... everything," she continued.
Batten backed up the "King of Pop" on guitar during his mammoth "Bad" and "Dangerous" tours.
So it's appropriate that she'll discuss the late, great Gary native from 10 to 11 a.m. Saturday at the MJFanvention -- a fan celebration at the Radisson Hotel in Merrillville.
Tonight, Batten will give an intimate concert at Front Porch Music in Valparaiso.
Her own works have included electronica and vocal samples, as well as traces of African, Scottish and Caribbean sounds.
Batten certainly toured the planet with Jackson, who died last year at the age of 50.
Following the "Bad" and "Dangerous" tours, she again wielded the guitar for Michael while he undertook a lengthy global road trip in support of a greatest-hits compilation.
Batten said general perceptions about the singer can be inaccurate on many counts.
"I think, basically, the public doesn't know anything about him and they just take home what they hear from the news and rumors," the Oregon resident said. "I would just say he's the sweetest guy in the world."
Being with the legendary entertainer on the road was easy.
"He was just always kind to everyone and gave everybody first-class treatment," the guitarist said.
Batten's website says she was selected from more than 100 guitarists to play in Jackson's touring band.
Why does she think she was chosen?
"I never asked, I was never told, but I would assume it's because I knew the 'Beat It' (guitar) solo," Batten said in a phone interview this month. "I had been playing that for years in a Top 40 band."
It was 23 years ago that Batten auditioned for Jackson's band.
While in the Far East, the pop icon paid a personal compliment to Batten.
"We were in Japan, and he came up to me and said he really liked how I was playing the 'Beat It' solo," she recalled.
Batten's proficiency on guitar caught the ear of Jeff Beck, one of the all-time masters of the rock instrument.
In 1998, Beck asked her to join his band.
She recorded and toured with Beck.
http://www.post-trib.com/lifestyles/263815...ist0827
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