zinniabooklover
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THERE WILL BE SPOILERS
Yesterday I finally got around to reading Moonwalk. I know I'm probably the only person here who hasn't read it. I don't usually read autobiographies and I never had any interest in Michael's personal life. But @ScreenOrigami has a really good review of the book upthread and I realised that it sounded very different to your typical autobiography.
And it is. To create the book Michael recorded his thoughts and then his collaborator formed them into a coherent narrative. It feels a bit like you are sitting down with Michael as he flips through a bunch of photo albums and tells you stories as he goes along. It works really well and it does feel as if you are in a conversation with Michael.
I loved this book and read it in a single day. I felt a twinge of regret that I hadn't read it earlier but then realised that now is the perfect time for me to read it. I can understand and appreciate it so much more now. For example, because I've listened to the two depositions I can understand and enjoy Michael's comments on his songwriting process much more.
I love the fact that it's not a traditional autobiography. He doesn't drag us through a conventional story about his family and personal life. We don't hear about his schooldays or childhood friends. The story is chronological but it's all about his experiences as an amateur and then professional performer. It's an unusual approach and I can imagine Michael recording his thoughts as he copes with his crazy busy schedule.
HERE ARE THE SPOILERS
On P.11 Michael says this:
"So I very much identify with anyone who worked as a child ... I feel old for some reason. I really feel like an old soul, someone who's seen a lot and experienced a lot ... "
I'm not clear on his use of the phrase 'old soul'. He could just mean he feels physically old because he's been working for so many years. Or maybe he's also referring to the spiritual idea of an old soul. Either way, I find myself interested in what Michael has to say even though his comments always carry a shadow of sadness.
I did learn some new stuff. I didn't know the Jackson 5 toured Africa (the Jacksons did, IIRC). Apart from Senegal, Michael doesn't name specific countries that they visited. This is a section where I would have been asking for more details if I was talking to him.
On P.114 I learned that J5 had done backing vocals on Stevie Wonder's awesome You Haven't Done Nothing. So I had to go and listen. Wow! Those doo wops - beautiful. And how come I never knew this? Stevie literally sings:
"J5 sing along with me"
I don't remember hearing that. Maybe I was too busy dancing. Or I was distracted by the awesome bass line.
Probably the most interesting part for me is when Michael namechecks 'Patches', a song by Clarence Carter from the 1970's. On P.150 Michael says:
"I had always shouldered a lot of responsibility , but it suddenly seemed that everyone wanted a piece of me. There wasn't that much to go around ... I had to learn to be wary of some of the people around me ... For some reason I always found it very difficult to say no to my family and the other people I loved."
He's talking about the Blame it on the Boogie period. Clarence Carter's song is about a poor sharecropper's son who has to step up and be the man of the family. The chorus goes like this:
"Patches, I'm depending on you, son
to pull the family through
My son, it's all left up to you"
Another set of lyrics, which are spoken not sung, go like this:
"And at the age of thirteen I thought I was carrying
the weight of the world on my shoulders"
I get the impression that Michael had to do a lot of heavy lifting in the family but I had thought it was post-Thriller. Had no idea it was as early as this. I understand that family dynamics are complicated but I did find this section really poignant.
Although I love the way the book has been created there is a downside. Sometimes it feels a bit superficial or rushed. Michael has a lot of ground to cover and you get a really good overall picture of his working life but you don't always get much detail. It took them 4 years to pull the book together; I just wonder if enough time was set aside for it. Michael was super busy at that point and always juggling multiple projects at the same time. I wish it could have been possible to carve out just a bit more time for the book.
Another weak point is the photos. There are plenty of them, which is great, but the presentation is poor. Most are b&w and printed on normal paper which keeps the production costs down but also lowers the quality. Visually, the book isn't wonderful. Maybe the original hardback was better but this paperback is far from perfect.
Overall, though, I loved it. I'm so glad it's still in print.
Yesterday I finally got around to reading Moonwalk. I know I'm probably the only person here who hasn't read it. I don't usually read autobiographies and I never had any interest in Michael's personal life. But @ScreenOrigami has a really good review of the book upthread and I realised that it sounded very different to your typical autobiography.
And it is. To create the book Michael recorded his thoughts and then his collaborator formed them into a coherent narrative. It feels a bit like you are sitting down with Michael as he flips through a bunch of photo albums and tells you stories as he goes along. It works really well and it does feel as if you are in a conversation with Michael.
I loved this book and read it in a single day. I felt a twinge of regret that I hadn't read it earlier but then realised that now is the perfect time for me to read it. I can understand and appreciate it so much more now. For example, because I've listened to the two depositions I can understand and enjoy Michael's comments on his songwriting process much more.
I love the fact that it's not a traditional autobiography. He doesn't drag us through a conventional story about his family and personal life. We don't hear about his schooldays or childhood friends. The story is chronological but it's all about his experiences as an amateur and then professional performer. It's an unusual approach and I can imagine Michael recording his thoughts as he copes with his crazy busy schedule.
HERE ARE THE SPOILERS
On P.11 Michael says this:
"So I very much identify with anyone who worked as a child ... I feel old for some reason. I really feel like an old soul, someone who's seen a lot and experienced a lot ... "
I'm not clear on his use of the phrase 'old soul'. He could just mean he feels physically old because he's been working for so many years. Or maybe he's also referring to the spiritual idea of an old soul. Either way, I find myself interested in what Michael has to say even though his comments always carry a shadow of sadness.
I did learn some new stuff. I didn't know the Jackson 5 toured Africa (the Jacksons did, IIRC). Apart from Senegal, Michael doesn't name specific countries that they visited. This is a section where I would have been asking for more details if I was talking to him.
On P.114 I learned that J5 had done backing vocals on Stevie Wonder's awesome You Haven't Done Nothing. So I had to go and listen. Wow! Those doo wops - beautiful. And how come I never knew this? Stevie literally sings:
"J5 sing along with me"
I don't remember hearing that. Maybe I was too busy dancing. Or I was distracted by the awesome bass line.
Probably the most interesting part for me is when Michael namechecks 'Patches', a song by Clarence Carter from the 1970's. On P.150 Michael says:
"I had always shouldered a lot of responsibility , but it suddenly seemed that everyone wanted a piece of me. There wasn't that much to go around ... I had to learn to be wary of some of the people around me ... For some reason I always found it very difficult to say no to my family and the other people I loved."
He's talking about the Blame it on the Boogie period. Clarence Carter's song is about a poor sharecropper's son who has to step up and be the man of the family. The chorus goes like this:
"Patches, I'm depending on you, son
to pull the family through
My son, it's all left up to you"
Another set of lyrics, which are spoken not sung, go like this:
"And at the age of thirteen I thought I was carrying
the weight of the world on my shoulders"
I get the impression that Michael had to do a lot of heavy lifting in the family but I had thought it was post-Thriller. Had no idea it was as early as this. I understand that family dynamics are complicated but I did find this section really poignant.
Although I love the way the book has been created there is a downside. Sometimes it feels a bit superficial or rushed. Michael has a lot of ground to cover and you get a really good overall picture of his working life but you don't always get much detail. It took them 4 years to pull the book together; I just wonder if enough time was set aside for it. Michael was super busy at that point and always juggling multiple projects at the same time. I wish it could have been possible to carve out just a bit more time for the book.
Another weak point is the photos. There are plenty of them, which is great, but the presentation is poor. Most are b&w and printed on normal paper which keeps the production costs down but also lowers the quality. Visually, the book isn't wonderful. Maybe the original hardback was better but this paperback is far from perfect.
Overall, though, I loved it. I'm so glad it's still in print.
