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What did MJ take from the Beatles and Queen’s music and performances?

filmandmusic

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We all know his love for James Brown, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and Jackie Wilson and how their artistry became part of MJ’s own creations. You gotta learn from the best, right?
But he also loved Queen and The Beatles. How did the latter two inspire his music or stage performances or didn’t they?
 
filmandmusic said:
We all know his love for James Brown, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and Jackie Wilson and how their artistry became part of MJ’s own creations. You gotta learn from the best, right?
But he also loved Queen and The Beatles. How did the latter two inspire his music or stage performances or didn’t they?
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Melody. Paul McCartney, one of the best ever at melody.
 
There's a quote somewhere from Brian May about Michael loving the Queen lightshow design and using the same ideas for his tour. Can't find it, brief mention here at 2m 21s.


 
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mj_frenzy said:
Like, 'Say Say Say', 'Girlfriend', and so on?

These songs (written by Paul McCartney) are among the weakest songs of Michael Jackson's entire discography.
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Irrelevant.

Paul McCartney is widely regarded as one of the foremost melody craftsmen ever to grace the pop world. Michael always said melody was the most important part of a song. He also credited The Beatles as being a massive influence on him. It's not about specific songs, it's about how the importance of melody runs through all of Michael's work.

Plus, the people who like those songs (I don't but that's also irrelevant) would strongly disagree with your assessment.
 
Yeah, I would have said their influence was more on songwriting and lyrical content rather than live performance.

Also, Queen had 10 live albums, each one being different. Not just each tour was different , but often different dates within the same tour. Similarly, McCartney has 10 live albums. I think it really harmed the collectability of MJ's tours by having exactly the same set list every night.
 

www.cheatsheet.com

Michael Jackson Said 2 of The Beatles' Songs Were So Beautiful They Didn't Need Lyrics

In a 1985 interview, Michael Jackson said he had a hard time narrowing down which of The Beatles' songs were his favorites.
www.cheatsheet.com www.cheatsheet.com

​

Michael Jackson told George Harrison two of The Beatles' songs had melodies that were so beautiful they did not need lyrics.

"During a 1985 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Jackson was asked to name his five favorite Beatles songs. He named “Yesterday” first, suggesting he liked that song more than anything else in the Fab Four’s catalog.

Subsequently, he named other favorites, specifically “Here, There and Everywhere”, " The Fool on the Hill", “Let It Be”. “Hey Jude”, "Eleanor Rigby", “Penny Lane”, and "Strawberry Fields Forever". The King of Pop said it was difficult to narrow his favorite Beatles tracks down to five.

The book George Harrison on George Harrison: Interviews and Encounters says radio host David Jensen interviewed Jackson alongside Harrison in 1979. During the interview, Jensen said Jackson’s songs had strong melodies. “Uh, that’s true for the singles but for the other stuff, I mean it’s different,” he opined.

“I mean I think melodies are always important, I mean especially like some of the old Beatle things, I mean I think the melodies are beautiful,” Jackson added. “I mean that’s what I think makes them stay around so long.”

Subsequently, Jackson praised two of The Beatles’ songs. “I mean if you just hum ‘Here Comes the Sun’ or ‘[The] Fool on the Hill,’ I mean the melody is so pretty you don’t … I mean the lyrics are beautiful too, but you don’t really need it,” he said.

“Here Comes the Sun” was never a single, so it did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The track appeared on Abbey Road. The album topped the Billboard 200 for 11 weeks, staying on the chart for 475 weeks in total.

“The Fool on the Hill” did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100 either. It appeared on the soundtrack of the movie Magical Mystery Tour. The soundtrack was No. 1 for eight of its 93 weeks on the Billboard 200.

“Here Comes the Sun” and “The Fool on the Hill” were not hits but they moved Jackson."
 
zinniabooklover said:
There's a quote somewhere from Brian May about Michael loving the Queen lightshow design and using the same ideas for his tour. Can't find it, brief mention here at 2m 21s.


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Yes I remember this and I believe this to be true. This is a stretch, but I was always under the impression that the “Hee-hee, hoo-hoo, aow!” parts that MJ did between songs in concert to engage the audience was inspired by Freddie’s “Ayoo, Ayoooo, Iyolelolelo” thing that he also did in between songs, haha.
 
Themidwestcowboy said:
Yes I remember this and I believe this to be true. This is a stretch, but I was always under the impression that the “Hee-hee, hoo-hoo, aow!” parts that MJ did between songs in concert to engage the audience was inspired by Freddie’s “Ayoo, Ayoooo, Iyolelolelo” thing that he also did in between songs, haha.
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Bold statement!

I never paid that much attention to Queen. Did you mean this? 👇

 
zinniabooklover said:
“Here Comes the Sun” and “The Fool on the Hill” were not hits but they moved Jackson."
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That's true. I think sometimes people on here get really hung up about what songs were singles or what were hits or number one, etc.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter what one was released or charted, or what other people like. There are lots of songs, and whether you like them is all that matters. Who cares if a great song was tucked away in the middle of an album, or, to use the latest buzzword, whether it was "underrated".

Just listen to the songs, and if you like them, then it's cool.
 
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