Mike is trapped by the success of his earlier songs, and that is made worse by the fact that he hasn’t had any singles success in the last 8 years. When or IF he does eventually perform again he will absolutely have to perform the classics such as Billie Jean and Beat It. Those old songs are the songs people love the most and they would be disappointed if they didn’t hear them in the playlist. I think he should also include a healthy amount of material from his new album and perhaps a few lesser known classics from other albums too.
BUT I think you’re absolutely right, he SHOULD NOT perform them in the same way he has been doing since the early 80s. He needs to freshen up his concert and make it more up to date by embracing some new technology and new concert style. He also needs to acknowledge that he simply wont be able to dance the same way he used to, and certainly won’t be able to sing at the same time. He will disappoint too many people by trying to do the same he did during BAD, when he was capable of doing an excellent job of both. He just needs to concentrate on singing live while throwing in a few signature moves here and there. He is famous for being an exceptional mover as well as a singer so people will expect the moves. He should still throw in the moonwalk, glides, lock and pop and robot if he is still able to make them look impressive, but needs to be careful not to affect the overall show. Similarly, there are several costumes themes that need to be preserved, even if the costumes as we know them are not present. For example, he probably should keep elements of his famous costumes, like the single glove, loafers and hat but not necessarily just wear the same costumes.
There will be a very large proportion of the audience that will have either attended a previous concert or who will have watched a concert at home (i.e. on TV / Youtube / download) before going and will be disappointed if the show is just a rehashed 20 year old concert (HIStory and Dangerous were guilty of this IMO). Critics will also be very harsh on the show if they perceive it to be lazily put together (and if it’s mimed), which would provide a lot of negative publicity and could impact ticket sales and album sales (and even more importantly, his reputation) as a consequence.
Alot rests on this comeback and so Mike needs to get it right. I hope he makes a point of going to see other artists’ concerts before putting a new show together so that he can see just how far they have come in 20 years. As pioneering as he was in the day, it was beginning to look as though he had lost that edge by the time of the HIStory tour. I’m not saying he doesn’t have good ideas, or that he should copy other acts, but he needs to do something fresh. I for one don’t want to see the Dangerous routine again, or even the Billie Jean routine for that matter. I’m sick of them now.
