Graham Reid | | <1 min read
Michael Jackson: ABC (Salaam Remi remix)
Motown may have missed their golden opportunity with the shoddily compiled 50th anniversary albums, but they aren't so stupid as to let yet another marketing opportunity go by -- and so here comes wee Michael with (mostly) the life remixed out of him.
There will be a great Jackson remix album (it won't be official of course, it'll be out there in webworld) but Motown had inferior dance material to work with (Never Can Say Goodbye, Ain't No Sunshine . . . Ben?).
But these are mostly cowardly remixes and let Jackson's irritatingly juvenile voice remain too much intact while very conservative beats are punched in. Only the reggae version of ABC really works, and there are three versions of Dancing Machine (one of his few real dance tracks when he was a Motown prodigy).
Maybe there was better in his youthful catalogue to be exploited by remixers -- but this really is exploiting for no reason other than to hear the $ound of the ca$h regi$ter$ ringing. $hame.
Peter McL - Nov 16, 2009
Graham - if you're going to review a remix album, please at least mention who some of the remixers are! A Japanese outfit called Soul Sauce collected two cds of remixes of J5 and MJ back in 2001, mainly done by Japanese remixers like Konishi Yasuharu (ex Pizzicato 5), alongside Kenny Dope and DJ Spinna, way more classy then this crock. Includes a great reggae version of ABC, done by Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra So, there is a great Jackson remix album, its only available in Japan, or online via US at megabucks imoport prices.
SaveThe Motown Remixed CD of a few years back was riddled with similarly half-baked ideas from bigname US producers.
Peter McL - Nov 16, 2009
Sorry, should read Soul Source....
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