Richard Lecocq has put together a review of Michael Jackson IMMORTAL from a fans perspective, here is highlight:
When I was a kid, I would spend days listening to Michael Jackson’s music and studying its evolution from studio recordings to live versions. Jackson had this ability to enhance his music on stage in a way that remains unparalleled. In 1987, when the BAD Tour hit the road, all the documentaries that aired on MTV and other channels showcased excerpts and bits of the live renditions with breaks and new instrumentation’s that took the magic to the next level. That was an interesting mixture of sounds from the original recordings with new arrangements designed to please and conquer the audience even more. The climax was when I attended one of the concerts and was then overwhelmed by the indisputable energy and originality Michael put in the conception of his first ever solo tour. All songs were magnified and were anthems of a world where everything was possible. These were sounds that I wanted to have with me, in my good old Walkman… And there also were the versions crafted for the short films, not to forget the special montages designed for special live performances… Anyone who loves Michael Jackson’s music has noticed the depth of all these songs – sound and lyric wise – no matter their format.
All these thoughts have been with me as I have been listening to the soundtrack of the new Cirque du Soleil show, Michael Jackson The Immortal World Tour. Fans and music lovers will sure feel and understand that producer Kevin Antunes’ love for Michael Jackson’s work is genuine. And the Immortal album sounds like a dream come true project Antunes has dived into. Of course, running though the entire Jackson catalog to select the final tracks and use them to create new versions and mash ups is tricky. This is something that can drive you crazy: “why would this song work better than this one?”. I pretty much guess this is the type of questions Kevin Antunes may have asked to himself. But, quite simply, you can answer this and succeed if you put your heart to it. Kevin Antunes was granted full access to the master recordings of Michael Jackson (also the ones from the Motown years). It’s like a talented guy allowed to get into Santa Claus’ secret room. And the result speaks for itself.
Jackson’s message is very important, if not essential to understand his work, and one could fear a show based on his work could drift away from it. Actually, Immortal is about nothing else but his message of love. The newly reimagined tracks works on the sounds but also keep the lyrics at the core of the action. Still, there are a few odd moments: bollywood-zoo-like elephants have replaced rats on Ben and I still scratch my head trying to find the link between Scream and Little Susie. At times, there seems to be a gap between the mixes and the meaning. Dancing Machine is maybe more Cirque than MJ, but, well, you also have to please the global audience. The Way You Make Me Feel, with its complex rhythmic sounds (the beat is far from just being an accumulation of Synclavier textures) and its jazz version that Michael created and used for the now legendary Grammy 1988 performance are missing. Hopefully it will be included in the permanent show in Las Vegas to be launched in 2013. But before we get to that, we shall have all witnessed the success of the Immortal Tour – worldwide. No one and nothing will replace the magic of the king, but sincere revisitation of his work will sure help bring new fans to the doors of his kingdom… Long live Neverland.
Richard Lecocq
author of Michael Jackson KING
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