Michael Jackson’s “new” single, called “This Is It,” isn’t really his. And it’s a PR nightmare.
The song is registered with BMI Music Licensing to Michael Joe Jackson and to Paul Anka. They wrote it together in 1983 and called it “I Never Heard.” It was released in 1991 by a singer named Safire.
Anka has settled for 50% of everything, according to published reports, which is common in these situations. It most recently happened when John Legend nicked the famous song “Stormy” for his “Save Me” single. The writer, Buddy Buie, became Legend’s partner. It’s also happened to Mariah Carey (”Emotions” was a rewrite of Maurice White’s “Best of My Love”) and to many other stars.
It was only before Michael died that he dusted off the old track. It’s unclear whether or not he told producer John McClain that the song dated back so far. It seems likely he didn’t.
Maybe Michael got “Anka” mixed up with “Branca,” the name of his lawyer. They do rhyme.
The song was constructed and inserted into “This Is It” “very secretly,” says a source. “No one had heard of it.”
And here’s a thought: The new song sounds a lot like one that appeared two years later, on the 1985 “Bad” album, called “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You.” That song, which was a hit, sounds nothing like a Michael Jackson song and is one of his few duets.Years later, a similar melody turned up in “What More Can I Give?”
What a mess! But it’s important to remember a couple of things. Michael’s very longtime sound engineer Bruce Swedien told this column right after Michael died that he didn’t think there were a lot of unreleased songs just lying around. He thought there were possibly 10. Possibly. Michael’s fans should not get their expectations up for lots and lots of posthumous releases a la Jimi Hendrix.
But this does make sense concerning “This Is It.” Michael must have been shocked when he realized, going through old demos, that he’d collaborated on a song that started with the words “This Is It.”
Oy!
Paul Anka, by the way, is a very famous songwriter besides being a performer. He wrote “My Way,” Johnny Carson’s “Tonight Show” theme music, “Diana,” “One Man Woman,” “Having My Baby,” and dozens of other hits.
October 12th, 2009 at 5:56 pm
IMHO Michaels best songs were the ones he wrote himself.
Don’t Stop til you get enough, Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’, Billi Jean, Beat It, Smooth Criminal, Dirty Diana, BOTDF, etc
October 12th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Did MJ actually dust this off or did McClain/Sony find it in a box and just run with it? I’ve heard the latter.
Also, please clarify “50% of everything”. Quote I’ve heard said “50% of the project” but no one has said which project. The CD? The movie?
Roger, poor taste, the joke–Branca and Anka. BTW…. you need a space between “duets.Years”–para beginning “And here’s a thought…”
October 12th, 2009 at 8:02 pm
My Way was first and foremost a french song by Claude François and Jacques Revaux called Comme D’habitude.
just saying….
October 12th, 2009 at 8:59 pm
{It was only before Michael died that he dusted off the old track. It’s unclear whether or not he told producer John McClain that the song dated back so far. It seems likely he didn’t.}
Don’t blame MJ for his executors & Sony’s lack of judgment.
The New york Times this weekend interviewed people involved in the concert production, and they confirm that the track “this is it” was not part of the show.
How would MJ tell McClain the song’s history when he locked it away, and never bothered to pull it out since the ’80s.
SOURCE:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/ar…l.html?_r=1&hp
Rob Stringer, chairman of the Columbia/Epic Label Group, a Sony division and others with knowledge of the production say the song was not part of [the "this is it" tour tracklisting]. It will, however, be included in the soundtrack for the film, along with a poem titled “Planet Earth,” standard versions of 14 of Mr. Jackson’s hits and a few 1980s demos.
Michael jackson did not dust off ANYTHING, Sony & the co-executors did. And they messed up BIG TIME.
If MJ had dusted the song off, where are the recent recordings? How come it was just MJ’s vocals and a piano. Because the song that was released this morning is a demo from 1983. McClain, himself, added the brothers’ background vocals to the demo. When MJ dies on June 25th, with only 3 weeks left before the beginning of the shows, if he was gonna use that old track during the concert, he would have record new vocals, added background and other tricks that he always does (beatbox, funger snapping).
SOURCE: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/paul-anka-says-he-was-not-credited-for-new-jackson-single/
“This Is It” was based on a tape that Jackson left behind containing only his piano and vocal. John McClain, a record executive and producer whom Jackson named in his will as an executor, built a full arrangement around it, including backup vocals by Jackson’s brothers.
“We just found the song,” Mr. Stringer said. “It was titled ‘This Is It.’ It was in a box, and we listened to it.”
Anka has settled for 50% of everything, according to published reports, which is common in these situations. It most recently happened when John Legend nicked the famous song “Stormy” for his “Save Me” single. The writer, Buddy Buie, became Legend’s partner. It’s also happened to Mariah Carey (”Emotions” was a rewrite of Maurice White’s “Best of My Love”) and to many other stars.
You are confusing VERY different situation. The song was written by BOTH ANKA & JAcKSON.
SOURCE: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/paul-anka-says-he-was-not-credited-for-new-jackson-single/
“I Never Heard,” a 1991 track by the R&B singer Safire, which gave songwriting credit to Mr. Jackson and Paul Anka.
For Mr. Anka, the song has a long and painful history. He said that he and Jackson wrote and recorded it in 1983 in Mr. Anka’s studio in Carmel, Calif., and that it had been intended as a duet for Mr. Anka’s album “Walk a Fine Line.”
Anka has documentation that the copyright for the song was held by both men.
BOTTOM LINE: MJ did not select that song neither as a part of his concert, nor as the title track for the soundtrack.Sony & the executors did. The did not research the song in order to give proper credit. They messed up and they should be held accountable. not MJ.
According to mcclain, they presented 50 songs to Sony, and Sony picked “this is it” because ‘this is it” is sang at the beginning & the chorus.
Get your story straight…you are lacking credibility with this half ass reporting.
October 12th, 2009 at 9:57 pm
More sloppy work from the stellar lawyers in charge of MJ’s estate. They should have, and could have, checked out the history of this tune before McClain “produced” it. MJ kept it in the vault for a reason. One good thing – it gives Katherine Jackson ammunition in her quest to get a seat at the administrators’ table.
October 12th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
Really? Michael J pulled this out himself? I doubt it. Deepak Chopra says he was writing new songs at the time right before his death.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:22 am
Is it true that Randy gave the song or “the box of songs” to McClain?
October 13th, 2009 at 1:27 am
Can you clarify: Did Michael work on the track (or plan on working on the track) before his death? Or was the track’s resurrection purely a Sony/Jackson estate endeavor?
Also, Bad was released in 1987 (and “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” was credited solely to MJ; I don’t hear the similarity between the two songs, other than that they’re both lush MJ major-key ballads).
October 13th, 2009 at 1:45 am
I very much doubt it was Michael’s intent to release this. If he wanted a song with “this is it” in it he would have just written one. With all due respect to Anka this song is not that great that it would have been worth the fuss for Michael. Why would he release an almost 30-year-old song (actually it was registered in 1980!), which is rather mediocre by his standards and was already recorded and released by another artist in 1991?
And by the sound of it it’s nothing but just a demo. There is absolutely no proof he recently planned to release it. I think Sony just found it and got happy that it has “this is it” in the lyrics and that’s the only reason they released it. Not because it’s such a great song or because Michael planned to release it.
And while we are at it: “My way” isn’t really Anka’s. He wrote the English lyrics but the song was composed by two French composers…
October 13th, 2009 at 1:48 am
And I disagree that “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” sounds like “This is it”.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:26 am
From CNN’s article:
“Jackson’s estate and Sony Music Entertainment did not realize this history when they picked the song out of boxes of tapes in their archives”
“Rob Stringer, chairman of Sony’s Columbia/Epic Label Group, was quoted in The New York Times on Sunday as saying he did not know the origins of the song.”
So it was Sony who pulled the song from their archives (without knowing the origins of it), not Michael.
October 13th, 2009 at 3:21 am
The fans are no happy…already calling for a boycott:
Regarding Paul Anka calling MJ a thief.
We, MJ fans, MUST take action. I do want to support the estate but I am not willing to give my money to Anka (for insulting Michael’s memory and calling him a thief) or to McClain (for insulting MJ’s legacy as a songwriter to cover up his own incompetency).
What do you guys think if, instead of buying the “this is it” soundtrack we buy the “number ones” album? (you can gift it to someone, if you already have the CD)
it would accomplish 2 things:
1) it would help #1 remain the best seller in the US (Taylor Swift is trailing MJ by only 86K, and she is re-releasing her album in November. She will definitely outsell MJ before the end of the year and take the #1 seller for 2009)
2) Paul Anka would not be getting our money. He is getting 50% publishing rights (rightfully so)….but do you really want to give your hard earned cash to that jerk after he call MJ a thief? I don’t…I really really don’t.
McClain will also receive $$ for finishing the song, and after insulting MJ’s legacy, I do not want to honor him by buying this particular song. He should know better…he did not have to belittle MJ to cover his and Branca’s mistake. That is UNACCEPTABLE from a co-executor of the estate.
Most fans want to support MJ’s estate …we can still do so without that jerk Anka profiting from it more than he should.
We cannot do anything about the song appearing at the end credit of the movie, but the payment is usually a one-time fee.
Bottom line, Anka thinks he hit the jackpot and that ****es me off. He did not have to go to TMZ to call MJ a thief…MJ is not here to defend himself, but we the fans are.
Let’s call for a group boycott of the “this is it” CD…and instead buy “Number ones”. We can give the press advance warning, so they don’t question fans’ support for MJ.
I know we have tons of issues with Sony, but they did not insult MJ’s memory.
Can we all organize this, together?
October 13th, 2009 at 4:17 am
McClain is the one who pulled out this record from the archives and gave it to Sony.
This was something that Anka could have settled with th Estate without involving of all people that sleazy tabloid TMZ. I know Paul may have been angry but it made him look unprofessional IMO.
October 13th, 2009 at 4:56 am
McClain and Brance could have said from the start that “This is it” was a demo which was written in 1980 according to its song registry date and avoided all that trouble. And again, if that is the best they had as a choice from unfinished demos by MJ, then it is small wonder that there was always a lot of hype surrounding Michael Jackson. What happened to music that is good on its own?
October 13th, 2009 at 5:10 am
If the song is a collaboration,(no matter how dated), then it is a collaboration. Why shouldn’t Paul Anka get his share? And all this nonsense about ‘a seat at the table’, the administrators are doing a great job. Period.
The Branca-Anka remark was crude and beneath you, Roger. At least it made my skin crawl. I like the song.
When I think of the crap I listen to on MTV, the unmusical, arrogant, unfeeling approaches to popular music… and to think tha MJ didn’t think he could do it anymore.
I look forward to the film.
October 13th, 2009 at 5:28 am
Sorry but “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” does not sound at all like “This Is It” or “What More Can I Give.”
You got it totally wrong.
If you want to find a song that dounds like “This Is It,” then look on youtube for Michael’s demo of “Love Never Felt So Good.”
October 13th, 2009 at 5:33 am
I totally agree with you Simba! Now I understand better the feud that went on between Michael and Sony years ago,what idiots!!
Branca calls himself a lawyer??
October 13th, 2009 at 5:58 am
Branca is the one who helped MJ make his fortune. His reputation is excellent so yes, he calls himself a lawyer.
October 13th, 2009 at 6:57 am
I think you might want to update the date for “Bad”. It was released in 1987 not 1985.
October 13th, 2009 at 7:06 am
I had heard that but he should have known to check into this song beforehand.Hopefully next time he will,just my opinion.
October 13th, 2009 at 7:16 am
It would be interesting if some reporter would find out exactly how this tape got into McClain’s/Sony’s possession. It was obviously nothing that Michael would have put out himself. I agree that it sounds like a demo that was remixed–badly.
I keep on thinking about how it was reported that Michael’s music was taken out of his home by LaToya or possibly Randy. Was there some deal stuck with the Jackson boys to give over the tape if they were included in the remix and got a percentage?
AEG was saying before Michael’s death that Michael was going to be releasing new music. I don’t think “This Is It” was it.
March 11, 2009
“It has also been revealed Jackson – who has three children, son Prince Michael, 10, daughter Paris, nine, and five-year-old son Prince Michael II – will be releasing new music ahead of his shows.
Concert promoter Randy Phillips said: “There will be a new Michael Jackson single before the first date.”
“Michael has got some new music and he is looking for a new way of disseminating his material to his fans.”
http://www.exposay.com/v/28154/michael-jackson-rent-rod-stewarts-house-uk/
October 13th, 2009 at 7:49 am
Love MJ but this is a horrible song and now all the quarterbacking going on just proves that this song is NOT IT! Out of ALL the songs in MJ’s vault, they pick this?
October 13th, 2009 at 8:25 am
Swedien obviously has no clue what he is talking about. Rodney Jerkins who worked with Jackson during Invincible claims he has 7 finished songs that the two worked on that never made the album. That’s just with that one producer. R Kelly claims he has many unreleased Jackson tunes, as does Akon, Will.i.am, and Ne-Yo. Plus, Sony has recently revealed they have 100 unreleased demos/songs and there are probably more. This does not include anything MJ recorded after his contract with Sony expired after the trial. So, 10 unreleased tracks is a huge lie. Swedien is out of the loop and cannot speak for MJ’s work with the dozens of people he worked with in his career. It was confirmed for instance that there are enough tracks for 2 entire new albums of new material that MJ recorded between 2006 and 2009. This means between 20 and 30 songs! These songs are controlled by the MJ estate who have spoken to Universal about possibly releasing. So 10 unreleased songs is garbage Roger, you need to interview other people.
October 13th, 2009 at 8:34 am
What should be made is a full length feature film – for the theaters – with Michael Jackson short films. I want to see them on a big screen! What a wonderful way to celebrate his art.
October 13th, 2009 at 8:35 am
Everybody needs to stop second guessing who did what and why they did it. The bottom line, MJ’s collections and assets are being combed through with a fine comb, everything is on the table. Strike while the iron is hot.
This was an honest mistake. Everybody gets paid.
October 13th, 2009 at 8:46 am
They can only eke out 112 minutes (even less if you minus the funeral footage) because the rest of the 100 hours, Michael forgot his lines or generally didn’t perform well. See http://www.this-is-not-it.com
Roger, you are wrong about 10 songs. I have downloaded way more than that off the net. And “This Is It” sounds like “Heal the World” (1991), not “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You”.
October 13th, 2009 at 8:53 am
Michael said he always writes 100-120 songs for each album. La Toya said he recorded 36 songs for Bad. There’s certainly plenty out there somewhere.
“This Is It” was obviously not used in Dangerous because Mike didn’t think it was good enough and it’s too similar to Heal the World. This is either a demo version or from rehearsals. Can’t believe Sony could hinge an entire album on this one lousy song (sound-wise). They’re milking this for all it’s worth. So what else is new? Why is Sony issuing the album anyway? Michael has already fulfilled his contract with them.
October 13th, 2009 at 9:01 am
” Why shouldn’t Paul Anka get his share?”
Absolutely agree. But Anka evidently said that MJ stole “his” song, when both their names are on it. Branca and McClain should have slapped him down, legalistically, for using this kind of language. And the producer, McClain, should have researched the history of the tune before going ahead with this version.
“And all this nonsense about ‘a seat at the table’, the administrators are doing a great job.”
Well, no, they aren’t. Their negligence put MJ in a bad light, which is not good for his estate. Experienced entertainment attorneys should not have made this dumb mistake.
MJ’s estate is bringing in tons of money because people are buying the music that’s already out there, not because of any brilliance by the administrators. But they get to reap the reward. If they can’t be bothered with details like checking copyrights, then they should hire somebody who can.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:52 am
Great words Simba.
Simba: MJ’s estate is bringing in tons of money because people are buying the music that’s already out there, not because of any brilliance by the administrators. (End Quote)
This whole debacle has me asking WHO really is upkeeping MJ’s legacy. The family is useless and now, co-executor McClain is questioning Michael’s songwriting talent.
Paul also said John McClain told him, “Now we know why the song was so good … it wasn’t the type of Michael Jackson song that he could write.”
Anka said he was humbled by the compliment.
http://www.tmz.com/2009/10/12/paul-anka-i-get-half/#comments#
how dare he? McClain and Anka are both a bunch of jackasses.
he is being paid for the frigging bad judgement call he made on the single “This is it” and now he has the gall to tell Anka that he knew MJ couldn’t write such a song. You get that right…MJ wrote Earth Song, Stranger in Moscow, Bille Jean…all classics. That crappy “This is it” is a joke compare to songs that MJ wrote all by himself.
For MJ’s children’ sake, I don’t want the Jackson family to take control of the estate…but that debacle has me question McClain allegiance to Michael.
i am seriously considering re-buying the album “number ones”…and not “This is it”.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:54 am
Call for boycott: Who is in?
I don’t know about you guys, but this morning’s headline from the AFP (Agence France presse) really bothers me.
Michael Jackson ’stole’ new song tape: songwriter
We MUST take action. I do want to support the estate but I am not willing to give my money to Anka (for insulting Michael and calling him a thief) or to McClain (for insulting MJ’s legacy as a songwriter to cover up his own incompetency).
What do you guys think if, instead of buying the “this is it” soundtrack we buy the “number ones” album? (you can gift it to someone, if you already have the CD)
it would accomplish 2 things:
1) it would help #1s remain the best seller in the US (Taylor Swift is trailing MJ by only 86K, and she is re-releasing her album in November. She will definitely outsell MJ before the end of the year and take the #1 seller for 2009)
2) Paul Anka would not be getting our money. He is getting 50% publishing rights (rightfully so)….but do you really want to give your hard earned cash to that jerk after he call MJ a thief? I don’t…I really really don’t.
McClain will also receive $$ for finishing the song, and after insulting MJ’s legacy, I do not want to honor him by buying this particular song. He should know better…he did not have to belittle MJ to cover his and Branca’s mistake. That is UNACCEPTABLE from a co-executor of the estate.
Most fans want to support MJ’s estate …we can still do so without that jerk Anka profiting from it more than he should.
We cannot do anything about the song appearing at the end credit of the movie, but the payment is usually a one-time fee.
Bottom line, Anka thinks he hit the jackpot and that ****es me off. He did not have to go to TMZ to call MJ a thief…MJ is not here to defend himself, but we the fans are.
Let’s call for a group boycott of the “this is it” CD…and instead buy “Number ones”. We can give the press a warning, so they don’t question fans support for MJ.
I know we have tons of issues with Sony, but they did not insult MJ’s memory in this particular case.
Can we all organize this, together?
October 13th, 2009 at 11:15 am
Well, let’s hope McClain was being sarcastic about MJ not being able to write that song – meaning he could only write better songs than that.
Still – McClain seems to be the one who orchestrated it. Unfortunately.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:42 am
I never have been a Paul Anka fan and I surely never will be now!!How dare Anka and McClain question Michaels talent,I agree starck raving mad,they are a couple of jackasses!I just recently bought Michael’s Number Ones CD,not a day goes by I don’t listen to it.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:50 am
I’m sorry but I’m not buying this story about Sony finding this tape in its “archives”–a copy of a tape that Anka claims Michael “stole” from him and then returned??? They found it in a box??? Come on!
IMO it was part of the loot the Jacksons took from Michael’s home. The very fact the brothers weasled in on the re-recording makes me highly suspicious. I’ve also read that McClain has close ties with the Jacksons, and he and Branca are not on the same page when it comes to them.
This type of debacle has Jackson family pattern to it. Sort of like Jermaine announcing artists that were suppose to perform at his defunct tribute concert without getting their permission first.
I bet Branca is livid.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:54 am
these executors are in bed with sony michael despised sony and now sony and blanca are out to destroy michaels legacy so that they can steal the sony/atv catalog michael jacksons estate is solvent so the executors say which says he wasn’t in as much debt as everyone says and the only one that could no that information is the people that’s given it out either he is solvent or not michael didn’t put this song out there so the estate shouldn’t have to pay sony blanca and mcclain should pay out of their percentage of what they are getting paid from the estate it will make them think twice before they mess up again
October 13th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
There is no way Branca can “steal” the Sony/ATV catalog. It’s the Jacksons who want it sold so Katherine can make a quick killing and HER heirs can benefit.
Branca is doing what Michael wanted–hanging on to it for Michael’s children and their future. Branca won’t sell it, and Michael never wanted to lose it or sell it.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:49 pm
You know, I wasn’t going to say anything because I thought it had to do with 3 links I included in my post yesterday– but I had responded to the other MJ post with my take on the song and links to the video Roger included today– but it was deleted.
Yet there are longer comments with more than the 3 links I put in… Hmmmm.. nice censorship because the story started with fans before blogs got the details. psh.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
Roger, you really hurt your reputation when you can’t get the year of a #1 album like “Bad” correct. It was 1987, not 1985.
Fool!
Also, no one’s talking about the fact that “This Is It” was initially said to come from his “Dangerous” period from the early ’90s. Now it’s 1980? 1983? CONfusing.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:35 pm
This is it was copyrighted 1984. Music and song Michael Jackson only.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:37 pm
OK, year of creation for This is it was 1980. I never heard was copyrighted in 1983, Paul Anka and Michael Jackson, year of creation 1980. Copyrighted again in 1991, for the release with Safire.
October 13th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
Roger, you are slacking! you know very well that Michael did NOT give anyone a copy of that track with the intent to use it as part of his concerts.
Now, where is the story on randy jackson stealing, I mean finding the demo in a box and turning it over to Sony in exchange for him and the bros to sing backup? I am not supporting these azzhats!
October 13th, 2009 at 5:35 pm
“One good thing – it gives Katherine Jackson ammunition in her quest to get a seat at the administrators’ table.”
the only seat katherine deserves is the one at her dining table.
“And all this nonsense about ‘a seat at the table’, the administrators are doing a great job.”
“Well, no, they aren’t. Their negligence put MJ in a bad light, which is not good for his estate. Experienced entertainment attorneys should not have made this dumb mistake.
MJ’s estate is bringing in tons of money because people are buying the music that’s already out there, not because of any brilliance by the administrators. But they get to reap the reward. If they can’t be bothered with details like checking copyrights, then they should hire somebody who can.”
Michael’s estate is simply not bringing in money because of record sales. Mr Branca is making deals (books, movie, etc) on behalf of the estate to try and keep it solvent, pay the creditors, and establish a financial future for MJ’s kids.
October 13th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
“Michael’s estate is simply not bringing in money because of record sales. Mr Branca is making deals (books, movie, etc) on behalf of the estate to try and keep it solvent, pay the creditors, and establish a financial future for MJ’s kids.”
If the deals Branca is making are handled like the release of the song This Is It, then the estate is in big trouble. The books and the movie haven’t made a dime as yet. The money from huge sales of MJ’s music has been coming in steadily for the past three months. Branca and McClain had nothing to do with that.
“the only seat katherine deserves is the one at her dining table.”
Stop hating on Katherine Jackson and the rest of the family. Nobody knows how they would do if given a say in the estate’s affairs. One thing they wouldn’t do is denigrate MJ’s songwriting talent to flatter the likes of Paul Anka. (And how come John Branca is “Mr. Branca”, but Katherine Jackson is “katherine”?)
October 13th, 2009 at 6:38 pm
I am also surprised that Branca, particularly, made this mistake, especially since he was MJ and Anka’s lawyer at the time that they had legal wranglings over this song. I don’t think McClain can be blamed as much for not knowing about this as Branca can. It actually seems more likely that perhaps Branca knew, especially since the song leaked early and fans noticed the SaFire song similarity. Maybe they were hoping to quietly settle with Anka before this all became public. The fact that Branca and McClain moved so quickly to pacify Anka, including trying to flatter Anka suggests to me that they did in fact know before Anka spoke out publicly.
October 13th, 2009 at 9:35 pm
reading a lot of comments…..mmh, I think you should choose your sources better, Mr. Frideman : MJ fans are beating you in information. Ouch!
Not only you are loosing credibility, but also making jokes on a murdered person; Michael deserve respect, at least NOW!
I think you must think about it and choose a better source.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:13 pm
come on guys! this song has lots of parts of the 3t’s duet song with michael called ” why ” – officially written by babyface
listen to its bridge ! how come none of you including mr friedman have mentioned that resemblance and you keep comparing to ” i just can’t stop….”
john
October 14th, 2009 at 2:52 am
Branca and Mc Clain are doing a great job despite the confusion, I am with Pat on this, Sony gave MJ a great contract way back when and then he blamed them when his albums weren’t selling, Simba you are tiring with your constant indignation, Katherine Jackson will be well cared for for the rest of her life. Long after your cries of protest have died down.
October 14th, 2009 at 5:26 am
Marywhateveryournameis:
You are clueless! This was a simple checking on copyright status and a little research on the part of BOTH co-execs for MJ’s estate. Their job description requires them to do what is in the best interest of the estate. This is what Michael wanted (so it seems) and you feel “confusion” benefits who exactly? Fine don’t do your job either on the legal or entertainment level but to then turn those main facts into the fault or guilt of Michael is WRONG in everyway. I will not be buying this cd..where’s the new stuff? I’ll get another copy of Number Ones for my hubby as a Xmas gift.
So for Sony you act like they did Mike a favor..you better check your sources on that one and we all know about the true parting of MJ and Sony..btw, Michael was RIGHT about Sony and others with Sony have confirmed their true intent. I am beginning to understand why the kids need such great security detail now..ultimately those three are going to be VERY wealthy owning what exactly..lets see.. Beatles catalog, Sony/atv catalog, MJ masters, written work, video work, books, memorilbilia, on and on!!! Just sayin!
October 14th, 2009 at 7:33 am
Branca and McClain made a mistake but adding a Jackson lackey (likely Londell McMillan) as an executor will only make things worse. He will do whatever Joe and Jermaine Jackson want.
October 14th, 2009 at 8:19 am
ROFL, well, Mr. Anka should know about stealing! didn’t he steal “My Way” from those French dudes? gimme a break. Mr. Wanka comes across as a silly, jealous has-been. Roger, please stop feeding these trolls on your column. you’re fast losing credibility with your continuous hatred of MJ.
October 14th, 2009 at 8:34 am
oh, and BTW, this is from a friend of mine to Anka and you, Mr. Friedman: “MJ wrote sh*tloads of songs 1 BILLION times better than “This is It/I Never Heard” with his hands tied behind his back, climbing up a tree & doing the moonwalk underwater.” Haha.
October 14th, 2009 at 4:46 pm
” Simba you are tiring with your constant indignation, Katherine Jackson will be well cared for for the rest of her life. Long after your cries of protest have died down.”
The “constant indignation” is from those who feel it’s their God-given right to criticize and denigrate Mrs. Jackson and the rest of the family.
Branca and McClain have been handed the lucky break of a lifetime, which will enable them to become exceedingly wealthy, because of the hard work and talent of Michael Jackson. As a fan, it bothers me big time when people that he pays don’t give his interests their best efforts. The media keeps telling us that these guys are great at what they do, but so far they’ve committed blunders that would get a paralegal canned. And we’re supposed to praise their sub-par performance, and not notice when their work sucks? I don’t think so. MJ deserves better.
If I’m “tiring” you, good. You couldn’t give me a better compliment.
October 15th, 2009 at 1:16 pm
Simba
Glad to have given you the compliment. Just for the record, I have never denigrated Mrs. Jackson, as for Py, even Al Sharpton was shocked at the allegations MJ made against Sony and Tommy M. Everyone in the music business said the same but you know, the fun is gone, the sharing is gone, we will have to agree to disagree, I do think the last months have been confusing for the administrators as well and if it makes you feel any better Simba, I find answering you tiring,too. I am tired period. Will get off the train before I get tired of Michael Jackson,too.
October 15th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Some of you are well informed others are just plain dummy … Roger’s sources are not always correct and you should always realize that … his exclusives are not always exclusive … if you guys search other sites before coming to Roger’s site then you would know that he doesn’t really have the in and outs of information as he like to say … he is an old disgruntled man like the rest of his old industry friends … they only tell their truths as they want to see it not as it is.
October 15th, 2009 at 2:34 pm
marymaudehenry – if you’ve never denigrated the Jackson family, then the comment was not meant for you. And BTW, it’s naive to think that Al Sharpton was shocked over MJ’s allegations about Sony and Mottola. He was scared – because he knew MJ was telling the truth and you can’t speak truth to power like that and come out of it unscathed.