It is important to examine Michael Jackson’s Bad in the proper context. During the time he and Quincy Jones were working on the album, Michael had already become the fastest-selling artist and the most recognized celebrity in the world. All of his fans wondered what his music would sound like post-Thriller, since that album reached a level of success that had never been obtained before. It’s significant to pinpoint that Michael and Quincy did not just collaborate for the sake of producing art for art’s sake. There was a goal and a strategy with each song that when compiled together made an incredible piece of art.
In their first collaboration, Off the Wall, they brilliantly put together an album that was part disco and r&b, since that was the direction 70s disco was becoming toward the end of the decade. Because of this shift in the popularity of musical genres, Off the Wall seemed to be ahead of its time. It featured wonderful tracks that anyone who was a fan of disco or soul music would resonate with. Even though it was their first collaboration, and Michael’s first album as a solo artist, it is safe to assert that Off the Wall had a major impact on music at the end of the 70s and into the 80s. This album set a new direction for music, especially other artists who performed soul music and were looking for ways to develop a more “pop” type of sound in their records. Off the Wall is the blueprint on how to do that.
Their second collaboration, Thriller, pioneered the pop genre in their creative pursuit of discovering “sonic” sound. They found the sound through instrumentation and songwriting, but their major discovery was using the hi hat sound on a drum machine or live drum to be at the center of the music, and also function as a method of moving the song in a particular direction. Every pop song post-Thriller features that hi hat at some velocity. Therefore, all pop music today has a little influence from Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones.
Michael and Quincy started off the production of Bad with the right direction. Instead of trying to replicate Thriller, Quincy wanted Michael to take the sounds that they discovered and use them to make songs from the singer’s imagination. After writing several dozen songs, they were able to select 11 for the album, nine of which were written by Michael. Bad was his opportunity to have the creative freedom to sing and perform songs that he had a special connection to.
Bad: “Bad” is the title track of the album and it is stellar track one. The songwriting and vocals are strong on this song. What makes this song interesting is that the instrumentation has many layers. There is a great baseline throughout the song. The hi hat on the drum machine is distinct, it can be heard clearly throughout the record and it blends in with the other elements like a tapestry. There is a surprisingly wonderful organ solo after the second verse. After the first verse there are some guitar chords to add a funk sound to the song. Initially, Quincy wanted this to be a collaboration between Michael and Prince-who is known for the funk sound of his guitar. Unfortunately, Prince declined being on the song because he felt it was going to be a number one hit without him on it and that his sound was not needed to make the song better. “Bad” without Prince is a really good song, but if they collaborated and used the sound of his guitar it would have taken the song to a different level. “Bad” also had two music videos that featured competition between rival gangs using dance. The second version of the video is a kid’s version that became popular. At this point in history and music, to come out and say that you’re bad, meaning that you’re great and untouchable, was a bold statement to make, especially when that track starts the record.
The Way You Make Me Feel: The song is about a guy trying to get a woman’s attention but he falls short. He tries again, this time being himself and eventually gets her attention. There are many layers within the instrumentation of the song. Quincy likes to grab listeners attention at the start of many of songs. In the case of “The Way You Make Me Feel” there’s a growl that starts the song, it sounds like a tiger and it certainly grabs the attention. The music video to the song was very popular. There was even a cameo appearance by Michael’s sister LaToya. The choreography is like a mixture between contemporary dance and West Side Story. It’s unclear if they deliberately wanted a West Side Story feel to the music video choreography, but it certainly has some of those elements. “The Way You Make Me Feel” is a fun song and like “Bad” it also has a nice organ solo.
Speed Demon: Quincy knows that the hi hat is going to be used on the entire album; however, instead of a drum machine sound in “Speed Demon” he uses an effect that sounds like someone hammering steel. It gives the song a metallic kind of sound. The vocals and songwriting are creative and sound strong over the hammering steel. There was also a music video released for this song that mixed live action with clay animation.
Liberian Girl: The production for “Liberian Girl” has a pleasantly soft appeal to it. The vocals are the strongest component of the song. The instrumentation softly builds to the end of the song with light sounds of drum and piano. Michael has been known for saying he does not write songs, “they write themselves” and appear in his mind at any given time. He created the chorus to “Liberian Girl” while playing pinball, after he left the room he found a tape recorder and put the vocal down on it so he would remember it. “Liberian Girl” has a really creative sound and is a great-sounding song.
Just Good Friends: It’s Michael. Quincy. And Stevie Wonder. It is easy to hear the amount of fun they had producing this song. The production featuring the great Stevie Wonder is fantastic. It’s upbeat and in a key that Michael’s voice sounds good in. The song is about your love interest being reluctant to show their true feelings. There is some good songwriter here, but the best part of the song is just hearing them have so much fun on a record.
Another Part of Me: “Another Part of Me” is one of my favorite songs on the album. It is deliberately a dance track. From start to finish the music will inspire you to get up and dance. There are also some well-placed horns throughout the track. The song is about recruiting others to join a coalition of people who will use their love to bring brighter days.
Man in the Mirror: “Man in the Mirror” is my favorite song on the album. It was written by Siedah Garrett, who was working on the production team as a writer and vocalist. It is difficult to describe how good this song is; it has incredible songwriting, great vocals, perfect production and a solid message about wanting to change the world, but first starting with yourself. “Man in the Mirror” is probably the best pop song ever written.
I Just Can’t Stop Loving You: “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” is a beautiful duet performed by Michael and Siedah Garrett. They performed this song together live during the Dangerous Tour in the early 90s. Michael also performed the song with Sheryl Crow live on the Bad Tour in the 80s. The production is light, putting emphasis on the lyrics and vocalist. The hi hat drum sound has been replaced with snapping fingers, which gives the song a softer appeal.
Dirty Diana: “Dirty Diana” is a fan favorite, even by the late Princess Diana. The song is about women who try to get the attention of musicians, celebrities, anyone with a level of prestige, and try to become a part of their lives in order to get money and glamour among other things. Quincy chooses the chorus to use the drum machine and it is a good strategy because during the verses the guitar and baseline can be heard more clearly. This is another track with good songwriting and performance.
Smooth Criminal: As mentioned earlier, there were many songs written that did not make the album. “Smooth Criminal” was added to the track listing at the very last moment. The choreography in the music video and live performances are original, and feature different types of movement for the stage. Michael also invented, patented and created dance shoes exclusively for this song that will allow dancers to lean forward as far as possible without hitting the floor. “Smooth Criminal” is one of the best pop music videos and live performances ever.
Leave Me Alone: “Leave Me Alone” is different than the majority of Michael’s other songs. Usually his songs are fast and have unique choreography. “Leave Me Alone” does not have any dancing in the music video except the part where he is dancing with a clay animation version of the Elephant Man’s bones. The song is about all the rumors about him that were in the tabloids like he purchased the Elephant Man’s bones and displays it at his house, he sleeps in a hyperbolic chamber, he’s an alien and so many other untruthful things. The music video is a mixture of live-action and animation and it dispels the information that the tabloids were printing about him.
