Invincible (Michael Jackson album)
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| Invincible | ||||
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| Studio album by Michael Jackson | ||||
| Released | October 30, 2001 | |||
| Recorded | October 1997 – June 2001 | |||
| Genre | R&B, hip hop, dance-pop, adult contemporary, urban[1] | |||
| Length | 77:08 | |||
| Label | Epic EK-69400 |
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| Producer | Michael Jackson, Rodney Jerkins, Teddy Riley, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, R. Kelly, Dr. Freeze | |||
| Professional reviews | ||||
| Michael Jackson chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Invincible | ||||
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Invincible is the tenth and final studio album by American singer Michael Jackson. The album was released by Epic Records on October 30, 2001, four years after Jackson's 1997 remix album Blood on the Dance Floor. The album art, an image of Jackson's face, was available in five different colors - red, green, orange, blue and silver. Copies of the album with the red, green, orange and blue cover art have since been discontinued. To date, Invincible has sold over 13 million copies worldwide.[3]
Following Jackson's death, the album received critical praise, and was voted by Billboard readers as the album of the decade[4].
Contents |
[edit] Production
The album was the first release of Jackson's to feature all new tracks since HIStory in 1995,[5] In addition to production being handled by contemporary artists such as Rodney Jerkins, R. Kelly and Teddy Riley.
[edit] Track listing
| Invincible | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Title | Writer(s) | Length | ||||||
| 1. | "Unbreakable" (featuring The Notorious B.I.G.; background vocals by Brandy Norwood) | Jackson, Daniels, Jerkis, Payne, Smith, Wallace | 6:26 | ||||||
| 2. | "Heartbreaker" | Jackson, Jerkins, Jerkins III, Daniels, Mischke, Gregg | 5:09 | ||||||
| 3. | "Invincible" | Jackson, Montague, Daniels, Gregg, Jerkins, Jerkins | 4:46 | ||||||
| 4. | "Break of Dawn" | Jackson, Dr. Freeze | 5:30 | ||||||
| 5. | "Heaven Can Wait" | Jackson, Riley, Heard, Smith, Teron Beal, Laues, Quiller | 4:49 | ||||||
| 6. | "You Rock My World" | Jackson, Daniels, Jerkins, Jerkins, Payne | 5:39 | ||||||
| 7. | "Butterflies" | Harris, Ambrosius | 4:40 | ||||||
| 8. | "Speechless" | Jackson | 3:18 | ||||||
| 9. | "2000 Watts" (backing vocals by Teddy Riley) | Jackson, Riley, Gibson, Henson | 4:24 | ||||||
| 10. | "You Are My Life" | Jackson, Babyface, Sager, McClain | 4:33 | ||||||
| 11. | "Privacy" (guitar solo by Slash) | Jackson, Belle, Daniels, Jerkins, Jerkins | 5:05 | ||||||
| 12. | "Don't Walk Away" | Jackson, Riley, Stites, Vertelney | 4:24 | ||||||
| 13. | "Cry" (also titled "Cry (We Can Change the World)") | R. Kelly | 5:00 | ||||||
| 14. | "The Lost Children" | Jackson | 4:00 | ||||||
| 15. | "Whatever Happens" (guitar by Carlos Santana) | Jackson, Riley, Quay, Williams | 4:56 | ||||||
| 16. | "Threatened" (contains snippets of Rod Serling) | Jackson, Jerkins, Jerkins III, Daniels | 4:18 | ||||||
| 77:08 | |||||||||
[edit] Sony Music contract issues
Jackson was waiting for the licenses to the masters of his albums to revert back to him, thus allowing him to promote his old material and preventing Sony from getting a cut of the profit. Jackson expected this to occur early in the new millennium, however, due to the fine print and various clauses in the contract, the revert date is still many years away. Jackson began an investigation, and it emerged that the attorney who represented the singer in the deal was also representing Sony, creating a conflict of interest.[6] Jackson was also concerned about another conflict of interest. For a number of years, Sony had been negotiating to buy Jackson's music catalog. If Jackson's career or financial situation were to deteriorate, it would be in Jackson's financial interest to sell his catalog. Thus, Sony had something to gain from Jackson's career failing.[7] Jackson was able to use these conflicts as leverage to exit his contract early.[6]
Just before the release of Invincible, Jackson informed the head of Sony Music Entertainment, Tommy Mottola he was leaving the record label.[6] As a result, all singles releases, video shootings and promotions concerning the Invincible album were cancelled. Jackson made allegations in July 2002 that Mottola was a "devil" and a "racist" who did not support his African-American artists, using them merely for his own personal gain.[6] He charged that Mottola had called his colleague Irv Gotti a "fat black nigger".[8] Sony disputed claims that they had failed to promote Invincible with sufficient energy, maintaining that Jackson refused to tour in the US.[9] The singer accused Sony and the record industry of racism, deliberately not promoting or actively working against promotion of his album.[10]
[edit] Promotion and singles
To help promote the album, a special 30th Anniversary celebration at Madison Square Garden occurred in September 2001 to mark the singer's 30th year as a solo artist. Jackson appeared onstage alongside his brothers for the first time since 1984.[11] The show also featured performances by Britney Spears, Mýa, Usher, Whitney Houston, Tamia, 'N Sync, and Slash, among other artists.[12] The album spawned three singles, "You Rock My World", "Cry" and "Butterflies", the latter of which did not have a music video. "Unbreakable" was due to be released as a single, however due to the contract issues, Sony refused to release it, along with several others. "You Rock My World" peaked at #10 in its third week on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and "Butterflies" later peaked at #14 on the same chart, and at #2 for 5 weeks on the R&B/Hip-Hop singles chart. "Heaven Can Wait" also charted at the bottom of the R&B/Hip-Hop charts due to radio airplay without an official release.All in all, many fans felt the album would have been more successful had Sony promoted the album better. Fans cited songs like "Unbreakable", "Break Of Dawn", "Whatever Happens", "Invincible" and "Threatened as one of the greatest songs on the album, and it is one of the many Michael Jackson songs that had hit potential but wasn't "counted" as a hit.
[edit] Reception
[edit] Commercial
Being his first studio album in six years (after 1995's HIStory), expectations were high. Invincible competed in the race for the top of the Billboard 200 and won by selling 366,275 copies during its debut week. Jackson's other big rival of the week, the first Backstreet Boys compilation (called The Hits: Chapter One), was relegated to number four. Invincible not only debuted at number 1 in the U.S., but also 12 other countries, and sold over 6 million copies worldwide before the end of 2001. It received double-platinum certification in the US.[13] However, the sales for Invincible were notably low compared to his previous releases, due in part to a diminishing pop music industry, the lack of promotion, no supporting world tour and the label dispute.[7]
Commenting on the sales of Invincible back in late 2003, Bernard Zuel of The Sydney Morning Herald stated:
"Holly Valance or Delta Goodrem would think their Christmases had come at once if they sold five or six million copies of their albums worldwide. Michael Jackson did something similar in the past two years with his seventh solo album, Invincible, and he's been branded a failure in the industry and the media. Unfair? Yes, of course, because his Invincible figures are better than those for 95 per cent of the thousands of artists released each year and would provide a healthy retirement fund for anyone. What's more, that failure tag is consistently applied by comparisons with his 1982 album, Thriller, which has sold about 100 million copies and its follow-ups, Bad, that sold about 30 million copies. However, selling 10 million copies is still phenomenal compared to the album sales of most artists."[10]
[edit] Critical
Reviews of Invincible were generally favorable. Some felt that it was one of Jackson's least impressive records, mostly because of its length (nearly 80 minutes). Allmusic gave the record three out of five stars saying, "Ultimately, the record runs too long, losing steam halfway through...[It's] not enough to make Invincible the comeback Jackson needed...but it does offer a reminder that he can really craft good pop".[14] NME gave the record six out of ten, stating, "Invincible is a relevant and rejuvenated comeback album made overlong".[15] Rolling Stone gave Invincible three out of five stars, believing that the early R&B tracks were good especially Whatever Happens, but the later ballads made the record too long.[16] Reviewer Robert Christgau gave the album an A-, saying, "His skills seem undiminished...his funk is steelier and his ballads are airier, both to disquieting effect. At 78 minutes this is too long."[17] This was the same grade he gave Jackson's landmark album Thriller when originally released.[18]
As time has passed since the albums release in 2001, it has grown in critical stature.
MT Reviews praised the album as "a qualified masterpiece" and named Invincible as the "best album of the decade. Michael Jackson is truly invincible."
In December of 2009, readers of Billboard magazine declared Invincible as the best album of the decade, from their readers poll.[19]
[edit] Grammy Awards[20]
| Year | Nominated work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "You Rock My World" | Best Pop Vocal Performance - Male | Nominated |
[edit] Dedication to Benjamin Hermansen
Invincible is dedicated to the 15 year old Afro-Norwegian boy Benjamin Hermansen who was stabbed to death by a group of neo-Nazis in Oslo, Norway, on January 26, 2001. The reason for this tribute was partly due to the fact that another Oslo youth, Omer Bhatti, a close friend of Jackson's, was also a good friend of Benjamin Hermansen.
Michael Jackson gives "special thanks":This album is dedicated to Benjamin "Benny" Hermansen. May we continue to remember not to judge man by the color of his skin, but the content of his Character. Benjamin ... we love you ... may you rest in peace.
[edit] Charts
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The IFPI European Double Platinum Award includes sales in the following countries:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.[55]
[edit] References
- ^ "Invincible". AllMusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3cfrxqw0ldhe. Retrieved 2009-04-27.
- ^ Album on-pack sticker
- ^ Conniff, Tamara (2009-08-30). "We Killed Michael Jackson". Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tamara-conniff/we-killed-michael-jackson_b_272174.html. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
- ^ http://www.billboard.com/slideshow/196807
- ^ Hiatt, Brian (December 21, 2000). "Michael Jackson Nearing Completion Of New LP". MTV. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1435389/20001221/jackson_michael.jhtml. Retrieved 2009-06-22.
- ^ a b c d Taraborrelli, p. 610–611
- ^ a b Taraborrelli, p. 614–617
- ^ Jackson, Jermaine. Interview with Connie Chung. Interview with Jermaine Jackson. Connie Chung Tonight. December 31, 2002. Retrieved on 2008-07-02.
- ^ Burkeman, Oliver (July 8, 2002). "Jacko gets tough: but is he a race crusader or just a falling star?". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2002/jul/08/oliverburkeman. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
- ^ a b Zuel, Bernard (November 20, 2009). "Falling star". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/11/19/1069027185212.html. Retrieved June 16, 2009.
- ^ Branigan, Tania (September 8, 2001). "Jackson spends £20m to be Invincible". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2001/sep/08/taniabranigan. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
- ^ George, p. 50–53
- ^ a b "Gold and Platinum RIAA certifications". Recording Industry Association of America. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH_RESULTS&artist=Michael%20Jackson&title=Invincible&format=ALBUM&go=Search&perPage=100. Retrieved 2008-04-27.
- ^ "Michael Jackson :Invincible". Allmusic. http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=A0dq5g4hptv8z. Retrieved 2007-09-09.
- ^ "Michael Jackson :Invincible". NME. 2001-11-30. http://www.nme.com/reviews/michael-jackson/5780. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
- ^ Hunter, James (2001-12-06). "Michael Jackson: Invincible". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/michaeljackson/albums/album/301517/review/5945685/invincible. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: Artist 932". Robert Christgau.com. http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=932. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (1982-12-28). "Christgau's Consumer Guide, Dec 28th, 1982". Robert Christgau.com. http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv12-82.php. Retrieved 2008-07-03.
- ^ "Readers' Poll: Albums of the Decade". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/#/slideshow/196807?decorator=slideshow&confirm=true. Retrieved 2009-12-22.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 2002". Rock On The Net. http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2002/grammys.htm. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
- ^ CAPIF
- ^ australian-charts.com - Michael Jackson - Invincible
- ^ ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2001 Albums
- ^ Michael Jackson - Invincible - austriancharts.at
- ^ IFPI Austria - Verband der Österreichischen Musikwirtschaft
- ^ [1]
- ^ danishcharts.com - Michael Jackson - Invincible
- ^ Hitlisten.NU
- ^ dutchcharts.nl - Michael Jackson - Invincible
- ^ NVPI, de branchevereniging van de entertainmentindustrie - Goud/Platina
- ^ finnishcharts.com - Michael Jackson - Invincible
- ^ IFPI
- ^ lescharts.com - Michael Jackson - Invincible
- ^ http://fanofmusic.free.fr/ParcoursAlbum-M.php "France Sales"
- ^ http://www.ifpi.de/wirtschaft/gpergebnis.php?txtSuche=invincible&strAktion=suche
- ^ Sony Music Online Japan: ƒƒCƒPƒ‹ EƒWƒƒƒNƒ\ƒ“ : ƒCƒ“ƒtƒHƒ [ƒVƒ‡ƒ“]
- ^ New Zealand Peak Position
- ^ New Zealand Certification
- ^ New Zealand Chart Facts
- ^ norwegiancharts.com - Michael Jackson - Invincible
- ^ IFPI Norsk platebransje
- ^ [2]
- ^ portuguesecharts.com - Michael Jackson - Invincible
- ^ Artistas & Espectáculos 2008 . Top Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa
- ^ a b http://www.hitlistan.se/ "Week 45, 2001"
- ^ http://hitparade.ch/showitem.asp?interpret=Michael+Jackson&titel=Invincible&cat=a
- ^ Michael Jackson may incur financial problems - November 21, 2003
- ^ USATODAY.com - Jackson's freedom isn't free
- ^ Michael Jackson Faces Daunting Road Back to Pop Glory - New York Times
- ^ Platinum
- ^ "ARIA Top 100 Albums Chart"
- ^ "FIMI Top 100 Albums Chart"
- ^ "Top 100 México"
- ^ [3]
- ^ http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_news/plat_criteria.html
[edit] Further sources
- George, Nelson (2004). Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection booklet. Sony BMG.
- Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2004). The Magic and the Madness. Terra Alta, WV: Headline. ISBN 0-330-42005-4.
| Preceded by The Great Depression by DMX |
Billboard 200 number-one album November 17, 2001 – November 23, 2001 |
Succeeded by Britney by Britney Spears |
| Preceded by Gold: The Greatest Hits by Steps |
UK number one album November 10, 2001 – November 16, 2001 |
Succeeded by Gold: The Greatest Hits by Steps |
| Preceded by Fever by Kylie Minogue |
Australian ARIA Albums Chart number-one album November 5, 2001 – November 11, 2001 |
Succeeded by The Album by Bob the Builder |
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