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Liberian Girl

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"Liberian Girl"
Song
B-side"Girlfriend"

"Liberian Girl" was the ninth single released from American recording artist Michael Jackson's 1987 album Bad. The song was written as early as 1983 and was among those considered for The Jacksons' Victory album. It was reworked and rewritten for Bad. The song was released as a single in Europe and Australia.

Critical reception

The New York Times editor Jon Pareles wrote that a melody line from Billie Jean reappears in this song.[1] Rolling Stone's Davitt Sigerson praised the song: "'Liberian Girl' — is Michael's filler, which makes it richer, sexier, better than Thriller's forgettables" and he also described that it "glistens with gratitude for the existence of a loved one."[2] In 2003, Q Magazine ranked the song at number 1,001 in their list of the "1001 Best Songs Ever".[3]

Reaction in Liberia

The song received a positive reception in Liberia,[4] with women from the country viewing the song as empowering.[4] Liberian woman Margaret Carson said in an interview with the Washington Times "When that music came out … the Liberian girls were so astonished to hear a great musician like Michael Jackson thinking about a little country in Africa. It gave us hope, especially when things went bad … . It make us to feel that we are still part of the world."[4]

Chart performance

Chart (1989) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 50
Dutch Singles Chart 14
French Singles Chart 15
Irish Singles Chart 1
Swiss Singles Chart[5] 12
UK Singles Chart 13
Chart (2009) Peak
position
French Digital Singles Chart[6] 34
Swiss Singles Chart[5] 36
UK Singles Chart[7] 86

Music video

Directed by Jim Yukich, the video for the song featured many of Jackson's celebrity friends who gather on a soundstage to film the music video for "Liberian Girl", only to discover that Jackson was filming them all along. As named in the closing titles, the following people are listed in order of appearance:

There was also a mummy with three arms that was shown during the video. In the ending credits the mummy was credited with a question mark.

The music video of the song was included on the video albums: HIStory on Film, Volume II, Vision and the Target version DVD of Bad 25.

Track listing

  • 7"
  1. "Liberian Girl" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Girlfriend" – 3:05
  • 12"
  1. "Liberian Girl" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Get on the Floor" – 4:44
  3. "Girlfriend" – 3:05
  • CD single
  1. "Liberian Girl" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Girlfriend" – 3:05
  3. "The Lady in My Life" – 5:00
  4. "Get on the Floor" – 4:44

Covers and sampling

"Liberian Girl" has been sampled and covered by various musicians:

Personnel

  • Written and composed by Michael Jackson
  • Produced by Quincy Jones
  • Co-produced by Michael Jackson
  • Michael Jackson: solo and background vocals
  • John Robinson: drums
  • Douglas Getschal: drum programming
  • Paulinho Da Costa: percussion
  • Christopher Currell: Synclavier
  • John Barnes, Michael Boddicker, David Paich, Larry Williams: synthesizers
  • Steve Porcaro: synthesizer programming
  • Letta Mbulu: Swahili chant
  • Rhythm arrangement by Michael Jackson, John Barnes and Quincy Jones
  • Synthesizer arrangement by Jerry Hey, John Barnes and Quincy Jones
  • Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson and John Barnes
  • Swahili chant arrangement by Caiphus Semenya

References

  1. ^ Pareles, Jon (31 August 1987). "Pop: Michael Jackson's 'Bad,' Follow-Up To A Blockbuster". The New York Times.
  2. ^ Davitt Sigerson (22 October 1987). "Michael Jackson Bad Album Review". Rolling Stone.
  3. ^ "Q - 1001 best songs ever (2003)".
  4. ^ a b c "Memory of Michael Jackson uplifts Liberia". The Washingtion Times.
  5. ^ a b "Swiss Singles Chart Archives". hitparade.ch. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
  6. ^ "Download French Single Top 50". France. lescharts. Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  7. ^ "UK Singles Chart". The Official UK Charts Company. Archived from the original on March 14, 2009. Retrieved 6 July 2009. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ AllMusic https://www.allmusic.com/album/r166068
  9. ^ WhoSampled http://www.whosampled.com/sample/view/791/MC%20Lyte%20feat.%20Xscape-Keep%20On,%20Keepin%27%20On_Michael%20Jackson-Liberian%20Girl/
  10. ^ WhoSampled http://www.whosampled.com/sample/view/9394/Jennifer%20Lopez-If%20You%20Had%20My%20Love%20%28Darkchild%20Master%20Mix%29_Michael%20Jackson-Liberian%20Girl/
  11. ^ WhoSampled http://www.whosampled.com/sample/view/731/2Pac-Letter%202%20My%20Unborn_Michael%20Jackson-Liberian%20Girl/
  12. ^ About.com http://rap.about.com/od/songs/tp/RapSongsSampledMichaelJackson.htm
  13. ^ WhoSampled http://www.whosampled.com/sample/view/14310/Roi%20Heenok-La%20Coka%20Coka_Michael%20Jackson-Liberian%20Girl/
  14. ^ http://www.last.fm/music/Michael+Jackson/_/Liberian+Girl
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