Album #141: Michael Jackson - Off The Wall

Michael Jackson

Off The Wall (1980)

The late Michael Jackson will forever be remembered for different reasons by different people. His army of loyal fans will choose to remember only his musical legacy, his undeniable stage presence and his incredibly array of dance moves; detractors will continue to highlight his questionable personal life, in particular the child sex allegations that haunted him from 1993 until his death, and which, even today, five years after his death, are continuing as others come forward claiming Jackson abused them.

Personally, I find his alleged actions abhorrent and sickening; and yes, I am aware that technically he was never convicted of any crimes....but where there's smoke there's fire, they say, and there's so much smoke around these things (still) that it's hard to accept that Jackson was completely innocent (even if he believed he was.) However, I do not think that devalues the musical work he did, and I do believe it is possible to listen to, judge and even enjoy Jackson's music without condoning his alleged actions.

With that rather lengthy disclaimer out of the way (and I have a horrible feeling it's going to trigger some debate), today's album is Off The Wall, Jackson's fifth studio album, but his first with Epic Records, where he did his finest, most career-defining work. 

The Album

Musically, the album covers an incredible range of influences. There's pop, soul, funk, R&B and disco scattered all over the place; there's even a tender ballad to top it all off. To make the album, Jackson enlisted the help of maestro producer Quincy Jones, the man with whom, in my view, Jackson did his finest work. He also worked with Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney and Rod Temperton (who continued to work with Jackson on his next album, Thriller), each of whom contributed songs to the album.

For Jackson himself, this was the album where he was let off the Motown hook, finally free to pursue a mature, adult approach to songcrafting and production. The results speak for themselves; Jackson proves to have a superb sense of musical craft, not to mention finally allowing himself to show the full range of his vocal abilities. It might have numerically been his fifth studio album but make no mistake - Off The Wall is the birth of Michael Jackson, King of Pop.

Opener Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough is a masterpiece - written solely by Jackson, and the first time in his career he had complete control over a solo piece. And holy crap, what a first time! Everything about this funk/disco odyssey just works - from the great strings and horn arrangements to the funky bass and disco/funk guitar...and there's Jackson's outstanding falsetto vocal for good measure. It sets the tone of the album perfectly, because it's disco/funk pretty much for the next twenty minutes. Rock With You heads more down the smooth R&B route but still has heavy elements of disco; Jackson drops his vocal back down to his usual smooth tenor and lends great gravitas to a rather good tune. Workin' Day And Night and Get On The Floor are more uptempo disco tunes; the former features some sublime horn work and a bedrock of electric piano, while the latter is a serious contender for the best track on the album; taking every conceivable cliche of disco (swales of string blasts, horns aplenty, a relentless backbeat, funk guitar) and fusing them together. The real hero though is bass supergenius Louis Johnson, whose slap bass work is not only funky as fuck but technically supreme.

The middle two tracks see a slight drop in quality and intensity. Off The Wall is a decent tune with a great hook, and more stunning bass work from Johnson; but in a rare display of compositional misstep, there's a grating falsetto shriek in the chorus which is rather offputting. Girlfriend is one of only two non-disco tunes, largely as it was penned by Paul McCartney. It's pure pop in sound and structure, but thanks to Quincy Jones it takes on more of an R&B feel. Following those is the ballad She's Out Of My Life (famous to Red Dwarf fans as the first song Dave Lister learned on the guitar), and while it continues the lull in intensity, it is an extraordinary song solely because of Jackson. It must surely rate as one of his finest vocal performances; his heart and soul pouring out of the speakers. The famous final seconds, where Jackson is breaking down in tears, are all thanks to Jones, who made the decision to leave that take in the final mix.

After this, Jackson clearly had had enough of all this wallowing, and closes by returning the aesthetic to cool disco-infused tunes. I Can't Help It is the Stevie Wonder-written tune and it's a smooth little R&B ditty with horns and electric piano aplenty; It's The Falling In Love and Burn This Disco Out close the album in much the same way it started, with funk/disco meeting R&B in a sweet, sweet fusion, even if these last two tracks don't quite have the same irresistible hookiness of the earlier songs.

The Verdict

I really, really enjoyed Off The Wall. This was my first listen to the album, although I'd heard all of Jackson's other Epic solo releases. If it wasn't for Thriller being so damn amazing I'd almost mount a case for this being the best one. Its greatest feature is that it blends the immense danceability of disco and funk music with oodles of pop sensibility, making it toetapping and entertaining.

Worth checking out.

My rating: 8.4/10

Standout Tracks

She's Out Of My Life

Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough

Get On The Floor