‘Bad 25’: A Michael Jackson masterpiece gets its due

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It was Jackson’s dramatic physical changes that sparked the greatest backlash within his African-American fanbase. Comedian Tommy Davidson once mocked the opening of the song “Bad” with the lyrics, “This nose ain’t mine!” while others simply marveled at how in just three years the biggest black star in the world had grown several shades lighter.

Jackson would later attribute his change in hue to the skin disease Vitiligo, an explanation that was confirmed by autopsy reports following his death, but the scuttlebutt at the time was that the singer was distancing himself from his black roots in an effort to further ingratiate himself with white audiences.

In a particularly vicious 1987 Village Voice column, black pop culture critic Greg Tate wrote, “Jackson emerges a casualty of America’s ongoing race war — another Negro gone mad because his mirror reports that his face does not conform to the Nordic ideal.”

This theory overlooks Jackson’s Afro-centric musical sound, spearheaded by legendary producer Quincy Jones, and his identification with black culture in nearly all of his music videos from the predominately black gangs of “Beat It” to the African motif of “Remember the Time,” just to name a few.

“I’m a black American, I am proud of my race. I am proud of who I am,” Jackson emphatically told Oprah Winfrey in 1993 and he never wavered from that stance (at least publicly) until the day he died.

Still, these minor controversies seem quaint compared to the firestorm of scandal that consumed much of his later life.

Listening to the classic, refurbished Bad gives fans an opportunity to revisit the last era of Jackson’s career where he was still the purest, most popular musical star on the planet. His career was at a pinnacle, instead of at the beginning of a decline. And the trip down memory lane is rewarding to say the least.

Bad certainly deserves a place alongside Thriller and Off The Wall in the pantheon of pop music perfection. And the sterling new tracks, some of which have appeared in other special editions, make a compelling case for the fact that Bad could have been a formidable double album. Catchy cuts like “Al Capone” and “Streetwalker” could easily have climbed the charts in any era. Yet, the real find of this well-packaged set is the footage from Wembley.

The quality is not pristine — the footage is apparently culled from Jackson’s personal VHS copy — but that’s part of its charm. Much like This Is It, this DVD is a chance to marvel at what made the King of Pop musical royalty. Even the biggest Jackson detractor can’t help but be impressed by his ability to both dance and sing at the same time with this level of quality and intensity. His performances glide effortlessly through his then-already decades long career from the Jackson 5 to the latest tracks from his current album.

It is impossible to listen to any new Jackson output without viewing it through the prism of his sudden, tragic death just three years ago. And like so much of what Jackson did, in hindsight we see how ahead of his time he was.

On Bad 25 and in this invaluable concert footage we see a Michael Jackson still at the peak of his powers, before his prolonged descent into scandal and sickness. It’s all still there — that voice, so tender yet fierce, the poise, the strut and the magical rapport with an audience of 72,000 fans that only a true pop icon can muster.

This is a last glimpse of the Michael Jackson we want to remember and it is a beautiful sight to behold.

Follow Adam Howard on Twitter at @at_howard