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Michael Jackson's 'This Is It' soundtrack album not worth it
Michael Jackson’s “This Is It (The Music That Inspired the Movie)” hit stores today. But for fans looking for the soundtrack to the movie, which opens in late-night showings Tuesday, this isn’t it.
“This Is It” (the album) is, more or less, another greatest-hits package for Jackson, whose popularity and sales have skyrocketed since his death in June. While it does feature the songs in the order that they will appear in the movie, which documents Jackson’s preparations for what would have been his comeback tour, the live versions of those songs aren’t here.
Instead, the 20-track album, which includes two versions of the previously unreleased ballad “This Is It,” offers the familiar recorded versions of Jackson smashes – “Beat It,” “Billie Jean,” “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’,” “Human Nature,” and “Thriller” – and remastered versions of other hits, including “They Don’t Care About Us” and “The Way You Make Me Feel.” The second disc – which features previously unreleased demo versions of “She’s Out of My Life,” “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” and “Beat It” and Jackson reading his poem “Planet Earth” – is more of an add-on, though it does come closest to providing a live, less-produced look at Jackson’s process, especially the gorgeous acoustic version of “She’s Out of My Life.”
In fact, the biggest draw for Jackson fans may actually come in the photos that come with the album, shot by Lindenhurst’s Kevin Mazur, famed concert photographer and co-founder of WireImage, at a rehearsal the day before Jackson died.
The photos, like the trailers for the movie, show Jackson – looking healthy and in control of a troupe of dancers and musicians – at work creating something new. One poignant photo captures Jackson in the middle of a dance move, his feet barely touching the stage, a broad smile on his face.
For many fans of a man who apparently died searching for enough personal peace to allow him to sleep through the night, the main draw of the “This Is It” project is to see how near he was to finding the redemption he so thoroughly craved. That photo shows that Jackson may have been closer than anyone outside his inner circle knew.
Whether “This Is It,” the documentary, will answer those questions remains to be seen. The album, as pleasant as it is to listen to, still leaves them unanswered.
>>PHOTOS: Click here to see photos of Michael Jackson, year-by-year
>>VIDEO: Click here to watch the trailer for "This Is It"
PHOTO: Michael Jackson at his tour rehearsal by Kevin Mazur for Getty Images.
Tags: Michael Jackson , This Is It , Kevin Mazur
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