Tag Archives: Michael Jackson

Christmas Gift Ideas For Music Fans

The Beatles in Stereo and The Beatles in Mono box sets are the two most obvious choices for anyone who doesn’t have them yet. They are a “must own” for any serious music fan.

There are a number of new John Lennon releases this year that may be a good choice for a Lennon/Beatles fan. The Signature Box Set is an 11 disc set including all of Lennon’s solo albums (well, not The Wedding Album.)

Bob Dylan: The Original Mono Recordings (box set that includes the mono mixes of his first 8 albums) is another great choice.

A less expensive choice for Dylan fans is 47 track double disc set: The Witmark Demos (’62-’64.) This set was released on October of this year so there’s a good chance the Dylan fan in your family doesn’t have it yet.

For Bruce Springsteen fans there’s the “lost album” (includes 21 previously unreleased recordings from the 1970s) that’s just come out called The Promise.

Michael Jackson fans may want to hear the first (there will be more) posthumous Michael Jackson album; MICHEAL. This is not another greatest hits repackaging, these are previously unreleased songs.

None of these ideas sound right to you? Go to Amazon’s Bestselling Music List and see what you find. You will find all of these critically acclaimed 2010 albums there.

Or how about the latest generation iPod?

Michael Jackson: Over 30 Million Albums Sold Since His Death

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According to this story on Billboard, Michael Jackson has sold over 30 million copies of his albums around the world since his death one year ago (June 25, 2009.)

In the US alone, MJ has sold over 9 million copies of his albums in the past year. On top of that he has sold over 12 million track downloads.

The This Is It film made $72 million at the box office in the US making it the highest grossing concert film ever. On top of that, it made another $188 million overseas.

Anniversary of Michael Jackson’s Death

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It’s hard for me to believe it’s already been a full year since Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009 but by looking at the calendar I know that is the case.

I don’t have anything interesting to say really, but I do have a cool MJ related article (on the making of the “Thriller” video) to share with you: Vanity Fair “Thriller” Article.

“Workin’ Day And Night” by Michael Jackson

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“Workin’ Day and Night” is the 3rd track from Michael Jackson’s 1979 classic album Off the Wall. It’s one of three songs on the album that MJ wrote or co-wrote (along with “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” and “Get On the Floor”) and it’s one of my favorite songs on the album.

It’s pretty simple and quite repetitive but it just has a killer groove that makes me want to get down do a little dance which is really the shorthand review for most of the songs on the album. So why am I singling it out for this review? Mostly because I’m listening to it on repeat right now and it’s kicking my ass.

I love the beat boxing stuff in the intro. Fantastic. It really sets the mood. Man, I don’t have much to say about this song actually. You dance to this music, you don’t write about it. At least I don’t. Because I suck at writing about music. Good thing I have a blog where I get to do it eh? Yes, I’m looking for new contributers. Join the Music By Day team (there’s a link down there…)

Unreleased Michael Jackson Recordings Coming In November

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There’s a story out today about how the Michael Jackson estate has signed a $200 million dollar contract with Sony Music Entertainment for 10 projects over the next 7 years.

While the news angle is mostly about how this is the biggest recording contract in history, I found the bit about a new Michael Jackson album including previously unreleased material coming out this November to be most interesting.

I’m wondering if this will be stuff he was working on as his followup to 2001′s Invincible or will it be unreleased outtakes from his earlier albums?

The Vatican’s Top 10 Albums

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The Vatican came out with a list of 10 recommended albums that is not altogether terrible (although there are some unusual choices.) Here it is:

#1 The Beatles – Revolver

The “hip” selection for #1 Beatles album. It’s not my #1, but most hipsters seem to think it’s the pinnacle of The Beatles output. I suppose the Pope will be wearing skinny jeans soon.

#2 David Crosby – If I Could Only Remember My Name

I had never even heard of this album before. It was Crosby’s first solo album, released in 1971. Continue reading “The Vatican’s Top 10 Albums” »

Top Ten Selling Vinyl Albums of 2009

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After finding (and posting here) the top ten selling vinyl albums of 2008 last year I wanted to do the same thing this year when the numbers became available and they have and so I am.

These numbers come from soundscan which has been keeping track of album sales since 1991. The 2.5 million new vinyl albums sold in 2009 in the US is the most sold since soundscan started keeping track. While digital download sales and vinyl sales are on the rise, CD sales are dropping every year (they dropped another 12% from 2008 to 2009.)

#01 The Beatles – Abbey Road – 34,800 (#2 in ’08)
#02 Michael Jackson – Thriller – 29,800
#03 Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion – 14,000
#04 Wilco – Wilco – 13,200
#05 Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes – 12,700 (#8 in ’08)
#06 Pearl Jam – Backspacer – 12,500
#07 Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest – 11,600
#08 Guns N’ Roses – Appetite for Destruction – 11,500
#09 Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey… – 11,500
#10 Radiohead – In Rainbows – 11,400 (#1 in ’08)

Michael Jackson, Taylor Swift, & The Beatles: Top Sellers of 2009

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Soundscan is out with their final sales numbers for 2009 and the three biggest sellers of the year were Michael Jackson with 8.3 million albums sold, Taylor Swift with 4.6 million albums sold, and The Beatles with 3.3 million albums sold.

That a pop singer known mostly for his work in the 1980s and a band that recorded all of their music in the 1960s (except for “I Me Mine” which was recorded on January 3, 1970) were 2 of the top 3 sellers of 2009 is quite remarkable.

When looking at these numbers one should also consider that each sale of The Beatles in Stereo Box Set & The Beatles in Mono Box Set only counted as one album sale even though the stereo set includes 14 albums (two of which were double albums) and the mono set includes 11 albums (and it has two double albums too.)

If the albums in the box sets were counted as individual album sales The Beatles probably would have challenged MJ for the top spot. Unfortunately I don’t have access to the exact number of box sets they sold so I can’t make the calculation.

This Week’s Billboard Charts

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Alright, this is my third Thursday of taking a look at the Billboard 200 album charts. I don’t list every single album on the chart, I just pick out a few that I want to ramble on about.

#1 – Susan Boyle – I Dreamed A Dream (debut)

The biggest single week sales of the year so far (over 700,000 copies sold.) Apparently it also set an all time record for the biggest first week for any female artist’s debut album. It reached similar heights over in the UK (Boyle got her shot of fame earlier this year on the Britain’s Got Talent show.) I don’t necessarily agree with TheRoboticMushroom’s essay on the Susan Boyle phenomenon but I think he makes some good points. There’s no way this album would have sold 700K based on the music itself.

#3 – Adam Lambert – For Your Entertainment (debut)

Britain’s Got Talent at #1 and American Idol at #3. American Idol’s continuing popularity and how it continues to be able to create stars of this magnitude is insane to me. I just can’t believe that people haven’t gotten tired of it yet. There seems to be a much longer shelf life for cheese these days. I wonder if it’ll be 2050 and the American Idol star of the week will still be selling loads of albums? Continue reading “This Week’s Billboard Charts” »

Amazon’s Black Friday Lightning Deals: The Beatles Remastered Box Sets?

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As a part of the many deals Amazon has today for “Black Friday” they are apparently going to have a great deal on The Beatles Remastered Stereo Box Set beginning at 2 PM EST (11AM PST) — Although since they are only dropping hints, it’s possible that it’s The Beatles Mono Box Set they’re talking about (but I doubt it, I bet it’s the stereo box as that appeals to a wider audience.)

The upcoming “lightning deals” in music are these (each “lightning deal” lasts for three hours or until they run out. The times are all EST.)

11AM: Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King.

2PM: Michael Jackson – This Is It

2PM: The Beatles? (They’re hinting that it’s The Beatles in Stereo Box Set.)

5PM: Coldplay – Viva La Vida

CLICK HERE to check out all of the “Black Friday Deals in Music.”