Thrifty Tunes 07.04.09: Jackson Five - Moving Violation
Posted by Paul Hollingsworth on 07.04.2009
Before he was the King of Pop, Michael and his brothers made plenty of great pop music as the Jackson Five. This week's Thrifty Tunes takes a look back at Moving Violation, the final studio album the band released as The Jackson Five.
In 1983, when I was in fifth grade, my best friend was Marion Valentine. Marion's father, who was always called Mr. Valentine, (with special emphasis on the 'Mr.') had the largest record collection I've ever seen. Mr. Valentine's records took up the entire basement of his house. Packed shelves lined all four walls, and boxes full of 45's filed the spaces between the shelves. In the center of the basement was a worn out brown couch and a giant, top of the line, Pioneer sound system, and the largest speakers in the history of mankind. When I rode my bike over to Marion's house, we weren't allowed into the basement unless Mr. Valentine was with us. Mr. Valentine looked just like Richard Roundtree from Shaft, right down to the black leather jacket and pointed sideburns. Marion told me his dad had been in the army, but Marion wasn't actually sure what his job had been. I was pretty sure Mr. Valentine had killed a man, maybe many, so his 'no kids in the basement' rule was followed without question.
When we were allowed into the basement, Mr. Valentine allowed us to pick the first record, and if he approved of it, we were allowed to listen to to the second side. If he disapproved, he would pick out the next one. He showed disapproval by a scowl and subtle shake of his head, and on the occasions when Marion or I gained his approval of something we'd picked, the approval was the same scowl, but without the head shake. It was an intense form of critical listening, particularly for two fifth-graders.
When we put on Michael Jackson'sThriller that summer, Mr. Valentine shook his head halfway through "The Girl Is Mine." Marion and I were both disappointed, because "Thriller" was next, which besides from being our favorite song on the album, was the one we thought Mr. Valentine might like the most. Mr. Valentine, after shaking his head again, walked to the shelves and pulled out another record. (All his records were arranged alphabetically and by release date.)
After taking the record out of the paper sleeve, he handed the cover to Marion. (We weren't allowed to touch any of his records, only ours.) Mr. Valentine set the needle down on the record and said, in his deep, thick voice, "This is Michael Jackson. I don't know what that stuff is you played. But it's not Michael Jackson." The record he had chosen was Moving Violation by the The Jackson Five .
I don't remember much about listening to it back then, partly because I was disappointed I wouldn't get to hear "Thriller" on Mr. Valentine's enormous speakers. In another year or so, Michael Jackson became the biggest pop singer on the planet, and everybody, including me, had a red leather jacket covered in oddly placed zippers and took to wearing a single silver glove. Marion went one step further, changing his hair from a short afro into a Jheri curl. For people who were at a certain age in the early and mid 80's, Jackson was our Elvis and Beatles, and the mania and insanity surrounding him was like nothing we'd ever experienced. Since then, pop stars have come and gone, but none of them came close to touching Jackson's star power.
When I found a used copy of Moving Violations several months ago, I immediately recognized it from the one time I heard it in Mr. Valentine's basement. After I bought it, I put it in the 'to listen to someday' pile and promptly forgot about it, until last week, when the news about Jackson's death broke. Since then everybody on the planet, it seems, has had something to say about Jackson, his music, and his more recent bizarre and troubling behavior. After the mania of Thriller , I lost interest in Jackson and his music. I've never listened to Bad or Dangerous all the way through, and had absolutely no interest in the reissues of Thriller , one of which came out in 2001 and the 'remix' version which came out last year. Instead of putting on a copy of my original Thriller , which is the same copy Marion and I had tried to impress his father with, I decided to try Moving Violation instead.
This album was released, without question, during the disco era. Opening track "Forever Came Today" is full of all the clichés of the era, including a silly string section and laser type sound effects. Still, its definitely a Jackson Five song, as all the brothers harmonize their way through the overproduced (even by the standards of the era) song. Originally a hit for The Supremes back in 1968, I can say that this cover, at least, takes the song to another place, although it's not a place the song was necessarily designed to go.
The title track, while still a disco song, keeps the bells and whistles to a minimum, and the result is one of the standout tracks on the album. Michael's voice takes center stage, and the light-pop funk doesn't overpower the sweet harmonies of the other Jacksons. There's also a very forward thinking guitar solo, toward the end, which reminds me a bit of "Beat It." Jackson at his best was always interested in combining rock music with R&B, and this song is one of his first attempts at mixing the two.
Side two opens with "Body Language (Do The Love Dance)" which is one of the hits off the record. It sounds almost like a reworking of Stevie Wonder's "Superstition", which isn't bad company to keep, and the pop-funk guitar work has a Sly & The Family Stone feel to it. For a throwaway disco track, it's got a lot going for it.
"All I Do Is Think Of You" is a standard ballad in the Holland/Dozier/Holland tradition. (If you don't know who they are, then go do some reading and listening. Some things are better discovered on your own.) It is sort of odd, though, that the Jacksons, (except for Michael, who was 16 at the time), were no longer teenagers, and still singing puppy-dog love songs like this. It's never going to be confused for "I'll Be There" or "I Want You Back", but it's not a bad song, as ballads go.
The album ends with another highlight, "Time Explosion" which is a sort of psychedelic flavored disco song, and reminds me of some of the things The Temptations did in the late 60's. The other Jacksons not named Michael take center stage, and the result is one of the more interesting and unexpected songs I've heard. It wouldn't sound out of place, not much, anyway, on a Parliament record. It's funky in a way that the Jacksons seldom seemed to be, and it's a great way to end the album.
Complete Track Listing: (1975 on Motown Records)
Side One:
1. Forever Came Today
2. Moving Violation
3. (You Were Made) Especially For Me
4. Honey Love
Side Two:
1. Body Language (Do The Love Dance)
2. All I Do Is Think Of You
3. Breezy
4. Call Of The Wild
5. Time Explosion
This was the Jackson Five's last album for Motown. Soon after its release, the band changed their name to the Jacksons, and changed record companies. Not too much later, Michael released Off The Wall , which turbo charged his solo career. I'm surprised at how well some of these songs hold up, some thirty plus years later. Even though they aren't timeless or even particularly well known Jackson Five songs like "ABC" or "Dancing Machine", they still have an undeniable appeal, and I think the majority of that appeal can be credited to Michael. As I said before, I didn't pay much attention to Michael after the mania of Thriller had passed, but I'm interested in hearing some more of the Jackson Five, although I wish it hadn't taken his death to get me to take notice of his earlier accomplishments.
