Rare Jackson 5 Medley

I thought I had seen them all till Spyros posted this find on the Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5 Facebook page. Unfortunately, Jermaine wasn't with them, but hearing Jackie cover a Bread song almost makes up for it.

1975 J5 Tour Shirt

Michael is showing us the only J5-era t-shirt I have in my collection that I know to be authentic. It has all the hallmarks of a vintage shirt: cheap material, small size, 50/50 fabric blend, and an image that shows signs of age through fading.

I bought this shirt from a dealer many years ago in the pre-eBay days, thinking it was a promo t-shirt for the LP Dancing Machine. I know that there's a Get It Together promo tee floating around out there, but I've been outbid both times I've seen one come up for auction.

When I got this t-shirt in the mail. I got a surprise. The dealer hadn't mentioned the printing on the back of the shirt.


Whoah! Not only had I acquired a rare Jackson 5 tour t-shirt, I had also acquired the knowledge that the J5 had had a Fall 1975 tour -- or at least one had been planned. The same year, in June, the Jackson 5 had announced they were leaving Motown for CBC when their contract ran out in March 1976. I'm not sure if this shirt was made before or after that announcement. Empire Productions provides a clue.

Perhaps it was created to be sold on a tour that never happened. If that's true, that would make this t-shirt rarer yet.

Marlon's Secret Marriage

Today marks the 35th anniversary of Marlon's secret marriage to Carol Parker, a lucky fan who caught Marlon's attention during a concert appearance in New Orleans. Marlon and Carol carried on a secret long-distance relationship for years, and when they married, no one in the Jackson family knew about it -- except maybe for Tito and Dee Dee, with whom Carol had been living prior to the marriage.

So secret was their wedding that Soul didn't find out about it until six months later -- they broke the news in their January 19, 1976 issue. When they called Marlon to corroborate, his response was, "Did you call my office? I have to go by what the office says." But then the Soul reporter got the bright idea of congratulating him on his marriage, and Marlon essentially confirmed the news by replying, "Oh, thank you!"

Of all the brothers, Marlon has had the longest and most stable marriage. Maybe they all should have picked fans out of the audience.

Song of the Week: (You Were Made) Especially for Me

by Corey Sheppard

"(You Were Made) Especially for Me" is a song off of the Jackson 5’s last album for Motown entitled Moving Violation. This album (like most of the Jackson 5’s last albums for Motown Records) was released during a transitional phase for not only the group but also soul music. At this time the Jackson brothers reunited with the Holland brothers for the album, as with Michael’s early 1975 solo album entitled Forever Michael. Working with new producers gave the boys an opportunity to try out new material and new vocal styles. And this was the perfect song for that.

If you already haven’t picked up, I love record intros. I feel that any artist, any song, has about ten seconds to impress me to either want to listen to the record, or skipped it J. The opening presentation is extremely important to me, and luckily, the Jackson 5 (or should I say Motown) had no problems in this department. From "I Want You Back," to "Lookin’ Through the Windows," all these songs immediately grab you and take you along the ride. This 1975 record was no different.


The intro to this track is the major highlight. Not to say anything bad about the rest of the song, but, once again, the intro is amazing. There are so many things going on in this record. The strings are so haunting, and the flutes are just terrific. Next time you listen to this record, I dare you to close your eyes and let the music take you away!

Once again with this album cut (being one of the last recordings the J5 made at Motown), you get a real sense of the future vocal style of all the brothers but especially Michael. On this record, the sixteen-year-old totally uses a lot of the same vocal runs and effects as he did in his adult years. I find it very interesting to listen to Michael’s man-child voice throughout his teen years. I love the way he makes his voice sound when he sings "for ME" on the chorus especially at 1:59. Jermaine comes in on a line or two for support, but the song mainly relies on Michael

I think perhaps some people criticize this record for being a little repetitive. I can agree with that; it does tend to rely heavy on the chorus. I also feel that maybe some of the J5 fans at the time might have thought this record was not really the boys' style. I do agree that the record could have been recorded by the O’Jays or the Blue Notes (to just name two groups). In my opinion, this record sort of takes its inspiration from the Philadelphia sound created by legendary producers Gamble & Huff. Most of the mid-70s soul was inspired by the symphonic and orchestrated sounds from the innovative Philadelphia International Records, and Motown was no exception.

This song was given a rapid increase in tempo when performed by the Jackson 5 during their last concerts with Motown. It actually became their opening number on a concert in Mexico in late '75 (shortly after Jermaine had departed from the group). This performance (along with their television performance of the track on the debut season of the variety show in 1976) is very entertaining. The dancing is faster than anything they had attempted before it and thanks to Marlon filling in Jermaine’s line in the song; we still get to hear vocal variety among the boys.

Overall, a good record by the boys. It gives you a slight hint of the direction the Jackson brothers would be going in the next two years. So the record has a strong purpose for the J5, because in a way, they were practicing and preparing for the future just like in the Gary days.


Next Week’s Song Hint: If you’re looking for a chance / to move it on up. / To get yourself / on the right track.

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Corey Sheppard, 20, has been a Jackson 5 fan since 1993. His favorite hobbies are listening to music, playing racquetball at the YMCA, and hanging out with friends. Corey’s life passion is centered on music. His latest project is an all-new production company shared with Robert White Jr. entitled "Ask About It Productions."

Bobby Taylor Discovers the Jackson 5

It's not news to fans that Bobby Taylor (leader of another Motown group, Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers) discovered the Jackson 5 when he saw them performing at the Regal Theater in Chicago.


We all know the back story: Diana Ross got credit for the discovery because Berry Gordy asked her to "present" the Jackson 5 to the public, thereby launching their career and Ross's solo career in one fell swoop. Immediately -- and it may have had something to do with the language Motown used in their promotional materials, such as "the Jackson 5 were discovered by Diana Ross" -- the story began to circulate that Ross had discovered them while doing a benefit show for Mayor Richard Hatcher in Gary, Indiana. I suppose it was a more romantic story than the truth -- that they were performing on a gritty Chicago stage during a 10-night run when they were discovered by another struggling singer who just happened to have a recording contract and connections.

For years the story swirled around that it wasn't Diana Ross but Gladys Knight who discovered the Jackson 5. And sure enough Knight has gone on record saying that she had called the Motown office when she had seen the Jackson 5 on stage some months earlier and she suggested they might want to send someone down from Detroit to see them. But at the time she was new to the label and, by her own admission, didn't have much clout, so her suggestion was ignored. The Diana Ross discovery story stuck, even though many were suspicious of its veracity.

I always thought the truth came out about Bobby Taylor's role with getting the group to Motown in the 1988 documentary, Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues. During an interview, Marlon sets the record straight by telling us that it was Bobby Taylor who had discovered them. I always thought that was the first time Taylor was given credit. that is, until I found this article in the New York Amsterdam News from August 20, 1975:

Another Perspective on the Radio City Music Hall Show

The other day I posted a less-than-enthusiastic review for the J5's 1975 Radio City Music Hall show from the New York Amsterdam News.  In response to that, MJSunshine, over on the MJ Photos Collectors forum pointed me to a review for the same concert from the Feb 17, 1975 Village Voice.  The review was written by a long-time fan, Vince Aletti, and while he, too, was critical of the show, he offered a slightly more sympathetic account, recognizing that the Jackson 5 were reaching a stage in their career where they had to change, and yet, fans still expected the same sort of thrills they got in the early '70s. His pre-concert interview with the J5 is especially interesting -- funny even, as he was so starstruck and at the same time so self-aware of his own biases.

Interestingly, Aletti tells us that the J5 removed the "History of Music" part and the "Killing Me Softly with His Song / By the Time I Get to Phoenix / Danny Boy" medley from the show after the first night, due to the negative reaction to the Vegas act from the New York crowd.  Looks like they were as self-aware as Aletti was.

A Rare Lukewarm Review

Sometimes bad reviews are more interesting than raves, and that's certainly the case with this review of the Jackson 5's 1975 show at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Marie Moore from Harlem's Amsterdam News obviously did not see the great show she was expecting from the Jackson 5, and neither did the teen fans in the audience, according to her report. I find her descriptions of the audience reactions to the J5's performance to be even more interesting than what she writes about the act itself. Coming as it did in February 1975, poor responses like this may have helped to seal the Jacksons' decision to leave Motown for greener pastures.

So unusual were bad reviews and a less-than-enthusiastic audience response for the Jackson 5 that the brothers themselves were asked to comment on the situation in a follow-up story in the Amsterdam News. Remembering their Apollo days, Michael commented that New York audiences were tougher than others. "If they don't like you, they'll let you know."

Tito was more philosophical: "Some of the songs were too heavy for the young people in the audience. We feel it is a great show and it has played well in theaters in the round but there are a lot of grown ups there."

Jackie talked about the group's future: "We want to get into other things. We want to go back and do more recording. And as long as the record's a million seller, it's okay." They may have already been thinking about a million seller on another label. In a little over three months, they would sign with CBS and leave Motown.

And if the review piqued your interest about the back-up act, Blue Magic, you can check out their performance on Soul Train. Looks like the lead singer Ted Mills picked up a few moves from watching Michael.

Hoy llego el disco ecuatoriano

Foreign pressings of Jackson 5 45s are especially prized by collectors, and I'm no exception. Understandably, most collectors especially like the 45s that have picture sleeves, and I've certainly collected my share of those. But as a collector my favorite 45s are those from Latin America, even though most of them never had picture sleeves. I love the Spanish translations of the song titles, which often vary from country country. Here we see "Forever Came Today" as "Hoy llego la eternidad" which contrasts with the translation on the pressing from Spain, "Hoy empezo el futuro."

Latin American pressings from countries other than Argentina and Brazil are fairly rare. The label shown above is the only Ecuadorian pressing I have ever come across. It's a sentimental favorite of mine because I lived in Quito in 1973, and don't recall ever hearing the Jackson 5 on the radio or seeing any Jackson 5 records while I was there (other than the ones I had brought with me). But this 45 is proof that the Jackson 5 did indeed reach fans in Ecuador. I hope to continue to find more. And maybe one day I'll even find the elusive Bolivian pressing.