Michael Jackson – Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection (2009) (Limited Edition 3CD Set)

Michael Jackson could make you forget he was so young." So writes Suzee Ikeda, a Motown artist and A&R assistant who was a creative confidante of a teen-aged Michael, in her introductory essay to Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection, a new 3-CD set that features every Michael Jackson recording released from 1971 to 1975, plus the Motown-era songs that were released after he left the company.

 

At the height of the Jackson-5 mania in 1970-71, a solo career for young Michael was not a given. But when Donny Osmond went solo while staying in the Osmonds' family group, Michael went solo as well, and was given material that made him sound more mature. "Got To Be There," his first solo hit, featured a stunning, declamatory phrase that provided the name of this collection.

 

The LP Got To Be There, released in January 1972, was followed by Ben, after the No. 1 hit title song from a film about a pet rat. Ben was first issued with a cover featuring lurid artwork from the film, which was quickly replaced by a simpler image of MJ; our package reproduces both covers in the 48-page booklet.

 

Music And Me was next, featuring a few Adult Contemporary covers, followed by Forever, Michael, which had a harder dance age; it included the now-classic hits "We’re Almost There" and "Just A Little Bit Of You."

 

Although Michael and the Jackson-5 left Motown in 1975 to go to Epic Records, that wasn’t the end of the story. "One Day In Your Life," released in the aftermath of MJ’s solo Off The Wall, turned into a No. 1 hit in the U.K. and top 40 AC in the U.S. Following the crazy ride of Thriller, Motown released Farewell My Summer Love, a batch of songs from the vault with contemporary overdubs; the title song went top 10 R&B. There’s more: in 1986 Motown issued Looking Back To Yesterday, a collection of more vault masters, some with the Jackson-5, that contained further unexpected gems.

 

Hello World has all of that and these extra gems: all nine songs from Farewell My Summer Love are included in their original, undubbed mixes. Plus, we unearthed the original mix of "Twenty-Five Miles" - Michael’s cover of the Edwin Starr hit that has previously been available only in a 1987 vault collection. It’s all in a splendid, hard-backed 8”x 5.5” package with an introductory essay by Motown’s Suzee Ikeda, a main essay by Mark Anthony Neal, pages of annotations, rare photos and repros of the LP jackets.

 

It’s deserving of the one of the greatest performers the world has ever known, at any age.

FORMAT: Compact Disc
CONDITION: Brand New
GENRE:  Soul / R&B
LABEL:  Motown Records
NO. OF RECORDS:  3

Tracklist:

Disc One

1.    Ain't No Sunshine

2.    I Wanna Be Where You Are

3.    Girl Don't Take Your Love from Me

4.    In Our Small Way

5.    Got to Be There

6.    Rockin' Robin

7.    Wings of My Love

8.    Maria (You Were the Only One)

9.    Love Is Here and Now You're Gone

10.    You've Got a Friend

11.    Ben

12.    Greatest Show on Earth

13.    People Make the World Go Round

14.    We've Got a Good Thing Going

15.    Everybody's Somebody's Fool

16.    My Girl

17.    What Goes Around Comes Around

18.    In Our Small Way

19.    Shoo Be Doo Be Doo Da Day

20.    You Can Cry on My Shoulder

21.    Don't Let It Get You Down (Original Mix)

22.    You've Really Got a Hold on Me (Original Mix)

23.    Melodie (Original Mix)

24.    Touch the One You Love (Original Mix)

 

Disc Two

1.    With a Child's Heart

2.    Up Again

3.    All the Things You Are

4.    Happy (Love Theme from Lady Sings the Blues)

5.    Too Young

6.    Doggin' Around

7.    Euphoria

8.    Morning Glow

9.    Johnny Raven

10.    Music and Me

11.    We're Almost There

12.    Take Me Back

13.    One Day in Your Life

14.    Cinderella Stay Awhile

15.    We've Got Forever

16.    Just a Little Bit of You

17.    You Are There

18.    Dapper - Dan

19.    Dear Michael

20.    I'll Come Home to You

21.    Girl You're So Together (Original Mix)

22.    Farewell My Summer Love (Original Mix)

23.    Call on Me (Original Mix)

 

 

Disc Three

1.    When I Come of Age

2.    Teenage Symphony

3.    I Hear a Symphony

4.    Give Me Half a Chance

5.    Love's Gone Bad

6.    Lonely Teardrops

7.    You're Good for Me

8.    That's What Love Is Made of

9.    I Like You the Way You Are (Don't Change Your Love on Me)

10.    Who's Lookin' for a Lover

11.    I Was Made to Love Her

12.    If 'N I Was God

13.    To Make My Father Proud (Original Mix)

14.    Here I Am (Come and Take Me) (Original Mix)

15.    Twenty - Five Miles (Original Mix)

16.    Don't Let It Get You Down

17.    You've Really Got a Hold on Me

18.    Melodie

19.    Touch the One You Love

20.    Girl You're So Together

21.    Farewell My Summer Love

22.    Call on Me

23.    Here I Am (Come and Take Me)

24.    To Make My Father Proud