Michael Jackson’s funeral and memorial were today in Los Angeles. Like so many other people, many of my childhood memories were connected to Michael’s music and artistry. One of the first records that I bought (or rather was bought for me, since three year olds don’t really buy records) was the soundtrack to the Wiz, featuring Michael as the Scarecrow. I can remember missing the Motown celebration (My mom was a teacher and it was a school night!) and waking up in a completely different world, where everybody was talking about and trying to imitate the moonwalk. My first concert was the Jacksons Victory reunion tour at Atlanta Fulton County Stadium in 1984. As a DJ, I’ve marveled at the sheer joy that’s unleashed on the dance floor when you drop the needle on classic J5. On the day of his passing I was fortunate to celebrate and pay tribute to Michael on KCRW, playing 2 hours of music from what I consider his “golden era” from the Steeltown, pre-motown recordings of 1967 to Thriller in 1982. Music critic/scholar Oliver Wang stopped by to share some thoughts on the legacy of Michael Jackson, but most of the focus is where I hope it will remain in the future, on the pure magic in his music.

Michael Jackson Tribute 6/25/09 Playlist:

1. The Jackson 5 – Big Boy
2. The Jackson 5 – Let Me Carry Your School Books
3. The Jackson 5 – A Fool For You
4. Michael Jackson – Ain’t No Sunshine
5. The Jackson 5 – I’ll Bet You
6. The Jackson 5 – ABC
7. The Jackson 5 – I Want You Back
8. Michael Jackson – Rockin’ Robin
9. The Jackson 5 – The Love You Save
10. The Jackson 5 – I’ll Be There (alt. mix)
11. The Jackson 5 – 2 – 4 – 6 – 8
12. The Jackson 5 – Hum Along And Dance
13. The Jackson 5 – It’s Great To Be Here (Kenny Dope Remix)
14. Michael Jackson – We’ve Got A Good Thing Going
15. The Jackson 5 – Dancing Machine (alt. mix)
16. The Jacksons – Enjoy Yourself
17. The Jacksons – Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground)
18. Michael Jackson – Ease On Down The Road
19. Michael Jackson – Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough
20. Michael Jackson – Off The Wall
21. Michael Jackson – I Can’t Help It
22. Michael Jackson – Rock With You
23. The Jacksons – Can You Feel It
24. Michael Jackson – Wanna Be Startin’ Something
25. Michael Jackson – For All Time

Here’s the first official post for my new audioblog, Melting Pot.  In the coming months and years you’ll find notes on a variety of sounds from funk and soul to latin and psych to punk and jazz and back again (select About Melting Pot in the list of categories for more details on the different features of this audioblog).

I thought I’d start the festivities off with a song, one of my favorites that share the title of this blog.  The original is a classic B-boy cut by Booker T & the MGs from 1971, something that should be in every DJs collection.  The version I’m posting here was done shortly after that by Jamaican Boris Gardiner on his record Is What’s Happening, which I got on a crunchy Jamaican vinyl reissue of the original album, bought at Amoeba Hollywood some time ago. 

Here's the label to Boris Gardiner's Is What's Happening featuring "Melting Pot"

Boris Gardiner – Melting Pot

While this version retains much of the original’s funky feel, Gardiner does add some mean tambourine and fuzzy guitar into the rhythm, plus there’s a massive drum break towards the final third, something that always seems about to happen in the MG’s version, but never really materializes (at least not to my satisfaction, though I do love the original). 

If you’re new to Gardiner’s music, there’s an excellent retrospective put out by Vampi Soul that you should definitely check out.

Onwards and Upwards,

Michael

Michael Barnes DeeJaying @ RadioActive April 2009 © Salvador Farfan

Originally from Atlanta, GA, Michael Barnes has worked as a DJ at non-commercial radio stations around the country since 1993, including his current station KPFK Los Angeles, 90.7FM.  Barnes holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley and is presently a lecturer in Sociology at CSU-Long Beach.  He currently resides in the Los Angeles area with his wife, Rosalba Gutierrez.

The metaphor of the Melting Pot is just a way to symbolize the variety of music that you’ll find on this audioblog.  My tastes lean towards the funky, but you’ll find notes on a variety of genres from many different periods of time, from contemporary to classic and in between.

I generally add new content two or three times a week, sometimes more, sometimes less.  The regular features of this audioblog are as follows:

Breakdown: 

A rundown of my latest radio program, often including playlists and self-deprecating commentary.

Heavy Rotation:

A quick highlight of releases that I’m currently obsessively obsessed with.

Under Review:

More substantive reviews of new music and recent reissues.

Dig Deep: 

20^th century archeology from my record collection.

What Does It All Mean?: 

Song analysis, just short of full-on deconstructionism, audience participation greatly appreciated.

Pound For Pound:

Here’s where classic artists or records go mano y mano and you decide who’s the champ.

I post between 1 & 3 songs from records, at 128kbs.  My hope is that the music you find here inspires you to support these artists (especially if they are performing nearby to where you are), discover something you might not have heard about or perhaps to be reminded of some sounds you might have forgotten. If you’re an artist or label rep and you object to your music being placed on this blog, kindly (emphasis on kindly) request that I remove the music and I’ll leave the pretty words only.

Feel free to contact me about anything else at michael(at)meltingpotblog.com