“Pilgrims are persons in motion passing through territories not their  own-seeking something we might call COMPLETION, or perhaps the word CLARITY will do as well, a goal to which only the SPIRIT’S COMPASS points the way.”

Richard H. Niebuhr

“NOTHING WORSE COULD HAPPEN TO ONE THAN TO BE COMPLETELY UNDERSTOOD.”

C.G.Jung

“LOTS OF LOVE AND HUMILITY TO MY FANS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD…YOUR UNQUESTIONABLE SUPPORT HAS BEEN MY STRENGTH OVER THE PAST YEAR.  I MAY BE THE CAPTAIN OF MY FAITH, BUT YOU PROVIDED STRENGTH FOR MY SOUL.”

HISTORY ALBUM Dedication

Michael Jackson

In life, wherever we are is our entry point…an awareness to connectedness made, learning moment to moment.  Those who have chosen to enter Michael’s realm, to really delve into the life seeking clarity…driven by pure spirit…flex positive muscle for positive results.  Neils Bohr tells us, “LIFE CAN ONLY BE UNDERSTOOD BACKWARD, BUT IT MUST BE LIVED FORWARD.”  Our maximum learning connects with our deep feelings for a man who is the very definition of COMPLEXITY.  He guides us with Salman Rushdie words, “Those who do not have power over the story that dominates their lives, power to retell it, to rethink it, deconstruct it, joke about it, and change it as times change, truly are powerless because they cannot think new thoughts.”  Michael had the power of storytelling…storytelling that set in motion activism and a worldwide Love Movement.  “To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true of you in your private heart is true for all men…that is genius.”  Ralph Waldo Emerson  MICHAEL JACKSON WAS A “MULTILAYERED” GENIUS.  He chose to use words that flowed to the heart of all human experience.  Comprehending the vastness, while passing through territories not our own, offers an enlightenment only understood by the heart.  And, it takes time.  As with EVERYTHING MICHAEL, there are layers and layers to peel and feel.

“Behind every word flows energy.”

Sonia Choquette

“IN EVERY ADULT LURKS A CHILD…AN ETERNAL CHILD, SOMETHING THAT IS ALWAYS BECOMING, IS NEVER COMPLETED AND CALLS FOR UNCEASING CARE, ATTENTION, AND EDUCATION.  THAT IS THE PART OF THE HUMAN PERSONALITY WHICH WANTS TO DEVELOP AND BECOME WHOLE.”

C.G. Jung

If the goal is to grab onto quick answers, sound bites or take-down pieces… often desired by those with low-ceiling imaginations and cut-and-paste mentalities…then Michael Jackson is way beyond your pay grade.  A conversation offering great insights and information was done by DANCING WITH THE ELEPHANT.  It explains the complexities in Michael’s artistry…his massive work ethic…his unparalleled imagination…and, his efforts in speaking to social justice.

“Michael Jackson is in a league of his own, being a highly accomplished performer, singer, dancer, producer, songwriter, arranger, lyricist, musician, choreographer, film director, stage director, lighting and costume designer, businessman and marketing genius…and, more.  Michael deeply understood all these disciplines and the way he orchestrated all these elements to work together…the solitary genius behind a truly impressive body of work.”

For me, when I study ONE piece in Michael’s body of work, I am always overwhelmed with the commitment, the vastness, the astounding amount of work, the creativity and originality, the celebration in music history, the devotion to challenging the division between high art and popular art, the sheer genius.  Michael’s HIS tory Album is a masterpiece on every level.  I have spent hours immersed in its musicality, message, sonic fantasy, social justice, storytelling.  Let’s just look closely at ONE of the tracks…HISTORY…and, ONE aspect of it…the events in history Michael chose to highlight.  “(To give some idea of the ambition of the song, it took over 192 tracks sprawled over four Sony 3348 48-track digital tapes to contain all of the song’s different elements.)” MAN IN THE MUSIC  Joseph Vogel  

Monday, March 26, 1827 Death of Beethoven (The composer who ushered in the Romantic Period in Music History)

November 28, 1929  Birth of Berry Gordy Jr.  (Founder of Motown…responsible for integrating black music into white mainstream which had a worldwide impact.)

Feb. 11, 1847 Thomas Edison is born

Dec. 30, 1865 Rudyard Kipling is born

Dec. 7, 1903  The Wright Bros first flight

Jan. 15, 1929 Martin Luther King is born

Oct. 14, 1947 Chuck Yeager breaks the sound barrier

Feb. 9, 1964 Beatles perform on the Ed Sullivan Show

Nov. 10, 1989 The Berlin Wall comes down

Jan. 18, 1858 Daniel Hale Williams is born

Aug. 8 1866 Matthew Henson is born

May 29, 1917 John F. Kennedy is born

Sept. 1928 Discovery of penicillin

Jan. 17, 1942  Muhammad Ali is born as Cassius Clay

Apr. 12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin’s first space flight

Apr. 12, 1981  The first space shuttle

Nov. 19 1863 Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address

Dec. 5, 1901 Walt Disney is born

Nov. 2, 1920 The first commercial radio station opens

Oct. 9, 1940 John Lennon is born

July 17, 1955 Disneyland opens

July 20, l969 Astronauts land on the moon

Apr. 9, 1865 The Civil War ends

Oct. 28, 1886 The Statue of Liberty is dedicated

Jan. 31, 1919 Jackie Robinson is born

Nov. 28, 1929 Berry Gordy is born

Dec. 1, 1955 Rosa Parks refuses to give her bus seat to a white passenger

First promotional recording ever made in 1906  “I am the Edison phonograph, created by the great wizard of the New World to delight those who would have melody or be amused.

Thomas Edison 1877 first words to create the world’s first phonograph recording…”Mary had a little lamb.  It’s fleece was white with snow.  And, everywhere that Mary went, the lamb was sure to go.”

A section of BEETHOVEN LIVES UPSTAIRS

Pictures at an Exhibition composed by Modeste Mussorgsky

Edward Kennedy Eulogy for his brother, Bobby

Lou Gehrig

Elizabeth and Princess Margaret

Dr. King, Muhammad Ali, Berry Gordy, Charles Lindberg, Hank Aaron, Malcolm X

Marching music

This is a PART of the composition of the song HISTORY… in addition, there are the lyrics to the song and its music.  Michael then turned his artistry to the stage performance during his History World Tour.

“From a biographical standpoint, it seems to symbolize Jackson’s victory over his trials and adversaries.  It is the appropriate musical companion to the album cover, in the form of a statue.  The obstacles he has endured, he seems to be saying, have only made him stronger and more powerful.  His response, however, isn’t for recrimination, hate or violence, but ‘harmony all around the world.’  It is classic utopian Michael Jackson, in which all the injustices and tragedies of life are redeemed and healed by the power of music.”

MAN IN THE MUSIC

Joseph Vogel

Is it any wonder, those who have chosen to take this pilgrimage have done so knowing its depth.  Therein lies the dedication and joy.  Complexity encourages one to REVISIT, NURTURE, and DEFINE.  The magic is found in the layers and layers…AND, LAYERS.  No matter where one enters, experiencing it to the full, one reaps a changed life.

“HISTORY IS ALSO NOTEWORTHY FOR BEING THE SONG JACKSON CHOSE TO PLAY ON HIS WEBSITE IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING HIS ACQUITTAL AND VINDICATION IN 2005.”  Joseph Vogel

Let us dream of a tomorrow,

Where we can truly Love from the Soul,

and know Love as the Ultimate Truth At

the Heart of ALL Creation

HISTORY ALBUM dedication

Michael Jackson

TEACHERS OPEN THE DOOR, BUT YOU MUST ENTER BY YOURSELF…Zen Proverb

Dearest Friends…is there any doubt that we return over and over again.  I love you!

Jude

HIS tory

Mystory

YOURstory

OURstory