[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ9HkICDuOI]
Fans of Michael Jackson may have something beyond warmer weather to look forward to this year: more unreleased music.
Today, at a global conference in Barcelona unveiling their new Xperia Z2 mobile phone, Epic Records/Sony Music unveiled a new advertisement for the product that featured an newly-mixed Michael Jackson outtake, "Slave to the Rhythm." Hardcore fans will recognize the track as first conceived during the sessions to 1991's Dangerous and considered for release as recently as on Invincible, the last album released in Jackson's lifetime, in 2001. (A remix of the track featuring troubled pop star Justin Bieber made its way online last year; Jackson's estate was quick to distance themselves from the mix.)
Beyond the 90-second advertisement embedded above, no further clarification toward future projects has been made. Last year, rumors swirled of a forthcoming album featuring outtakes assembled by producer Timbaland.
A future solo album would be the seventh release from Sony Music since Jackson's passing in June 2009. By the holiday season, Epic had released a companion soundtrack to the half-concert film/half-documentary This is It, chronicling the rehearsals for 50-date tour Jackson was set to undertake in London. A "new" album, the ill-received Michael, dropped in 2010, while Legacy released Michael Jackson's Vision, a triple-disc DVD collection of Jackson's short films for MTV, that same quarter. The following year, a Cirque du Soleil production yielded a new remix album of Jackson's music, Immortal. 2012 saw the release of the most archival title to date, a celebration of Bad's 25th anniversary in 2012 with a 3CD/1DVD box set and Spike Lee-directed documentary. Last summer, the King of Pop's Epic solo catalogue was released as "Mastered for iTunes," alongside a rarity-packed digital box set.
Without question, The Second Disc will bring you confirmation of an album as it's available.
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Sorry ... The King (of Pop) is Dead. Enjoy what you have. I hope that Sony turns this into another "ELVIS" exploitation. The Original King has been resurfaced and repackaged so many times that we lose sight of the music he brought to us when he was living. Just say no and respect MJ by just buying Thriller and Off The Wall!
I meant to say that Sony doesn't turn this into another "ELVIS" exploitation
First off...that was EXCELLENT!! I LOVE IT! With that said they better exploit and do everything that they can for the world's greatest recording artist!!!! Long live the first one and only King Of Pop MICHAEL JACKSON!!!!
Not denying MJ brillance in the pop genre but the repackaging of best of's .... Essential, Greatest , Deluxe, Ultimate, Super Deluxe, Super Ultimate Deluxe, Love Songs, Dance Songs, Number Ones, Top 10's, Super Hits...etc does become a little excessive!
I understand where you are coming from and agree. I get tired of the endless repackaging and recompiling of catalog material too. Luckily, MJ's solo Sony catalog is relatively small (100 or so tracks total versus 800 or so for Elvis) so it doesn't lend itself to the degree of mix and match and recycle that Elvis' does.
Of course, I'm sure we will see Deluxe, Super Deluxe, Super Duper Deluxe, 40th Anniversary, 50th Anniversary,and Ultimate editions of Thriller as years go by.
(Hopefully there will be a CD release of Off The Wall with the original cover art someday though!)
I would just be happy if they would release that "Ultimate Fan Extras Collection" in lossless format, or on CD.
Oooh! There is soooo much more to come! There will be many reissues and what have you...but they will be done smartly. Not too often or too much...and only the right features at the right times. I predict that there are as many as three THOUSAND unreleased songs by Michael. But make no mistake. They are solid and amongst the best he ever did. Just wait...