by Christopher Barratt

Created on: December 15, 2009

This debate shouldn’t even be up for question. Anyone who actually reasons that Michael Jackson was a bigger influence on music than Elvis Presley has either been dead for the last 50 years or is just a complete loon. Michael Jackson never produced anything really original in his entire career. Sure he released music that was off the wall but it wasn’t original. Elvis made music that had never been done or seen before.

His music was based on the blues yes, blues singers like muddy waters and Bo Didley influenced him as he grew up, but all rock music is based on that. Whether there were more talented musicians and more gifted singers out there is undoubted, better musicians and singers did exist, the difference here is that nobody had ever delivered music to the public in the way Elvis did, and nobody has done it quite as convincingly since. They either outright copy him or imitate his persona in some way or another. You can see a little bit of Elvis in every popular music performer.

I am neither an Elvis Presley nor Michael Jackson fan, but even I can see there is just no comparison. Michael Jackson jumped on every pop music bandwagon and turned it to his advantage. Intelligent musical decision making maybe, but hardly musical genius or influential. Any type of music Michael Jackson ever performed had all been done before. I agree he was a man of unquestionable musical and showmanship talent, but it doesn’t take much effort to go with the flow in the musical genres of the moment.

First he would be singing Motown songs, a genre that had been in the public domain for years. When popularity for this died away he moved onto soul, which was already well established, then disco, then cheesy 80’s pop. All of which were well established when he decided to put his mark on them, Even the idea behind the Thriller album was nothing new. The idea of epic songs, storybook music and even massive arena light and effects stage shows had all been around since the prog rock days.

All that was done here was to bring this musical direction to pop, a money making stroke of genius it was, but hardly an original idea. And you could argue that Jackson was using the Elvis technique of performing to a certain extent, massive wham bam in your face performance, a technique basically invented by Elvis. Nobody is denying Jackson did what he did brilliantly and that he was very influential to his fans as people, but influential to the direction

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>