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Michael Jackson, The One Who Got Away

Date Assessed from the fact that Michael was “talking from Los Angeles”; he couldn’t have been there until his break from tour after his St. Louis performance February 12, 1972. Also, it took place before March 1, 1972 (Mentions of planning for Hellzapoppin, which aired March 1, 1972),

Published March 18, 1972

Transcript

THE MOST amazing thing about little Michael Jackson's solo success is how calmly he's taking it all. "I think it's great," is all he says talking from Los Angeles half an hour or so after finishing school for the day.

Michael, as you probably are already aware, is the 14-year-old lead singer of Motown's most phenomenal group, The Jackson 5, who in just the two years they've been with the company have notched up five gold singles and a couple of gold albums.

Questioned about reasons behind him recording solo he's pretty quick off the mark: "It don't have nothing to do with me quitting the group. It's just that I wanted to do it," he says before you even get a chance to broach the subject of a split. "I could never go solo, not with the group being a family thing. It would be like breaking away from the family.

"Anyway the other guys are doing some solo things too. But we're still recording as a group. We're working on another album right now which should be coming out shortly."

It's hard not to suspect that Michael's solo career was partly prompted by the incredible success of Donny Osmond, young lead singer of the Osmond Brothers, who as soon as the Jackson 5 broke adopted the same style and became equally as popular in America. But Michael denies it.

"No, that had nothing to do with it. I just wanted to try it," he says. And considering this is his first interview on his own, his confidence is frightening. "People seem to think that because the Osmond Brothers became big with records that sounded something like ours, we should have something against them. But it's not like that. I think they're a good group and don't have nothing against them."

Michael's solo success has more recently overshadowed the achievements of the group as a whole. For instance it went almost unnoticed that while Michael was resting at No. 1 in the American charts with 'Got To Be There' the group was only a few places below with 'Sugar Daddy'.

But Motown are going to make sure the group doesn't get ignored. There's a TV special planned – "It's called Hellzapoppin’ and it's going to be really great" – plus a tour of the U.S. in Easter. Michael's looking forward to that.

"I really like appearing. The first time I went on stage I was so scared but now I'm never afraid. Sometimes I don't like leaving the stage.

"Also I enjoy touring because I like travelling. I like staying in different hotels and I like meeting different people. It's fun." He says he's always wanted most of all to get over to England and hopes to get there before the end of the year.

A lot of people must have wondered whether his solo success was just a one-time thing, but he's already showing that isn't the case at all. Right now he's back high in the U.S. chart with his second single 'Rockin' Robin'.

Actually the track was never planned as a single. It was just one of the tracks on his Got To Be There album but disc jockeys started playing it so much Motown were forced to lift it as a single. It should be another No. 1 hit.

His album too is selling in great quantities. It was produced by The Corporation, the Motown team of writers and producers behind all the Jackson's hits and contains among the tracks his versions of Carole King's 'You've Got A Friend' and Supremes' oldie 'Love Is Here And Now You're Gone'. Michael doesn't have much say in the selection of his material "but," he says, "if I feel I'd like to comment on a song, I do, and the producers take notice of what I say."

For a little man of such star status his outside activities are really quite down to earth. When he's not singing or recording he likes to play basketball or to draw.

He gets an allowance of five dollars a week and spends most of that on "art supplies; paint and stuff like that."

Mum and Dad Jackson have kept his feet firmly on the ground and never let all this fan worship and public limelight go to his head. Not that it seems it ever could. Ask him about the future and he says: "I hope to still be doing the same thing, but I hope to go to college. I want to get a good education. That's very important"

That's why the only time he gets for interviews is after school-hours and personal appearances have to be restricted to weekends and holidays.

"You'll have to excuse me now," he says, "but I've got to go to a session." You can bet it wasn't an all nighter either. Mum Jackson has Michael tucked up well before midnight.