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"Keep the Faith"

Date range confirmed in Mike Smallcombe’s “Making Michael” (“The month of October [1991] was a manic one for Michael in the studio… The day had come for him to sing the lead vocal on ‘Keep the Faith’.”)

Glen Ballard, co-writer, Billboard (July 2, 2009)

Glen Ballard remembered a day they were singing around the piano. “I was at Record One studio in Sherman Oaks writing a song with Michael and Siedah Garrett. We called it ‘Keep The Faith’, and it has a gospel strain to it. I played my best approximation of gospel piano and Michael and Siedah were improvising over either shoulder-Michael was dancing, stomping, jumping. It was exhilarating and in the spirit of the song-we were all feeling it. He had the capacity to lose himself in the music completely, dancer disappearing in the dance.”

Siedah Garrett, co-writer, “MJJCommunity” interview (2012) (archived)

The only other song that I wrote for MJ [besides “Man in the Mirror”] was “Keep The Faith”, which he co-wrote, and which he then recorded on his Dangerous album.

Bruce Swedien, studio engineer, “Rolling Stone” (January 9, 1992) (archived)

One particular day, Swedien found Jackson crying in a room he used as his office at Record One. He was upset because the song he had been trying to sing was in the wrong key. "The day had come for Michael to put the lead on 'Keep the Faith,' " says Swedien. "He sang the first and second verses, and then he disappeared. It was very unlike Michael. I found him standing in the corner of his office crying his eyes out. He was absolutely heartbroken, cut to the quick.

"I told him, 'Michael, it's not that big a deal,' " Swedien says. " 'I'll just record it in the other key.' We'd tried two keys and, unfortunately, picked the wrong one. He was really upset. I told him, 'Michael, we've got to face this right now.' I called the synth player and programmer. I felt we had to get the right key and get Michael to face it before it turned into something ugly.

"I thought we'd have a major, major problem," continues Swedien. "I was visualizing headlines. I told him, 'Pull yourself together, face this now.' And it was late. I said, 'We're not going home until you've sung this all the way through. Then we'll go home and be able to sleep and continue.' That was scary. But he did it. He pulled himself together. We went in the studio, cut a whole new demo and recorded a scratch vocal all way through. A situation like that could have been a real block. We didn't leave studio till dawn."

Teddy Riley, producer (not for this song), MusicRadar (July 3, 2009)

I really admire the work that went into this track. Anything Michael does, I can admire. It doesn't really remind you of any of his other songs; this one's a bit different to his usual tracks but it stands out. Michael's always innovative. With this track, I just think he went another way due to the structure of the track and the instruments used. Well, that and him working with Glen Ballard with the writing on it – they kind of went head-on with that track.

Glen Ballard, co-writer, “Billboard” (July 2, 2009) (archived)

I was at Record One studio in Sherman Oaks writing a song with Michael and Siedah Garrett. We called it "Keep The Faith", and it has a gospel strain to it. I played my best approximation of gospel piano and Michael and Siedah were improvising over either shoulder-Michael was dancing, stomping, jumping. It was exhilarating and in the spirit of the song-we were all feeling it. He had the capacity to lose himself in the music completely, dancer disappearing in the dance.

Shanice, background vocals (confirmed in Albumism interview [archived]), London newspaper snippet

It was like a trip to paradise for teen star Shanice Wilson when she visited Michael Jackson's Disneyland-style home in California.

Shanice, at No. 3 in the charts with "I Love Your Smile", was invited to Jackson's Encino hideaway after working on his album, "Dangerous". And the soul singer discovered [his home] full of sweets, fairy lights, and cuddly toys.

"It was just like many children imagine when they dream of having their own endless supply of candy", says the 18-year-old.

She was bowled over by the antique coach twinkling with fairy lights which greeted her as she entered the hallway.

The rooms were brimming over with slot machines, computer games, and even a mechanical bucking broom.

There were Disney toys and electric, animal-shaped cars. But the best part for Shanice was the garden, also decorated with colored lights. "It was incredibly big and in the middle stood a gingerbread-style house stocked with sweets."

The visit finished with a movie in Jackson's private, miniature cinema that had everything--right down to the popcorn.

"The Jackson family have everything anyone could wish for and they don't have to go out to get any of it", she says.

Shanice was honored to be personally picked by Jackson to work on his album...