Michael Jackson’s “Stranger in Moscow”.
Off-topic post here. I wanted to share something special with you.
Yes, I liked Michael Jackson’s music, but it wouldn’t be true to say that I put his songwriting skills among the greats such as McCartney or Sting or Stevie Wonder or Elton. I knew he had it in him to write beautiful music—I remember listening to “Human Nature” over and over again–but while “Beat It”, “Billie Jean” and “Thriller” were iconic, I never considered them genius works of art, and I never considered him a songwriter with depth. Just a genius entertainer (and tortured soul) who moved like liquid velvet on stage.
I was wrong. The man was a songwriter, and a brilliant one. Unfortunately, his best songs didn’t get much play in the United States. Those smart Europeans appreciated the piece in particular far more than we ever did. It’s called “Stranger in Moscow”, from the HIStory album.
Jackson wrote “Stranger” right after his first accusation of child abuse in the early nineties. He was on tour in Russia and this must have tore some organs out of his chest as he penned it. I am not going to get into the “was he guilty?” question here, I don’t want to postulate about that. I will say, however, that the ability to capture pulsating pain in a jar and pour it all over musical clefs like dark blood is a special gift. Listen to it, watch the video--which is equally brilliant. I dare you to be unmoved. Anybody who can write this song was tuned into something beautiful and pure.
Click the image below to watch on YouTube.
Hi Nicolette,
So glad you checked in and responded. Welcome 
You have a fabulous site
Yes, when my husband and I discovered “Stranger in Moscow”, it was right after he died, and, even though we made some dismissive comments after his death, we both reacted the same way to it—we were compelled to connect with him in some way, listening to his music, watching his videos. That’s when I learned that the song never did very well on the charts in the US, unlike Europe.
Our casual outer reaction to his death wasn’t how we truly felt; we were both in reality moved by it more than we were willing to admit. We were both surprised at our reaction, this need to connect with the man on some level, maybe try to understand him a bit more. Then we discovered this song, and honestly, we had both been pretty convinced about the abuse allegations being true until we heard that song. Now, this may sound mad, even overly simplistic, but it’s a gut feeling, a sense of knowing. We both have decided that this piece could not be the work of a guilty man, but a man in unspeakable pain, an innocent man terribly misunderstood. And that is the tragedy of it. This eccentric man was misunderstood by a world who spurned and loved with equal fervor.
Hope you stop by again, Nicolette.
I often find it surprising how little exposures great songs get in America, especially after a visit to Europe.
Nicolette
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