Off the Wall 1979

 

Off the Wall is the fifth studio album by the American singer Michael Jackson, released on August 10, 1979, by Epic Records. It was Jackson's first album released through Epic Records, and the first produced by Quincy Jones, whom he met while working on the 1978 film The Wiz. Several critics observed that Off the Wall was crafted from disco, pop, funk, R&B, soft rock and Broadway ballads. Its lyrical themes include escapism, liberation, loneliness, hedonism and romance. The album features songwriting contributions from Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney, Rod Temperton, Tom Bahler, and David Foster, alongside three tracks penned by Jackson himself.

Between 1972 and 1975, Jackson released a total of four solo studio albums with Motown as part of The Jackson 5 franchise: Got to Be There (1972), Ben (1972), Music & Me (1973) and Forever, Michael (1975). Before recording his next album, which came to be Off the Wall, Jackson desired to create a record not sounding like a Jacksons record, but rather showcasing creative freedom and individualism. Off the Wall peaked at number three on the Billboard Top LPs & Tapes chart and number one on the Top Black Albums chart, staying at number one on the latter for 16 weeks, and was an enormous critical success. Five singles were released from the album. Jackson wrote three songs, including the Billboard Hot 100 number-one single "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough", his first solo number-one single in the United States since "Ben" seven years prior. The second single, "Rock with You", also topped the chart. With following singles "Off the Wall" and "She's Out of My Life" also reaching the US top 10, Jackson became the first solo artist to have four singles from the same album reach the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100.

Off the Wall was a significant departure from Jackson's previous work for Motown and was hailed as a major breakthrough for him. In retrospect, writers have hailed it a landmark release of the disco era and, along with his next album Thriller (1982), among the greatest albums in history. Off the Wall has sold over 20 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. On February 2, 2021, it was certified 9× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the US. At the 1980 Grammy Awards, it was nominated for two Grammy Awards, with Jackson winning Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough". In 2008, Off the Wall was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. 

 

Between 1972 and 1975, Jackson released a total of four solo studio albums with Motown: Got to Be There, Ben, Music & Me, and Forever, Michael. These were released as part of The Jackson 5 franchise, and produced successful singles such as "Got to Be There", "Ben" and a remake of Bobby Day's "Rockin' Robin". The Jackson 5's sales, however, began declining in 1973, and the band members chafed under Motown's strict refusal to allow them creative control or input.^[3] Although the group scored several top 40 hits, including the top five disco single "Dancing Machine" and the top 20 hit "I Am Love", The Jackson 5 (minus Jermaine Jackson) left Motown in 1975.^[3] The Jackson 5 signed a new contract with CBS Records in June 1975, first joining the Philadelphia International Records division and then Epic Records.^[3] As a result of legal proceedings, the group was renamed The Jacksons.^[4] After the name change, the band continued to tour internationally, releasing five more studio albums between 1976 and 1984: their self-titled eleventh album, Goin' Places, Destiny, Triumph, and Victory, as well as a live concert album in 1981. During that period, Michael was not only the lead singer, but also the chief songwriter for the group, writing or co-writing such hits as "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)", "This Place Hotel" and "Can You Feel It".^[5]

In 1978, Jackson starred as Scarecrow in the film musical The Wiz.^[6] The musical scores were arranged by Quincy Jones, who formed a partnership with Jackson during the film's production and agreed to produce the singer's solo album Off the Wall.^[7] Jackson was dedicated to the role, and watched videotapes of gazelles, cheetahs and panthers in order to learn graceful movements for his part in the movie.^[8] Jones recalled working with Jackson as one of his favorite experiences from The Wiz, and spoke of Jackson's dedication to his role, comparing his acting style to Sammy Davis, Jr.^[8] Critics panned The Wiz upon its October 1978 release,^[9][10] but Jackson's performance as the Scarecrow was one of the only positively reviewed elements of the film, with critics noting that Jackson possessed "genuine acting talent" and "provided the only genuinely memorable moments."^[11][12] Of the results of the film, Jackson stated: "I don't think it could have been any better, I really don't".^[13] In 1980, Jackson stated that his time working on The Wiz was "my greatest experience so far...I'll never forget that".

 When Jackson began the Off the Wall project he was not sure what he wanted as the final result; however, he did not want another record that sounded like The Jacksons, but rather he wanted more creative freedom, something he had not been allowed on prior albums.^[14] Jackson's father Joseph also approved of the project and allowed him to record it on the condition that it did not interfere with group business. Despite his brothers' desire to work with him, Jackson wanted to make the album independently of his family.^[14][15] Nevertheless, his brother Randy still contributed percussion to "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough". 

 Jones produced "Off the Wall", with co-production credit given to Jackson on the songs he wrote for the album. Songwriters included Jackson, Heatwave's Rod Temperton, Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney.^[16] All sessions took place at Los Angeles County-based recording studios, with recording taking place between December 4, 1978, and June 3, 1979.^[1] Rhythm tracks and vocals were recorded at Allen Zentz Recording, the horn section's contributions took place at Westlake Audio, and string instrumentation was recorded at Cherokee Studios in West Hollywood. Following the initial sessions, audio mixing was handled by Grammy-winning engineer Bruce Swedien at Westlake Audio, after which the original tapes went to the A&M Recording Studio, also located in L.A., for mastering.^[17] Swedien would later mix the recording sessions for Jackson's next album and his most well-known work, 1982's Thriller.^[17] Jones recalled that, at first, he found Jackson to be very introverted, shy and non-assertive.

 "She's Out of My Life" had been written for Jones by Tom Bahler three years earlier. Jackson heard and enjoyed it, and Jones allowed him to use it on the record.^[16] Jones called in Heatwave's keyboardist Rod Temperton to write three songs. The intention was for Jackson and Jones to select one of his songs, but Jackson, liking them all, included all of them in the final cut.^[16] Jackson stayed up all night to learn the lyrics to these songs instead of singing from a sheet. He finished the vocals to these three Temperton songs in two recording sessions.^[16] Temperton took a different approach to his songwriting after spending some time researching the background to Jackson's music style. Temperton mixed his traditional harmony segments with the idea of adding shorter note melodies to suit Jackson's aggressive style.^[16] Jackson wrote "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" after humming a melody in his kitchen.^[19] After listening to hundreds of songs, Jackson and Jones decided upon a batch to record.^[19] In hindsight, Jones believed they took a lot of risks in the production of Off the Wall and the final choice of album tracks.^[16] Attention was also paid to the album cover, which shows Jackson smiling, wearing a tuxedo and trademark socks. John Branca, Jackson's manager stated, "The tuxedo was the overall plan for the Off the Wall project and package. The tuxedo was our idea, the socks were Michael'".

 

Music critics Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Stephen Holden of AllMusic observed that Off the Wall was crafted from funk, disco-pop, soul, soft rock, and pop ballads.^[21][22] Prominent examples include the ballad "She's Out of My Life", the funk tune "Workin' Day and Night", and the disco song "Get on the Floor".^[22] "I Can't Help It" is a jazz piece.^[20] Quincy Jones in his autobiography compares Jackson to other jazz singers, noting that Jackson "has some of the same qualities as the great jazz singers I'd worked with: Ella, Sinatra, Sassy, Aretha, Ray Charles, Dinah. Each of them had that purity, that strong signature sound and that open wound that pushed them to greatness." "She's Out of My Life" is a melodic pop ballad.^[19] The end of the former song showed an "emotional" Jackson crying as the track concluded.^[20] Of the song, rhythm and blues writer Nelson George proclaimed, "[It] became a Jackson signature similar to the way "My Way" served Frank Sinatra. The vulnerability, verging on fragility that would become embedded in Michael's persona found, perhaps, its richest expression in this wistful ballad".^[7] "Rock with You" is a romantic, mid-tempo song.^[19] The album's songs have a tempo ranging from 66 beats per minute on "She's Out of My Life", to 128 on "Workin' Day and Night".^[23]

With the arrival of Off the Wall in the late 1970s, Jackson's abilities as a vocalist were well regarded; AllMusic writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine described him as a "blindingly gifted vocalist".^[22] At the time, Rolling Stone compared his vocals to the "breathless, dreamy stutter" of Stevie Wonder. Their analysis was also that "Jackson's feathery-timbered tenor is extraordinarily beautiful. It slides smoothly into a startling falsetto that's used very daringly".^[24] Writer, journalist and biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli expressed the opinion that Jackson sings with "sexy falsetto" vocals in "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough".^[19] Taraborrelli also stated, "Fans and industry peers alike were left with their mouths agape when Off the Wall was issued to the public. Fans proclaimed that they hadn't heard him sing with such joy and abandon since the early Jackson 5 days".

 

Off the Wall was released on August 10, 1979. It peaked at number three on the Billboard Top LPs & Tapes chart and number one on the Billboard R&B Albums chart, staying at number one on the latter chart for 16 weeks.^[25] An enormous commercial success, it was the third-best-selling album of 1980 in the United States, as well as the United Kingdom.^[26] "Off the Wall" sold three million copies in the United States before the end of 1979, while the Jacksons were still on tour.^[25] Off the Wall is certified 9× Platinum in the US and has sold over 20 million copies worldwide.^[27][28][29] It has also gained Platinum certifications in eleven other countries. The album's success led to the start of a nine-year partnership between Jackson and Jones; their next collaboration would be Thriller (1982), which is the best-selling album of all time.^[30]

On October 16, 2001, a special edition reissue of Off the Wall was released by Sony Records.^[22] It was re-released again on February 26, 2016. The material found strong praise from critics more than 20 years after the original release. On January 7, 2016, Sony Music and The Estate of Michael Jackson announced that Off the Wall would be reissued and packaged with a new documentary directed by Spike Lee titled Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall. The reissue and documentary were both released on February 26, 2016.

 

"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" was released on July 10, 1979, under Epic Records which was Jackson's first solo single not released under Motown Records.^[32] The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 on October 10, making it Jackson's first solo number one single since "Ben", seven years prior.^[33][32][34]

"Rock with You" also reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Jackson's third number-one single of his career and it also reached the top spot on R&B charts. It spent four consecutive weeks at number one starting January 19, 1980, and was the fourth-biggest single of 1980.^[35]

In February the album's title track was released as a single, and went to number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and became a top 10 hit in four countries.^[36] "She's Out of My Life" was released after that, also reaching number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in June.^[37] The song was also one of Jackson's slowest songs, with a tempo of 66 beats per minute.^[38] Off the Wall became the first album by a solo artist to generate four US top 10 hits.