Destiny (Remaster) Jackson 5

• 1 Blame It on the Boogie 03:31
• 2 Push Me Away 04:37
• 3 Things I Do For You 04:23
• 4 Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground) 07:57
• 5 Destiny 05:19
• 6 Bless His Soul 05:09
• 7 All Night Dancin' 06:32
• 8 That's What You Get (For Being Polite) 04:56
• Total Runtime 42:24

Info for Destiny (Remaster)

After Destiny‘s opening thumping baseline, funky guitar chords, and Michael Jackson's hiccuping 'heeee-heee-heeee,' there's only one sensible thing to do--blame it on the boogie. Or blame it on the Jacksons' 1978 platinum-selling album for being so damn good. The tenor of the times was finally right for the band, and everyone involved is on top form. With songs all written and produced by the Jacksons, the emphasis is on booty-shaking music with heart and real soul. Within a year Michael Jackson's OFF THE WALL album, on the charts for 52 weeks, would make him a force to be reckoned with. But on Destiny, Michael's passion and desire is palpable, giving the album its real power and edge.

Besides 'Blame it on the Boogie,' Destiny also features the disco-combustible 'Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground).' Just about all the songs here are superlative, with standouts including Michael's delicately displayed anguish on the tender 'Push Me Away,' and the surprisingly poignant soul-searching 'Destiny' which presciently foretells the situation the boys were soon to face as Michael's popularity soared.

„The brothers' third post-Motown album as the Jacksons was their most successful release, both commercially and creatively, since 1974's Dancing Machine. Their first two Epic albums, where they aligned with Gamble, Huff, and other Philly soul stalwarts, had some strong singles but were very uneven and somewhat awkward in stretches, and this time out, they wrote and produced on their own. Backed by an arsenal of up-and-coming and veteran L.A. session musicians -- including guitarists Michael Sembello and Paul Jackson, Jr., drummer Rick Marotta, arranger Thomas 'Tom Tom 84' Washington, and keyboardist Greg Phillinganes, the last of whom played on just about everything involving a Jackson family member through the early '90s -- Destiny did much more than set the stage for Michael's Off the Wall. The sunny 'Blame It on the Boogie' and the dazzling Off the Wall prelude 'Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)' were the album's only singles, upbeat numbers that peaked at number three on the Black Singles chart, but the mature Michael showcase ballad 'Push Me Away' (pointing toward 'I Can't Help It' and 'Human Nature') and the alternately somber and uplifting 'Bless His Soul,' containing a startling confession from Michael ('There is no life for me at all/'Cause I give myself at beck and call') added an impressive level of depth to the Jacksons' discography.“ (Andy Kellma, AMG)

Michael Jackson, lead vocals
Jackie Jackson, backing vocals
Marlon Jackson, backing vocals
Tito Jackson, guitars, backing vocals
Randy Jackson, congas, percussion, backing vocals
Roland Bautista, guitar
Paul Jackson, Jr., guitar
Nathan Watts, bass
Gary King, bass
Paulinho da Costa, percussion
Ricky Lawson, drums
Ed Greene, drums
Greg Phillinganes, keyboards, synthesizers
Laudir de Oliveira, congas
Claudio Slon, congas
Rick Marotta, drums, percussion
Michael Sembello, guitar, bass
Tom Tom 84, horn arrangements
Clare Fischer, string arrangement
Jerry Hey, arrangement

Recorded 1977–1978 at Dawnbreaker Studios, San Fernando, California
Engineered by Don Murray, Michael Barbiero, Peter Granet
Produced by The Jacksons

Digitally remastered

The Jackson 5
were one of the biggest phenomenons in pop music during the early '70s, and the last great group to come out of the Motown hitmaking machine before Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder shifted the label's focus to more individual visions. The Jackson 5's infectious brand of funky pop-soul was a definite departure from the typically smooth, elegant Motown sound, as befitting the group's youth and the dawn of a new decade. That youth, coupled with the merchandising juggernaut that sprang up behind them, inevitably got them tagged a bubblegum group. But they were far more talented musically than that label would suggest, especially lead singer Michael, and their material, while sunny and upbeat, didn't pander to its audience. Solo careers and overexposure gradually weakened the Jackson 5, but their best music still holds up surprisingly well as some of the most vibrant mainstream pop/R&B of its era.

Originally, the Jackson 5 were composed of brothers Jackie (born Sigmund Jackson, May 4, 1951), Tito (guitar, born Toriano Jackson, October 15, 1953), Jermaine (bass, lead vocals, born December 11, 1954), Marlon (born March 12, 1957), and Michael (lead vocals, born August 29, 1958). By all accounts, the Jackson family's upbringing in Gary, IN, was strict; their mother Katherine was a devout Jehovah's Witness, and their father Joe was a stern, temperamental disciplinarian. Allowed few outside interests, the boys gravitated to music, which was in their blood -- prior to his job as a crane operator for a steel company, Joe had played guitar in an R&B group called the Falcons (not the same group that launched Wilson Pickett's career). One night, Joe discovered that Jackie, Tito, and Jermaine had been playing his treasured old guitar without permission; though initially furious, he quickly discovered that his sons had genuine talent, and began to conceive of a family singing group that might eventually get them out of their tough working-class life in Gary. The eldest three sons began performing around the area together in 1962, teamed with two cousins (Johnny Jackson and Ronnie Rancifer), who were replaced by Marlon and five-year-old Michael. Supervised by Joe, who became their manager and began working only part-time, the group practiced and rehearsed often, and improved as dancers, singers, and instrumentalists at a rapid rate. In particular, Michael proved himself a dynamic performer, soon replacing Jermaine as the featured lead vocalist, and establishing himself as a nimble dancer able to mimic talents like James Brown. At first, the group was known as Ripples & Waves Plus Michael, then the Jackson Brothers, and finally the Jackson 5.

In 1966, the Jackson 5 won an important local talent competition with a Michael-led rendition of the Temptations' "My Girl." Their father, who had been chauffeuring them to out-of-state performances, also booked their first paid professional gigs that year. In 1967, the group won an amateur talent competition at Harlem's legendary Apollo Theater, where they earned an influential fan in Gladys Knight (probably the first person to recommend the group to Motown). At the end of the year, the Jackson 5 made their first studio recordings for the small Gary-based Steeltown label, and their single "Big Boy" became something of a local hit. Championed again to Motown by Bobby Taylor, a member of the Vancouvers who'd seen the group in Chicago, and Diana Ross, the Jackson 5 finally got a chance to audition for the label in the summer of 1968. Desperately needing new blood, an impressed Berry Gordy signed the group and flew them out to his new headquarters in Los Angeles, where he and his assistants groomed them to be the label's next breakout stars. Having lost his famed Holland-Dozier-Holland songwriting team, Gordy formed a new partnership with Freddie Perren, Fonce Mizell, and Deke Richards dubbed the Corporation, which set about crafting material for the group.

In August 1969, shortly before Michael turned 11, the Jackson 5 opened for Diana Ross at the L.A. Forum, and in December, they issued their debut album, Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5. On October 7, 1969, the Jackson 5 released their first single, "I Want You Back," a Corporation composition that had originally been intended for Gladys Knight. It was an instant smash, hitting number one on both the pop and R&B charts. So did their next two singles, "ABC" and "The Love You Save" (both from their second album, ABC), which solidified the group's so-called bubblegum-soul sound and certified them as pop sensations. Third Album was released before year's end, spawning the hit ballad "I'll Be There," which not only proved that the group (and lead singer Michael) were more mature and versatile than their bright, bouncy initial singles let on, but also made them the first group in pop history to have their first four singles hit number one. It also became the best-selling single in Motown history, spending a stellar five weeks at number one. And it had still been less than a year since the group's national debut.

This album contains no booklet.