Happy 50th Anniversary to The Jacksons’ eponymous eleventh studio album The Jacksons, originally released November 5, 1976.
In March 1969, Berry Gordy signed the Jackson 5 to a seven-year exclusive contract with Motown Records. Their debut LP, Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5, made them a household name and ushered in a new era for the label. Their tagline was “The Sound of Young America,” and the Jackson 5 brought a fresh take that reshaped pop and soul. Right out of the gate, the group released four #1 pop singles in a row and evolved beyond being merely a popular group. They were a brand. The Jackson 5 were on magazine covers, had a board game and their own Saturday morning cartoon.
By the mid-1970s, the hits were starting to slow down a bit. “Dancing Machine” reached #2 in 1974, but “I Am Love” stalled at #15 the following year. Their father and manager, Joe Jackson, frequently clashed with Gordy over Motown’s handling of the group. The brothers spent their time writing songs and had a strong desire to get those songs recorded. Motown’s system kept writing and production in the hands of its stable of writers and producers, and the group never got to record a song of their own. When 1975 arrived, the Jackson 5’s frustrations with Motown had reached a breaking point, mainly because of disagreements over their royalty rate.
Joe Jackson shopped the group around to other labels, and Epic, a part of CBS, bit. With a large advance, Epic president Ron Alexenburg was able to get the deal approved and completed. The contract gave the group artistic freedom and a royalty rate as much as 500 percent of what they received at Motown. Joe Jackson announced it at a New York press conference on June 30th, 1975, nine months before the Motown contract ran out. In March 1976, when the Epic deal took effect, four of the brothers sued Motown for an accounting of royalties. The fight ended in a 1980 settlement. Berry Gordy won damages, though far less than he sought. Motown kept the masters and, more painfully, the name. The Jackson 5 became the Jacksons.
The family itself split along the same line. Jermaine had married Gordy’s daughter Hazel in 1973. He stayed at Motown as a solo artist and cited loyalty to the company. Randy, the youngest brother, who had played congas on stage with the group since 1972, took his place. Motown kept selling the old act anyway, and released Joyful Jukebox Music, a set of vault recordings, in 1976.
The brothers left Motown to gain creative control, and Epic’s first move was to hand that control to someone else: Philadelphia International Records’ songwriting and producing team Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. They had built hits for the O’Jays, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, and the Sigma Sound house band a.k.a. MFSB.
Listen to the Album:
Recording ran from June to September 1976, mostly at Sigma Sound in Philadelphia, with some work at Paragon Studios in Chicago. Gamble and Huff produced and served as executive producers. They spread the work across their staff: Dexter Wansel, Victor Carstarphen, and the writing team of Gene McFadden and John Whitehead, who would cut “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” three years later.
CBS gave the family a summer variety show, The Jacksons, in 1976, so the group spent that year recording in Philadelphia and taping for television in Los Angeles. The two projects shared one goal: sell the Jacksons as a grown family act with a fresh start.
The album runs ten tracks and just under 40 minutes. It returned the brothers to the Top 10 with the single “Enjoy Yourself.” Michael and Jackie traded the lead over a choppy rhythm guitar and short horn stabs. Michael was 18, and you can hear the hiccups, yelps and distinct phrasing that would define Off the Wall (1979) starting to form.
“Show You the Way to Go” is the album’s high point. Michael sings alone over a slow, patient groove and shows a control he hadn’t exhibited in earlier recordings. It was #1 in England and it’s the track that has aged best.
The LP has the first song Michael wrote on his own, “Blues Away.” A light, wistful song that lacks the punch of his later material, but highlights his signature melodic instincts. “Style of Life,” which Michael wrote with Tito, closes the album. It’s a loose, guitar-driven track.
The Jacksons’ debut for Epic proved the group’s main complaint about Motown was fair. They had much more to offer than they were given. The album sounds like a Gamble and Huff production, which is not a bad thing. It was still the record that proved the group could have hits without Motown, and it gave them the leverage to make the next chapter of their recording career their own.
Listen:
