Gone Too Soon

So Michael Jackson is no more. Part of me has not really accepted that it's over. No more moonwalks, no more mesmerizing moves on the dance floor. I never thought I would be writing something like a tribute to Micheal Jackson of all people. For someone like me who eats, sleeps and drinks Classic Rock, the music of MJ hardly had any space in my life. However, as ironic as it may sound, it was through MJ that I discovered some of rock's finest musicians. So, for that reason alone, MJ deserves this tribute.

Back in the days when I was maybe in the 6th grade or so, music was still alien to me. When I did get into music, it was more of rap and some crazy weird ass Indian pop. I don't remember how exactly I discovered MJ, but I remember that it was not very welcomed at home. My dad probably considered him as one of those possessed by the devil types. I remember a friend of mine giving me the album "Dangerous" which I managed to hide at home and listen in my Walkman late at night when everyone was asleep. In no time, I was hooked on to every single song on the album. I had not yet discovered his other albums like "Bad" or "Thriller".

Soon, MTV launched in India and we had the privilege of receiving MTV on our Doordarshan metro channel for two hours every evening. These two hours were the best moments of my day as I sat glued to the TV while discovering more and more new musicians and realizing how wonderful the world of music was. It was around this time that someone gave me an album by Guns N' Roses. I did not care much for it as I thought it was too heavy. Once while watching a video of MJ on MTV, I noticed a peculiar looking guitarist, with a weird hair style that covered his face. The way he held his guitar and his presence on stage made me want to watch him more and more. I learnt that his name was Slash and that he plays for this band called Guns N' Roses. So there began by induction in the world of rock n' roll.

By now I had managed to get a few more MJ albums and while listening to thriller, I could figure out that the song "Beat it" had a different feel and I assumed that the guitars were done by Slash. While discussing further with friends, I came to know that the guitarist on that album was someone called Eddie Van Halen. Weird name, and he had a band called Van Halen which I thought was even more weird. I checked them out once, and I was hooked.

It started with MJ, that led me to Slash and Van Halen, that in turn took me into a whole new world of music, on which I live now. The say we should never forget our roots and where we came from. So yes, I never thought I would say this, but my roots in music go way back to Michael Jackson. If not for his music and his collaboration with rock musicians, I just might have missed the rock n' roll bus.

He is no more, but what he has left behind is so huge that he will be remembered and never forgotten. Be it the moonwalk from Billy Jean or the 45 degree slant he does in Smooth Criminal, he did things that no one else could do. He was one of a kind indeed. I found the lyrics to his song "Gone too soon" quite apt to end this post.

Like A Comet,
Blazing 'Cross The Evening Sky
Gone Too Soon.

Born To Amuse, To Inspire, To Delight
Here One Day
Gone One Night

Like A Sunset
Dying With The Rising Of The Moon
Gone Too Soon