Man In The Mirror

Man In The Mirror Video | Bad Album | Videos from Bad Album
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"Man in the Mirror" was a number-one hit for Michael Jackson when released as a single in the spring of 1988. It is one of Jackson's most critically acclaimed songs and it was nominated for Record of the Year at the Grammy Awards. The song garnered massive airplay and topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks.

Man In The Mirror was released in February 88 and was the forth worldwide release from Bad. In the UK it stalled at #21 which was Michael's poorest chart placing since Girlfriend in 1980. Why this single failed is subject to debate among fans as it is regarded to be one of Michael finest ever tracks. Later songs in the same kind of theme (Heal the World & Earth Song) were huge hits - so why not Man In The Mirror ?. One of the reasons could have being that lack of a proper video, poor airplay and the fact that the song offered very little new material on it's released formats. Bad had also sold a huge amount in the UK by this time - so perhaps many fan's could not see the point in buying the single - and it did not get enough exposure to tempt other record buyers. One suspects however that if the track was released later (during/after the Bad tour & Moonwalker) then the song would have done better. This would be because the song could then have had a live video - and more people would have heard and grown to like it.

The USA was a different story and it was a record-breaking fourth consecutive #1. The song got plenty or airplay and sold well like the previous Bad singles. The meant that Bad was one of the most successful albums for singles ever in the USA with four #1's so far. It remained in the pop chart for an excellent 17 weeks and also hit #1 in the R&B chart.

Song Information

The midtempo track is well known for its dramatic flourishes and Jackson's passionate delivery of its poignant lyrics. The song's lyrics were composed by songwriters Glen Ballard, Siedah Garrett (who can be heard singing in the background with Jackson) and Michael Jackson. Jackson added background vocals from Garrett, the Winans and the Andrae Crouch Choir, which gave the song its distinctive sound and greatly contributed to its popularity. It is rumoured that Jackson and Garrett wrote the lyrics to the song in one night.

The song popularized the use of Gospel choirs in pop songs during this era which can be heard on popular tracks by such as artists as Debbie Gibson, Mariah Carey, and on Madonna's 1989 number one hit "Like a Prayer". As a matter of fact,Siedah Garett was one of the backing vocals for Madonna's Re-Invention Tour of 2004 and perfomed a short solo during "Like a Prayer".It remains one of Jackson's most popular songs.

Jackson has performed a live, extended version of the song at the 1988 Grammy Awards. He also performed the song as the endings of his concert at his Bad World Tour's second leg, and regularly at his Dangerous World Tour. In the latter, the song was ensued by Jackson flying out of the arena in a jetpack. At July 16, 1995, Jackson also performed Man In The Mirror in the Royal concert brunei.

This song has been included in most of Jackson's numerous compilation albums but for some reason it was omitted from the recent "Visionary: The Video Singles" box set.

The song was quoted by Jermaine Jackson during Celebrity Big Brother 2007, while confronting several white housemates who had been racially bullying an East Indian housemate named Shilpa Shetty.

The song is sampled by Brooklyn MC Papoose during the summer of 2006 on his "Gonna Make A Change." The song decribes his rough upbringing and his struggles.

Credits

* Written and composed by Siedah Garret and Glen Ballard
* Solo and background vocals: Michael Jackson featuring Siedah Garret, The Winans and The Andrae Crouch Choir
* Clap: Ollie E. Brown
* Guitar: Dan Huff
* Keyboards: Greg Phillinganes
* Synthesizers: Glen Ballard and Randy Kerber
* Background vocals: Siedah Garrett, The Winans: Carvin, Marvin, Michael and Ronald Winans and The Andrae Crouch Choir: Sandra Crouch, Maxi Anderson, Rose Banks, Geary Faggett, Vonciele Faggett, Andrew Gouche, Linda Green, Francine Howard, Jean Johnson, Perry Morgan and Alfie Silas
* Rhythm arrangements by Glen Ballard and Quincy Jones
* Synthesizer arrangement by Glen Ballard, Quincy Jones and Jerry Hey
* Vocal arrangement by Andrae Crouch

Lyrics

I'm Gonna Make A Change,
For Once In My Life
It's Gonna Feel Real Good,
Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .

As I, Turn Up The Collar On My
Favourite Winter Coat
This Wind Is Blowin' My Mind
I See The Kids In The Street,
With Not Enough To Eat
Who Am I, To Be Blind?
Pretending Not To See
Their Needs
A Summer's Disregard,
A Broken Bottle Top
And A One Man's Soul
They Follow Each Other On
The Wind Ya' Know
'Cause They Got Nowhere
To Go
That's Why I Want You To
Know

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change)
(Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah)

I've Been A Victim Of A Selfish
Kind Of Love
It's Time That I Realize
That There Are Some With No
Home, Not A Nickel To Loan
Could It Be Really Me,
Pretending That They're Not
Alone?

A Willow Deeply Scarred,
Somebody's Broken Heart
And A Washed-Out Dream
(Washed-Out Dream)
They Follow The Pattern Of
The Wind, Ya' See
Cause They Got No Place
To Be
That's Why I'm Starting With
Me
(Starting With Me!)

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
(Ooh!)
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Ooh!)
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change)

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
(Ooh!)
I'm Asking Him To Change His
Ways
(Change His Ways-Ooh!)
And No Message Could've
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make That . . .
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make That . . .)
Change!

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror,
(Man In The Mirror-Oh
Yeah!)
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Better Change!)
No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make The Change)
(You Gotta Get It Right, While
You Got The Time)
('Cause When You Close Your
Heart)
You Can't Close Your . . .Your
Mind!
(Then You Close Your . . .
Mind!)
That Man, That Man, That
Man, That Man
With That Man In The Mirror
(Man In The Mirror, Oh Yeah!)
That Man, That Man, That Man
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Better Change!)
You Know . . .That Man
No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change)
Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!
Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah
(Oh Yeah!)
Gonna Feel Real Good Now!
Yeah Yeah! Yeah Yeah!
Yeah Yeah!
Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah
(Ooooh . . .)
Oh No, No No . . .
I'm Gonna Make A Change
It's Gonna Feel Real Good!
Come On!
(Change . . .)
Just Lift Yourself
You Know
You've Got To Stop It.
Yourself!
(Yeah!-Make That Change!)
I've Got To Make That Change,
Today!
Hoo!
(Man In The Mirror)
You Got To
You Got To Not Let Yourself . . .
Brother . . .
Hoo!
(Yeah!-Make That Change!)
You Know-I've Got To Get
That Man, That Man . . .
(Man In The Mirror)
You've Got To
You've Got To Move! Come
On! Come On!
You Got To . . .
Stand Up! Stand Up!
Stand Up!
(Yeah-Make That Change)
Stand Up And Lift
Yourself, Now!
(Man In The Mirror)
Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!
Aaow!
(Yeah-Make That Change)
Gonna Make That Change . . .
Come On!
(Man In The Mirror)
You Know It!
You Know It!
You Know It!
You Know . . .
(Change . . .)
Make That Change.