Gone too soon

MANILA, Philippines – Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, is out to take the crown away as King of Never Never Land from his boyhood hero Peter Pan. Jacko, as he was fondly called by media before it turned its back on him, died yesterday of apparent cardiac arrest at the UCLA Medical Center in Westwood.

My blog (www.raymond-reviews.blogspot.com) was among the first to break the news minutes after the singer was pronounced dead. From whom and how I got the news is something that I am gonna keep for myself. A few minutes after 2 o’clock yesterday, someone called someone and that’s how I got the news. At first I was skeptical and thought it might have been a mistake because just a couple of hours before, another famous celebrity, Farrah Fawcett, also died (of anal cancer) in the same hospital. There was a second call and it was confirmed; there was no mistake — Michael Jackson was dead! I ran to my PC, drafted an e-mail and shot it immediately to my blog. A good 30 minutes after, mainstream news started running breaking stories of Michael’s demise.

Michael, for all his frailties, shaped and influenced how a generation dances, sings and be whoever they want to be. He was the first black performer to break the MTV divide and crossed over successfully with his innovative and pioneering music videos.

He has accomplished so many things in his short life. He also fought and lost so many battles both professionally and personally. He ruled the charts for most of the ‘80s and thus was proclaimed the King of Pop but he began to unravel beginning in the early ‘90s. He was injured in an accident and burned himself during a Pepsi shoot. For this, he would be taking painkillers most of his later life.

He also had a skin disorder that turned his complexion paler. This brought so many harsh criticisms from many. It was during this time that he also started to change his appearance.

His eccentricity would now overshadow his extraordinary talents. He built a huge ranch in northern Santa Barbara in California and called it Never Land. In the last 19 years, he would only make two albums that were nevertheless successful but were otherwise dismissed by critics and sold less than his previous megahits. He was on a downward spiral.

He had a series of marriages (including a short-lived one to Elvis Presley‘s daughter Lisa Marie) and had three children with Debbie Rowe.

For most of the current decade, Michael spent most of his time battling child molestation charges against him. Although he was never convicted on any of the charges, his image was irreparably broken. During the past three years he has mostly lived in Bahrain and in other parts of Europe. He returned to the US later last year and started a plan to stage a comeback beginning with a 50-date concert tour in England.

Today, the King of Pop is dead. He brings with him his unmatched talent and possibly hundreds more of unwritten hit songs. His passing is as tragic as his latter life. I couldn’t really say if Michael would have really welcomed dying more than continuing to live under the watchful eye of most of the world waiting for him to commit his next mistake.

It’s one of the downside of being a celebrity — you lose all your rights to a normal life. Michael lost his at age five and he never really recovered.

I am never a big fan. I didn’t learn how to moonwalk, but his passing still struck me with shock and unexplainable sadness. I am sad for the man who could have been a lot greater and could have had a better life. I am sad because another icon is gone and a generation lost one of its heroes.

I would like to end this tribute to Michael by printing the text of his mournful song Gone Too Soon, which I think resonates more powerfully to everyone now more than ever. Good night, Michael. Say hello to Wendy, Peter and the lost boys for me when you get there.

Like a comet

Blazing ‘cross the evening sky

Gone too soon

Like a rainbow

Fading in the twinkling of an eye

Gone too soon

Shiny and sparkly

And splendidly bright

Here one day

Gone one night

Like the loss of sunlight

On a cloudy afternoon

Gone too soon

Like a castle

Built upon a sandy beach

Gone too soon

Like a perfect flower

That is just beyond your reach

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

Gone too soon