In The Studio With MJ
Keep The Faith
The first time I heard the name Andre Crouch, I was just a young boy. I grew up in a Christian home and Andre's music was part of the soundtrack of my youth.
My Tribute.
Through It All.
Soon And Very Soon.
We sang those songs in church and heard them on the radio. I was too young to know who Andre was, or have any concept that our paths would intersect on multiple occasions.
Fast forward a few years to 1985. I was newly married to my beautiful wife Debbie (we were still trying to figure out how to be adults), and I had my first job in a recording studio: Westlake Studios.
Now to be fair, me landing at Westlake was a bit calculated. When I was in high school,an album called "Off The Wall" was on continuous rotation on every pop station in the US, and just over three years later "Thriller" dropped just after I graduated. When I talk about how dominant Michael was to younger fans it's likely hard for them to comprehend. We had a new channel called MTV, and Michael was the king. His music was everywhere, but it was also personal. I didn't just own the Thriller, I studied it. I played it over and over, listening to the reverb and the drums and the sounds. And I read the liner notes. I studied them and learned names like Westlake Audio and Quincy Jones and Bruce Swedien and Rod Temperton and Matt Forger - having not the slightest clue I would soon be part of their team.
So when Debbie and I got married and moved to LA for me to pursue music recording as a career, there was really only one studio I wanted to work for: Westlake.
Now stay with me, I'll get back to Andre in a minute.
I was hired as a runner. A runner is the "kid" who vacuums the floors, rolls mic cables, makes food runs and does whatever the session needs him or her to do. I was in my favorite place on the planet.
Then I found out that Michael Jackson would be moving into Studio A with Matt Forger to work on a Disney project: Captain EO.
I forgot one little detail. When Debbie and I moved to LA, one of the first things we did was purchase Disneyland Annual Passes, as we both loved spending Sunday evenings in "The Park". So the trifecta of me working in the studio I had dreamed of, with Michael Jackson singing on a project for Disney, was nearly unbelievable. But it was real life!
I met Michael and from the start we enjoyed each other's company. He was Michael Jackson at first, but very soon he was just Michael.
He was shy.
He loved to laugh.
He loved Disney.
He was real.
So over the next few months I got to know him better, and by the time the new project, aka "Bad" started, I was part of the engineering team.
There are 500 details and moving parts that I must skip for now, but fast forward again to the heavy production of the "Bad" album.
Michael, Quincy, Rod and Bruce were all seasoned pros creating some of the most incredible music my ears had ever heard. To hear songs like "Smooth Criminal" and "The Way You Make Me Feel" at face-splitting volume on the enormous Westlake SM-1 speakers is something almost beyond description. But there I was.
Quincy was looking for a special song, a gem, to send this album to another level. The songwriting team of Siedah Garrett and Glen Ballard presented "Man In The Mirror". Production began right away (it was almost a blur how quickly these songs came together with this team), and Michael and Siedah dropped some jaw-dropping vocals. When Michael sang it was as if the studio was floating. Everything outside of those walls stopped. It was incredible to witness.
But Quincy and Michael wanted more. It needed a choir.
Enter Andre Crouch.
To the best of my knowledge it was the first time Michael had met Andre and his incredible choir, but it was the beginning of a friendship that would last for years.
For me it was a flood of memories of singing his songs in church, yet here he was, singing with and for Michael Jackson!
They nailed it, and I learned a new word in the process: Modulation. If you listen to "Mirror" at 2:52, you will hear the choir kick in at a modulation, which gives the song lift. I had always heard the phrase key-change, but Bruce called it a modulation, so modulation it was!
Now, here's where it gets interesting, at least for me.
Over the course of the projects I worked on with Michael we would have several special guests come to visit. People like Nancy Reagan, Princess Stephanie, David Geffin, etc. And almost without fail Bruce would sit the guest down in a chair, right in front of this wall of thunderous speakers, and play "Man In The Mirror" (Bad album) or "Keep The Faith" (Dangerous album) or "Earth Song" (HIStory album) - each featuring Andre and his remarkable choir.
I have seen guests nearly brought to tears hearing Michael's voice and music and Andre's choir in that setting, at those volumes.
It was a very special place and a very special time, and the irony is not lost on me that some of Michael's most powerful songs include the voices of Andre's choir.
I can still hear the laughter.
I can still taste the popcorn.
I can still see Bruce's microphones.
I can still sense of warmth and peace in that room.
I can still feel the impact of those unapologetically powerful speakers.
I can still remember meeting Andre and hearing the jukebox in my head playing his songs I grew up singing, yet being blown against the wall as his choir lit into some of Michael's songs.
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Don't let nobody take you down, brother
Just keep your eyes on the prize
And your feet flat on the ground
Keep the faith, baby, yea
Because it's just a matter of time
Before your confidence will win out
Lift up your mind
Before your mind gets blown
Some things in life you best just leave them alone
Go for what you want
Don't let it get in your way
You can make it happen
But ya got ta keep the faith
Gon' keep it brother
You got to keep the faith
Yeah keep the faith
Gon' keep it sister
You got to keep the faith now, now
I'll show my brotha
How to do the thing right
Lift up your head and show the world you got pride
Go for what you want
Don't let 'em get in your way
You can be a winner if you keep the faith
Straighten out yourself and get your mind on track
Dust off your butt and get your self-respect back
You've known me long enough to know that I don't play
Take it like you want it but you got to keep the faith
Gon'
Don't let nobody take you down
Just keep your eyes on the prize
And get your feet back on the ground
Keep the faith, baby, yea
Because it's just a matter of time
Before your confidence will win out
But till that day
I said you've got to keep the faith!
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It's time to get back In The Studio With MJ.
Atlanta: April 28/29
New York: May 19/20
Will You Be There?
www.inthestudiowithmj.com
Official
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