Added by Jonathan Brown
It is probably easy to see why two musical legends, Sir Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson, would have had a close friendship. One was a member of what it considered one of the most influential bands of all time. The other was also part of a historical music group, but used that group to spring board himself into a whirlwind of success that many try to emulate to this day. Together, McCartney and Jackson, who are both in the news this week (one for an illness that has cancelled an Asia based tour; the other for his second posthumous album being at the top of the charts, among other stories), would go on to create some memorable duets and clash over a lucrative business deal that would add to the success of one, and yet allow harsh feelings for the other. In the end, the friendship that once was one that seemed to make the most sense in the celebrity world, would dissolve without a definitive compromise or reconciliation.
According to Moonwalk, the autobiography of and written by Michael Jackson, he and the Beatles vocalist originally met in the 1970s. He, along with producer Quincy Jones, met with McCartney to obtain a song that was written for him by McCartney. That track, Girlfriend, would find its way to albums released by both men: London Town, by McCartney’s band, Wings in 1978 and Jackson’s solo breakthrough, Off The Wall, in 1979. The two would go back and forth recording songs for future releases. The most well known of their collaborations; Say, Say, Say, and another song, The Man would appear on the solo McCartney release, Pipes of Piece, in 1983. Another popular duet between the two, The Girl Is Mine, was recorded for Jackson’s massive hit album, Thriller, in 1982 (all three songs were recorded in 1982. The McCartney album was not released until the following year).
Jackson, while creating what would become The Girl Is Mine, bonded with McCartney by allowing their inner children to thrive while they recorded the song.
“We just literally had fun,” Jackson said about recording the track. “It was like lots of kibitzing and playing, and throwing stuff at each other, and making jokes.”
When Thriller was unleashed to massive success, Jackson, then 24, asked McCartney, then 40, about how to better manage the high amounts of money he was obtaining. McCartney shared with Jackson that putting his money into music publishing was a good way to go. Unfortunately, McCartney did not have luck on his side when it came to what Jackson would ultimately accomplish. Because of that, the friendship between Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney would soon sour and end completely.
McCartney had managed to obtain a great deal of wealth through owning the rights of music by other artists, but the one thing he did not own was the rights of his own songs with his legendary band, The Beatles. The company that owned the music, Northern Songs, had passed through many hands of ownership following the end of the group in 1970. At some point, McCartney and fellow Beatle, John Lennon, did have a stake in the company and their songs. However, with two of their partners; Dick James and Brian Epstein, selling their shares to the high powered ATV (Associated Television) in 1969, McCartney and Lennon were both bought out, without any notice or warning. McCartney had many unsuccessful attempts to buy back the rights after that time.
Read More: http://guardianlv.com/2014/05/paul-mccartney-and-michael-jackson-the-friendship-that-once-was-video/
Source: guardianlv / Jonathan Brown / MJ-Upbeat.com
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