Ben
A tender collection of early 70s soul and sweeping ballads. Michael’s youthful, crystalline voice navigates themes of friendship and isolation amidst lush Motown strings.
August 4, 1972 · Tamla Motown
A tender collection of early 70s soul and sweeping ballads. Michael’s youthful, crystalline voice navigates themes of friendship and isolation amidst lush Motown strings.
August 4, 1972 · Tamla Motown
Ben represents a fascinating moment of transition, capturing a young Michael Jackson as he begins to step out from the collective shadow of the Jackson 5. The sound is defined by the classic Motown assembly line at its most sophisticated, trading the high-octane grit of the group's early hits for a more polished, adult-contemporary soul. There is a pervasive sense of warmth here, provided by thick orchestral arrangements and the golden-hued saturation of early 1970s analog recording. It feels like a private conversation held in a grand, velvet-lined room.
How does Ben sound next to the rest of Michael Jackson's catalogue?
Tender saturates this record far more than the artist's norm.
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