#MOTOWN MACDOWN 2012 FULL#
#MOTOWN MACDOWN 2012 TV#

What happened next, of course, changed the course of Jackson’s career and popular music. He only agreed to appear if he could perform his then current hit single, “Billie Jean,” which was released by the Epic label.

Jackson (along with his brothers) left Motown years earlier and he was not particularly eager to be part of the production. But the real star of this segment was Michael Jackson, whose solo career was taking off in 1983. Gaye’s star-turn was matched by a boisterous reunion of The Jacksons, who performed four of their top Motown songs. But he showed up and gave the show a much needed energy boost with a moving monologue on African American music history and an appropriately soulful performance of “What’s Going On.” In retrospect, his appearance was the most poignant part of the show – a year later, his father shot him to death during a domestic dispute. Marvin Gaye, who had a bitter break-up with Motown years earlier, was not originally scheduled to perform. Nostalgia addicts were equally out of luck in a “battle of the bands” featuring The Four Tops and The Temptations – neither group seemed to be in top spirit for the show. In both cases, the presentations seemed perfunctory, as if none of the singers were too eager to revisit their classic work. Pryor lamely joked about the star-studded evening by claiming, “I’ve seen stars and I’ve seen studs.”įor those looking to enjoy a memory lane stroll, “Motown 25” provided a reunion of The Miracles, who performed a medley of four of their classic tunes, and Stevie Wonder performing a medley of six of his top-charting songs. The show got off to a bad start with an opening number featuring the Lester Wilson Dancers performing a cheesy interpretation of “Dancing in the Street.” The show’s host, a visibly ill-at-ease Richard Pryor, followed them by reading his lines off a TelePrompTer with wide-eyed discomfort.

The resulting production was called “Motown 25 – Yesterday, Today, Forever” and it is mostly remembered for two sequences: the extraordinary performance of a non-Motown song and a smackdown between the members of one of Motown’s most celebrated acts.īeyond those legendary moments, however, “Motown 25 – Yesterday, Today, Forever” was a fairly mundane production that offered a bumpy celebration of the record label’s illustrious history.

#MOTOWN MACDOWN 2012 TV#

On March 25, 1983, California’s Pasadena Civic Auditorium was home to a one-shot TV special that reunited several of the major stars of the Motown record label. REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: The lack of a DVD release may be tied to problems with the clearance of music and performance rights.ĬHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: It is possible.

#MOTOWN MACDOWN 2012 FULL#

LAST SEEN: The full show is available in a six-part installment on YouTube.ĪMERICAN HOME VIDEO: A VHS version was released, but no official DVD version has appeared.

BOOTLEG FILES 410: “Motown 25 – Yesterday, Today, Forever” (1983 TV special featuring Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye and the Supremes).

Motown macdown 2012