Previously lost Michael Jackson recordings discovered by accident in abandoned storage unit
Posted On
(Credit: Alamy)
A series of lost Michael Jackson recordings, which he worked on between 1989 and 1991, have been discovered in a storage unit.
The recordings were discovered by 65-year-old Gregg Musgrove, a former police officer. He was searching a storage unit that had recently been purchased by a friend when he accidentally found the unreleased tracks.
The collection of abandoned tapes was in a San Fernando Valley facility once owned by singer and producer Bryan Loren, whose current whereabouts are unknown. However, it’s suspected that he could be featured as a voice speaking to Jackson on some of the recordings.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, there are 12 tracks on the tapes that the singer worked on before releasing Dangerous, some of which haven’t been heard before by anybody. “I’ve gone to all the fan sites,” Musgrove told the publication. “Some of [the songs] are rumoured to exist, some of them have been leaked a little bit. A couple aren’t even out there in the world.”
The full inventory includes the tracks alongside snippets of other unreleased material. On some of the recordings, Jackson can be heard discussing the songs and the processes of creating them, with another voice that is presumed to be Loren. “I’m listening to this stuff, and I would get goosebumps because nobody’s ever heard this stuff before,” Musgrove said, adding, “To hear Michael Jackson actually talk and kind of joke back and forth, it was really, really cool.”
One of the unreleased tracks is called ‘Don’t Believe It’, which could be a reference to the immense media scrutiny Jackson experienced during his life and career. Another, ‘Seven Digits’, refers to the identification numbers on bodies in the morgue, according to Jackson, who explains the meaning on one of the tapes.
There is also a rap duet between Jackson and LL Cool J called ‘Truth on Youth’, which reportedly includes Jackson rapping. However, it’s unlikely that any of the discovered tracks will ever be released, as after the Jackson Estate wrote Musgrave a letter outlining how they do not own the rights to the tracks and they can never be released publicly.
However, when Musgrave initially brought the tapes to the Jackson Estate, they did their own research into the sources and origins yet didn’t purchase the tapes for reasons unknown. That said, the Jackson Estate also told The Hollywood Reporter that the tapes weren’t “new” and that the masters are already housed by them. Currently, the tapes remain in a facility under the control of Mursgrave’s attorney, though he plans to take them to major auction houses next year.
[embedded content]
Related Topics
