The Stripped Mixes by Michael Jackson

Audio Mixers: Neil Citron; Tom Rowlands. The first of what is sure to be many posthumous releases from Michael Jackson, THE STRIPPED MIXES does indeed contained stripped mixes of 11 Motown hits from Michael and the Jackson Five, mixes that cut each track down to the bare-bones of vocals, bass guitar, and percussion, augmented by the occasional guitar or keyboard. Often, the logic of what is left behind doesn't quite make sense: "I Want You Back" and "ABC" have no drums (or fuzz guitar), so they feel a little tipsy and top-heavy, and it's hard to call "Ben" and "With a Child's Heart" stripped when there are echoes of strings in the background. Since so much of the genius of these recordings lay in the arrangements, having so much of the arrangement absent means that the music just sounds awkward and incomplete, as if it was waiting for the final round of mixing and overdubs. Still, if the purpose of this disc is to draw attention to Michael's vocals, THE STRIPPED MIXES does its job.

Key Information
Number of Discs		1
Artist		Michael Jackson
Record Label		Motown
Genre		R&B
Subgenre		Motown
Release Date		July 28, 2009
Song List: Disc 1