Blame It On The Boogie

Was I the only person who saw a report that The Jacksons were considering a tour in 2008? It was a brief item in some "Celebrities" site on the Web last week, quoting Jermaine [the only member of the family besides Michael and Janet to have even limited success as a solo artist] that the brothers would reunite for a series of shows next year. Maybe it's just me, but this could be one of the biggest entertainment stories of the year.

No, there haven't been any hits, or even new recordings, from The Jacksons in almost two decades. Then again, that's not a huge hardship. Groups like The Beach Boys have gone longer between recordings, yet make a comfortable living cranking out the past for My Generation [read: Baby Boomers who feel disenfranchised from the current world of music. For the record, I was in the last wave of that birthing migration] and make a damn good living at it, thank you.

[By the way, are any of the original members still touring with the Beach Boys? My God, John Stamos used to be their tour drummer. Really. Just ask either of the Olsen twins...]

The part of all this that interests me the most is whether Michael will join what promises to be a cross-continent migration. Miko, if memory serves, was always a fragile traveller at best. Granted, his shows defined high energy, allowing him to briefly take the title of "the hardest-working man in show business" from James Brown. As well as most of JB's dance moves [The title, incidentally, is currently retired, out of respect to Mr. Brown's memory. Perhaps in a few years...]. Further, Jacko seldom cancelled a show. But one heard the whispers from the road [no, not those whispers] and worried if their tickets would ever be used [Nowadays, of course, tickets from cancelled shows would hit eBay within minutes of the announcement, and probably bring in more than bootleg recordings of actual performances. The World has changed, and not for the better...]. Then again, if Michael doesn't join the family, who'd go? A medley of Tito's hits would be brief at best and, as noted earlier, Jermaine's body of work is rather limited...

I've got it! Introducing the previously unacknowledged Jackson brother - Randy [no, not Michael's actual brother, Randy. Randy Jackson, the erstwhile American Idol judge and former member of Journey!] Think about it - he'll draw the "AI" fans, those who can't get Journey out of their iPods, fans of Oreo cookies - it's win-win all the way around! Kick this around, people! It'll be the tour of 2008!

Now, can I get t-shirt rights?

-Mike Riley