來源：MJJCN.com / slate.com
Rodney Jerkins worked with Michael Jackson on the original "Xscape" from 1999 to 2001.
文/ 喬·沃格爾（Joe Vogel）翻譯：Badthriller
當邁克爾•傑克遜（Michael Jackson）新專輯《逃脫》（Xscape）的同名歌曲的原版於4月初出現在網上時，製作人“黑暗之子”羅德尼•傑金斯（Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins）還在製作新版中。他藏在北好萊塢的拉雷比錄音室（Larrabee Studios） —— 傑克遜1991年錄製《危險》（Dangerous）專輯部分歌曲的地方 —— 聆聽細節。作為《逃脫》專輯裡唯一一個和傑克遜錄製了原版歌曲的製作人，傑金斯瞭解傑克遜對完美主義的不懈追求。
“那是我們的處理過程。”傑金斯說，“我們就是這麼工作的，一直做到它就緒為止。我們從創意開始，加各種各樣的東西到混音裡。”傑金斯還能聽到傑克遜溫柔卻堅決的聲音在推動他，讓他“深入挖掘”，找到從來沒人聽過的聲音。離最後一次製作這首歌已有十餘載、離傑克遜去世也差不多五年了，他想集中注意力展示“MJ如果在世會告訴我如何進行下去的成果”。
這首歌是選自傑克遜曲庫並被全明星製作團隊“現代化”的八首幾乎完成的歌曲之一。這支團隊由史詩唱片公司CEO LA•裡德（L.A. Reid）親手挑選，除了傑金斯，還有提姆巴蘭德（Timbaland）、J-Roc、“星門”（Stargate）和約翰•麥克萊恩（John McClain）。《逃脫》的概念顯然吸引不了純化論者，但專輯得到了眾多樂評人的瘋狂點贊，首發單曲《愛從未如此美妙》（Love Never Felt So Good）比傑克遜自2002年以來的任何一支單曲都排名要高。除了傑克遜的聲音表現，新版製作當然同樣重要。
當原版《逃脫》洩露出來，好評排山倒海。《赫芬頓郵報》（Huffington Post）稱之“精品MJ”，《旋轉》（Spin）雜誌說是“閃爍著鉻金光澤的放克流行歌”，《Buzzfeed》贊其“永遠的邁克爾•傑克遜最佳新歌”。正如《石板》（slate）雜誌的福裡斯特•威克曼（Forrest Wickman）所言，那個版本不是傑金斯正在製作的版本，而是傑克遜和傑金斯在1999 – 2001年間最後一次錄製的版本。新版本讓我們以新潮、清爽的方式重新聆聽傑克遜。傑金斯的努力在《逃脫》的轉變中顯而易見，新版與原版有機互補，著重於不同的特色、結構和可能性。
傑金斯和好搭檔弗雷德•傑金斯三世（Fred Jerkins III）、拉肖恩•丹尼爾斯（LaShawn Daniels）[三人曾創作了上世紀90年代末布蘭蒂（Brandy）的《這男孩是我的》（The Boy Is Mine）和莫妮卡（Monica）的《說我的名字》（Say My Name）]創作了《逃脫》。這首歌最初是在1999年通過電話呈現給傑克遜的，當時還在《無敵》（Invincible）項目的初期，歌曲仍處於雛型（僅有部分歌詞）。當傑克遜聽到歌曲時，“他激動壞了。” 傑金斯回憶道，“他說，‘我要的就是這個！我要的就是這個！’那讓他想跳舞。”與傑克遜合作過的人都清楚那是衡量一首節奏勁曲的終極標準。
傑克遜很興奮，堅持要馬上開始錄歌。當時傑金斯在新澤西，傑克遜在洛杉磯，他們利用EDNet —— 一家始於喬治•盧卡斯（George Lucas）後期製作公司天行者音效的公司，他們的設備曾用於1993年弗蘭克•辛納屈（Frank Sinatra）的《合唱》（Duets）專輯，隨後便在音樂圈聲名大噪 —— 的最新技術讓傑金斯可以在另一家錄音室通過電話線近乎完美地聽清並錄製傑克遜的聲音。傑克遜那天在第一錄音室（Record One）錄下了所有的背景和聲，傑金斯在新澤西全部錄製下來。他不久後飛往洛杉磯，錄了傑克遜的主音。
這首歌有短促有力、節奏清晰、步步上升的唱段和輕巧暢快、和聲為主的副歌。傑克遜喜歡在音樂裡講故事，所以和傑金斯想出了歌曲的開頭（“他稱之為‘小裝飾’，我把那叫作‘插曲’。”傑金斯說），以越獄為主題。原版的開頭是牢房大門被打開的聲音，獄警查監卻發現犯人不翼而飛。對於傑克遜，歌曲開頭和歌曲本身象徵了他自己不同尋常的生活，困在牢籠裡，被公眾嘲笑、跟蹤、逼迫和歸類，沒人把他當人看待。
儘管《逃脫》沒有被收入《無敵》專輯，但傑克遜和傑金斯還是繼續加工歌曲。2002年，歌曲洩露到了網上，旋即成為歌迷的心頭好（儘管洩露版音質很差）。傑金斯卻難過於歌曲沒能發光發熱。當史詩唱片公司CEO LA•裡德在2013年跟傑金斯談到《逃脫》這個項目時，傑金斯準備好再次處理歌曲。如果傑克遜在世，他可能會希望歌曲聽起來更流行。他不會穩妥地處理或讓歌曲有懷舊的感覺，他會讓歌曲新潮動聽。傑克遜常年回顧未發行歌曲，不斷嘗試新的製作、編曲和歌詞。《地球之歌》（Earth Song）最初醞釀於1988年的維也納，當時是“飆”巡演（Bad Tour）期間，可歌曲直到1995年才發行在《歷史》（HIStory）專輯上。
傑金斯對新版《逃脫》的目標是讓製作達到他認為邁克爾會滿意的程度。他的新混音加入了讓骨頭酥麻的貝斯、有力的迪斯可風格號角和帶有畫面感的弦樂，加強了歌曲的戲劇性和強度。他想讓歌曲捕捉到過去和現在的元素，卻不會顯得忙亂或招搖，他想讓它簡潔。“我想讓它恰到好處。”傑金斯說，“擁有歌曲的能量。”在原本開頭的地方，傑金斯讓傑克遜展現了他非凡的切分節奏口技和標誌性的尖叫聲。一個來自很久以前錄音裡傑克遜的聲音念了傑金斯的外號“黑暗之子”。2001年版的電子感被緊湊的嘻哈節奏和現場伴奏所代替。
歌曲的成功很大程度上源自其精緻細膩，讓聽者有空間專注於細節，從段落間轉換（聽一下1分40秒處的轉換，鼓點讓路，傑克遜在一波波的號角聲中火力全開）到橋段處的和聲。也許最吸引人的時刻來自2分50秒的第二次橋段處，當傑克遜唱完“這個充滿問題的世界不會再煩我。”歌曲的勢頭驟然刹車。當和聲像trance舞曲一樣重複時，有種異常的安寧。傑金斯讓我們聽到了傑克遜的響指，那一刻溫馨怡人。音樂漸漸加強：放克節奏吉他漸入，低沉的貝斯再次出現，伴隨傑克遜的即興演唱直到結束。
“我很自豪。”傑金斯對最後成果如是評價，“節奏、808鼓、號角加上MJ的聲音。強烈，堪稱完美風暴。”誠然，在所有的新版裡，傑金斯讓傑克遜精彩的聲音靠前居中：急切、懇求、喘息、高亢 —— 渴望逃脫“一個被書報掌控的體系”。
無論是新版還是傑克遜和傑金斯最後一起錄製的原版都會出現在《逃脫》的豪華裝裡。傑金斯不知道自己能多接近傑克遜的標準，但隨著最後期限的臨近，他夜以繼日地工作，就像傑克遜那樣，聆聽任何最後的指導。當時嘗試過加入新的說唱部分，像是加入圖派克（Tupac）的混音版本，這在紐約的試聽會上曾經播放過。【根據史詩唱片公司高管勞倫•希拉迪妮（Lauren Ceradini）所述，這個版本不會出現在專輯裡。】
試聽會後，當我們坐電梯下樓時，傑金斯既興奮又放鬆。當他在上世紀90年代末開始和傑克遜合作《無敵》專輯時，傑克遜描繪了通過那張專輯能實現的願景。可那最終因傑克遜和時任索尼音樂娛樂公司總裁湯米•摩托拉（Tommy Mottola）之間的激烈（並公開）爭吵而結束。看到《逃脫》和傑克遜多年後回歸聚光燈下，也算是一種救贖。“不可思議。”傑金斯搖著頭說，“你是無法埋沒偉大的。”
The Return of the King
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2014/05/rodney_darkchild_jerkins_produces_michael_jackson_s_song_xscape.html
hen a version of the title track for Michael Jackson’s posthumous album, Xscape (out Tuesday) surfaced online in early April, producer Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins was still working on it. Holed up in Larrabee Studios in North Hollywood—where Jackson recorded tracks for his 1991Dangerous album—he was listening for details. The sole producer for Xscape to have worked with Jackson on a previous album, Jerkins knew from personal experience the artist’s relentless pursuit of perfectionism.
“That was our process,” says Jerkins. “That’s the way we worked. We just kept at it until it was ready. We just worked on ideas, added this and that to the mix.” Jerkins could still hear Jackson’s soft but insistent voice pushing him, telling him to “dig deep,” and find sounds no one had heard before. Returning to the song over a decade since they last worked on it (and nearly five years since the singer’s death), he was trying to somehow channel “what MJ would be telling me if he was right there working with me.”
The track is one of eight mostly-finished songs culled from Jackson’s vault and “contemporized” by an all-star team of producers hand-picked by Epic Records CEO L.A. Reid (in addition to Jerkins, Reid tapped the talents of Timbaland, J-Roc Harmon, Stargate and John McClain). The concept for Xscape obviously will not appeal to purists. But the album has received surprisingly strong reviews from critics, and lead single “Love Never Felt So Good” is charting higher than any Jackson single has since 2002. This, of course, has as much (if not more) to do with the quality of Jackson’s unheard vocal performances as it does the new production.
When the title track seemed to leak in April, the response was overwhelmingly positive. Huffington Post called it “vintage MJ.” Spin called it “chrome-bright funk pop.” And BuzzFeed praised it as “the best new Michael Jackson song in forever.” Yet as Slate’s Forrest Wickman notes, that version of “Xscape” was not the production Jerkins was working on. It was the version Jackson and Jerkins last recorded together from 1999 to 2001. The new version, on the album, allows us to hear Jackson in new, reinvigorating ways. Jerkins’ work is emblematic of the transformations on Xscape; the song doesn’t replace, so much as it complements Jackson’s original track, accenting different features, textures, and possibilities inherent in the song.
Jerkins
co-composed the song with fellow R&B hit-makers Fred Jerkins III and
LaShawn Daniels (the trio previously co-wrote such late-’90s classics as
Brandy’s “The Boy Is Mine” and Monica’s “Say My Name”). “Xscape” was first
presented to Jackson in skeletal form (with partial lyrics) in 1999 over the
phone during the early stages of theInvincible project. When Jackson heard the
song, “he went crazy,” Jerkins recalls. “He was like, ‘That’s what I’m talking
about! That’s what I’m talking about!’ It made him want to dance.” Anyone who
worked with Jackson knew that was the ultimate barometer for a rhythm track.
Jackson was so
excited about the song he insisted that recording begin right away. Since
Jerkins was in New Jersey and Jackson was in Los Angeles, they utilized the
latest technology from EDNet—a company that originated within George Lucas’
post-production facility, Skywalker Sound, and became popular in the music
industry after its equipment was used on the 1993 Frank Sinatra album, Duets—to
allow Jerkins to hear and record Jackson through a phone line with near-perfect
fidelity while in different studios. Jackson laid down all his background
vocals that day in Record One, as Jerkins recorded them from New Jersey. The
producer flew out to L.A. soon after and recorded Jackson’s lead.
Sonically, the
track juxtaposed clipped, percussive, climbing verses with an airy,
harmony-driven chorus. Jackson loved to tell stories in his music, so he and
Jerkins came up with an introduction to the song (“he called them ‘vignettes,’
I called them ‘interludes,’” says Jerkins) of a prison break. Early versions of
the song begin with the sound of a jail cell door being unlocked; the prison
guards have come to check on an inmate, but his cell is empty. For Jackson, the
introduction, like the song itself, was a metaphor for his own unusual life,
trapped behind gates, mocked, stalked, cornered, and labeled by a public that
demanded he be anything but human.
The pair
continued to tinker with the track even after it wasn’t included onInvincible. It first
leaked online in 2002 and quickly became an underground fan favorite (in spite
of the leak’s relatively poor sound quality). Yet Jerkins always felt bad the
track never got its moment to shine. When Epic CEO L.A. Reid approached Jerkins
about “Xscape” in 2013, the producer felt ready to address the song again. If
Jackson were alive, he reasoned, he would want it to sound current. He wouldn’t
play it safe or nostalgic; he would want the song to feel fresh and be heard.
Jackson himself frequently returned to unreleased songs years or even decades
after they were first recorded and tried out new production, arrangements, and
lyrics; “Earth Song” was first
conceived in Vienna during the Bad Tour in 1988, but wasn’t released until
1995’s HIStory.
Jerkins’ goal
for the new version of “Xscape,” then, was to bring the production up to the
present the way he felt Michael would. His new mix adds a bone-vibrating bass,
punchy, disco-flavored horns, and cinematic strings to heighten the track’s
drama and intensity. He wanted the song to capture elements of the past and
present, but not to feel busy or showy; he wanted it to be leaner. “I wanted it
to hit right away,” says Jerkins. “Just to get the energy of the song.” In
place of the original intro, Jerkins allows Jackson to showcase his singular,
syncopated beatboxing and trademark percussive vocal exclamations. There’s also
Jackson’s voice from a long-ago recording, intoning “Darkchild,” Jerkins’
nickname. The glitchy, electronic feel of the 2001 version is supplanted by a
balance of tight hip-hop beats and live instrumentation.
The song succeeds in large measure through its subtlety, allowing the listener
space to focus on the details, from the contrasting key switches in the verses
(listen to the transition at the 1:40 mark, as the ricocheting drums give way,
and Jackson launches over a wave of horns) to the isolated harmonies in the
bridge. Perhaps the most impressive moment comes in a second bridge at the 2:50
mark, after Jackson sings “This problem world won’t bother me no more,” when
the momentum of the song suddenly stops. There is a kind of sublime tranquility
as the harmonies repeat like a trance. Jerkins lets us hear Jackson’s
finger-snaps, giving the moment an intimate quality. Then the music
intensifies: The funky rhythm guitar sneaks in, the deep bass re-emerges and
Jackson ad-libs to the finish.
“I’m proud of
it,” says Jerkins of the final product. “The rhythms, 808s, and horns against
MJ’s vocal. It’s intense. It’s the perfect storm.” Indeed, for all the updates,
Jerkins leaves Jackson’s virtuosic vocal front and center: urgent, pleading,
gasping, soaring—longing to escape “a system in control, [that’s] all ran by
the book.”
Both this updated version and the leaked version Jackson and
Jerkins last recorded together will appear on the deluxe edition of Xscape. Jerkins
doesn’t know exactly how close he got to what Jackson would have wanted were he
alive. But as the album deadline neared, he worked around the clock just as
Jackson would have, listening for any last-second guidance. New rap verses were
tested, including an incredible mix featuring Tupac, which was played at a listening
party at Top of the Rock in New York City. (According to Epic Records executive
Lauren Ceradini, this version will not appear on the album.)
After the party,
as we descended in the illuminated Rockefeller Center elevator, Jerkins seemed
both excited and relieved. When he began working with Jackson on Invincible in the late ’90s, the artist painted a
vision of what they would achieve with the album. That vision—and that
album—were in many ways derailed by a charged (and very public) dispute between Jackson and
then-Sony head Tommy Mottola. Seeing “Xscape”—and Jackson—back in
the spotlight after all these years offered a kind of redemption. “It’s
amazing,” says Jerkins, shaking his head. “You can’t kill greatness.”
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