You Are Not Alone From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the Michael Jackson song. For other uses, see You're Not Alone (disambiguation). "You Are Not Alone" Single by Michael Jackson from the album HIStory - Past, Present and Future, Book I Released August 15, 1995 Format CD single Recorded 1995 Genre R&B Length 5:45 (Album version) 4:36 (Radio edit) 6:02 (Extended version) Label Epic Writer(s) R. Kelly Producer R. Kelly, Michael Jackson Certification Platinum (U.S.) Michael Jackson singles chronology "Scream/Childhood" (1995) "You Are Not Alone" (1995) "Earth Song" (1995) HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I track listing "Come Together" (8) "You Are Not Alone" (9) "Childhood" (10) "You Are Not Alone", released in August 1995, is the second single from Michael Jackson's album HIStory. The R&B ballad was written by R. Kelly in response to difficult times in his personal life. He then forwarded a bare demo tape to Jackson, who liked the song and decided to co-produce it with Kelly. Jackson's interest in the song was also linked to recent events in his personal life; highly publicized allegations of child sexual abuse and his recent marriage to Lisa Marie Presley. The vast majority of critical reaction to "You Are Not Alone" was positive, although it did not attain unanimous praise. The song was the recipient of Grammy and American Music Award nominations. The corresponding music video, which featured Jackson and his wife was also notable for its scenes of semi-nudity. Commercially, the song was a significant success. It holds a Guinness World Record as the first song in the 37 year history of the Billboard Hot 100 to debut at number one; it was later certified platinum by the RIAA. The song peaked highly in all major markets. In 2007, a court ruled that Kelly had plagiarized another song while making "You Are Not Alone". The verdict and consequences are only recognized in Belgium. Contents [hide] 1 Background 2 Production and music 3 Critical reaction 4 Music video 5 Chart performance 6 Plagiarism 7 Charts 7.1 Certifications 8 Tracklisting 9 Notes 10 References [edit] Background In 1993, Jackson was accused of child sexual abuse. Although never charged with a crime, Jackson was subject to intense media scrutiny while the criminal investigation took place. The media coverage was subject to criticism that included using sensational headlines to draw in readers and viewers when the content itself did not support the headline,[1] accepting stories of Jackson's alleged criminal activity in return for money,[2] accepting confidential, leaked material from the police investigation in return for money paid,[3] deliberately using pictures of Jackson's appearance at its worst, a lack of objectivity and using headlines that strongly implied Jackson's guilt.[4] The entertainer began taking painkillers, Valium, Xanax and Ativan to deal with the stress of the allegations made against him.[5] A few months after the allegations became news, Jackson had lost approximately 10 pounds (4.5kg) in weight and had stopped eating.[6] Jackson's health had deteriorated to the extent that he canceled the remainder of his Dangerous World Tour and went into rehabilitation.[7][8] Jackson booked the whole fourth floor of the clinic, and was put on Valium IV to wean him from painkillers.[7][8][9] The singer's spokesperson told reporters that Jackson was "barely able to function adequately on an intellectual level".[8] While in the clinic, Jackson took part in group and one-on-one therapy sessions.[7][8] In 1994, Jackson married singer-songwriter Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of Elvis Presley. They had first met in 1975 during one of Jackson's family engagements at the MGM Grand, and were reconnected through a mutual friend in early 1993.[4] They stayed in contact every day over the telephone. As child molestation accusations became public, Jackson became dependent on Lisa Marie for emotional support; she was concerned about his faltering health and addiction to drugs.[5] Lisa Marie explained, "I believed he didn't do anything wrong and that he was wrongly accused and yes I started falling for him. I wanted to save him. I felt that I could do it."[10] In a phone call he made to her, she described him as high, incoherent and delusional.[5] Shortly afterward, she tried to persuade Jackson to settle the allegations out of court and go into rehabilitation to recover—he subsequently did both.[5] Jackson proposed to Lisa Marie over the telephone towards the fall of 1993, saying, "If I asked you to marry me, would you do it?".[5] Presley and Jackson married in the Dominican Republic in secrecy, the parties denied that they had married for nearly two months.[11] The marriage was, in her words, "a married couple's life ... that was sexually active".[12] At the time, the tabloid media speculated that the wedding was a ploy to prop up Jackson's public image in light of prior sexual abuse allegations.[11] Jackson and Presley divorced less than two years later, remaining friendly.[13] [edit] Production and music "You Are Not Alone" Excerpt of the R. Kelly penned second single from HIStory. The excerpt shows the final product, after Jackson co-produced the bare demo. Problems listening to the files? See media help. "You Are Not Alone" is an R&B ballad about love and isolation.[9][14] The song was written by R. Kelly and co-produced by Kelly and Jackson.[9] Kelly wrote the song after the loss of close people in his life.[15] Kelly was delighted to be able to work with his idol, explaining "I was psyched ... I feel I could have done his whole album. Not being selfish. I was just that geeked about it. It was an experience out of this world ... It's amazing to know that five years ago I was writing songs in a basement in the ghetto and now I'm writing for Michael Jackson ... I'd be a fool not to say it's a dream come true.[16] Jackson contacted Kelly to see if he had any material available. Kelly forwarded a tape recording of the song and Jackson then agreed to work with Kelly on the piece.[16] On the tape sent to Jackson, Kelly sung "You Are Not Alone" mimicking Jackson's vocal style, explaining, "I think I am him. I become him. I want him to feel that as well." Jackson found the interpretation amusing.[17] They spent a day together in the studio working on the track.[16] Jackson explained that he instantly liked the song, but listened to it twice before making his final decision. Although the song was written by Kelly, Jackson was adamant that the production should be a collaborative effort amongst the two musicians.[15] The tape sent to him had no harmony or modulations, so Jackson added a choir in the final portion and added a sense of climax and structure to the final piece.[18] R. Kelly would help write and produce two more singles for Jackson: "Cry" (2001) and "One More Chance" (2003). [edit] Critical reaction James Hunter of Rolling Stone noted that, "the excellent current single 'Scream' or the first-rate R&B ballad 'You Are Not Alone' – manage to link the incidents of Jackson's infamous recent past to universal concepts like injustice or isolation. When he bases his music in the bluntness of hip-hop, Jackson sketches funky scenarios denouncing greed, blanket unreliability and false accusation".[14] Jon Pareles of The New York Times said that it was the only conventional love song on the new material on HIStory. He compared it to Mariah Carey's song "Hero" and said it "sounds like a surefire hit".[9] In more recent years, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic expressed the opinion that "You Are Not Alone" was amongst some the best song's Jackson ever released, calling the song seductive.[19] The R&B critic and journalist Nelson George described the song as lovely and supple.[20] Writer and journalist J. Randy Taraborrelli wrote of the song in 2004, "[it] remains among Michael's best song's ... On listening to 'You Are Not Alone', one wonders how many times Michael tried to tell himself, during his most desperate and anguished times, that he did have support in his life, from a higher power, or even friends and family, whether he actually believed it or not".[21] Fred Shuster of the Daily News of Los Angeles described it as the best song on the album.[22] Conversely, while Steve Holsey of Michigan Chronicle gave the album a positive review, he described the song as the worst on the album, calling the Kelly penned lyrics "trite" and below the standard set by Jackson's own lyrical skills.[23] "You Are Not Alone" received an American Music Award nomination and a Grammy nomination both for "Best Pop Vocal Performance".[24] [edit] Music video Presley leans down towards her husband in the temple scene of the music video.The music video begins with a large number of paparazzi taking photographs of Jackson. The plot then centers around two locations: a temple where Jackson appears in an affectionate semi-naked scene with his then wife Lisa Marie Presley and a theater where Jackson performs the song to an empty hall. Jackson also appears alone in other locations such as deserts and mountain tops. It is the first high profile video where Jackson's hair is cut relatively short. The slightly extended version that appeared on HIStory on Film, Volume II was notable for a scene where Jackson appeared as a guardian angel over his wife, special effects were used to give Jackson white feathery wings. In one scene, Jackson originally appeared in complete nudity, but just before the video aired a decision was made to use special effects to remove or cover these aspects.[25] Despite giving the song a positive review, Taraborrelli said of the video, "The only problem with 'You Are Not Alone' was the bizarre video for it, in which Michael and Lisa Marie frolic about semi-nude against an ethereal backdrop...The semi-nudity made no sense and was a bit disconcerting; one wished they would put their clothes back on".[21] Afterward Presley expressed regret about doing the video, saying she was "sucked up in the moment. It was kind of cool being in a Michael Jackson video. Come on!".[21] [edit] Chart performance Commercially, "You Are Not Alone", remains one of Jackson's best selling singles. It holds the Guinness World Record for the first song ever to debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[26] First week sales were 120,000 copies, it was certified platinum by the RIAA for shipments of at least one million units within the US.[27][28][29] It broke the record set by his previous single "Scream/Childhood", which was the first song in the 37 year history of Billboard to debut at number five—where it peaked.[28] It peaked at number one in the UK after a debut at number three in the prior week.[28][30] The song also reached number one in Wallonia, France, New Zealand, Spain and Switzerland.[31] With the exception of Italy, it became a top ten hit in every major market.[28][31] [edit] Plagiarism In 2007, a Belgium court ruled that R. Kelly had plagiarized the 1993 song "If We Can Start All Over" when composing "You Are Not Alone". The court transferred rights of Jackson's hit to the twin composer brothers, Eddy and Danny Van Passel. The judgment is only recognized in Belgium and airplay of the hit has been banned in that nation.[32][33][34] [edit] Charts Chart (1995) Peak position Australian ARIA Singles Chart 7 [31] Austrian Singles Chart 2 [31] Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart 3 [31] Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart 1 [31] Dutch Singles Chart 6 [31] Finnish Singles Chart 10 [31] French Singles Chart 1 [31] Irish Singles Chart 1 [35] Italian Singles Chart 14 [31] New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart 1 [31] Norwegian Singles Chart 9 [31] Spanish Singles Chart 1 [31] Swedish Singles Chart 2 [31] Swiss Singles Chart 1[36] UK Singles Chart 1 [28] US Billboard Hot 100 1 [37] Chart (2009) Peak position Danish Singles Chart 33 [31] New Zealand Singles Chart 12[38] Swiss Singles Chart 16[36] UK Singles Chart 35[39] [edit] Certifications Country Certification Sales/Shipments Austria[40] Gold 20,000 France[41] Gold 250,000 Germany[42] Gold 250,000[43] New Zealand[44] Gold 7,500[45] Switzerland[46] Gold 25,000 United Kingdom[47] Gold 400,000 United States[48] Platinum 1,000,000 [edit] Tracklisting Canadian & U.S. You Are Not Alone - 5:48 You Are Not Alone (Radio Edit) - 4:54 You Are Not Alone (Franctified Club Mix) - 10:40 Scream Louder (Flyte Tyme Remix) - 5:30 MJ Megaremix - 10:33 Japan single You Are Not Alone - 5:48 You Are Not Alone (Radio Edit) - 4:54 You Are Not Alone (Franctified Club Mix) - 10:40 You Are Not Alone (R. Kelly Mix) - 6:23 You Are Not Alone (Classic Club Mix) - 7:40 You Are Not Alone (Jon B. Main Mix) - 6:55 You Are Not Alone (Jon B. Padapella Mix) 6:55 Austria single You Are Not Alone - 5:48 You Are Not Alone (Radio Edit) - 4:54 You Are Not Alone (Franctified Club Mix) - 10:40 You Are Not Alone (Classic Club Mix) - 7:40 You Are Not Alone (Jon B. Main Mix) - 6:55 You Are Not Alone (Jon B. Padapella Mix) 6:55 MJ Medley - 4:59 [edit] Notes ^ Campbell (1995), p. 42–45 ^ Campbell (1995), p. 77–80 ^ Campbell (1995), p. 47–50 ^ a b Taraborrelli, p. 500–507 ^ a b c d e Taraborrelli, p. 518–520 ^ Taraborrelli, p. 514–516 ^ a b c Campbell (1995), p. 89–93 ^ a b c d Taraborrelli, p. 524–528 ^ a b c d Pareles, Jon (1995-06-18). "Pop View; Michael Jackson Is Angry, Understand?". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE0DD123DF93BA25755C0A963958260&scp=4&sq=HIStory+album+michael+jackson+review&st=nyt. Retrieved on 2008-09-18. ^ Taraborrelli, p. 510 ^ a b "She's Out Of His Life". CNN. 2006-01-18. http://www.cnn.com/US/9601/jacko_presley/. Retrieved on 2008-07-24. ^ Taraborrelli, p. 562–564 ^ Taraborrelli, p. 580–581 ^ a b Hunter, James (1995-08-10). "Michael Jackson HIStory". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/michaeljackson/albums/album/312830/review/5943497/history_past_present_and_future_book_1. Retrieved on 2008-07-23. ^ a b Screamin' Siblings: Michael & Janet. [Televised interview/press conference]. Bryant Park, Manhattan: MTV. June 1995. http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1536070&vid=104441. Retrieved on 2008-10-06. ^ a b c Brown, p. 56 ^ Brown, p. 57 ^ Grant, Adrian (1998). Michael Jackson : Making History. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0711967237. ^ Erlewine, Stephen. "Michael Jackson HIStory Overview". Allmusic. http://www.allmusicguide.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:rz60tr7qklkx. Retrieved on 2008-06-15. ^ George, p. 24 ^ a b c Taraborrelli, p. 609–610 ^ Shuster, Fred (1995-06-18). "Jackson attempts to rewrite 'history'". Daily News of Los Angeles. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=0F51AE3C3455B8D7&p_docnum=1. Retrieved on 2008-11-07. ^ Holsey, Steve (1995-07-04). "Jackson's 'HISory' is an impressive one". Michigan Chronicle. http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-2346777.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-11. ^ George, p. 49 ^ Kennedy, Helen (1995-07-28). "Jacko has video surgery". New York Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/1995/07/28/1995-07-28_jacko_has_video_surgery.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-11. ^ "Jackson receives his World Records". Yahoo!. 2006-11-14. http://uk.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=/14112006/344/jackson-receives-world-records.html&e=l_news_dm. Retrieved on 2006-11-16. ^ Hochman, Steve (1995-09-03). "Rewriting Pop HIStory; Michael Jackson's publicists are crowing about new single's unprecedented success, but skeptics abound.". Los Angeles Times. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/21404361.html?dids=21404361:21404361&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Sep+03%2C+1995&author=Steve+Hochman&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=Rewriting+Pop+HIStory%3B+Michael+Jackson%27s+publicists+are+crowing+about+new+single%27s+unprecedented+success%2C+but+skeptics+abound.&pqatl=google. Retrieved on 2008-11-10. ^ a b c d e George, p. 48 ^ "RIAA Gold and Platinum, search database". RIAA. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH. Retrieved on 2008-11-09. ^ Pinkerton, Lee (1997). The Many Faces of Michael Jackson. Music Sales Distribution. ISBN 0711967830. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "M. Jackson & J. Jackson - You Are Not Alone (nummer)". www.ultratop.be. http://www.ultratop.be/nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Michael+Jackson&titel=You+Are+Not+Alone&cat=s. Retrieved on 2008-11-09. ^ "Belgian court rules Michael Jackson hit was plagiarized". CBC news. 2007-09-12. http://www.cbc.ca/arts/music/story/2007/09/12/belgium-jackson.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-10. ^ Friedman, Roger (2007-10-11). "Britney Spears' 'Blackout' Hits Internet". Fox News Channel. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,301200,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-10. ^ "R Kelly 'copied Belgian song'". The Independent. 2007-09-12. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_/ai_n19516781. Retrieved on 2008-11-11. ^ Irish Recording Music Association (August 24, 1995). "Irish Singles Chart (searchable database)". irishcharts.ie. http://www.irishcharts.ie/search/placement. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. ^ a b "Swiss Singles Chart Archives". hitparade.ch. http://hitparade.ch/showitem.asp?interpret=Michael+Jackson&titel=You+Are+Not+Alone&cat=s. Retrieved on July 18, 2009. ^ "Artist Chart History - Michael Jackson". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.vnuArtistId=4902&model.vnuAlbumId=497792. Retrieved on 2008-11-05. ^ "New Zealand Singles Chart". RIANZ. http://www.rianz.org.nz/rianz/chart.asp. Retrieved on 7 July 2009. ^ "UK Singles Chart". The Official UK Charts Company. http://www.theofficialcharts.com/top40_singles.php. Retrieved on 6 July 2009. ^ International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (December 21, 1995). "Austrian certification (search)". ifpi.at. http://www.ifpi.at/?section=goldplatin. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. ^ Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique (1995). "French certification". chartsinfrance.net. http://www.chartsinfrance.net/certifications/artiste-302.htm. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. ^ International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (1995). "German certification". musikindustrie.de. http://www.musikindustrie.de/gold_platin_datenbank.html. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. ^ International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (1995). "Criteria" (PDF). musikindustrie.de. http://www.musikindustrie.de/uploads/media/TT-Formular_blanko_02.pdf. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. ^ Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (2009). "New Zealand certification: Look at #1676 Monday 6 July 2009". rianz.org.nz. http://www.rianz.org.nz/rianz/chart.asp. Retrieved on 2009-07-07. ^ Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (2009). "New Zealand Chart Facts". rianz.org.nz. http://www.rianz.org.nz/rianz/chart_facts.asp. Retrieved on 2009-07-07. ^ Hit Parade (1995). "Swiss certification". hitparade.ch. http://hitparade.ch/awards.asp?year=1995. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. ^ British Phonographic Industry (October 1, 1995). "U.K. certification". bpi.co.uk. http://www.bpi.co.uk/platinum/platinumright.asp?rq=search_plat&r_id=20620. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. ^ Recording Industry Association of America (October 13, 1995). "U.S. certification". riaa.com. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=you%20are%20not%20alone&artist=michael%20jackson&format=&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2008&sort=Artist&perPage=25. Retrieved on 2008-12-08. [edit] References Brown, Jake (2004). Your Body's Calling Me. Amber Books Publishing. ISBN 0972751955. Campbell, Lisa (1995). Michael Jackson: The King of Pops Darkest Hour. Branden. ISBN 0828320039. George, Nelson (2004). Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection. Sony BMG. Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2004). The Magic and the Madness. Terra Alta, WV: Headline. ISBN 0-330-42005-4. Preceded by "Kiss from a Rose" by Seal Billboard Hot 100 number-one single September 2, 1995 Succeeded by "Gangsta's Paradise" by Coolio featuring L.V. Preceded by "Country House" by Blur UK Singles Chart number-one single 3 September 1995 – September 17, 1995 Succeeded by "Boombastic" by Shaggy Preceded by "Boombastic" by Shaggy Billboard's Hot R&B Songs number-one single September 2, 1995 - September 23, 1995 Succeeded by "Fantasy" by Mariah Carey Preceded by "XXL" by Mylène Farmer French number-one single September 30, 1995 - October 7, 1995 Succeeded by "Je sais pas" by Céline Dion [hide]v • d • eMichael Jackson singles Got to Be There "Got to Be There" · "Rockin' Robin" · "I Wanna Be Where You Are" · "Ain't No Sunshine" Ben "Ben" Music & Me "With a Child's Heart" · "Happy" Forever, Michael "We're Almost There" · "Just a Little Bit of You" The Wiz "Ease on Down the Road" · "You Can't Win" · Off the Wall "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough" · "Rock with You" · "Off the Wall" · "She's Out of My Life" · "Girlfriend" One Day in Your Life "One Day in Your Life" Thriller "The Girl Is Mine" · "Billie Jean" · "Beat It" · "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" · "Human Nature" · "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" · "Thriller" Bad "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" · "Bad" · "The Way You Make Me Feel" · "Man in the Mirror" · "Dirty Diana" · "Another Part of Me" · "Smooth Criminal" · "Leave Me Alone" · "Liberian Girl" Dangerous "Black or White" · "Remember the Time" · "In the Closet" · "Jam" · "Who Is It" · "Give In to Me" · "Heal the World" · "Will You Be There" · "Gone Too Soon" HIStory "Scream/Childhood" · "You Are Not Alone" · "Earth Song" · "They Don't Care About Us" · "Stranger in Moscow" Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix "Blood on the Dance Floor" · "HIStory/Ghosts" Invincible "You Rock My World" · "Cry" · "Butterflies" Number Ones "One More Chance" Thriller 25 "The Girl Is Mine 2008" · "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' 2008" Notable collaborations and album tracks "Say Say Say" · "Somebody's Watching Me" · "Tell Me I'm Not Dreamin'" · "We Are the World" · "Get It" · "Dangerous" · "D.S." · "Why" · "I Need You" · "What More Can I Give" · "Do the Bartman" Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Are_Not_Alone" Categories: 1995 singles | Michael Jackson songs | ARC Weekly Top 40 number-one singles | Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles | Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs number-one singles | European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles | Number-one singles in France | Irish Singles Chart number-one singles | Number-one singles in New Zealand | Number-one singles in Switzerland | UK Singles Chart number-one singles | Slow jams | Songs written by R. Kelly