OFF THE WALL IN FIVE ACTS BY SHELDON TAYLOR
Forty-five years ago, Michael Jackson's "Off The Wall" was released to critical and commercial acclaim. Jackson's breakthrough album solidified the singer's transition from child star to adult entertainer. Let the madness in the music get to you..... I remember the time so very well because it was when I emerged from off the wall: a ten-year-old moving from music spectator to consumer. Since there were no younger acts back then, every kid my age was drawn to music made by adults ten, twenty, and nearly thirty years older. It was heady time. From around '74 to '79, my life played out to a soundtrack that was one long musical highlight reel. I wasn't buying music yet but it didn't stop me from reading about it or watching documentaries or television shows devoted to musical subjects. As a toddler I was transfixed by Jackson Five album covers laying around the house. I can't remember when I first learned they were from my hometown of Gary, I...