Reviews (page 9 of 15)
Best MJ album by far, and such a good album anyway...singles on this are so, so good. Billie Jean should have been on this instead of Thriller because it would have made this one perfect.
Great album, songs with which I grew up. Brought back memories.
The singles are timeless. It's the first time I've heard the rest of the album and loved it
The King of Pop….one of the greatest albums
Banger after Banger
Goat
Very good album with no skips Favorite songs- Liberan girl, I just can't stop loving you, Another Part of me, Just good friends Least favorite songs- None
Meh. I mean you really can't deny, he was very good at what he did. I mean so many hits spawn just from this one album. And while I don't mind them. I just don't really care for them either.
I mean, he's the King of Pop. Compare how much fuller this sounds to, say, George Michael - he's got a great voice, he's got great tunes, and he's got energy. Coming off two other pop-ish albums that are much more layered, it still has an 80s flatness. Listen to the hits, which I think are still good (although the title track is flat) and move on with your life, though I can't stop lovin' you took me by surprise. I'd even go so far to say that the back half is stronger. That said, I think it's just Fine, but that might be the fact that this kind of music doesn't resonate with me.
Good Album
This one is not my favorite of Michael's, I even like Dangerous more than this one I think. But it's still got a few great tracks, especially Another Part Of Me. Less likely to revisit this album compared to his others, but still enjoyable. 3/5
An album that is dragged down by its duds as much as it is uplifted by its hits. Smooth Criminal is an elite pop song, undone by Liberian Girl, Speed Demon, etc...
Two incredible stand out tracks in Dirty Diana, and Smooth Criminal (easily a top 5 track) and a ton of decent to awful tracks, with Liberian being the worst offender - and borderline unlistenable - and the title track being a weaker version of Beat It. In short, Bad is bad album. It’s not worth inclusion on the list
Синглы еще как-то в порядке, а вот все остальное... Хз , по мне после триллера 5 лет делать это - было не лучшее решение
123
None of the songs on this album convey a "bad" persona. The cover doesn't portray a "bad" persona. But catchy tunes can't stop the album being bad
It sounds so dated and is unbearable due to how many times I heard it growing up, it was everywhere.
Hee hee! There are some great songs on this album! I knew half of them - and them songs alone would have been a very easy 5 star Sadly the other half of the album were just filler. Liberian Girl in particular absolutely killed the vibe Smooth Criminal will now be stuck in my head for the next 3-5 business days 4 ⭐️
Already listened to this
Pretty solid! Pretty funky!
Classic movie
so many bangers, way too long. esp the late 80s slow anthems
It's really unfortunate that this is great.
Songs run longer than needed Easy 4 tho
Huh. This is no thriller. In my head it was part of his glory years, in terms of being good, and it clearly was sales and popularity wise, but listening with some distance - this is where he fell off. Apparently he produced a lot along with Quincy Jones, and it just sounds like polished boring funky pop of its time. His vocal affectations become more dumb and annoying than dumb and fun. The lyrics are corny and sappy and annoying rather than corny and fun. Your butt is mine. Hm. Smooth criminal is a great song. "Dirty Diana" and "The way you make me feel" are good. The rest of it not so much.
Still iconic, but only MJ’s third-best album…
Best MJ album
Dated.
king
One of the first albums I ever owned and still love it.
Classic Michael Jackson is great. This album has so many classic songs from him. Since I have listened to him a lot before I don't have much more to add, the reflections from listening to the daily album kind of looses its point when I already have a clear picture and feeling about the album. All that being said I'm gonna lean back, close my eyes and listen to man in the mirror again.
The album title says enough. I just can’t stand Michael Jackson and his hoo-ha’s for more than two song on end, so no surprise the rating here. I hate Speed Demon and Liberian Girl and the ever-present 80s drum groove throughout the album drives me insane. I also never realised how awful Man In The Mirror actually is and the two songs that follow make up the worst three song run I have ever heard. The fact that I quite liked the first two songs cannot save this album, probably because after those the amount of Michael Jackson I can handle was exceeded. hee hee 1/5
O disco tem musicas muito boas mas sofre do mal do hype das tecnologias digitais nos anos 80, que acaba prejudicando a sonoridade do álbum. Existem timbres ótimos aqui, mas há momentos onde o exagero do digital faz tudo soar meio esquisito e plástico, que quando comparado a outros discos anteriores e posteriores do MJ soam menos interessantes
eeeeeeeeeeeeeeh smooth criminal é maneira
so so good, i cant believe i've never given it a proper listen all the way through 'just good friends' is underrated! and 'leave me alone' is so gooddd
Hard to say anything without an unintended pun.. I'm not saying it's not good. There are many hit songs- Smooth Criminal is probably the one I enjoy most. But I'm just not a fan of this type of 80s pop. And his private life massively puts me off listening to his stuff. Also I both think he's rightly celebrated but even so feel he's ridiculously overrated.
love it
The best album ever, the quality, the videos, songs, everything on this album is a true masterpiece
Seguramente el disco que más veces he escuchado en mi vida. Amo cada canción y jamás dejaré de oírlo y amarlo. Perfecto.
Le roi d’la pop (heeeuurf) revient avec un album du calibre de Thriller, sans atteindre celui d’Off the Wall. Shoutout à la bassline de Speed Demon, tu m’as émBRANLER
At least three quentesential pop singles. Incredible how this man captured the whole zeitgeist. If you want to know what pop music was in 89, this is it.
This album really just sounds like the 1980s with the elements of horns and synthesizers regularly shown. Michael Jackson does a great job utilizing these elements wirh his voice to create catchy melodies. Sometimes these melodies get a bit repetitive but generally his ad libs and use of tension keep the listener hooked.
Poco se puede decir, es el puto Michael Jackson. Como en los discos que salieron previamente, la calidad de sus canciones siempre es alta y el disco no aburre, pero no llega a conectar del todo conmigo para que sean favoritos. Pero un gran tiempo. Canción destacada: Smooth Criminal
Always thought this was better than Thriller, and it is. But wow i didn't remember the ballads being this boring... There's nothing to say about the uptempo songs, an absolutely masterclass in doing pop music, they're all textbook definition of a "banger".
This isn’t my favorite type of music in the world, but there’s a lot to like about Bad. Great energy, great beats, great bass lines, and lots of attitude. It’s not one I’d put on regularly, but if someone else played it, I’d listen happily.
A couple really great songs - specifically Man in the Mirror and Smooth Criminal, and a lot that just isn't that memorable.
I just had Off the Wall 12 days ago so I was a little surprised to see another Michael Jackson album so soon. Again, obviously a classic. I’m not a huge MJ fan but I can’t deny the singles are all 10/10 all-time greats.
Worse
I've been hit by, I've been struck by, a smooth criminal
Michael Jackson’s breathy vocals are so corny to me. Man in the mirror is a song that I absolutely hate. Smooth criminal is the best song on the record. This is no thriller but can’t deny the cultural impact of this guy at the time. He was huge. But I still like weird Al’s version as Fat. Ham on ham on ham on whole wheat. All right.
I feel like it took me listening to the whole thing to really appreciate the synth funk 80s style. Was inspired by how simple and muddy these mixes are. They have this sort of power. 4/5 1987 BTSLJAMIDSL - "Bad" is so weirdly mixed. Way lighter vocal, so repetitive and hypnotizing (more than I remember). So tight. I think I listened to the Weird Al "fat" before I ever seriously listened to this song lol. Solid. Drums are such chaos and so pounding. - "The Way You Make me Feel". Wow, another one with big drum machine vibes. Sort of reminds me of mk.gee is that insane. It's pretty muddy and drum machine-ee. Horns are so nice and bright. - "Speed Demon" wtf is that effect with the slap. So percussive! Wow yeah just did a little reading about the synths, damn they just used like every synth lol. - "Liberian Girl" what. this is a completely different vibe. Still slapppy bass. Michael sounds so different on this one? So soft. - "Just Good Friends" idk, this style is starting to feel a bit fatiguing - "Another Part of Me" a bit more fun! - "Man in the Mirror" tbh, it was awesome listening to the original so closely, I've heard so many covers over the years. The vocal is so much more powerful than I remember. I also think the tempo is *perfect* - "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" This feels like such an afterthought, my attention span is so not used to listening to full albums. - "Dirty Diana" - cool effect! Tbh I liked this one more than expected, particularly the guitar. - "Smooth Criminal" - I feel like the whole album has been leading to this. I feel like this is clearly the best display of the hard synth funk style. It's beautiful. - "Leave me alone" - this is actually more cool than I remember it being. - Quincy Jones, who produced this, is a legend: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quincy_Jones
I just can't separate art from the artist
No 3 best albums of MJ! 3,5 stars
I don't think I'd ever listened to this album in it's entirety before. For one of the best selling albums of all time there's an awful lot of filler. It hasn't aged well, but then I never liked Jackson to begin with either. And finally, how has he escaped getting a (thoroughly deserved) cancelling??
# Album Name: Bad # Artist: MJ # Rating: 5/5 # Comments: An absolutely monster opening to this album with Bad and the way you make me feel. The album has a real pop 80's vibe to it. Its like being transported back in time. Vocals are banging. Theres plenty of electronic vibes and funky use of trumpets and guitars. The production quality is very high as you'd expect on this. Very 80's of course. The album is a tale of two sides. The singles are absolutely knock out out of the park 5/5. But the filler tracks are really that - fillers! Looking at the wiki, im genuinely shocked about how many singles were released as part of this album. The man himself, well, fuck that guy. He is THE smooth criminal. Honestly. I had the same ponderings with townshend after listening to the who's my generation recently. Im rating this a low 5 on the music alone. The hits are absolute monsters imo. A zero for the man. # Top Tunes: Bad / The way you make me feel / Another part of me / MITM / Cant stop loving you / SC / Leave me alone # Would I listen to it again? Yes
Lots of hits on this album. Polarizing now but talented no matter where you stand. 3.5-4
3.75
Not even his best albun
3.5
Made for the CLUB. every song is 90s too long. Seinfeld bass and a percussion track that sounds like an 8ft 2x4 falling on a concrete floor. 3.41
This is a pretty classic pop album. Its got the synth-y new wave pop sound, with some really cool funk and soul. I think it might be safe to say that no one has really made dance music as good as Michael Jackson. Its kind of perfect for dance groove. I think back half of the album is stronger than the front half, but overall, its still really fun and good. Its fun to kind of hear those motown influences. In a lot of ways, he's doing Gospel music. Especially with songs like Man in the Mirror.
First time listening all the way through. "Man in the Mirror" is one of my all-time faves, and it was good to hear "Just another part of me" and "Just can't stop loving you" again, as they don't turn up as regularly in modern pop culture. This music spans the consciousness of generations too, so it was fun to listen with my middle schooler and talk about just how popular this guy was back in the day.
Great hits! Very 80s. Dude is a smooth criminal.
Great album. No stinkers. Not a huge fan of 80s pop production so that’s the only real draw back for me
Buen disco, con algunas facetas que no se conocen de Michael... no, esas no. En fin, me gustó. Nota: 3.6
I feel like it took me listening to the whole thing to really appreciate the synth funk 80s style. Was inspired by how simple and muddy these mixes are. They have this sort of power. 4/5 1987 BTSLJAMIDSL - "Bad" is so weirdly mixed. Way lighter vocal, so repetitive and hypnotizing (more than I remember). So tight. I think I listened to the Weird Al "fat" before I ever seriously listened to this song lol. Solid. Drums are such chaos and so pounding. - "The Way You Make me Feel". Wow, another one with big drum machine vibes. Sort of reminds me of mk.gee is that insane. It's pretty muddy and drum machine-ee. Horns are so nice and bright. - "Speed Demon" wtf is that effect with the slap. So percussive! Wow yeah just did a little reading about the synths, damn they just used like every synth lol. - "Liberian Girl" what. this is a completely different vibe. Still slapppy bass. Michael sounds so different on this one? So soft. - "Just Good Friends" idk, this style is starting to feel a bit fatiguing - "Another Part of Me" a bit more fun! - "Man in the Mirror" tbh, it was awesome listening to the original so closely, I've heard so many covers over the years. The vocal is so much more powerful than I remember. I also think the tempo is *perfect* - "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" This feels like such an afterthought, my attention span is so not used to listening to full albums. - "Dirty Diana" - cool effect! Tbh I liked this one more than expected, particularly the guitar. - "Smooth Criminal" - I feel like the whole album has been leading to this. I feel like this is clearly the best display of the hard synth funk style. It's beautiful. - "Leave me alone" - this is actually more cool than I remember it being. - Quincy Jones, who produced this, is a legend: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quincy_Jones
Despite the name, the album is quite good. Classic beats all around, but the vocal work of MJ is unmatched. Easy 5! 'The Way You Make Me Feel' takes my fave slot.
The beginning of him becoming a parody of himself. There's more gasping than actual singing. That said, when he's good, he's very good, and he has the most distinctive voice and style. My biggest problem with this album is that he is trying SO hard to gain the same rep as the emerging gangsta rappers of the time. It just made him look ridiculous. The songs that were released for radio play are actually pretty good songs on their own. The fillers aren't anything of note. Is it a good album? Yes. Is there any of the tracks that, for nostalgia's sake, I'd listen to all the way through? Nope.
MJ's a bad boy now! Maybe that's what people were saying back in 1987, I cannot confirm nor deny that as I wasn't alive then. However, just like "Thriller" a few years prior, this was (and still is) one of those instantly recognizable pop albums that seems to transcend age & time. Just singles galore here. That's to be expected from the King of Pop, right? It's clear that a point was made to curate a newer sound here. Digital synthesizers are used throughout to create a fiercer (or badder!) pop/dance sound here in just about every track. One could argue that it very much sounds of its time, but I don't necessarily see that as a bad thing. Tracks such as the titular "Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", and "Smooth Criminal" are each iconic in their own right. I will admit that I hadn't heard tracks 3-6 prior to today, and the album takes a noticeable dip there. Starts and finishes strong, however. The shadow that "Thriller" creates over an artist is inescapable, and I will admit that the bangers to track ratio is better there. "Bad" has a noticeable "edge" when compared to MJ's previous works and gave us many of his greatest hits, despite a slight lull in the middle tracks. MJ would continue to morph his pop sound in the ensuing years, but would never quite reach the heights he did with Quincy Jones on production during this stretch, in my opinion.
I mean, it's Michael Jackson
I guess the bass lines are pretty good.
Een album met letterlijk alleen maar hits schrijven is de missie voor veel artiesten, maar voor Michael is het normaal. Je kan dit album simpelweg niet uit zetten als je van Bad naar The way you make me feel (wel zonder Britney helaas) naar speed demon.... ETC. U begrijpt het wel. 5 sterren zijn te min.
All time good, 10 out of 10, never getting old type music
good but not my fav MJ album, gotta be off the wall
The more well known songs are good, like the title track and Smooth Criminal, but the rest don't really live up to the same heights. His vocals don't do the backing track justice. Some of these basslines are amazing. If his voice was better it could be a 5 star album
This is one where “you had to be there.” I grew up when Michael Jackson was putting out music, and we all knew he was a strange guy (of course, not to the extent of being a criminal) and it didn’t matter because his music was just that good! Bad is an incredible, era defining album. Music that everyone enjoys and knows the words to. The production is crisp and beautifully crafted, every synthetic sound is perfectly constructed. The only reason I don’t think it is a 5 is because I’m saving that rating for Thriller. 4.5⭐️
Several big hits but also some misses. Great production
Yeah, the clue here is in the title … Everything about this is so affected and dated, and it’s just so boring and bland. The high-gated drums. The horrid synth bass. The syrupy over-production. Jackson ticking ‘ooh’, or ‘hee’, or ‘cha’, or ‘chamone’, or ending every word with an extraneous ‘-ah’. Everything just comes together in one horrible cloying glop like a really unpleasant dog-egg that has worked its way into the tread of your boot and leaves its subtle perfume everywhere. Says a lot when I give an album a roasting and don’t mention that the artist was likely a paedo. Hee-hee! Cha! OW!
A great album. So many good songs and a bunch of great ones. That signature rolling bass sound. Smooth Criminal is maybe one of the best records ever put down. A couple of weak songs, but they are quickly overshadowed by the greatest songs on this album.
and the dances!
Not my cup of tea, but a lot of classic tracks.
Great album
The hits are massive but the middle third of this record is forgettable. Also, it's pop. So there is a limit to how high I can rate this thing.
Pretty good. Dome real smashes, but also some stinkers
This shit didn’t age well. MJ knew it would be hard to top “Thriller”, so he didn’t. You can’t dance to any of it, and the beats and lyrics are so soft. Your butt is mine, indeed.
Probably the most critic baiting album title ever. Actually I always found weird Al yankovic’s parody cover ‘even worse’ funny. Yes MJ is problematic. Yes this isn’t as good as thriller which wasn’t as good an album as off the wall. But there’s groove funk and pop. He was king of pop for a reason. Even his third best album is great.
Somewhere, Michael Jackson evolved from the exuberant, multi-talented child through confident and charismatic disco superstar into a disfigured, drug addicted, child-molesting ambition-monster. And I rate this album as the point at which that final stage started to rear its ugly head and become publicly visible. It is always an interesting question of when an artist's personal behaviour makes it impossible to accept the art. And Michael Jackson is a really interesting case, because the 12-year-old who sang those early Jackson 5 singles is not the same person as the 50-year-old man who died, drug addicted, mangled by plastic surgery and reclusive, twisted by an abusive parent, fame, money and ambition. I absolutely believe the accusations of child sexual abuse, although I know many people struggle with that. By the time Bad was released, there were enough stories of Jackson's behaviour that much of his album just doesn't ring true. I don't believe that Jackson was capable of having a normal romantic relationship, so all the love songs seem fake. I don't believe that his care for children was entirely altruistic, which makes those songs very uncomfortable. I find his singing of dealing with 'The Man in the Mirror' sadly ironic, because Michael Jackson clearly could not accept himself as he was. And that's the first big strike against this album; pop music needs to be credible, you have to believe the singer, and I just don't. I also hate the way this record sounds. The crispy digital perfection is just soulless and abrasive sounded to my ears. It has dated like warm milk, and the middling tunes are peppered with Jackson's idiosyncratic vocal affectations (shamone, heeeheee) that get more annoying with time. Everything is so cleaned and polished and quantized that smooths off every rough edge and any semblance of swing. There is none of the disco strut and swagger that was all over Off the Wall and (to a lesser degree) on Thriller (which I also think is a middling record) or the exuberant child of 'I Want You Back' (which is the greatest pop single of all time in my opinion). I know there were 9 singles from the record, including 5 US number ones, but ubiquity is not the same as worth. The songs just aren't that great. Jackson had ambitions to be the biggest act in the world, and he arguably accomplished his goal around the release of this record, but at such personal cost that it eventually killed him. And not without causing significant collateral damage to many people in the orbit of his fame. Two stars is the best I can muster.
i'm bad!!!
Shame about the molest
Mid
Putting aside the Michael Jackson of it all, this album is brilliant. I actually think it’s better than Thriller in most respects. Quincy Jones’ production is a standout, and there isn’t a weak track. “Bad” is such a great way to open the album, but I probably would have picked “Smooth Criminal” to end it rather than “Leave Me Alone.” This is MJ’s most mature, standout album.
This was one of the first albums I remember as a child. My mum and dad had the LP and I used to play it loads. I had forgotten most of the songs, but it wasn't as good as I remember it being.
Favorite Track: Man in the Mirror
So many great hits. Understandable why this album is on the list.
Whatever you can say about about Michael Jackson the person it's hard to claim this is a bad album. Suffered from having to follow up Thriller but still a great album
If it wasn’t for the atrocious ballad track, this could have been a 5-star pop classic, but that song just drags the album down.
Great pop album. Stands the test of time
Fav song: Speed Demon/Man In The Mirror The vocal stacks on Liberian Girl are sooooo amazing for the time period. Michael Jackson’s sound is SO iconic - in part due to the production from Quincy Jones. I felt like some of the more ballad style tracks pulled the momentum of this album as a whole work of art though. But man. The singles on this album are insanely powerful and well written.
Artiste connu et détesté, impossible d'y échapper à l'époque, le matraquage était insupportable. Dans l'album 'Thriller' le morceau 'Beat it' était plutôt sympa avec son riff et solo de guitare mémorable. Ici rien ne sauve l'album de la note minimale, même pas 'Dirty Diana' et sa guitare électrique malheureusement noyée dans les synthés. =>1/5
bangers all over this album
Bit of a mess, clearly influential on late 80s and early 90s US boy bands but despite all the massive hype at the time, and standouts like Smooth Criminal - there’s definitely a start of a decline here
Bad is a great record with a bunch of classic pop hits, but not MJs best overall album. Much like Thriller, this album feels a lot like a collection of hits more than a cohesive album. Still a fun listen tho
The thing I love most about Michael Jackson is his discipline. His songs are so tight and controlled. He is, indeed, bad. My favorite tune from him, not on this album, Billy Jean.
It's MJ's 2nd biggest album...this was designed to be a blockbuster. It's surprisingly "back-loaded" with hits. Highlights: "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror", "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", "Dirty Diana", "Smooth Criminal"
I don't enjoy most of this album. I hate MJ's voice. Most of the production is the purest and stinkiest '80s cheese. Its influence is responsible for an onslaught of falsetto'd bad boys (e.g. Timberlake, Chris Brown, The Weeknd) who've never bested Michael's appeal. But "Smooth Criminal" is an all-time heater and, for better or worse, Bad is his magnum opus. It's the first record of Michael's to feel like it's coming from the perspective of a living person with problems as opposed to several micromanagers in a trenchcoat, which adds a layer of interest on top of the raw talent and earworms that've always been there.
A bit too iconic and prolific with some of the hits on this album to rate below 4. I'd give it a high 3, rounded up. Some pretty solid tunes among the more popular hits that I already knew. lots of hee hee
this album is bad 👍
The michael
A must have. Great Hits
Some excellent singles and a few hidden gems, but ultimately fairly straightforward. Great singing, but the musicianship was over produced
Duh
Minus a star for Speed Demon through Another Part of Me. Those are terrible to meh at best. The rest are generally amazing.
Is there a better jam than Man in the Mirror??? ooof. What a legend. Solid record.
I've heard all of Michael Jackson's hits a million times, but I've never heard them through good headphones until this project. Bad is my 3rd album of his, and I feel like I'm discovering his music for the first time, which is really cool. This is a fantastic album.
Not bad.
I'm rating the music, not the man, and for me, this is a five-star album.
For some reason I can’t imagine listening some of these songs just for fun, maybe because they are also well known and overplayed. The album itself was fine, the hits were good and most of the other songs were decent.
I love Michael Jackson. Also my mom loves Michael Jackson and he’s like the only non Indian music she ever acknowledges.
9/10 - Michael Jackson goes hard. A lot of good songs. I watched the we invited the wrong MJ video again and I did not know where "Give it to me" and "give me some time" were from but the jokes have become so much funnier. I also have distinct memories of elementary school listening to man in the mirror so it just brings me back. The hits are great the rest are fine.
All time great pop album, lots of classic songs, no real complaints
A belter. The new Michael Jackson - very different from Off the Wall and Thriller, which were more R&B-ish. This is more pop, it works, and it works very well!
Very 80s. I struggle with that. The dated production. Lots of great songs to sweeten the deal. It's not as good as Thriller (not a lot is). But then Jackson's charisma is off the scale throughout. It's giving me mixed emotions.
This will be one of the albums that will forever define a generation. Michael made everything cool before he got strange. The album itself hovers around in the pop genre and then dips it’s toes in a lighter rock sound at times and then goes back. What am I doing really? No one taking part in this 1000 album quest has NOT heard this album before. I’m done
Over produced, and many of the songs are pretty basic.
There are some classic MJ tracks to found here. It’s not Thriller, but it’s got some solid production and bangers for sure.
It's bad.
Not his best but still good Jacko
not one of my fav michael jackson albums. it's the first time i listen to this entire thing in order & i rly can't say any of the tracks on this stick with me... which i am a bit disappointed by. definitely not one i'll return to voluntarily i think
Freaking love this album. I’m a huge Michael Jackson fan and have played it over and over. Probably my 3rd fav from him. Another Part of Me is my favorite! As a fan of everything rnb and rock/metal (odd mix I know but my two fav genres). Dirty Diana is so up my alley and is my 2nd fav after APOM. Liberian is so chill and sexy. What a r&b jam. Such a vibe. Leave Me Alone is a hell of a message to the press. I just love this record through and through. I think it was such a statement for the mighty Michael Jackson. Especially coming off of Thriller being huge and trying to meet expectations.
I've never heard the album before. Lots of big hits, this album was hugely successful. For me this album doesn't touch Thriller's greatness, and just seems like a guy copying past success.
The singles are familiar and of a fairly high quality but the album tracks don't really do much for me.
peak mj, nuff said
Undeniable pop greatness. Not as many highs or as consistent as Thriller so I'll give it a 4 just for some texture but could easily be a 5.
Just a classic innit
Great hits :)
One of the best albums of all time, and definitely MJ’s greatest work. Every single song is a hit. This is glorious. Get it, listen, love it forever.
Smooth Criminal is still kind of a cool song, but the whole thing sounds so weak. So many synths and drum machines. I just don't feel like it holds up at all.
3.5
Just proves you can fool a lot of people some of the time.
you've been hit by you've been struck by truck
Alright, I’m going to be separating art from artist for this project. I’ve already done it! I’ve liked music by some pretty awful people! And Michael simply released some of the most popular music of all time during this era! It should be listened to and appreciated on its own! And of course it’s great! Probably not as good as Thriller. You could point out some points where it’s probably over-produced, and like any star who gets to indulge himself, the numbers start to get long and indulgent. And there’s some songs that simply aren’t as strong in the middle…..but then you get to “Dirty Diana,” and yeah, I could be convinced that’s the greatest song of all time.
Its not bad its good, kinda weird how songs sound on the album compared to their single versions. Anyway smooth criminal is the best song ever
Great album, several bangers, and not overly long. What can I say, Michael Jackson knows how to make a good pop song. He's not enough to my taste to get a 5 star rating though
There's some absolute belters on this album isn't there. Genuinely breathtaking. Brought me back to being a kid and discovering music in the early 90s. In recent years had a hard time listening for obvious conflicting reasons, but you can't deny it. This is solid.
I listened to this album as I was reading, as opposed to the other albums. I personally don't enjoy MJ's voice. Maybe its cause I didn't grow up with MJ. But this album didn't really do it for me.
a classic Glee did Smooth Criminal better not a bad song
How did I never realize the beginning of Bad was the song used in all those TikTok sports edits lmao. I can recognize why people like this but it just really isn’t for me. Meh.
I have very mixed feelings about this album. On one hand there are some excellent songs, “the Way You Make Me Feel” is incredibly catchy, the vocal melodies are delightful, and the whole song is written so exceptionally well. “Smooth Criminal” is a classic by every definition(ignoring the fact that Alien Ant Farm covered it and did a way better job). Michael Jackson was such an incredibly talented artist, there’s a reason he was literally the most popular musician on the planet at one point. But on the other hand most of this record just feels really dated. A lot of brutally 80’s synths and drum samples that were rightfully left in that decade. It just feels old, and not in any sort of timeless way. The singles stand out, the rest of the album suffers, I think. I’m glad I had an excuse to dig this record out of my collection of LP’s. 3.5*
There are some songs that have been so incredibly popular for your entire life that you kinda take them for granted and fail to hear them for what they are. There are several such songs on ‘Bad’, which I hadn’t realized until listening to it today. What struck me the most about this record, including the super-smash hits I already knew, was that it is incredibly funky. There are a lot of unexpected and truly delightful grooves here, especially from the keyboards. Also unexpected and delightful was the vocal feature from Stevie Wonder. I had never heard “Speed Demon” or “Liberian Girl” before and really enjoyed them. I thought “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” and “Dirty Diana” were kind of meh, but as a whole I found this to be a really enjoyable listen. It’s easy to understand why the entire world lost their minds for MJ. 8/10
Who's bad? Gotta love Michael Jackson, and Bad is good. What can I say about MJ? The pop, the synth, the VOICE. No bad song on the album, and several total bangers. The Way You Make Me Feel, Man In The Mirror, and Smooth Criminal. Annie, and anyone else hearing this, is more than ok. Love it. Best song: Man In The Mirror
- In meinen Augen hat Michael Jackson in den 80ern back-to-back die beiden besten Pop Alben der Musikgeschichte rausgebracht: Thriller und Bad. (Note: ich rede von reinen Pop Alben, die Beatles rechne ich insofern nicht dazu) - Die Hitdichte auf beiden Alben ist insane - Alles super groovy - Einflüsse von R&B, Disco, Funk, Soul sogar ganz bisschen Rock - Textlich teils auch politisch - 1000x gehört die Platte, bin halt sehr stark mit MJs Mucke aufgewachsen - Man kann sagen was man will, aber es ist einfach anders, als alles andere, weil es eine krass eigene Handschrift hat. - Liebe das Album und bekomme immer gute Laune (eigentlich fast egal welches Album) Rating: 5/5
- Thriller habe ich damals aus versehen statt einer 2/5 eine 1/5 gegeben, das gefiel mir (bis auf die Hits, die waren okay) nicht so richtig gut - generell bin ich einfach kein Fan von seinem Sound und seiner Stimme, klickt bei mir einfach nicht
Technically good but to be honest his stuff never really grabbed me
Such an important album. I mean: 35 million copies sold, etc. On one hand some of these songs are so overplayed that I didn't have a huge desire to hear them again. On the other hand, I'm impressed that while other 80's album now sound stale (e.g. the beats on that recent Prince album), this album still sounds reasonably fresh. That's commendable.
Fully expect this to be a 4 or 5 star album drug down by all the creepy personal details that came out about Jackson later. But really it's like 3 (4 if I feel generous) great singles, surrounded by a bunch of other, dated music that ranges from forgettable to cringey.
It's pretty much impossible to separate the person from the music - which were becoming increasingly intertwined even at the time, as evidenced by the existence of 'Leave Me Alone,' which was explicitly focused on all the tabloid noise about Michael's weirdness. Even if I were to succeed in doing that, like Prince's Sign of the Times, this feels like a retread of better ideas in a lot of ways (Bad & Beat It, Dirty Diana & Billie Jean [tho, admittedly, Diana is much more of a rock song]). The deep cuts are...not good to say the least (Speed Demon, Liberian Girl, Just Good Friends) - and while the album was admittedly huge, it's hard not to remember that NWA's Straight Outta Compton came out a year later making the try-hard affectation of 'Bad' even more cringe-worthy than it kind of already was at the time. I bobbed my head to a few songs. I admire the influence he had over others (Usher, the Weekend, Alien Ant Farm). But he destroyed lives with his abuse - and pretty much got away with it because even if people side-eyed how weird he was at the time, I guess it's too hard to admit you're enjoying a child molester's music? So it's easier to tell yourself it's not true. Or it didn't matter. Or something.
Lots of hits....not cup of tea Very 80s and not very authentic sounding now Smooth Criminal is a bit of fun
outstanding not aged still sounds up to date
A great album, no doubt, but I genuinely hate the synth bass sound that dominates the album. As a bass player I'm definitely biased though. The lyrics kinda suck too. Dirty Diana come across as a pretty misogynistic song, and MJ generally just sounds like a massive sook throughout the whole album. Still, can't rate it lower than 4 stars with a clear conscience.
Amazing! 5/5
Heard this so many times when it came out, I even know what the sound the next song will start with. Dirty Diana has always been my favourite MJ tune.
Bad 3.8 The Way You Make Me Feel 3.4 Speed Demon 2.8 Liberian Girl 3 Just Good Friends 2.9 Another Part of Me 3 Man in the Mirror 3 I Just Can't Stop Loving You 3.1 Dirty Diana 3.2 Smooth Criminal 4 Leave Me Alone 2.8 Score: 3.181818182
While it doesn't reach the consistent smash-hit-rate excellence of Thriller nor the sheer fun factor of Off The Wall, Bad's heights on tracks like "The Way You Make Me Feel" and "Smooth Criminal" are notable.
classic album, banger after banger.
Smooth Criminal is such a good song
Great pop singer. Great music. Died way to young.
The King of Paedos
Classic. I like the popular hits but the other songs sound a bit repetive but thats just me. No wonder he was so popular.
HeeHee
de singles zijn OK, rest is absoluut bagger... en dan laat ik MJ persoonlijke voorkeur nog buiten beschouwing
Shamone! Doesn't quite hit the heights of Thriller for me, but a decent album. Slightly too soppy for me to give the full 5 stars
Hee-hee! Wooooohooooo! Owwwww!
In the five years after Thriller, Michael Jackson stayed remarkably busy. He toured relentlessly, joined the Jacksons for the Victory Tour, and released a slew of revolutionary music videos. Even the cheesy but well-intentioned global charity anthem "We Are the World" was a success. The question loomed: how do you follow Thriller, the best-selling album of all time and a cultural juggernaut? When Bad arrived in 1987, it answered decisively. Boasting five #1 singles, a #1 debut on the Billboard 200, and a suite of iconic music videos, Jackson solidified his reign as the King of Pop. While it didn’t surpass Thriller in sales, Bad was no less ambitious. Jackson reportedly wrote over 60 songs for the project, refining the final tracklist into a polished collection of 11. Tracks like the defiant title track, the optimistic "Man in the Mirror", the anthemic "Dirty Diana", and the swaggering "Smooth Criminal" stand out with dynamic production and powerful delivery. The Bad persona and tough-guy posturing was an amusing pivot for Jackson, whose squeaky-clean image made his claims of being "bad" seem almost laughable—though later revelations about his life would complicate this perception. But fans didn’t come to MJ for the lyrics. You listen to Bad for Jackson’s astonishing vocals, Quincy Jones’s impeccable production, and the top-tier musicianship. The layered harmonies and meticulously crafted overdubs—achieved without modern tools—are a technical marvel. The album is also remembered for its groundbreaking music videos. Each was a spectacle of choreography and storytelling, with directors like Martin Scorsese and Spike Lee behind the camera. For some reason, the video for "Liberian Girl" sticks out in my mind. It features a parade of 1980s celebrities—including Steven Spielberg, Whoopi Goldberg, John Travolta, and Quincy Jones—patiently waiting on the set for Jackson to appear. It’s a reminder of Jackson’s unparalleled influence at the time—only he could command this level of star power. Is Bad better than Thriller? It’s a matter of opinion. Thriller is a one-of-a-kind and has unmatched cultural gravity, while Bad is arguably more consistent (and doesn’t feature a subpar Paul McCartney collaboration). Did/Do I own this release? On cassette. Does this release belong on the list? Few artists in history have matched Jackson’s extraordinary streak from 1979’s Off the Wall to Bad. Would this release make my personal list? The bangers-to-tracks ratio says yes. Will I be listening to it again? Jackson remains a prime example of separating art from the artist.
jam packed pop album. Of the two albums I've listened to by Michael Jackson for this project (Bad and Off The Wall), this one had more schmoopy, wholly unbelievable ballads.
The hits are the hits, but the rest are definitely not hits
Liberian Girl should have just been recorded directly onto a cassette tape to be handed to the Liberian girl in question. That aside, it's incredible how many banger singles are on this album and they do a lot of work to hold up the little bit of filler.
if you have to follow up “thriller,” you could do worse than “bad.” banger.
I think the fact that Jackson has been deceased for quite a while now makes it easier to separate the art from the artist and appreciate his music. Bad came out when I was very young and it stands out to me as an iconic, decade-defining album from its time. Incredible singles here - including "Bad," "Man in the Mirror," and "Smooth Criminal."
Well, it's not Thriller. I like the Stevie Wonder song. It's a good counterpoise to the tough guy songs that follow the overall theme of the record.
MJ completes his transition from disco-inspired beats to rock-tinged pop, replacing much of his live instrumentation with guitar, drum machines and synthesizers. Tracks 3-6 really bog down the record as a whole. It’s odd to say that a collaboration between MJ and Stevie Wonder resulted in a filler track, but that’s exactly what happened with Just Good Friends. Luckily, the top and bottom of the album are filled with true all-time great bangers.
yee hee
Qué hombre
shamouna
It was, indeed, bad.
#82 - Another fantastic album, full of bangers from start to bottom. MJ is solidly one of the best pop musicians and writers ever. At the same time I'm not sure there was a cohesion to the album (other than a playlist of MJ bangers).
Good but prefer Thriller
I get it. This is M effing J. Retrospectively, eminently talented and prolific in the realm of joy affirming mainstream music. His whole life he was awash in intrinsic talent and fortuitous songwriting and production partnerships. However, this record seems like it took a detour down a slightly less brilliant alleyway. Yet another record I never actually listened to, although already familiar with most of it from MTV and such. Oh, and thanks to Weird Al. The songs aren't cohesive and lack some of the electrical charge. Just speculating that the ascent to King of Pop went to his head.
There are truly some bangers on this album - Bad, The Way You Make Me Feel, Smooth Criminal. But for me as an album, I think it’s alright.
Classic! This was in my library, although I don't listen to it often it is a masterpiece.
This album is alright, a bit dated and cheesy today. It reeks of the simultaneously great and terrible 80s. Unfortunately, this album is closer to the terrible side. "Dirty Diana" was my favourite off "Bad". The few decent tracks don't save this album. 2 stars for "Bad".
I liked how diversifies the styles were. Solid Album
Off The Wall and Thriller are the most important albums from Michael Jackson but this was a fun one when it came out of course. Plenty of bops on this album. I think the only thing that pulls it down a notch for me is the late 80’s synth and drum selection. Other than it’s a classic. 4.5
Nothing needs to be said about this album. It's a 5.
Not much I can say about this other than it was era-defining pop music for good reason. It's chock full of hits, and although I can't possibly listen to it with fresh ears today, for me, it still holds up. I give it four shamones and a hee-hee.
One of the best pop albums ever put together. RIP Quincy Jones. I feel like you hear his influence right at the beginning of 'Bad'. Real music theory nerds would know the technicality, but I think that is some sort of jazz arpeggio with those first 5 notes. There's also all sorts of ear candy all over the album. With very few exceptions, everything is in the right place on this album. Rhythm tracks, instrumentation, counter melodies, backing vocals, song structure, musicianship (I think those are 32nd notes on the tale end of the Speed Demon chorus??). Jones and Jackson were at the top of their game. I listened to a Charli XCX performance the same day as this album and it reminded me that Jackson is simply on some other planet talent wise than so many other pop stars. A once in a generation talent. At the same time if we are honest, his personal life was pretty troubled and tragic. This album is indeed edgier than what Jackson had done before. A lot of his singing on this album is aggressive, angry and done through clenched teeth. The man seemed to be channeling some personal rage. You really hear it on Speed Demon and Smooth Criminal. Shout to 'Leave Me Alone' with an Afro Beat/Fela Kuti type rhythm through out the whole track and Michael putting on an absolute fucking clinic on vocal phrasing, time feel/signature changes and I'm pretty sure the words 'Leave Me Alone' are sung in a 'round'. Bravo to the kid from Gary, Indiana.
The guy was screwed up eight ways to Sunday psychologically, but man, he could write hit songs and sing. His voice on "Man in the Mirror" is just amazing.
Classic album, classic Michael. Absolute 10/10 popular music. Released the year Kirsty (ma kind of part-time girlfriend but not) was born x
Man in the mirror is one of my all-time favs I only had one glove in work yesterday and now I know why...it was MJ time. Left the kids in cupboard though.
"Bad" is the seventh studio album and the follow-up to "Thriller" by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It was third and final collaboration with Quincy Jones. Jackson wanted an edgier image and tried to incorporate musical styles of rock, pop, funk, R&B, dance and soul. His lyrical themes included media bias, paranoia, racial profiling, romance, self improvement and world peace. Jackson wrote all but two of the songs. Commercially, it was a massive success hitting #1 in the US and UK and in 24 countries overall. It was also critically well-received for Jackson's vocals and the polished production. A horn and an electronic bass and drums begin the album on "Bad." Jackson's vocals are low. This is a little edgier. The synth lightens it up a bit. A keyboard jam. Supposedly, it was inspired by an article written about a boy from the ghetto who goes away to school, comes back and is killed. I didn't hear that much of an edge to it. "The Way You Make Me Feel" starts off with a repetitive and hypnotic beat. Lots of shrieks from Jackson. A very catchy chorus and nice horn arrangements. One of Jackson's best songs. One of the two songs Jackson didn't write but he may have put his best performance on is "Man in the Mirror." High synth keys and fingersnaps. Layered vocals leading to gospel choir backing vocals. Jackson's vocals build as he has to make a change from the man he sees. "Dirty Diana" starts dark with the synth and various noises. Steve Stephens on guitar with various slashes and riffs throughout. Diana is a groupie and things happen after the concert ends. It's hard to listen to "Smooth Criminal" and not hear the Alien Ant Farm version. A very catching synth melody and beat. Great guitar by David Williams. Another darker song that works. Annie is attacked by a smooth criminal. Is she OK? Is she walking?One of my favorite Jackson songs. It's hard to imagine an album today releasing 10 of its 11 songs as singles unless your name is Taylor. Well, most of these songs do work. Jackson does cover a fair bit of ground lyrically and stylistically too. Very high production by Jones. There are a few songs stuck in the 80's and some don't work (hey there Stevie Wonder). Great use of the electronic synth for melody and the beats and, also, the horn and vocal arrangements. It may not have the high points of "Thriller" or "Off the Wall," but it's a very solid pop album.
The title is misleading because the album is actually good. Just glad I could seperate the art from the artist.
Please see Facebook review
Not Thriller level, but amazing nonetheless.
This album wasn't bad, but besides the hits I couldn't keep myself very interested.
🐐
I can totally see how MJ took the world by storm when these albums first came out. They're still good today but back then they must have been absolutely incredible to hear the first time.
Awesom
Качает
One of the greatest albums on earth - absolutly
Its good that his singing performance is so amazing because I don't think the music behind has aged well. The backing track has a sparse early digital era sound that reminds me of a karaoke backing track or MIDI. It gets a bit more lush towards the end of the album though.
Naja Michael ist nicht mein großer Liebling - aber Respekt vor einem derartigen Feuerwerk an Hits muss sein. Michael diese Songs werden noch in 100 Jahren gespielt werden. "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", "Bad“, "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Dirty Diana", "Smooth Criminal", "Liberian Girl" sind einfach schön zu hören. Auch die anderen Songs sind exzellent in das Gesamtwerk arrangiert. Es hat überraschend viel Spaß gemacht das Album durchzuhören😊.
Favourite tracks: leave me alone; smooth criminal; dirty Diana; another part of me; the way you make me feel; bad; man in the mirror
This was my favorite album growing up. I was so obsessed as a kid that I wanted to buy the cassette that I begged my parents for months, years even. Although it has not lost its iconic luster, it’s more musically and lyrically uneven than I recalled. Also the bad boy persona MJ is aiming to embody feels quite dated and borderline embarrassing. To some ears the instrumental palate will sound like a step back more than a step forward. Next to funk, rock-infused poppy and memorable tracks (“Bad”, “The way you make me feel”, “Another part of me”, “Dirty Diana” and “Smooth criminal”, “Leave me alone”) there are some forgettable songs in here. “Speed demon” is simply pop fluff. “Just good friends” is better than people make it to be. It has some refreshing chords between verse and chorus and in the bridge, but it misses an opportunity to do something more especial with Stevie Wonder. There are some bright spots unfairly assessed at the time. “Liberian Girl” has a lovely melody (same thing can be said of the verse “I just can’t stop loving you”). I don’t understand the hate. The verse of has a nice melodic flow. “Man in the mirror” is a jewel. Despite MJ’s vocal excesses it is such a lovely song. I keep coming to it and still feel the same emotions. Same could be said of “The way you make me feel”. Great groove (despite some questionable shallow sexist tropes in the lyrics: “Oh, I'll be workin' from nine to five / To buy you things to keep you by my side.” The 25th anniversary edition has some interesting additional tracks. “Fly Away” would have been a nice substitute to “Speed demon”. There are curious versions in Spanish (translated by no other than master of salsa Ruben Blades) and in French, and even a weird remix of “Bad” with the collaboration of Pitbull.
If only I could think of a pithy, one word review for this album Bad.
居然有情景剧mv？好厉害。知道这个歌手很有名，但没想到他是这种声音。 每次都能带给我新的上世纪流行乐震撼……
I know he’s MJ and I know he’s good but this album wasn’t my favorite. The lead songs are good and Mj is such a fantastic singer that it almost doesn’t matter.
Quite the opposite of the album name.
I like his older records better. This one sounds like cheap keyboards. Too robotic. The best songs are towards the end. I thought maybe it took some time to get into it, so I started over. Same. I remember it was huge when it was new. I didn't like it then. I'm still not a fan. Favorite song: man in the mirror.
I had this on 12 inch when I was 9 and listened to it almost constantly. It totally loses its focus after those first two tracks, and his sister Janet's output is far more interesting, but it's so emblematic of that particular time and place, that aesthetic.
Even more of a singles compilation than Thriller is. I prefer it over Thriller, even though it doesn't have anything to top the fantastic trio of songs on there. Bad is good, The way you make me feel is bad. Speed Demon has one of the coolest baselines known to man. Dirty Diana, Smooth Criminal and Leave Me Alone are all classic tracks, the rest in between could be stolen. Overall somewhere in the middle.
Very good album, knocked off a star because he's a diddler.
Another classic.
It has the tunes, the voice, the synth but like before I refuse to give any musical nonces more than 3* with the exception of Townshend... And possibly glitter
The hee-hee is undeniably the greatest gimmick in music history
Still not a huge Michael Jackson fan, though this wasn't "bad".
MJ's sound in this album is so iconic that if you took his voice out, I think the music is still clearly recognizable. Holy shit. Man in the Mirror straight fucks. Like, I knew going into listening to the album that it was probably going to be my favorite song. But I always forget just how great this song is. An insanely good album. Some of the songs are kind of forgettable, but the hits go so hard that they quickly make up for it. These songs don't measure up to Man in the Mirror imo, but deserve a shoutout: Bad, Speed Demon, Liberian Girl, Smooth Criminal. Favorite Song (far and away): Man in the Mirror
Not really my vibe, especially Michael's backgroud history. Songs i could listen again: Dirty Diana Smooth Criminal Liberian Girl
Sad iteration on 80’s pop. High pitched screechy voice.
Gewoon goed. Heel erg 80's. Leuke synthbas partijen
I always had problems with Michael Jackson. There was a lot of hype about him in my day. I always found his attitude a bit annoying. It got really gross and tacky when the subject of his desire to have children came up - barf -, this strange marriage with little Presley, which seemed like a fig leaf to cover his true desires - gag - and this rather creepy Neverland Farm. In the end, Jackson (also optical) almost seemed like a horror clown. The Earth Song was really disgusting, when the multimillionaire dances through the tidy streets of a favela with the objects of his desire and sings about the misery of the world. So I find Michael Jackson disgusting and I could never really get into his music. I always found his sharp cries annoying when he grabbed his balls while dancing. The squealing is also used a lot on this album. I like to switch off the radio from time to time. I really tried to listen to the whole album. At "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" it was over. I couldn't take it anymore. The best thing about the title song "Bad" is the parody "Fat" by Weird Al Yankovic. I really had fun with that. I only just found out that Jackson gave Yankovic permission to produce the parody and use the same setting. I wouldn't have believed him capable of so much humor. But maybe there was something else behind it. I suspect that "Fat" has also boosted sales of "Bad" again. Conclusion: For me, Bad is an unjustly hyped album that I definitely switch off the radio when it is played. 1/5
mj really was just that guy
I forgot how great this was. It would have been perfect without speed demon and librarian girl. All other songs are hit after hit after hit. But the most impresive thing about the album is the progression and storytelling, common theme in songs (except librarian girl) with tying intros and outros. Its simply a maseterpiece that everyone should enjoy. Probably top 10-15 album in history of recorded music.
Honestly, Weird Al Yankovic has a better version of the incredibly well known song Bad, these lyrics are quieter and the high pitched background singing felt pretty goofy when faced with the idea of the song. But then, The Way You Make Me Feel fits Jackson’s image better. As well as the high pitched background singers. But then the album just repeats unnecessarily like Jackson had an extra minute or so, and gives me an idea of what most of the rest of the album is like. Most of it absolutely sucks. This album made me realize Michael Jackson isn’t so great a musician. Some of it’s good, but he fails with consistency on such a level. Maybe he’s just figuring it out, but this album is not great.
Excellent album
The King of Pop closes out the 80s with one of his best. A true picture of the sound of the times.
I mean, it’s Michael Jackson, yeah?
Good
very nice
Klasse Album, viele gute Banger drauf. Knapp vor 5 Sterne für mich.
One of my all time favorites, from start to finish- no notes (speed demon can go though)
It's "Bad", it's good
I realize it’s an unpopular opinion, but I just don’t like Michael Jackson’s music. None of it. Not then, and not now. And, quite frankly, the “hee-hee’s” and “ow’s” get really old really fast. This album 100% deserves to be on this list for its importance to popular music, but I wasn’t happy when it finally popped up because I just didn’t want to listen to it.
Favourite songs: Smooth Criminal, Bad, Man in the Mirror, Dirty Diana, The Way You Make Me Feel, Leave Me Alone, I Just Can't Stop Loving You Least favourite songs: Liberian Girl 5/5
Lots of hits, but not really my favourite artist
Ohh yessss. Dirty Diana goes so hard and then is followed by Smooth Criminal. You can’t fault it.
Fine album. Some hits that have stood the test of time but overall I thought the album was decent.
So. Goddamn. Cheesy. If were to distil the essence of the 80s, you'd get this album and a jar of hair gel. There are only (hehe) a couple of standout songs that (da) you'd remember. The others aren't (ow) terrible, mostly, but I'm (ah) so sick of drum machines (shamwow) 2.5/5
If there ever was a case where I have to separate the man from the art, this would be one. This is not a preferred genre for me but there is no denying MJ’s stamp on the music industry. This record is no exception, several mainstream hits here and future influences/sampling. One thing is for sure, I am quite confident that Annie is NOT ok. I think Thriller has to be a full tick up from this so rounding down. 4,25
I forgot how synth-driven this was. And while I prefer Off The Wall and Thriller wayyyy more, it’s hard to argue against a top rating for this given the strength and number of singles, not to mention its legacy alone. I was not a fan of Liberian Girl and honestly the production is a bit dated and cheesy sounding. But not enough to move the needle downward. Does it speak to the level of cheesy 80s because I remember Weird Al’s parody (“Fat”) more than the actual? Hard to say. Shamm-on, Ham-on, ham on whole wheat, alright!
This is a 4.5 for me and I’ve debated to round up or down. Bad, The Way You Make Me Feel, Speed Demon (with that crazy ass video), Man in the Mirror, Dirty Diana and Smooth Criminal are all amazing. Liberian Girl I can prob do without and a couple others are just okay. Man, gotta go with the 5: - nostalgia value. I remember having this cassette and watching all the videos - speaking of the videos. Moonwalker is such a random ass acid trip…that I quite enjoy. Smooth Criminal alone is cemented in culture. - I’m shamefully ignoring all the other stuff around MJ and focusing on music and creativity. 😬
For me this is right up there with Thriller. Not as good, but still incredible. 4.5/5
Aged worse than I thought it did. Still a fair amount of bangers though. 3.5/5
Decent album. Some really good songs but not totally my vibe.
This popped up and my first thought was "oh, here's a 5 star album!" The first two songs are Bad and The Way You Make Me Feel - excellent! Both songs are toe tapping legends and we're well on the way to that 5 stars. But then...Oh boy. Speed Demon is just kind of weird, but still kind of bouncy and fine. But Liberian Girl is cringey af and Just Good Friends is gross 80s schlock. Another Part of Me is kind of catchy after you get past the early 80s sound effects. But then we're back to business! Man in the Mirror is amazing (even if it does sound a bit dated),Dirty Diana is still a pretty good time, and Smooth Criminal is still a banger. Overall, it sounds much more 80s than I remember. I'd give it a 3.5 but I'll bump it to a 4 because my brother-in-law was in the Smooth Criminal video.
Had a lot of the singles, and they were good. The rest kind of seemed like dated, low quality sample, pop music.
Michael Jackson, Like Madonna, is a consummate performer. But his works are also chronically overproduced and stylized in ways that to me make them seriously flawed. The music of this album covers a range of pop, rock, funk, and R&B. Michael is definitely presenting himself more aggressively and trying to make his voice more textured, but the end result is still just a kind of tin foil. It glistens but lacks depth and authenticity. Note that this is the same problem Mr. Rogers had when he recorded an album of covers of the Ramones.
obviously the singles are classics but this was middle of the road for me 3/5
4 - some bangers but it’s missing a lot in the filler tracks
Over-polished pop. Not for me.
Great beats and production, pure pop songs and a silk voice. There's not quite the stardust magic of Thriller, but it comes close. Less mechanics, and a little more soul would have helped. It's hard to listen to this now though, knowing what we know.
Iconic songs. Iconic album. Love love love.
Some classic M.J. Bad, Man in the Mirror, Smooth Criminal, those are some all timers. That said, it's getting a four just because, personally, it's not the kind of thing I really like to listen to that much. If I revisit this one in the future though I think I can see myself giving it a five. The Vibe: Honestly, MJ is a vibe of his own.
Music wise I want to give it more - just don’t want to perpetuate the horror
Not as good overall as Thriller but there are still some classic songs on here. Main issue is the overuse of his vocal ticks Shamone-heHeeeee etc Worth a 3.5
Shamone
This has aged like milk.
Groovy as hellll. A lot rockier than thriller but I really enjoyed it. Favorites: Smooth Criminal, I Just Can't Stop Loving You, Speed Demon
Have fond memories of this from my youth. Listening as an adult, it's beautifully produced and got some absolute bangers on there. I think this MAY even be better than thriller (don't @ me)
Every time I listen to a full MJ record I'm surpriseds by the number of dud tracks, like on this one Speed Demon is garbage, but I guess he was a hit single-based artist so it makes sense. Either way of course this album was great, the production was just something else entirely during this era of his music. Weird guy fun songs.
So so good. Feels a little edgier than Thriller.
It’s obviously impossible to triumph over Thriller. But I also think Off The Wall is a better record than Bad. Bad has too much of that late 80’s tech pop sugar coated sound on the tracks.
The King of Pop. That's it. That's the whole review. 5/5 ⭐️
The singles blow everything out of the water, perfect pop songs. The album tracks are much weaker and sound quite a bit more dated with the clanky production. Still a 4.5 just on the strength of the singles, especially Bad, the Way You Make Me Feel and Smooth Criminal. Leave me alone is probably my favourite album track.
Solid pop music
I was sure that this was an easy 5, but I have to admit that while the hits are absolute bangers, the in between songs are very average at best. This is an album that helped change music for a generation, but I'm not entirely convinced "Liberian Girl" played much of a part in driving that.
WOOOOOO!!!
It's not Off the Wall or Thriller, but it's still a very very good pre-crisis Michael Jackson album.
every hero becomes infallible eventually.
its ok
Amazingly done. Once in a lifetime talent.
# Playlist track - Smooth Criminal # Notes - Not the greatest, but enjoyable throughout. - "Bad" and "Smooth" criminal are enough to justify hearing to the whole thing, anyway. - The other tracks (with the exception of Liberian Girl, maybe?) are good. Nothing special. But they are perfectly executed and polished. - 4/5, recommend!
There are better albums by MJ. But for people my age, this album was IT when it came out. Everything that this album spawned, from the Weird Al parodies to Moonwalker. I have such conflicted feelings about this artist. But his importance to music is just so massive.
Como era de esperarse, el álbum cuenta con una producción increíble, ninguna de las canciones es mala y Michael brilla por completo con su talento. Siendo este mi primer álbum de su discografía, debo decir que no lo disfruté tanto como lo esperaba, pero me dejó deseoso de explorar su música a mayor profundidad.
There are not many albums where most of the songs are international hits. This one is certainly one of them. That is MJ in peak form.
Great album, full of great songs. Another one that I wouldn't put on by myself, but wouldn't object if someone else did.
Despite the albums name, this record is very good! So many bangers from "Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror", "Smooth Criminal"... Even the filler songs, if you want to call them that, provide a lot of context to the rest of the songs. I find that these songs allow the record to breathe and shows versatility in the ability to write both upbeat, dance tracks as well as sentimental tracks where both can be catchy and memorable. I loved this record. I listened to it twice before giving my rating and loved it both times. Every song has a quality to it that make me want to come back to it. Guitars, bass lines, synths, vocals, overall vibe, all on point for every song. 5/5
While I personally prefer Thriller or Off the Wall to Bad, it’s still a great album.
El rey del pop. 3 megahits. Vinilo.
Bad, The Way You Make Me Feel, Smooth Criminal, Man in the Mirror
I am not a huge MJ fan though I admit he has some very iconic tunes. I know most of this album already, I’m not gonna listen to this all the way through because I’m doing this challenge mainly to discover new music. I’ll review the songs I haven’t heard before. SPEED DEMON - I like the rapid percussion. It’s experimental. LIBERIAN GIRL - Wow! The transition from Speed Demon to this was magnificent. JUST GOOD FRIENDS - I don’t care ANOTHER PART OF ME - I also don’t care and I’m tired of the HEE HEE MAN IN THE MIRROR - repetitive 4/10 I like most of the singles, but Michael Jackson is so overplayed for me I would never just put on his music and listen to it… an undeniable classic, though, just not my cup of tea
Back in the day we just couldn't wait for the next video by this guy and there are a few very good ones off this album. It's kinda funny seeing this guy to and be "bad", but everything he put on MTV was gold. There was a rumor that Bad was suppose to be a duet with Prince. Prince declined because Michael would not remove the opening line, "Your butt is mine." Atta boy, Prince. This is a solid album with some very good tunes. Can't say this is Thriller, but what album is? Good tunes include Bad, The Way You Make Feel and I Can't Stop Loving You. My personal favorites are Man in the Mirror and Dirty Diana. Man in the Mirror is right up there with all time favorites. Great song. Something about Smooth Criminal annoys the shit out of me and pretty much the rest of the album was just OK. I can't wait to see the reviews as I'm guessing there's not going to be much of a middle ground for this guy. Musically, always been a fan and enjoy a lot of his music. Outside of music.....well, that's why I'm really curious to read some of the the reviews. This album doesn't quite get there like a few others, but this guy can sing. 3.5
Bad is a classic sequel. It's the same but just a little worse. I love Bad, don't get me wrong but it's no Thriller. It has two to three songs I find myself skipping more often than not. It still has the iconic sounds and melodies that MJ and Quincy Jones are best known for and some of MJ's biggest staples. It may be worse than Thriller but it's still a 5. Also I didn't know until I went looking for the vinyl a few years back that "Leave Me Alone" was a CD exclusive track...and one of my favorites on the album. :')
3 Probably Michael Jackson’s most overrated album. After two very strong dance pop albums, this is the point where I feel MJ’s music starts to get a bit cheesy. With the success of Beat It, it seems the guy wanted to continue in that general direction and rebrand himself as a bit of a bad boy, and I find the whole attempt at it incredibly corny. Are we really supposed to believe the little kid responsible for ABC is some kind of edgy tough guy now? (Well, I guess he was doing some pretty unspeakable, illegal things, but not really what I’m referring to). Whether it was his goal or not, nothing here really seems to match the energy of Beat It or has any sort of real edge to it, with the title track in particular having some of the most run-of-the-mill pop production and on the nose lyrics I’ve heard. Who’s bad? Show us, don’t just tell us, Michael. While not quite as egregious, songs like Speed Demon and Dirty Diana just feel like further attempts at proving his batitude that also fall mostly flat. And betwixt all of that, the album’s most wholesome song, Man in the Mirror, manages to come off equally as corny in the sense that it feels like too hard of an attempt to be a “change the world” type anthem. Especially knowing what we know about the guy now, the song seems incredibly ham-fisted. However, I realize that, at its core, MJ was just after another successful pop album, and he mostly succeeds in that regard. While it certainly pales in comparison to Thriller and Off the Wall, I have to admit that the production here is about as clean and catchy as this era of pop gets. And contained within all the layers of nacho cheese are actually two of the best songs MJ’s career - The Way You Make Me Feel and Smooth Criminal. The Way You Make Me Feel has a really enjoyable, groovy beat to it, one that reminds me of lot of Michael’s earlier work and serves as a reminder of what the guy does best. As for Smooth Criminal - look, for as much shit as I gave the whole “bad boy” schtick, he actually kind of pulls it off here. Despite having no guitar on the track, it’s about as close as we get to matching the badass energy of Beat It, and the “Annie, are you okay?” chorus is nothing short of iconic. However, at the risk of damaging the entire credibility of this review and possibly my musical opinions as a whole, I have to say I prefer the Alien Ant Farm cover - the song just works so well with a heavier, faster energy. This album certainly has its moments - enough for me to still rate decently - but in the grand cope of MJ’s catalog, this is an album I’m more likely to skip over than not.
Idk Michael Jackson kinda makes me cringe is that rude..
🕺
I actually like this album well like one song still not a big fan of MJ he tried to diss my boy em but it just backfired on himself so... 4/10
Can't go wrong with MJ
Packed with well known classics though the few songs I hadn't heard were nothing to write home about. Overall a good album, middle 3.
Very 80s and not for me. Highlight is Smooth Criminal, lowlight is Liberian Girl.
It's a decent album, if you can ignore everything else
Sure.