Baby Be Mine (Michael Jackson song)

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"Baby Be Mine"
Song by Michael Jackson
from the album Thriller
ReleasedNovember 30, 1982 (1982-11-30)
Genre
Songwriter(s) Rod Temperton
Producer(s) Quincy Jones

"Baby Be Mine" is a song written by Rod Temperton, produced by Quincy Jones and performed by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. [1] [2] It is included on the Thriller album by Jackson and along with "The Lady in My Life" is one of only two songs on the project to not be released as a single. [3] However, the song was the B-side of two of Jackson's singles: for the 1983 release of "Human Nature", as well as for "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", the lead single from Bad in 1987.

Contents

Background

In a conversation with publication Vulture that was later adapted into a Time retrospective on Thriller, producer Jones mentioned the record paid homage to jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. [4] Jones said that "Baby Be Mine" was "the best example of me trying to feed the musical principles of the past — I’m talking about bebop." [4] “Getting the young kids to hear bebop is what I’m talking about,” he said. “Jazz is at the top of the hierarchy of music because the musicians learned everything they could about music.” [4] [5] [6] Billboard described the song as "...upbeat, danceable and punctuated by twittering keyboards and punchy horn fills." [7]

Critical reception

In a 2016 retrospective for Billboard, writer Andrew Unterberger lauded the song (and Thriller′s other non-single, "The Lady in My Life") as "earn[ing] every bit of the real estate they command on the biggest nine-track album in history." [3] In a five-star retrospective review of Thriller, Slant Magazine lauded the song for being a "lush disco paradise." [8] On a Billboard 2022 ranked list of the entire album, the song placed eighth, with writer Chuck Arnold noting the record "shimmers with a soul-disco swag" before highlighting the "smooth, roller-skating groove that the late Heatwave honcho [also] brought to “Rock with You” on Off the Wall ." [9]

In a more negative review, Pitchfork thought the song caused the momentum built from opening track “Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'” to fade. "['Wanna Be Startin' Somethin’'] holds up for six minutes and two seconds, during which Jackson and Quincy Jones mix the tension of rock'n'roll with the rapture of disco and hit perfection. But then you get "Baby Be Mine"—one of the original tracks that wasn't a single—and the momentum fades: On the heels of "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'", it should maintain the temperature; instead, it goes nowhere, starts nothing." [10]

Personnel

Personnel as listed in the album's liner notes are: [11]

References

  1. ↑ Grimes, William (October 6, 2016). "Rod Temperton, Who Wrote 'Thriller' for Michael Jackson and 'Boogie Nights,' Dies". The New York Times.
  2. ↑ Brownfield, Troy (December 1, 2022). "Michael Jackson's Thriller by the Numbers". The Saturday Evening Post. Archived from the original on July 1, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
  3. 1 2 Unterberger, Andrew (October 5, 2016). "Rod Temperton's Underrated Legacy: Writing the Two Most Famous Un-Famous Songs Ever". Billboard.com . Archived from the original on March 10, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 Marchese, David (November 4, 2024). "Quincy Jones on the Secret Michael Jackson and the Problem With Modern Pop". Vulture. Archived from the original on February 10, 2025. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  5. ↑ Chow, Andrew R. (November 4, 2024). "How Quincy Jones Helped Make 'Thriller' The Biggest Album of All Time". TIME. Archived from the original on February 6, 2025. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Michael Jackson Remembered: The Tributes". Rolling Stone. June 25, 2014.
  7. ↑ Durchholz, Daniel (November 30, 2012). "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' At 30: Classic Track-By-Track Review". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 27, 2023. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  8. ↑ Henderson, Eric (October 18, 2003). "Review: Michael Jackson, 'Thriller'". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  9. ↑ Arnold, Chuck (November 30, 2022). "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' at 40: Every Song Ranked From Worst to Best". Billboard.
  10. ↑ Ewing, Tom. "Michael Jackson: Thriller: 25th Anniversary Edition". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 2025-01-24. Retrieved 2025-02-14.
  11. ↑ Thriller (booklet). Epic Records. 1982.
  12. ↑ Kreps, Daniel (February 4, 2018). "Ndugu Chancler, Drummer on Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean,' Dead at 65". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 17, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
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