Man In the Mirror

Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror” went to No.1 in the United States when it was released as a single in early 1988 off his seventh solo album “Bad”. Nominated for Record of the Year, this is one of Michael’s most critically acclaimed songs and was No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks.

Only a moderate hit in the UK when it was released, “Man In the Mirror” went to No.21 and became the only single from Michael’s “Bad” album not to reach the UK top 20 on first release. However, after Michael’s death on July 5, 2009, it went to No.2 on the official UK Singles Chart, having re-entered the chart at No.11 the previous week. It also went to No.1 in the Big Top 40 Show.

Siedah Garrett who can be heard singing in the background with Michael composed the song along with Glen Ballard. Michael added background vocals from Siedah, The Winans and the Andrae Crouch Choir, giving the song its unique sound.

Siedah got the idea for the song while driving to a recording session for “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You”. Seeing her face in the mirror of her car she got the idea to write a song titled “Man In The Mirror” for Michael upcoming album.

The song was arranged with a gospel choir, a year after David Bowie used the same technique for “Underground”, for the fantasy film Labyrinth. There were other artists who used gospel choirs on their tracks at the time including:

• Debbie Gibson
• Guns N’ Roses
• Madonna for her 1989 number one hit “Like a Prayer”.

Several years later Michael Jackson would use a gospel choir on his hit “Will You Be There”. Siedah Garrett who also sang on Michael’s “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” was also one of the backup vocalists for Madonna’s 2004 Re-Invention Tour.

During the 1988 Grammy Awards, Michael performed a live extended version of the song. He also performed the song at the end of the concert during the Bad World Tour’s second leg, and frequently during the Dangerous World Tour.

At the end of the song during the Dangerous World Tour, stuntman Kinnie Gibson who was dressed like Michael would fly out of the area in a jetpack.

Michael Jackson performed “Man In the Mirror” July 16, 1996 at the Royal Concert Brunei for the last time
prior to the United We Stand benefit concert.

Unlike Michael’s other videos, he does not appear in “Man In The Mirror” except for a brief moment toward the end where he stands among a large group of people wearing a red jacket.

Instead of dancing this video is a montage of major news footage from various events and a variety of well
known people such as:

• The John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy shootings
• Live Aid
• Farm Aid
• Martin Luther King
• Lech Wałęsa
• Mother Teresa
• Desmond Tutu
• John Lennon and Yoko Ono
• Mahatma Gandhi
• Anwar El Sadat
• Menachem Begin
• Jimmy Carter
• Mikhail Gorbechev
• Ronald Reagan
• Pieter Willem Botha
• Muammar al-Gaddafi
• Adolf Hitler

The song was quoted by Jermaine Jackson during Celebrity Big Brother 2007, while confronting several housemates who had been bullying an Indian housemate Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty. The song was played into the house the following morning as an alarm.

An instrumental version was played at the end of Michael Jackson’s memorial service, while his coffin was being carried out. A spotlight shone on an empty space behind a microphone, representing Michael’s absence.

Performance on Carts around the World

The fourth consecutive No.1 single for Michael Jackson’s “Bad” album, “Man In the Mirror” debuted at No.48 on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 6, 1988. It went to No.1 on March 26, 1988, its eighth week on the chart and stayed there for two weeks.

Originally it went as high as No.21 in the UK in 1988, however after Michael’s untimely death on June 25, 2009, it re-entered the UK Singles Chart at No.11 and went to No.2 the following week being kept from the No.1 spot by Cascada.

“Man In the Mirror” initially charted at No.39 in Australia however after Michael’s death the song re-entered the chart and went to No.8, which was much higher than its original release.

“Man In The Mirror”

I’m Gonna Make A Change,
For Once In My Life
It’s Gonna Feel Real Good,
Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .

As I, Turn Up The Collar On My
Favourite Winter Coat
This Wind Is Blowin’ My Mind
I See The Kids In The Street,
With Not Enough To Eat
Who Am I, To Be Blind?
Pretending Not To See
Their Needs
A Summer’s Disregard,
A Broken Bottle Top
And A One Man’s Soul
They Follow Each Other On
The Wind Ya’ Know
‘Cause They Got Nowhere
To Go
That’s Why I Want You To
Know

I’m Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
I’m Asking Him To Change
His Ways
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change)
(Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah)

I’ve Been A Victim Of A Selfish
Kind Of Love
It’s Time That I Realize
That There Are Some With No
Home, Not A Nickel To Loan
Could It Be Really Me,
Pretending That They’re Not
Alone?

A Willow Deeply Scarred,
Somebody’s Broken Heart
And A Washed-Out Dream
(Washed-Out Dream)
They Follow The Pattern Of
The Wind, Ya’ See
Cause They Got No Place
To Be
That’s Why I’m Starting With
Me
(Starting With Me!)

I’m Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
(Ooh!)
I’m Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Ooh!)
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change)

I’m Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
(Ooh!)
I’m Asking Him To Change His
Ways
(Change His Ways-Ooh!)
And No Message Could’ve
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make That . . .
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make That . . .)
Change!

I’m Starting With The Man In
The Mirror,
(Man In The Mirror-Oh
Yeah!)
I’m Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Better Change!)
No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make The Change)
(You Gotta Get It Right, While
You Got The Time)
(‘Cause When You Close Your
Heart)
You Can’t Close Your . . .Your
Mind!
(Then You Close Your . . .
Mind!)
That Man, That Man, That
Man, That Man
With That Man In The Mirror
(Man In The Mirror, Oh Yeah!)
That Man, That Man, That Man
I’m Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Better Change!)
You Know . . .That Man
No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change)
Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!
Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah
(Oh Yeah!)
Gonna Feel Real Good Now!
Yeah Yeah! Yeah Yeah!
Yeah Yeah!
Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah
(Ooooh . . .)
Oh No, No No . . .
I’m Gonna Make A Change
It’s Gonna Feel Real Good!
Come On!
(Change . . .)
Just Lift Yourself
You Know
You’ve Got To Stop It.
Yourself!
(Yeah!-Make That Change!)
I’ve Got To Make That Change,
Today!
Hoo!
(Man In The Mirror)
You Got To
You Got To Not Let Yourself . . .
Brother . . .
Hoo!
(Yeah!-Make That Change!)
You Know-I’ve Got To Get
That Man, That Man . . .
(Man In The Mirror)
You’ve Got To
You’ve Got To Move! Come
On! Come On!
You Got To . . .
Stand Up! Stand Up!
Stand Up!
(Yeah-Make That Change)
Stand Up And Lift
Yourself, Now!
(Man In The Mirror)
Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!
Aaow!
(Yeah-Make That Change)
Gonna Make That Change . . .
Come On!
(Man In The Mirror)
You Know It!
You Know It!
You Know It!
You Know . . .
(Change . . .)
Make That Change.

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