Invincible

Michael Jackson | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 30, 2001)
• Original Release Date: 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00005Q4JH
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,045 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,255 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

For such a boldly titled and apparently driven attempt to reinstate Michael Jackson at the center of the pop world, Invincible is a listless thing. Split between scratchy funk workouts and midtempo ballads that might have appeared as Bad B-sides, the album plays on and on while never seriously promoting dancing or romancing. Its handful of weird moments--the resurrection-by-tape of Biggie Smalls on the bridge of the title track, for instance--are hardly large-scale bizarre like the first disc of HIStory. The title track turns out to be hardly the rampant egofest you'd imagine; instead, its subject is a female whom Jackson cheers on. Likewise, the most ear-catching moments of the "comeback" single "You Rock My World" come with Chris Tucker's jivey introduction. Despite a debt to "Payback"-era James Brown, "Rock" floats away like steam midway through. It's almost a relief when the old self-regard turns up: on the growling "Privacy," Jackson rants about muckrakers "stalking" him in search of "the stories you need to bury me," all this long after foundering divas and troubled boy-group members have replaced him on tabloid covers. The man may occasionally break away from the mirror but seems unsure where else to find inspiration. --Rickey Wright

Product Description

Michael Jackson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March 2001 after 3 decades as the most successful solo artist in pop music history. His first studio album in 6 years, "Invincible" includes the hit singles "Rock My World" and "Cry." Includes: - Unbreakable - Heartbreaker - Invincible - Break Of Dawn - Heaven Can Wait - Rock My World - Butterflies - 2000 Watts - Shout - Don't Walk Away - Privacy - Cry - The Lost Children - Speechless - Threatened

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

76 of 77 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Poorly promoted - but excellent effort by MJ March 16, 2007

By The Fancy One

Format:Audio CD

INVINCIBLE by Michael Jackson was originally released in October 2001, and as I recall, even before it came out, so-called music critics were hating on it and declaring it a flop. How in the world they could have done this, I don't know. If anything, they were rating his personal life rather than the music and that hardly seems fair, because I believe the music should speak for itself. Granted, Mike has his problems, but the fact that he is an musical icon, the most influential and gifted entertainer to surface in the past 30+ years, and a consistent hit maker cannot be ignored. I guess this CD is considered a flop merely because it didn't sell as well as his other albums. But it shows how much of an exceptionally talented individual he is when critics can only compare INVINCIBLE to other MJ albums and not to anything or anybody else. That's saying a lot - meaning that even with a so-called "flop", MJ is STILL better than anyone else out there and can only compete with himself!

While INVINCIBLE is not in the league of OFF THE WALL, THRILLER, BAD or even DANGEROUS, it is still a solid effort from Michael, featuring both funky, upbeat dance tracks and warm, effective ballads. He updates his sound with some touches of hip-hop, but also taps deeper into his R&B roots here and I'm so happy that he did because he actually SINGS instead of relying on "whoos", "oows", "eee-hees", "sham-ons" and hiccups so much to get through a song, which I never really cared for. I've always felt those signature ad-libs that Mike would utter on the songs he made during his post-THRILLER years took away from the fact that he is a truly fabulous vocalist. Just listen to the neo-soul groove of the pristine and ethereal "Butterflies", the best song on this CD, and you'll understand what I mean. When I first heard it, it reminded me of the beauty of the albums that Mike and his brothers recorded when they were at Motown - then the CBS stuff (THE JACKSONS, GOIN' PLACES, DESTINY, and OFF THE WALL), not so much by the sound of it, but when Mike simply SUNG and you enjoyed his interpretations and magnificent phrasing of the lyrics. There are plenty of tunes on this CD that measure up to that standard.

Best tracks: "Unbreakable", "Heartbreaker", "Invincible", "Break Of Dawn", "Heaven Can Wait", "You Rock My World", "Butterflies", "2000 Watts", "Don't Walk Away", "Whatever Happens".

Shame on Sony for not giving this the promotion it deserved! We all know that it was a ploy to get their hands on the invaluable Beatles catalog (for those who don't know - Mike owns it), saying that INVINCIBLE went way over budget and the money wasn't there to complete it...whatever. Other than "You Rock My World", they didn't bother to promote anything else from this CD, most specifically, "Butterflies" - no video, nothing - and this was Mike's strongest single in years. They purposely wanted it to fail. I applaud Mike for sticking to his guns and not selling the catalog.

There are a couple songs on this CD that didn't work for me, but all in all, this is worth owning. INVINCIBLE proves that Michael Jackson still has much to offer the music industry. All we need to do is give him a chance to do that, because once you put aside all the drama, you'll find that his music still has the ability to move people. Great job, Mike!

104 of 113 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars he rocks our world October 30, 2001

By J. M. Zuurbier

Format:Audio CD

So this is Michael's first real studio album since 1995's HISTORY 2 CD set (the second disc was a new album). We saw BLOOD ON THE DANCEFLOOR in 1997, but basically that was a remixed HISTORY with a few new tracks. So here it is, 6 years fans have been waiting. A few questions come to mind. 1. Was it worth the wait? 2. Will Michael make a comeback? 3. Is the album good? I can honestly answer all three questions with a resounding YES!

INVINCIBLE is a 16 track, 77 minute album, filled with top production and innovation in music. Michael has once again created a new sound, this time by working with hot producer Rodney Jerkins, other producers include Teddy Riley, Dr. Freeze, Andre Harris, Babyface, and R. Kelly. Together, Michael has created a fresh new sound for R&B, and I'm sure others will follow his lead here.

The album starts off strong with three uptempo songs. "Unbreakable" is a nice album opener, it'll get you hoppin' to the dancefloor. It features a sample rap by The Notorious B.I.G. "Heartbreaker" is a catchy uptempo song, perfect for the clubs, a surefire hit if released. The title track is another great song. Then are two ballads, both beautifully written arranged and sang, "Break of Dawn", and "Heaven Can Wait".

"You Rock My World", the first single is a hit in its own right, its catchy, the vocals are smooth and irresistible, you can't help but groove to the music on this one. "Butterflies", the planned second single, shows Michael on a soulful type song, very beautiful, one of the album's many highlights. Perhaps one of the biggest standouts on the album is "2000 Watts", cowritten by Tyrese, it's an irresistible dance song, perfect for the clubs, and Michael's voice is very deep in this song, very different from any of his other songs.

The album has other fine moments, really there is no filler here. I was disapointed after the album was pushed back further and further, from 1999, to 2000, to 2001, and finally its out. Well its safe to say it was worth the wait. He has created probably one of the best new albums of the new millenium, with a fresh new sound. Where he used to yell a lot in his songs to show anger, this album shows him in a happier mood with soulful vocals that are so smooth and addictive. Give this one a try you won't be disapointed!

116 of 131 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Alot of good songs on this album November 22, 2001

By Dan P.

Format:Audio CD

Instead of saying "Invincible RULES!!!" or "Invincible SUCKS!!!", I thought I'd write a review on each song and let everybody judge the album that way. I rated each song and averaged them together and came out with a 3.6 star rating for the album. So I rounded up to 4 stars.

So here are my thoughts on each song, with the rating listed before the song title:

1) ***** Unbreakable - This is probably my favorite track on the album. I'm a sucker for a good piano/keyboard melody, so this song just hit me right away. The beat and melody is incredible and it is laced with a classic MJ vocal sound. Notorious B.I.G.'s rap is also well-placed into the song.

2) ***** Heartbreaker - At first I was turned off to this song because of its uncanny resemblance to a Timbaland song. Some of the sounds seem ripped from Ginuwine's 1996 "Pony" song. But after listening to it and giving it a chance, I really like this song alot. The best part is the "bridge" of the song (starts at ~2:08 into the song).

3) **** Invincible - This is a good song. Very good beat...easy to jam to.

4) ***** Break of Dawn - I love this song! It's very smooth...great romantic song produced by Dr. Freeze.

5) ***** Heaven Can Wait - One of the 3 Teddy Riley songs which are great on this album (one's not so great...read below for more details). The lyrics are beautiful. It's one of the best songs on the album.

6) ***** You Rock My World - Again...great song. Classic Rodney Jerkins production with a classic MJ sound to it as well. And the Chris Tucker skit in the beginning always makes me crack up. MJ saying, "She is banging"...really funny!

7) **** Butterflies - At first this was a skipper cause it started off too slow. I would just hit the skip button. But then my friend told me this was her favorite song. So I actually listened to it, and it really is a beautiful song. Very nice lyrics and nice music. You should give this one a try. I haven't heard one person who doesn't like this one.

8) *** Speechless - At first I would skip this one every time, because the song starts off very slow. But when I actually listened to it, I realized it was a very nice song. It would get a 4 star rating if it weren't for that beginning part.

9) ***** 2000 Watts - Classic Teddy Riley club joint! This song will rock your speakers. Michael Jackson sings the verses in a lower tone than you're used to hearing him. The lyrics are kinda strange though...it's all about high tech, high energy.

10) * You are my life - Why did they put this horrible Babyface song on the album??? I usually like Babyface songs, but this one should not have made the cut. Skip it!

11) *** Privacy - This is another song about the evil media and how he wants to be left alone. It's a good song, but not as good as his previous "evil media" song, "Leave Me Alone".

12) * Don't Walk Way - It has an ok melody, but I'm just not feeling this song. It has this weird country vibe to it. I'm surprised this was a Teddy Riley production.

13) * Cry - I usually skip it. Again, this is kinda slow. This one is produced by R. Kelly...I usually like his songs, so maybe I'll give it a chance one of these days.

14) * The Lost Children - Ditto...same as "Cry". Too slow.

15) ***** Whatever Happens - This should be one of the singles. This is a wonderful song produced by Teddy Riley and featuring guitar performances by Carlos Santana. Santana is also the guy who whistles at the beginning of the song. This song has a great vibe to it...probably my 2nd favorite song on the album.

16) **** Threatened - Can you say Thriller part 2? I would love to see the video for this one. It's got that great Thriller-type vibe on this song...it even has Vincent Price-type rap verses on it.