Man in the Mirror

Writing and recording

"Man in the Mirror" was written by Glen Ballard and Siedah Garrett. Jackson's producer, Quincy Jones, invited Garrett to his home with a group of other songwriters and asked them to write material for Jackson's next album. Garrett recalled that Jones told the group: "I just want hits, that's all I want."

Garrett took the brief to Ballard, her writing partner, who began playing a keyboard figure; Garrett wrote the lyrics. The two recorded a demo over the course of a week, with Garrett on vocals. Garrett delivered the tape to Jones, who called back a few hours later to tell her he approved. At Jackson's request, Garrett and Ballard wrote a longer middle eight and modified the lyrics. Jones enlisted the Andraé Crouch Choir to record gospel vocals.

The song runs for 5 minutes and 19 seconds and the sheet music for the song shows the key of G major. After 2 minutes and 53 seconds, the key changes to A-flat major.

Critical response

When Ed Hogan of AllMusic reviewed the song, he called it "gentle." Jon Pareles of The New York Times noted that this song has "gospelly lift." Rolling Stone Davitt Sigerson thought that "Man in the Mirror" stands among the half dozen best things Jackson has done: "On 'Man in the Mirror,' a song he did not write, Jackson goes a step further and offers a straightforward homily of personal commitment: '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/Take a look at yourself and then make a change.

In 2009, Josh Tyrangiel from Time named "Man in the Mirror" among Jackson's ten best songs and "one of Jackson’s most powerful vocals and accessible social statements, not to mention the best-ever use of a gospel choir in a pop song". In 2017, ShortLists Dave Fawbert said the song contained "one of the greatest key changes in music history".

Music video

The video is a notable departure from Jackson's other videos; Jackson does not appear in it, aside from a brief clip toward the end in which he can be seen donning a red jacket and standing in a large crowd. Instead, it features a montage of footage of various major news events and famous people.

The "Man in the Mirror" music video was directed, produced and edited by Don Wilson. Wilson and Jackson developed the idea for the video. Larry Stessel, Epic Records' video commissioner at the time, was the executive producer. It features clips of starving children in Africa, Adolf Hitler, Hitler's American "relatives", George Lincoln Rockwell's American Nazi Party, the Ku Klux Klan, John F. Kennedy and his body being carted away after his assassination, Robert Kennedy and his assassination, Martin Luther King Jr., the Kent State shootings, Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, the start of the Iran hostage crisis, Muammar Gaddafi, Desmond Tutu, Mikhail Gorbachev, John Lennon, Nelson Mandela, Pieter Botha, Lech Wałęsa, the June Struggle in South Korea, the Camp David Accords, INF Treaty, homeless people in the U.S., the rescue of Jessica McClure, kids in graduation, and other historical figures.

Track listing

• 12" and CD

1. "Man in the Mirror" (single version) – 5:04
2. "Man in the Mirror" (album version) – 5:19
3. "Man in the Mirror" (instrumental) – 5:19

• 7"

1. "Man in the Mirror" (single version) – 5:04

• 7" / 12" picture disc

1. "Man in the Mirror" – 4:55
2. "Man in the Mirror" (instrumental) – 4:55

Chart performance

"Man in the Mirror" was the fourth consecutive U.S. number-one single from Jackson's Bad. The single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 6, 1988. It reached number 1 on March 26, 1988, remaining there for two weeks.

"Man in the Mirror" originally peaked at number 21 in the United Kingdom in 1988. However, following Jackson's death on June 25, 2009, "Man in the Mirror" re-entered the UK Singles Chart and peaked at number 2. In Australia, the song originally charted at number 39. After Jackson's death, the song re-entered the chart and reached number 8. It was also the top single in iTunes downloads in the US and the UK following Jackson's death. It has sold 567,280 copies in the UK as of January 2016.

Personnel

• Written and composed by Siedah Garrett and Glen Ballard
• Produced by Quincy Jones
• Co-produced by Michael Jackson
• Michael Jackson: lead and background vocals
  • Featuring Siedah Garrett, the Winans and the Andraé Crouch Choir
• Ollie E. Brown: clap and cymbals
• Dann Huff: guitar
• Greg Phillinganes: piano
• Glen Ballard, Randy Kerber: synthesizers
• Glen Ballard: drum programming
• Siedah Garrett: background vocals
• The Winans: Carvin, Marvin, Michael and Ronald Winans
  • Andraé Crouch and his Choir: Sandra Crouch, Maxi Anderson, Rose Banks, Geary Faggett, Vonciele Faggett, Andrew Gouche, Linda Green, Pattie Howard, Jean Johnson, Perry Morgan, Alfie Silas, Roberto Noriega
• Rhythm arrangement by Glen Ballard and Quincy Jones
• Synthesizer arrangement by Glen Ballard, Quincy Jones and Jerry Hey
• Vocal arrangement by Andraé Crouch

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

References

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