"Earth Song" is a song written and performed by American singer and songwriter Michael Jackson for his ninth studio album, '' HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I'' (1995). It was released on November 27, 1995, by

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

as the third single from the album. It is a ballad that incorporates elements of blues, gospel and opera. Though Jackson had a long history of releasing socially conscious songs such as " We Are the World", "

Man in the Mirror "Man in the Mirror" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It was written by Glen Ballard and Siedah Garrett and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. It was released on February 6, 1988, as the fourth single from Jackson' ...

" and "

Heal the World "Heal the World" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson from his eighth studio album, ''Dangerous'' (1991). It was released on November 23, 1992 as the fifth single from the album. It was written and composed by Jackson, ...

", "Earth Song" was his first to overtly discuss the

environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

and

animal welfare Animal welfare is the well-being of non-human animals. Formal standards of animal welfare vary between contexts, but are debated mostly by animal welfare groups, legislators, and academics. Animal welfare science uses measures such as longevity ...

. "Earth Song" was originally made for the ''

Bad Bad or BAD may refer to: Common meanings *Evil, the opposite of moral good * Erroneous, inaccurate or incorrect * Unhealthy, or counter to well-being * Antagonist, the threat or obstacle of moral good Acronyms * BAD-2, a Soviet armored troll ...

'' and ''

Dangerous Dangerous may refer to: Film and television * ''Dangerous'' (1935 film), an American film starring Bette Davis * '' Dangerous: The Short Films'', a 1993 collection of music videos by Michael Jackson * ''Dangerous'' (2021 film), a Canadian-Ameri ...

'' album but it failed to make the final cut. Written by Jackson and produced by Jackson, David Foster and Bill Bottrell, "Earth Song" was accompanied by a lavish music video which was shot in four geographical regions, centered on the destruction and rebirth of Earth, and went on to receive a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

nomination in 1997. The song went number one in the United Kingdom, and was the nation's number-one Christmas single in 1995. It also topped the charts in Germany, Iceland, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland while peaking at number two in France, Ireland, and the Netherlands. Jackson went on to receive recognition from various animal and environmental organizations. In 2011, the song was paired with the poem "Planet Earth" (previously released on '' Michael Jackson's This Is It'', in 2009) and released as a song in the remix album '' Immortal''.

Production

Jackson wrote "Earth Song" in the Hotel Imperial in Vienna under the working title "What About Us". Jackson wanted to create a song that was lyrically deep, with an emotional message, but was melodically simple, so the whole world, particularly non-English-speaking fans, could sing along. "Earth Song" was produced by Jackson, David Foster and Bill Bottrell.Jackson, Michael. ''HIStory'' booklet. Sony BMG. p 36 Andraé Crouch's Choir and Jackson engage in a call-and-response chant in the climax. According to bassist

Guy Pratt Guy Adam Pratt (born 3 January 1962) is a British musician. He is best known for his prolific work as a session bass player, working with artists including Pink Floyd (also David Gilmour and Nick Mason), Roxy Music (also Bryan Ferry), Gary M ...

, Jackson was recovering from plastic surgery at the time of Pratt's recording and hid under a mixing desk in the studio. Jackson passed instructions for Pratt to an assistant, who pretended that Jackson was not in the room.

Composition

"Earth Song" is a ballad that incorporates elements of blues, gospel and opera. Jackson describes the dire situation that mankind has caused, ranging from war to devastation to animals and Earth itself. Jackson calls on people to remember the Earth is their inheritance from God via their ancestor Abraham. "What about death again" reminds all to think about eternal death, asking people to check their heart for repentance, or to see if they really cared at all. Having disfellowshipped himself from Jehovah's Witnesses, Jackson simplified his faith to focus on the Biblical Jesus Christ until his death.

Reception

"Earth Song" received mostly positive reviews from music critics. A reviewer from '' Contra Costa Times'' called it "a bit sappy and overblown", but also acknowledged that it was "epic" and destined to be a "massive smash hit".

James Masterton James Masterton (born 2 September 1973) is a music writer and columnist, his work focusing on the UK Singles Chart having been an online fixture on various sites since the 1990s. Masterton is also a producer for talkSPORT, and has worked on air ...

for Dotmusic described it as a "towering gospel track". '' Ledger-Enquirer'' observed that it "enjoys the same kind of subtlety, building to a dramatic call-and-response finish with the Andraé Crouch Choir". Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' declared it as an "ecological anthem", stating that "even without the delightful arrangements (tentative piano, jazzy guitar licks, nature noises), the strong composition would have been a sure thing for the top of the EHR and ACE charts." '' Music Week'' rated it five out of five, picking it as Single of the Week. They added, "This will be huge. Already a favourite from ''HIStory'', it builds from a tweeting birds/strummed harp intro into a no-excess-barred epic, but is beautiful all the same." '' The Philadelphia Inquirer'' deemed it "a healing, rhythmic ballad that evokes religious imagery". Michael Mehle of '' Rocky Mountain News'' said the finale is "anthemic" and a "powerful gospel opus". James Hunter of '' Rolling Stone'' stated, "The slow blues-operatic 'Earth Song' for all its noble sentiments, sounds primarily like a showpiece". ''

The Sacramento Bee ''The Sacramento Bee'' is a daily newspaper published in Sacramento, California, in the United States. Since its foundation in 1857, ''The Bee'' has become the largest newspaper in Sacramento, the fifth largest newspaper in California, and the 2 ...

'' described Jackson's vocal performance as "cool". A reviewer from '' San Jose Mercury News'' called it "flat" and "whiny", believing Jackson had already experimented with these concepts earlier in his career. In 2017,

ShortList A short list or shortlist is a list of candidates for a job, prize, award, political position, etc., that has been reduced from a longer list of candidates (sometimes via intermediate lists known as "long lists"). The length of short lists varie ...

's Dave Fawbert listed the song as containing "one of the greatest key changes in music history". Jackson received the

Genesis Award The Genesis Awards are awarded annually by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) to individuals in the major news and entertainment media for producing outstanding works which raise public awareness of animal issues. Presented by the HSUS ...

: 1995 Doris Day Music Award, given each year for animal sensitivity.

Commercial performance

In the United Kingdom, "Earth Song" debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart, where it remained for six weeks throughout December 1995 — beating the U2/

Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...

project Passengers to win the Christmas number one spot — and into early 1996. During its stay at number one, "Earth Song" kept the first single released by the Beatles in 25 years, " Free as a Bird", off the number one position as well as other bookmaker favourites " Wonderwall" by

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...

and " It's Oh So Quiet" by

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct three-octave vocal range and eccentric persona, she has de ...

. In early December, bookmakers correctly predicted that Jackson would keep the Beatles off the top position and go on to attain the Christmas number-one single. It went on to sell 1,270,000 copies in the nation as of August 2018. The song also took the number one position in Iceland, Lithuania, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, peaking within the top five in almost every European state. In Germany, it was Jackson's first single to reach No. 1 on the German Singles Chart and held the summit for 5 consecutive weeks. The song was only released to radio in the US, appearing on the

Hot Dance Music/Club Play Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as th ...

chart (for the remix version of 1996). In 2006, "Earth Song" reached number 55 on the

European Hot 100 Singles The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and '' Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...

chart, following the '' Visionary: The Video Singles'' campaign, whereby 20 of Jackson's hit singles from the 1980s to the 1990s were reissued in several European countries.

Live performances

Earth Song was first performed on November 4, 1995, on the German TV program '' Wetten, dass..?'', along with

. The next performance of the song was at

Brit Awards 1996 Brit Awards 1996 was the 16th edition of the Brit Awards, an annual pop music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 19 February 1996 at Earls Court Exhibition Centre in L ...

on February 19, 1996. During the performance, singer

Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician and radio presenter. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp, he became a figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Following P ...

ran onto the stage while Jackson was dangling off the edge of a crane. He lifted his shirt, pretended to break wind and gave Jackson the V sign. The 1996 World Music Awards was the next performance of the song on May 8, 1996. During the ending of the song, Jackson sang the line, "Tell me what about it", which was not heard in the song. On July 16, 1996, Jackson performed Earth Song at the Brunei Royal Concert at Jerudong Park Amphitheatre in Bandar Seri Begawan. Similar to the World Music Awards performance, Michael sang the line, "Tell me what about it". The song was also performed on Jackson's HIStory World Tour from September 1996 to October 1997. It was later performed at the

MJ & Friends MJ & Friends were two stadium concerts held by American singer/songwriter Michael Jackson in 1999, with numerous other performers as well, including Slash of Guns N' Roses. The purpose of the tour was to raise funds for children in Kosovo, Afri ...

concerts in June 1999. During the Munich performance on June 27, 1999, the middle section of the bridge collapsed into the air and came falling down instead of pausing in mid-air. The fall caused severe back pain to Jackson. After the concert, Jackson was rushed to a hospital. The song was also planned for his This Is It comeback concerts in London at The O2 Arena. But canceled due to Jackson's death on June 25, 2009. This was the last song Jackson ever performed, having rehearsed it at

Staples Center Crypto.com Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. The arena opened on October 17, 1999; it was ...

on June 24, 2009, preparing for This Is It, hours before his death.

Brit Awards incident

On February 19, 1996, Jackson performed "Earth Song" at

in the United Kingdom; he was there to collect a special "Artist of a Generation" award. Jackson sang while dangling off the edge of a high-rise crane elevator, which he had used the year before while performing it on the German TV show Wetten Dass. Below, a chorus of backing performers joined in and many began to embrace Jackson upon his descent. During the performance, singer

ran onstage without permission, lifted his shirt and pretended to break wind, before giving Jackson the V sign. Cocker was there with his band Pulp, who had been nominated for three Brit awards. He was questioned by police over claims he had assaulted some of the child performers. A video provided by an undentified source showed that it was one of Jackson's crew who had barged into the children, not Cocker, and the charges of assault were dropped. Cocker said that he found the performance offensive, claiming that Jackson had portrayed himself as Christ-like and could do as he pleased because of his immense wealth and power. However, he clarified that his actions weren't personally against Jackson himself, just the performance. He stated that he admired Jackson as a performer, proclaiming that: "He can dance, ..anybody who invents the moonwalk is alright by me". Jackson condemned Cocker's behavior as "disgusting and cowardly". The incident is referred to in the book ''Politics and Popular Culture'' by John Street, Professor of Politics at the University of East Anglia. He says:

But to read popular culture as a straight-forward – or at least typical – political text is to take a very narrow view of its meaning, and hence of its political message(s). As we have noted, the text's meaning will depend on how it is heard and read. Michael Jackson may have intended his "Earth Song" as an exercise in compassion; others – like Jarvis Cocker – saw it quite differently. One reason these alternative readings emerge is because of the way the performance of popular culture engages more than a literal text, it employs gestures and symbols, tones of voice, looks and glances, all of which might tell a different story.

Despite his dislike of Jackson's Brit Awards performance, in a 2012 interview with The Guardian Cocker said he was still a fan of 'Earth Song': “It is a right good song, obviously".

2010 Grammy Awards performance

The song, along with a 3-D short film that was to be featured in Jackson's series of comeback concerts This Is It was performed as a tribute to Jackson. Jennifer Hudson,

Carrie Underwood Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American singer. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of ''American Idol'' in 2005. Her single "Inside Your Heaven" made her the only country artist to debut atop the ''Bill ...

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...

, Celine Dion and

Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** Fiel ...

all sang the song together, while the video played in the background. The film was shown in its original 3-D format during the broadcast.

Target Target may refer to: Physical items * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artillery, fi ...

provided free 3-D glasses to customers a week before the Grammy Awards. Paris and Prince Jackson, Jackson's oldest children, appeared shortly after the performance to accept Jackson's Lifetime Achievement Award, where they both gave a short speech. This was the first time the children had spoken publicly since the memorial service that was held for Jackson on July 7, 2009.

Music video

The music video for "Earth Song", directed by fine art photographer Nick Brandt, was expensive and well-received; it gained the 1995

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress, singer, and activist. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, " Sent ...

Music Award at the Genesis Awards and a Grammy nomination for Best Music Video, Short Form in 1997. The production had an environmental theme, showing images of animal cruelty, deforestation, pollution, poaching, poverty and war. Jackson and the world's people unite in a spiritual chant—"Earth Song"—which summons a force that heals the world. Using special effects, time is reversed so that life returns, war ends and the forests regrow. The video closes with a request for donations to Jackson's Heal the World Foundation.George, p. 48–50Michael Jackson ''HIStory'' on Film volume II VHS/DVD The clip was shown infrequently in the United States. The video was filmed in four geographic regions (Americas, Europe and Africa). The first location was the

Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...

, where a large part was destroyed a week after the video's completion. Natives of the region appeared in the video and were not actors. The second scene was a

war zone War zone or warzone may refer to a zone of war, or to: Film and television * ''The War Zone'', a 1999 film starring Ray Winstone * ''War Zone'' (film), a 1998 documentary about street harassment directed by Maggie Hadleigh-West * "War Zone" (' ...

Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. According to the 2011 census, its population was 55,705. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located on the Zagreb- Rijeka highway and railway line, south-west of Zagre ...

, Croatia, with famous Serbian actor Slobodan Dimitrijević and the residents of the area. The third location was Tanzania, which incorporated scenes of illegal poaching and hunting into the video. No animals were harmed in the making of the "Earth Song", as the footage came from documentary archives. The final location was in Warwick, New York, where a safe forest fire was simulated in a corn field.HIStory on Film, Volume II"> The video was also included on the video albums: '' HIStory on Film, Volume II'', ''

Number Ones A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The original examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More universally, individual numbers can ...

'' and '' Michael Jackson's Vision''.

Track listing

* UK CD1 # "Earth Song (Radio Edit)" – 4:58 # "Earth Song (Hani's Club Experience)" – 7:55 # "Michael Jackson DMC Megamix" – 11:18 * UK CD2 # "Earth Song (Radio Edit)" – 4:58 # "Earth Song (Hani's Radio Experience)" – 3:33 # "

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson recorded for his sixth studio album '' Thriller'' (1982). It is the opening track of the album and was released as its fourth single on May 8, 1983, by Epic Records. It was ...

(

Brothers in Rhythm Brothers in Rhythm are a British electronic music group comprising Dave Seaman, Steve Anderson and Alan Bremner. The group was originally a duo comprising Seaman and Anderson, with Bremner joining later in 1999. They have remixed and/or produc ...

Mix)" – 7:35 # "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' ( TommyD's Main Mix)" – 7:40 * Earth Song (

Hani Hani may refer to: People * Hani (name) * Hani (producer), a record producer and remixer from New York City * Hani (singer), a South Korean singer and member of EXID * Hani people, an ethnic group of China and Vietnam Places * Hani, an island ...

Remixes) # "Earth Song (Hani's Around The World Experience)" – 14:47 # "Earth Song (Hani's Club Experience)" – 7:55 # "Earth Song (Hani's Extended Radio Experience)" – 4:32 # "Earth Song (Hani's Radio Experience)" – 3:33 The DMC Megamix is a medley of

, Billie Jean, Black or White, Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough,

Remember the Time "Remember the Time" is a 1992 single by American singer and songwriter Michael Jackson. It was released by Epic Records on January 14, 1992, as the second single from Jackson's eighth studio album, ''Dangerous''. The song was written and compo ...

, Rock with You, Scream,

Thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...

and

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Personnel

* Michael Jackson: lead vocals, backing vocals, keyboards, synthesizers, producer, vocal arrangements, rhythm arrangements * Andraé Crouch, Sandra Crouch, and Andraé Crouch Choir: backing vocals * David Foster: producer, keyboards, synthesizers, orchestral arrangements, vocal arrangements, rhythm arrangements *

David Paich David Frank Paich (born June 25, 1954) is an American musician, best known as the co-founder, principal songwriter, keyboardist and singer of the rock band Toto since 1977. He wrote or co-wrote much of Toto's original material, including the ba ...

: piano, keyboards, synthesizers * Bill Bottrell: co-producer, guitar * Michael Thompson: guitar *

: bass guitar *

Steve Ferrone Steve Ferrone (born 25 April 1950) is an English drummer. He is known as a member of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers from 1994 to 2017, replacing original drummer Stan Lynch, and as part of the "classic lineup" of the Average Whi ...

: drums * Bruce Swedien: recording engineer, mixing * Bill Ross: orchestration *

Steve Porcaro Steven Maxwell Porcaro (born September 2, 1957) is an American keyboardist, songwriter, and film composer, known as one of the founding members of the rock band Toto and the last surviving Porcaro brother (after the deaths of Jeff in 1992 and M ...

: synthesizer programming * Co-performance by

London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is one of five permanent symphony orchestras based in London. It was founded by the conductors Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a rival to the existing London Symphony and BBC Symphony ...

(Orchestral Mix only) * Orchestral arrangement by James Horner (Orchestral Mix only)

References

;Bibliography * George, Nelson (2004). '' Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection'' booklet.

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

. * {{Good article 1990s ballads 1995 singles 1995 songs Michael Jackson songs La India songs Anti-war songs Epic Records singles Environmental songs European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Number-one singles in Germany Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in Iceland Number-one singles in Switzerland Number-one singles in Spain Pop ballads Contemporary R&B ballads UK Singles Chart number-one singles Songs written by Michael Jackson Song recordings produced by Michael Jackson Song recordings produced by Bill Bottrell Song recordings produced by David Foster Gospel songs Number-one singles in Scotland Christmas number-one singles in the United Kingdom Songs about climate change Music videos directed by Nick Brandt