This article is about the album. You may have been looking for the song.
Dangerous is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson, released through Epic Records on November 21, 1991. It is noted for being the first album not co-produced with Quincy Jones.
The album is one of Jackson's most experimental works, with a greater focus on humanitarian themes and a broader range of musical styles. Dangerous eventually sold over 32 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the best-selling albums of all time.[1]
Background[]
Jackson's previous record, Bad, released in 1987, generated massive success and sent him in an edgier, more mature direction compared to Thriller and Off the Wall.
Very shortly after Bad's release, Jackson and Jones' differences began showing, thus it led to his separation from the producer. The former not only wanted even more creative control, but he thought the latter was "out of touch" with the current music industry, and didn't want the general public to think his popularity depended on the producer.
| “ | He told his manager that I was losing it, that I didn't understand the business because I didn't understand in 1987 that rap was dead. | ” |
–Quincy Jones, "When Quincy Jones Worked With Michael Jackson, 'We Had No Limitations' – The New York Times"[2] | ||
Production[]
Decade[]
Jackson and his "B-team" from the previous album began working on a compilation under the title Decade in June 1989 at Westlake Recording Studios.[3] This would feature Jackson's biggest hits and include new tracks like "Heal the World".[4] Throughout the sessions, Jackson worked with Bill Bottrell, Bruce Swedien, and newly-hired musicians, Bryan Loren and keyboardist Brad Buxer. The latter met Jackson through Bottrell, and their partnership eventually evolved into not only a 20-year-long collaboration but a close friendship too. In December, the team switched from Westlake to Record One, as it was too crowded, which Jackson had issues with.[5]
Jackson stuck with Loren, especially, having made around 25–30 new tracks by early 1991. However, the former felt none of them were up to his standards; thus, they never made it past the production stage and didn't land on the project.[3] Loren's contributions to the other released songs include percussion (e.g., on "Black or White"), etc.
In June 1990, Jackson was introduced to new jack swing producer Teddy Riley. The former applauded the latter's approach towards the record, wanting it to be completely fresh and not exactly sticking to the sound of the previous albums.[3]
It seemed as though there was so much fresh material already crafted that it only made sense to focus on the next studio album, rather than the Decade compilation, thus Dangerous was finally born.[3] For its creation, Jackson spent $10 million.
Decade seems to have continued production as a separate project; however, the most recent DATs for the compilation state that such dates back to May 3, 1991.[6] Unfortunately, nothing came of it.
Dangerous[]
After Riley's arrival, the recording was split between Larrabee Sound Studios and Record One – this arrangement remained through to final mixing.[7]
Jackson working on Dangerous.
During production, Jackson decided to invite multiple other artists for eventual features on the upcoming release.
Despite his past statement that rap was "dying", Jackson ended up being keen on having hip-hop influence some of the record's songs. While still focusing on Decade, Jackson worked on some unreleased collaborations with rappers LL Cool J, and later with Heavy D or Wreckx-n-Effect for Dangerous. As for non-rap artists, Slash of Guns N' Roses was featured on "Give In to Me". It was difficult to get Slash to even meet with Jackson, though, apparently having taken a year to coordinate.[3] In the end, Slash ended up working with him for years to come. Initially, "In the Closet" was intended to feature Madonna, although this idea was abandoned for unspecified reasons.[3] The recording instead featured a guest appearance from Princess Stéphanie of Monaco for the spoken parts.
In late 1991, Dangerous received the final touches, and the track list was being completed. "Blood on the Dance Floor" and "Someone Put Your Hand Out" were initially considered, but they were left off last-minute and eventually released on future projects.[8] According to Swedien, Jackson continued recording in the studio for up to eighteen hours.[9] For the last two months of recording, Jackson and Swedien rented hotel rooms located four minutes from Record One, so they could get back to work as soon as possible. Bernie Grundman finished mastering Dangerous at 4:00 AM on Halloween 1991.[10]
Although unconfirmed, the record was reportedly first scheduled for a January 1991 release, and later June, before Epic set the final deadline as before Thanksgiving Day.
Artwork[]
The Dangerous cover was painted by Mark Ryden and displays the singer's eyes and a single lock of his hair behind a gold masquerade mask, surrounded by various obscure animals and objects.
| “ | Ryden has depicted Michael – the most famous person in the world at the time – as a guarded circus artist who has seen glory and the machinery involved in making it happen. | ” |
–Fraser McAlpine, BBC UK, February 27, 2017[11] | ||
Promotion[]
Jackson performing for the Super Bowl XXVII Halftime Show (January 31, 1993).
Dangerous received a large amount of promotion, becoming what's considered the most exciting build-up to any of Jackson's albums.
Jackson did a vast amount of televised performances; namely "Black or White" and "Will You Be There" at MTV's 10th anniversary special, and "Remember the Time" at the Soul Train Awards in 1993. He also performed for the Super Bowl XXVII halftime show, which became one of the most watched events in American history, and made the NFL sign more A-list singers for halftime shows to attract more viewership. The performance itself included three songs off of Dangerous and helped the album top the charts yet again.
The promotion ended in 1993 as Jackson became a target of child sexual abuse allegations. To ease his mind, he began taking drugs, due to which his health hit a low point.
Tour[]
- Main article: Dangerous World Tour
On February 3, 1992, Jackson announced the launch of his second world tour, the Dangerous World Tour. Although his previous shows were meant to be his last, he explained the sole reason was to raise funds for his Heal the World Foundation. The tour was once again sponsored by Pepsi and began in Munich, June 27, 1992. It grossed $100 million, which was less than the Bad World Tour, but still managed to reach Jackson's goal for charity. Although the shows were meant to finish on December 7, 1993, the accusations caused the artist to cancel all shows after November 11.
Songs from Dangerous featured on the set list included "Jam", "Will You Be There", "Black or White", "Heal the World", and "Dangerous". The rest previously appeared during the Bad World Tour.
Re-releases[]
Dangerous: Special Edition[]
On October 16, 2001, a "special edition" of the album was released. However, unlike the special editions of Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad, it doesn't include any previously unreleased bonus tracks, although it was initially intended to.
A copy of an in-house mastering CD-R for the proposed second disc (entitled Bonus Cuts) dated January 12, 2000 had leaked online in the 2000s. The track list included "Monkey Business" and the demo version of "Dangerous", which were officially released as part of The Ultimate Collection box set in 2004.[12]
2LP 33RPM & SACD[]
On June 13, 2025, a 180g 33RPM vinyl and SACD releases of Dangerous were announced to be released by Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, containing the original recordings sourced from the master tapes in the highest audio quality.[13][14] Coinciding with the release, the music video for "Black or White" on YouTube received a 4K remaster using AI upscaling.
Singles[]
November 11, 1991
January 14, 1992
April 7, 1992
July 13, 1992
August 31, 1992
November 23, 1992
February 15, 1993
June 28, 1993
December 1, 1993
Spotify[]
Track list[]
| Standard edition | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "Jam" (featuring Heavy D) | 5:38 |
| 2. | "Why You Wanna Trip on Me" | 5:23 |
| 3. | "In the Closet" (featuring Princess Stephanie of Monaco) | 6:30 |
| 4. | "She Drives Me Wild" (featuring Wreckx-N-Effect) | 3:39 |
| 5. | "Remember the Time" | 3:59 |
| 6. | "Can't Let Her Get Away" | 4:58 |
| 7. | "Heal the World" | 6:24 |
| 8. | "Black or White" (featuring L.T.B.) | 4:14 |
| 9. | "Who Is It" | 6:33 |
| 10. | "Give In to Me" (featuring Slash) | 5:28 |
| 11. | "Will You Be There" (featuring Cleveland Orchestra) | 7:40 |
| 12. | "Keep the Faith" | 5:56 |
| 13. | "Gone Too Soon" | 3:21 |
| 14. | "Dangerous" | 6:57 |
| Total length: | 1:16:53 | |
| Australian 1993 Bonus Disc/Cassette | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "Who Is It (IHS Mix)" | 7:59 |
| 2. | "Black or White (The Clivillés & Cole House/Club Mix)" | 7:35 |
| 3. | "Jam (Teddy's Jam)" | 5:43 |
| 4. | "In the Closet (The Mission)" | 9:26 |
| 5. | "Give In to Me (Vocal Version)" | 4:43 |
| 6. | "Remember the Time (Silky Soul 12" Mix)" | 7:06 |
| 7. | "Rock with You (Masters At Work Remix)" | 5:32 |
| 8. | "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough (Roger's Remix)" | 6:21 |
| Total length: | 54:28 | |
Drafts[]
- Main article: Dangerous track list drafts
Cut songs[]
Trivia[]
- One of Loren's tracks that wasn't in the final cut for Dangerous was "Superfly Sister", which eventually landed on Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix six years later. It was the only track the producer made with Jackson that ever landed on any of his albums.
- Loren is said to have made 25 songs with Jackson in total, only four of which have remained unknown.
- Riley reportedly reworked some of Loren's songs, such as "She Got It" and "Serious Effect".
- In 1993, Sony Music Australia released an exclusive 2-disc/cassette edition of Dangerous containing a bonus disc/cassette with 8 remixes.
References[]
- ↑ Every Michael Jackson Song, Ranked From Worst to Best
- ↑ When Quincy Jones Worked With Michael Jackson, 'We Had No Limitations' – The New York Times
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Man in the Music: The Creative Life and Work of Michael Jackson
- ↑ Decade#Track list
- ↑ 151: Matt Forger Special (Part 2) – The MJCast
- ↑ File:Decadedat3.png
- ↑ Mike Smallcombe's Blog – Full interview with longtime Michael Jackson collaborator and friend Matt Forger – November 21, 2016 10:27
- ↑ Michael Jackson: choosing the tracklist for the Dangerous album – (Rare Video) – YouTube
- ↑ A bad guy's good looks – The Boston Globe (Boston, MA) | HighBeam Research
- ↑ There Are No Limits in Michael Jackson's World of Make-Believe – Los Angeles Times
- ↑ 10 mysteries in album covers – solved! – BBC Music
- ↑ Michael Jackson – Dangerous (Bonus Cuts) – CDr (Acetate), 2000 [r3943092] | Discogs
- ↑ Michael Jackson – Dangerous (Numbered 180g 33RPM Vinyl 2LP) – Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab
- ↑ Michael Jackson – Dangerous (Numbered Hybrid SACD) – Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab
