The Jacksons is the eleventh studio album by American pop band The Jacksons released through Epic Records on November 27, 1976. It was both the band's first Epic album and the first to be released under the name "The Jacksons," following their seven-year tenure at Motown as "The Jackson 5". Jermaine Jackson was the only one who stayed with Motown when his brothers broke their contracts and left for Epic, which resulted in Randy, the youngest Jackson brother, replacing him. The album was released in 1976 for Epic and Philadelphia International Records as a joint venture.
Background[]
Philadelphia International heads Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff produced and executive produced the album, including their first top ten hit in two years, "Enjoy Yourself", but had a difficult time focusing on a sound for the now-grown-up boy band. However, the group was able for the first time to record their material, something that had been denied to them at Motown. The Jacksons composed "Style of Life" and "Blues Away" on their own. The latter was the first published song written by lead singer Michael Jackson, who began to take a more percussive vocal approach on this album. The album also spawned a second successful R&B single, "Show You the Way to Go" (UK no. 1). Though never released as a single, "Good Times" became a popular album cut from regular quiet storm airplay.
The album was The Jacksons' first gold album, despite their having sold more than 10 million albums while at Motown (Motown's sales and financial records were not presented for auditing by the RIAA until 1976).
Singles[]
October 22, 1976
1977
March 7, 1977
July 29, 1977
Track list[]
| Standard edition | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "Enjoy Yourself" | 3:24 |
| 2. | "Think Happy" | 2:07 |
| 3. | "Good Times" | 4:57 |
| 4. | "Keep on Dancing" | 4:31 |
| 5. | "Blues Away" | 3:12 |
| 6. | "Show You the Way to Go" | 5:30 |
| 7. | "Living Together" | 4:26 |
| 8. | "Strength of One Man" | 3:56 |
| 9. | "Dreamer" | 3:05 |
| 10. | "Style of Life" | 3:19 |
| Total length: | 42:16 | |