By Marsha Gilbert, SmoothJazzTimes.com
A small group of fans anxiously waited in The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa near Atlantic City, NJ wearing VIP tags around their necks. This symbol, along with the $400 they paid to be at the exclusive meet and greet, declared their allegiance to the legendary family of entertainers, the Jacksons.
The crowd’s nervous titter turned to restrained screams of excitement when the four brothers, Jackie, 61, Tito, 58, Jermaine, 57 and Marlon, 55, entered the room. The former teen heartthrobs smiled, waved and took their places facing the line of admirers. Now, handsome mature men, they wore dark sunglasses and blue and white outfits, while color coordinated still showed their individuality.
For the brief time that they posed with each guest, they smiled, hugged them and appeared to be familiar, showing they’re not only pros on stage, but in taking pictures, too. The ecstatic fans photographed with the brothers all began their devotion to the group some where along the way in the last 40 plus years since the performers were discovered living in Gary, IN.
Soon after embracing fans at their VIP gathering, the Jacksons took the stage to entertain the mostly-full theater of admirers at their Unity Tour 2012. The brothers took turns singing lead on many of the hits they recorded as The Jackson 5 and The Jacksons, along with singles from Jermaine and Michael’s solo careers. Their set list included: “Can You Feel it,” “Blame it on the Boogie,” “I Wanna to be Where You Are,” “Show You the Way to Go,” “Lovely One,” “Time Waits for No One,” “Push Me Away,” “Man of War,” “Heaven Knows I Love You, Girl,” “I Want You Back,” “ABC,” “Stop the Love You Save,” “Never Can Say Goodbye,” “I’ll Be There,” “Dynamite,” “Let’s Get Serious,” “Do What You Do,” “Can’t Let Her Get Away,” “Heartbreak Hotel,” “Wanna Be Startin’ Something,” “Don’t Stop ‘Till You Get Enough,” and “Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground.)”
It’s hard to believe their iconic brother, Michael, will no longer be with them. It’s been three years since the King of Pop’s untimely death. The brothers who had hoped to all tour together had to go on tour without him. “We always wanted to go back on tour with all the brothers including Michael years ago,” according to Tito Jackson in a pre-concert interview. “That was one of the plans to do that after he was through with the O2 Arena (for the This is it Tour in London). But he passed away and plans changed.” Tito claimed the brothers were going to wait in London to be available to perform with Michael if he requested. “We were prepared to help him if he needed it,” Tito said. “It was always our intention to be there and join forces.”
Now, after grieving Michael’s death, the brothers have moved on to the next phase of their career, but they haven’t forgotten about Michael. They honor him in a segment of the show where videos and photographs of Michael are shown and Jermaine sings “Gone Too Soon,” a song from Michael’s 1991 Dangerous album. About being on stage without Michael, Tito said, “We miss him so much. He would want us to do this and we know that. He wouldn’t want us just to sit around and be at home and not enjoy what we enjoy doing. We wish he was a part of this.”
The fan frenzy and their boyish charm made the Borgata’s Event Center feel like it was 1984 again, the last time the brothers performed together on the Victory Tour. They did the same choreography with a high level of enthusiasm. They’ve maintained their youthful weight. They have heads full of dark hair and their bright smiles showed they’re still the hunks pictured in so many posters around the world for many years. They didn’t need to be in a stadium using pyrotechnics like they did years ago; it was exciting enough just to see them on stage at the same time.
While it was exhilarating to see the brothers together again, it was sad to know that Michael wasn’t with them. His signature tenor voice, squeals and shouts were missing from the show, along with the footwork and spins that only he could do.
Also, missing was youngest brother, Randy, 50, whose absence no one addressed during the concert. Earlier when interviewed Tito said, “Randy had some things he wanted to take care of personally. He’ll join the second leg of the tour when we’re in Asia.”
Marlon, who took credit for contacting each brother about going on tour, did his best to fill the void. He acted as master of ceremony during the concert, and lead dancer bending and freezing with outstretched arms sometimes while doing the Jackson’s trademark leg work at others. His exuberant dancing lead to several chants of “Go Marlon, Go Marlon,” from the audience.
What’s Next?
When Unity Tour 2012 ends expect to see the Jackson’s again. Tito starts a tour in Tokyo, Japan with his blues band the very next day. Then the brothers go in the studio to start working on a CD of new music. There’s talk of a family tour with their sisters Rebbie, LaToya and Janet, all the brothers and their children who perform. The legacy continues with the first family of music.
Photo Courtesy: Marsha Gilbert, SmoothJazzTimes.com
From left – The Jacksons: Tito, Jackie, Marlon and Jermaine perform at The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, near Atlantic City, NJ.
