Michael Jackson - Michael Jackson's This Is It [4LP Box Set]

Michael Jackson’s This Is It arrives as a four-LP box set, a hefty tribute to the shows that never happened.

Released in 2009 alongside the film of the same name, the collection gathers the songs behind the rehearsals for a planned London concert run that never took place. Hits, demos and a spoken-word piece add up to a final peek behind the curtain.

Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ kicks things off with that irresistible, unstoppable pulse, Jam rattles with funk and fury, and They Don’t Care About Us turns the volume up on protest. The title track, This Is It, is tender and reflective, a song that sounds different once you know the story.

Four records give the material room to breathe, and the box set format does the rest: it looks the part on a shelf and feels like an event when it comes out of the sleeve. Fans of the dance floor, the ballads and the sheer showmanship all get something here.

Part celebration, part goodbye, it’s a handsome, weighty keepsake for collectors of Jackson’s catalogue and a poignant look at what might have been. Cue it up, dim the lights, and imagine the biggest stage show that never was.