"One of the reasons I wrote the book was so that my words would stand for themselves, in context," chirps Jermaine... "One change of context showed how one inaccuracy can snowball and how myths are made. I sat back and thought 'This is what Michael faced all the time'." (Interview with Jermaine Jackson by Charles Thomson, Huffington Post)
The first half of the book covers the modest beginnings of America’s most famous musical family in their two roomed house in the industrial landscape of Gary Indiana. With an ever-growing family to feed, Papa Joe Jackson had an idea when he realised just how talented his brood was- to start a band. Most Jackson fans know this story very well; it has been chronicled numerous times, the children’s relentless drilling by their disciplinarian father, the beatings and whippings and the relentless touring of lowlife clubs before they hit the big time.
What Jermaine seems to add to the whole book which touches briefly on Michael’s solo career and Jermaine’s own attempts at stardom through to Jackson’s final years is a mature and compassionate understanding of his brother and everyone in his family? He displays an admiration for his father, while admitting the fear and trauma he planted in Michael. The story chronicles s Jermaine departure from the band as he endures a rift with the family, as he attempts a solo career with berry Gordy often in the shadow of his brother’s luminous fame. Many people including members of the Jackson family have acknowledged Jermaine’s jealousy of his brother but in this time Jermaine denies this was ever the case. He would, wouldn’t he?
He writes sadly of how they lost their closeness only to be rekindled sporadically over the years when the two hardly saw each other as was common with Jackson and the other family members.
A white- wash?
Jermaine’s book seems and feels very poignant. It is extremely well-written by ghost writer Steve Dennis, and the prose does invoke true emotion. But those of us who are aware of Jackson family dynamics know that this is no saccharine- coated Walton- like family at play here. At times you do feel that certain things have been whitewashed for example, Jermaine’s own notorious womanising. He had two children with the mother of his brothers Randy’s three children, and there is no real analysis of Michael’s well-known distaste and distance from certain family members. It exonerates Papa Joe, the strict disciplinarian who brutalised the sensitive young Michael. In fact it exonerates everyone in the Jackson clan; especially Katherine, the saintly matriarch who as we all know, is capable of more than a little dysfunction herself.
It does highlight the horrifying way Jackson was stitched up by calculating and ruthless people during his two child abuse accusations and the way he was doggedly pursued by LA police and the media who only reported salacious non- facts during his 2005 trail which he won.
Jermaine tried to publish a tell-all book on his brother in 2003
So what appears to be a well-written tome why do I have a problem with it? My memory is good, that is why, and I, like many other fans and followers of Michael Jackson, recall a book that Jermaine Jackson was hawking just 8 years ago. Entitled Legacy, Jermaine Jackson joined his mendacious sister LaToya, in twisting the knife further into Michael’s back in the wake of the second spate of child abuse allegations. He publicly and salaciously declared that he had “the real story”, about Michael molesting boys, his drug abuse and changing skin colour. In 2003 `Jermaine wrote: "I don't want to tell you my brother's innocent. I am not certain that he is."
In the badly written proposal Jermaine waxed lyrical on all aspects of Michael's life, including how the family had allegedly been suspicious of the singer's behaviour with boys, even his own nephews, the three children of his brother, Tito.
Jermaine even said he suspected his brother’s drug use may have left him unable to remember what he did to young children.
"The Demerol, the Vicodin, the Percocet, Doeine, the cocaine, the Jack Daniels, the wine. Does he really know what he does with these kids?"
Jermaine changes his tune
Jermaine in his recent literary offering has said there seemed to be a distance between the two since those heady days of the Jackson 5 (I wonder why) and admits that during his superstar years, Michael was increasingly hard for his family to get hold off and pin down, blaming outsiders i.e. people not in the family circle.
In reality, Jermaine Jackson was an outsider in Michael’s later life. He only has any real authority to recall these early days. Now fast forward eight years in this evoking of events Jermaine states this, regarding the child abuse allegations:
“I also wish people could have seen how children were naturally magnetised to him. Tito’s three children including my own kids would trail Michael around both Neverland and Hayvenhurst following him like ducks.”
Regarding his alleged drug addictions he now writes.: “There is a world of difference between someone becoming an addict due to bad choices and someone accidentally becoming dependent on a prescribed medicine. Michael was vehemently anti-drugs.”
With these major contradictions of opinion, Jermaine Jackson comes across as an untrustworthy source of information ready to rewrite stories according to where the money is. Since Michael’s demise it is not a wise move, considering his huge and immensely loyal fan base to jump on the bandwagon of old to publicly disrespect him, so the elder Jackson is promoting himself shamelessly to curry favour with the fans and acquire more money. Michael Jackson, though now sadly dead, is still a big business. The Jacksons still intend to be a part of that business as they always were but in this book the family are portrayed as flawed but loving family with only Michael’s welfare at heart, even old switch wielding Papa Joe. The diehard fans know different however.
This book though absorbing and well-written only reminds you of all the duplicity Michael had to encounter during his life. At times you are touched as Jermaine seems genuinely cut up about his brother and determined to protect his legacy and then you remember, he has no proper job, hasn’t had for years and has to make money somehow.
Jackson,JermaineYou Are Not Alone : Michael, Through a Brother's Eyes HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. , 2011. 9780007457342
Rachael Ann Loxston - Freelance writer/journalist of travel features, film reviews, music articles, social commentary and historical articles. Based in the ...
