A New Jacksons Album? Manager Says Group Was ‘Far Advanced’ in the Process at Time of Tito Jackson’s Death
Tito Jackson died while his iconic family band, the Jacksons, was “far advanced” in the process of recording and releasing their first album since 1989’s 2300 Jackson Street, according to their manager, Garry Wilson. “Of course, Tito will still strongly feature,” he says. “The brothers would now want the album to be a tribute to both Tito and Michael.”
The Jacksons have also participated “for some time” in filming a documentary series by a top production company, Wilson adds, including Tito Jackson’s final show Sept. 10 in Munich. Wilson said the Jacksons’ team is negotiating with “several major TV networks” on when and how the series might be released.
Tito Jackson, 70, was a founding member and guitarist for the Jackson 5, a band of brothers who emerged from Gary, Ind. in the late ’60s. They signed with Motown Records, scored hits such Billboard Hot 100-topping classics as “I Want You Back,” “ABC” and “I’ll Be There” and laid the foundation for frontman Michael Jackson’s blockbuster solo career. In the mid-’70s, the band changed its name to the Jacksons. Michael Jackson transformed into the King of Pop and performed frequently with his brothers; he died in 2009. The group has toured, with Tito on guitar and vocals, for years.
The Jacksons’ Sept. 10 performance was at Circus Krone, a small arena where the band first performed in Munich in 1972. The setlist included Tito Jackson’s composition “Love One Another” and guest vocals from his son Taryll, of pop group 3T. “Obviously, we could never have imagined, in what was a packed, fantastic showk with Tito on top form, that the documentary team were filming his last performance,” Wilson says.
Andrew Unterberger
Billboard
