Me And Michael
My father Charles Gaines help start the film commission in New Hampshire circa 1979. The first feature film to be made there was "On Golden Pond" in 1980. Jane Fonda's biggest fan at the time, was a young Michael Jackson who had recently released his eponymous "Off The Wall" album. He came to the film's wrap party. My brother Latham recognized MJ from his album cover. ("Off the Wall" was our new jam!!) Records were special back then and all we did most afternoons was listen to them for hours...I do pity this generation of kids sometimes, so many distractions but they don't necessarily have better entertainment than we did then." Michael was like a living super hero to us. It was like meeting The Pope if you were Catholic. I had him write an autograph to my teacher who collected them. I got an A.
Michael was the nicest person I have ever met probably still to this day. He emanated LOVE and danced with us all night long, He joyfully agreed to take this precious polaroid with us. I used to get choked up at 12 listening to the sound of Michael's voice on "She's Outta My Life" and the lyrics "damned indecision and cursed pride" still get to me.
If you look back hard enough you will get a flood of memories and these "look backs" are the essence of all my new songs. How much of memory is real, fabricated, imagined, dug from another life? whatever memory is it is also the source for invention. As a songwriter that's what pulls me in, the story behind every memorable event in life. GG
