The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5 was one of the most popular pop music group in history. Originally comprised of five brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael Jackson this well-known group took the world by a storm that launched the family into musical royalty. However, the early home life of these five brothers was not as rosy as it may have appeared on the outside. Joe Jackson, the father these five brothers and four others, was said to have physically abused five of children by way of beatings.
According to Michel Jackson, in an interview, his father would wait for them to return home from school for rehearsal. If they so much as missed a note or misstepped when practicing choreography, he would abuse them severely. The abuse ranged from being thrown against a wall to vicious beatings from belts or other objects.
The Jackson 5 started when Joe heard his son, Tito, playing a guitar Joe was impressed and took it upon himself to bolster his musical interest. What started off as a band of three brothers, with the help of Joe, eventually encompassed the remaining 2 brothers. The group changed its name and took off. In 1966 the music group won a high school talent show and another only a year later. In 1968 Joe had his sons perform at strip clubs to earn some extra money. The now popular music group was quite successful until 1972 when they started falling off the charts due in part to a change in the musical landscape.
In 1975 many of the Jackson’s wanted to have creative control over their music as well as receive royalties. As a result, they didn’t do more recordings for Motown and switched to Epic Records. The last album the band recorded together, (though as a quartet) was ‘2300 Jackson Street’, which did poorly on the charts. Still, all 6 of the brothers did get together for 2 performances over a decade later.