Michael Jackson and Psycho What have we done to the world? By Cecil Pinto
In March of 1985 I was studying for my FYBA exams at St. Xavier’s College in Bombay, as it was then called, and needed to score well in Psychology to keep terms. Being irregular in my attendance I had borrowed Psycho notes from a female friend (not the lovely Renuka Shahane, though she was my classmate – how’s that for name dropping?) but found them quite difficult to cram. I vaguely recalled reading about a new experimental technique for memorizing that involved recording and playing the data to a person while he or she was fast asleep. The technique apparently worked at some subliminal level and the subject woke up with distinct memories of what was played to him. In my desperation I decided to replicate the experiment. My roommate had a mono cassette player-recorder. One of those things with piano type keys that you kept flat on a table. A quality branded blank cassette was quite expensive at Rs. 30/-, whereas pirated cassettes on the roadside in the Fort area cost just Rs. 10/-. Thinking to myself that a tape is a tape is a tape I purchased a pirated copy of Michael Jackson’s album Thriller. Back to my hostel room where I spent a good hour reading out and recording my friend’s notes onto the cassette late into the night till I was sleepy. Putting the player in continuous-play mode I tucked myself in for some deep sleep studying. First thing in the morning I examined my memory to see if Skinner’s experiments and Jung’s theories had been embedded in. Nothing rang a bell, not even Pavlov. A strange side effect though was that suddenly I could recite the lyrics of every song from Thriller, despite not really being a great fan of Michael Jackson. I didn’t score very well in Psycho that year but till date know the lyrics of any song from the Thriller album. I suspect it has something to do with some small plastic tab on the cassette that I had broken. Whether you liked his music or not there was no way you could ignore the King of Pop. His pervasive influence is all around us. Mickey Pacheco sings “Black or White”: They print my photo On Friday’s paper I had to tell them How much I had won And I told about casinos And it’s true I’m not going to give up Without a fight But, if You’re thinking About my money It don’t matter if it’s Black or white Clinton Vaz and Sanjit Rodrigues sing “We Are The World”: There comes a time when we smell a certain stink When Goans must come together as one There is garbage piling And it’s time for all of us To lend Panjim a hand We can’t go on pretending day by day That someone, will give us land to fill We are all part of this capital city And the truth, you know, Land is all we need We are the capital, we have your garbage We are the ones who bear it every day So start segregating There’s a choice we're making We're saving our own lives Its true we'll make a better Panjim Just you and me Take away your garbage, so we know that someone cares And our lives will be cleaner and free As God has shown us by turning stones to bread So you all must lend a helping hand We are the capital, we have your garbage We are the ones who bear it every day So start segregating… The Goa Police sing about their superior investigative techniques in the Mahanand Naik case serial murder case with “Beat It” We told him don't you ever come around here Don't wanna see your face, you better disappear We’re under a lot of fire, and the signs are mighty clear So beat him, just beat him Just beat him, beat him, beat him, Not much we can do but beat him Show him how bloody strong is our might Who cares if the procedure is right Just beat him, beat him, beat him, beat him. All over Goa activists against mining and mega projects chorus, “They Don't Really Care About Us” Stop me, beat me You can never break me Scare me, try me You can never buy me Rue me, sue me Everybody do me All I wanna say is that They don’t really care about us All I wanna say is that They don’t really care about us Of course most of our elected representatives hum to themselves “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough, Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough” when they should actually be hanging their heads in shame and singing the “Earth Song”. I don’t even have to change the lyrics of what is probably Michael Jackson’s greatest song ever. What about sunrise? What about rain? What about all the things That you said we were to gain? What about killing fields? Is there a time? What about all the things That you said was yours and mine? Did you ever stop to notice All the blood we've shed before? Did you ever stop to notice The crying Earth, the weeping shores? Aaa-aaa-aaaah! Aaa-aaa-aaaah! What have we done to the world? Look what we've done What about all the peace That you pledged your only son? What about flowering fields? Is there a time? What about all the dreams That you said were yours and mine? Did you ever stop to notice All the children dead from war? Did you ever stop to notice The crying Earth, the weeping shores? Aaa-aaa-aaaah! Aaa-aaa-aaaah! Hey, what about yesterday What about the seas The heavens are falling down I can't even breathe What about the bleeding Earth Can't we feel its wounds What about nature's worth It’s our planet's womb What about animals We’ve turned kingdoms to dust What about elephants Have we lost their trust What about crying whales We're ravaging the seas What about forest trails Burnt despite our pleas Do we give a damn… Aaa-aaa-aaaah! Aaa-aaa-aaaah! ---------- The column above appeared in Gomantak Times dated 2nd July 2009 =====
