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''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' is an
audiobook An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements. Spoken audio has been available in sc ...
and soundtrack companion album for the 1982 film directed by
Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Sp ...
. Composed by
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review '' WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...
, the album was narrated by recording artist
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the " King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over ...
, produced by composer
Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
and distributed by
MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 w ...
. The audiobook was produced by John Williams and Michael Jackson working with Rod Temperton,
Freddy DeMann Frederick DeMann is a film producer, music executive, and co-founder of Maverick Records. During his music career, he managed Michael Jackson, Madonna and Shakira. During DeMann's tenure, Michael Jackson's albums '' Off the Wall'' and ''Thriller' ...
, and
Bruce Swedien Bruce Swedien (; April 19, 1934 – November 16, 2020) was an American recording engineer, mixing engineer and record producer. He was widely known for his work with Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney and Barbra Streisand. Swedien fi ...
. The ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' audiobook was released by MCA on November 15, 1982the same month as Michael Jackson's acclaimed sixth studio album ''
Thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...
'' despite conditions given by
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was founded predominantly as a jazz and classical m ...
, Jackson's record label, that it should not be released until after ''Thriller''. As a result, Epic took legal action against MCA which forced the album's withdrawal. During its curtailed release, ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' reached number 37 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and number 82 on the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
. It was well-received critically and won Jackson a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
for Best Recording for Children.


Content

The ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' album package contains a storybook, which allows listeners to read along with Jackson as he narrates the tale of E.T. and the alien's visit to planet Earth. The book contains a photograph of E.T. placing their hands on Jackson's shoulders, while one of the extraterrestrial's fingers glows. This picture is included in the album package as a × full-color poster.Mansour, p. 146Packaging and liner notes of the ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' storybook The 20-page storybook include stills from the movie and the lyrics to the song "Someone in the Dark" (written by
Alan Alan may refer to: People *Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname * Alan (given name), an English given name **List of people with given name Alan ''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.'' * ...
and
Marilyn Bergman Alan Bergman (born September 11, 1925) and Marilyn Keith Bergman (November 10, 1928 – January 8, 2022) were an American songwriting duo. Married from 1958 until Marilyn's death, together they wrote music and lyrics for numerous celebrated telev ...
), which Jackson sings on the audiobook. The recording, on a
12-inch The twelve-inch single (often written as 12-inch or 12″) is a type of vinyl ( polyvinyl chloride or PVC) gramophone record that has wider groove spacing and shorter playing time with a 'single' or a few related sound tracks on each surfac ...
vinyl LP, features original music by
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review '' WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...
, integrated sound effects from the movie, as well as the voice of E.T. in the background.


Background

Prior to the recording of the ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' album, Jackson released four solo studio albums with
Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''mot ...
between 1972 and 1975 (''
Got to Be There ''Got to Be There'' is the debut solo studio album by American singer Michael Jackson, released by Motown on January 24, 1972, four weeks after the Jackson 5's ''Greatest Hits'' (1971). It includes the song of the same name, which was released ...
'', ''
Ben Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( h ...
'', ''
Music & Me ''Music & Me'' is the third studio album by American singer Michael Jackson, released on April 13, 1973 on the Motown label. The album was reissued in 2009 as part of the three-disc compilation '' Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection''. Back ...
'' and '' Forever, Michael''), and several with his brothers as part of
The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...
. In 1975, he and his brothers (except Jermaine) moved to
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was founded predominantly as a jazz and classical m ...
and in 1979, Michael released his fifth solo album, ''
Off the Wall ''Off the Wall'' is the fifth studio album by American singer Michael Jackson, released on August 10, 1979, by Epic Records. It was Jackson's first album released through Epic Records, the label he recorded under until his death in 2009, and t ...
'', to critical and commercial success.George, pp. 31–40Taraborrelli, pp. 610–612 In June 1982 the
Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Sp ...
-directed
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
feature film ''
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (or simply ''E.T.'') is a 1982 American science fiction film produced and directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Melissa Mathison. It tells the story of Elliott, a boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, d ...
'' was released to cinemas. Created by Spielberg's
Amblin Entertainment Amblin Entertainment, Inc., formerly named Amblin Productions and Steven Spielberg Productions, is an American film production company founded by director and producer Steven Spielberg, and film producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marsha ...
and distributed by
Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...
(then a subsidiary of MCA Inc.), it starred
Henry Thomas Henry Jackson Thomas Jr. (born September 9, 1971) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor and had a lead role in the film ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), for which he won a Young Artist Award and received Golden Globe ...
,
Dee Wallace Deanna Wallace (née Bowers; born December 14, 1948), also known as Dee Wallace Stone, is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Mary Taylor, the mother in the 1982 blockbuster film '' E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''. She i ...
, Robert MacNaughton,
Drew Barrymore Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...
and
Peter Coyote Peter Coyote (born Robert Peter Cohon; October 10, 1941) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, author and narrator of films, theatre, television, and audiobooks. He worked on films such as ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), '' Cro ...
. The film tells the story of Elliott, a boy who befriends a good-natured extraterrestrial he calls E.T., who is stranded on Earth. Upon its release, the film became a
blockbuster Blockbuster or Block Buster may refer to: *Blockbuster (entertainment) a term coined for an extremely successful movie, from which most other uses are derived. Corporations * Blockbuster (retailer), a defunct video and game rental chain ** Bl ...
and surpassed ''
Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various film ...
'' to become the highest-grossing film released to that point. Critics lauded it as a timeless story of friendship, and the
American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...
ranks it as the third greatest science fiction film ever produced in the United States.


Production

Jackson began work on the audiobook ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' in June 1982about two months after he began recording his sixth studio album ''
Thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...
''. Quincy Jones served as the producer for both projects, in addition to working as the narrative writer for the audiobook.Pratt, p. 59Taraborrelli, p. 209 During the recording of the narration, Jackson became so upset when E.T. died that he wept. Jones and Spielberg both felt that trying to record the part again would not change the pop star's emotional reaction and decided to leave Jackson's crying in the finished recording. Jackson biographer Lisa D. Campbell wrote that Jones had learned this during the recording of "
She's Out of My Life "She's Out of My Life" is a song written by American songwriter Tom Bahler and performed by American singer Michael Jackson. The song was released as the fourth single from Jackson's 1979 album ''Off the Wall'' released on April 19, 1980. In 200 ...
" (from the ''Off the Wall'' album), where the singer also broke down in tears.Campbell, p. 55 Several of the contributors to the ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' storybook album had worked with Jackson on his solo projects in the past. Rod Temperton, who had written several songs featured on ''Off the Wall'' and ''Thriller'', wrote the music for "Someone in the Dark".
Freddy DeMann Frederick DeMann is a film producer, music executive, and co-founder of Maverick Records. During his music career, he managed Michael Jackson, Madonna and Shakira. During DeMann's tenure, Michael Jackson's albums '' Off the Wall'' and ''Thriller' ...
and Ron Weisner, former managers of The Jacksons, served as the production coordinators for the album.
Bruce Swedien Bruce Swedien (; April 19, 1934 – November 16, 2020) was an American recording engineer, mixing engineer and record producer. He was widely known for his work with Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney and Barbra Streisand. Swedien fi ...
engineered ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'', a task he had performed on ''Off the Wall'' and ''Thriller'' and would go on to perform for the next albums of Jackson. Dick Zimmerman photographed Jackson for the ''Thriller'' album cover, before again capturing the singer for the accompanying poster to the ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' album.Campbell, p. 56 Once the recording and engineering aspects of production had been completed,
MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 w ...
(the distributor of the album) pressed more than a million copies of the audiobook. In 1982 a journalist for ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...
'' wrote that it was one of the "most ambitious" projects MCA Records had taken on to date.


Jackson's empathy with the E.T. character

Jackson commented the following:
"He's in a strange place and wants to be acceptedwhich is a situation that I have found myself in many times when travelling from city to city all over the world. He's most comfortable with children, and I have a great love for kids. He gives love and wants love in return, which is me. And he has that super power which lets him lift off and fly whenever he wants to get away from things on Earth, and I can identify with that. He and I are alike in many ways."


Release and legal issues

Epic Records allowed Jackson to record the album on two conditions: #MCA Records was not to release ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' until after Christmas 1982. (This was to avoid the audiobook's competing with Jackson's new album, ''
Thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...
''.) #The song "Someone in the Dark" was not to be released as a single. MCA Records breached both conditions, releasing the storybook in November 1982 and giving
7-inch In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separat ...
promo copies of "Someone in the Dark" to radio stations. After Epic lodged a $2 million lawsuit, MCA Records was forced to withdraw the album and prohibited from releasing "Someone in the Dark" as a single.Grant, p. 61 Epic executives had felt that MCA was misleading members of the public into believing the then-recently released single "
The Girl Is Mine "The Girl Is Mine" is a song recorded by American singer Michael Jackson and English musician Paul McCartney. The track was written by Jackson and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. It was released as the first single for Jackson's sixth s ...
" was featured on the storybook album. The plaintiffs further requested that MCA Records be banned from working with Jackson in the future and that any other media owned by MCA featuring the singer be prohibited from release. As a result of the legal restrictions that prohibited the public release of "Someone in the Dark" as a single, the promo copies which were made have since become one of the singer's rarest and most sought-after records; some have been sold for over $1,600.Halstead, p. 294 The song's opening version was later included as a bonus track on the 2001 special edition of ''Thriller'', as well as the box set '' Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection''.


Reception

''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' reached number 82 on the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
,Rees, p. 258 which was considered high for a storybook album.Honeyford, p. 58 The audiobook won Jackson a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
in
1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
for Best Recording for Children.George, p. 40 Upon collecting the award and taking home a record eight Grammys from an unprecedented twelve nominations, the singer said that of all the awards he had received that night, he was "most proud of this one". ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' was also well-received critically. Charles L. Sanders of ''Ebony'' magazine described it as an "extraordinary album". Mark Bego of the ''
Toledo Blade ''The Blade'', also known as the ''Toledo Blade'', is a newspaper in Toledo, Ohio published daily online and printed Thursday and Sunday by Block Communications. The newspaper was first published on December 19, 1835. Overview The first issue ...
'' asserted that the song "Someone in the Dark" was "one of the most beautiful ballads" Jackson had ever recorded. He further commented that the amalgamation of Jones's production, dialogue from the film, Jackson's "effective and emotional" reading of the narrative and the audiobook's "grand soaring orchestration" made the ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' album " licitas many tears as the movie does". A writer for ''Billboard'' described the audiobook as being "lavishly packaged, lovingly produced" and worth its high asking price. A journalist for the ''
Lexington Herald-Leader The ''Lexington Herald-Leader'' is a newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and based in Lexington, Kentucky. According to the ''1999 Editor & Publisher International Yearbook'', the paid circulation of the ''Herald-Leader'' is the second larg ...
'' concluded that it was a "delightful" storybook album.


Track listing


Personnel

*Narration and vocals by Michael Jackson *Produced by Quincy Jones for Quincy Jones Productions *Original music for ''E.T.'' composed and conducted by John Williams *Narrative written by
William Kotzwinkle William Kotzwinkle (born November 22, 1943) is an American novelist, children's writer, and screenwriter. He was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. He has won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel for ''Doctor Rat'' in 1977, and has also won ...
, Steven Spielberg, Quincy Jones and Peggy Lipton Jones *Lyrics to "Someone in the Dark" written by Alan and Marilyn Bergman *Music to "Someone in the Dark" written by Rod Temperton *Arranged and conducted by Jeremy Lubbock *Synthesizer Solo by Craig Huxley *Album concept: Kathy "Leen" Carey *Executive producers: Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy *Assistant to executive producers: Kate Barker *Production coordinators: Freddy DeMann and Ron Weisner *Editor: Bruce Cannon *Production assistants: Pam Crocetti, Madeline Randolph, Corinne Alicia and Bonnie Sachs *Supervising sound editor:
Charles L. Campbell Charles L. Campbell (August 17, 1930 – June 21, 2013) was an American sound engineer who won three Academy Awards for Best Sound Editing. He also served as Governor of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) 1984-1987. Early l ...
*Sound effects editors: David A. Pettijohn, Louis L. Edemann, Richard C. Franklin, Jr and Samuel C. Crutcher *Re-recording mixers: Buzz Knudson, Robert Glass and Don Digirolamo *Storybook album engineer:
Bruce Swedien Bruce Swedien (; April 19, 1934 – November 16, 2020) was an American recording engineer, mixing engineer and record producer. He was widely known for his work with Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney and Barbra Streisand. Swedien fi ...
*Assistant engineer: Matt Forger *Project coordinator: Nancy Cushing-Jones *Designer: Michael Brock *Photographers: Bruce McBroom and Terry Chostner *Photographer for poster of Michael Jackson and E.T.: Dick Zimmerman *Cover illustration of booklet:
Drew Struzan Drew Struzan (; born March 18, 1947) is an American artist, illustrator and cover designer. He is known for his more than 150 movie posters, which include ''The Shawshank Redemption'', ''Blade Runner'', ''Mallrats'', as well as films in the ''In ...
*Art direction: George Osaki


Charts


Notes


References

Sources: * * George, Nelson (2004). '' Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection'' booklet.
Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyou ...
. * * * * * * * {{Authority control 1982 soundtrack albums Albums produced by Quincy Jones Audiobooks by title or series
Album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
MCA Records soundtracks Michael Jackson albums Children's albums Science fiction film soundtracks