The Ultimate Collection
Box set by
Michael Jackson
ReleasedNovember 16, 2004
Length70:48 (Disc 1)
48:18 (Disc 2)
71:06 (Disc 3)
62:28 (Disc 4)
122:05 (DVD)
Label
Producer
Michael Jackson chronology
Number Ones
(2003)		 The Ultimate Collection
(2004)		 The Essential Michael Jackson
(2005)
Alternative covers
UK iTunes and Amazon UK cover
Alternative cover
UK physical set
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Rolling Stone (1998)[2]

The Ultimate Collection is a box set by American singer and recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 16, 2004, by Epic Records and consists of four audio CDs and one DVD. The album sold 57,000 copies in 2004 alone,[3] and on May 16, 2013, it was certified Platinum as a multi-disk package by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for physical shipments of 200,000 copies in the United States.[4] The DVD marked the first physical release of Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour, initially an HBO concert special in 1992, which was later released as an individual title on July 25, 2005. The set also features a 60-page booklet that contains photos and text by the American music critic Nelson George summarizing the artist's career.

Album information

Much of the music is drawn from the height of Jackson's career, particularly from the studio albums released by Epic: Off the Wall, Thriller, Bad, Dangerous, HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I, and Invincible, plus the remix album Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix.

Notable tracks on the box set include the first release of the demos of songs such as "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)", "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)", "Cheater" and the original demo of "We Are the World" featuring Jackson as a soloist. The set also contains 8 unreleased songs, including "In the Back", "Beautiful Girl", "The Way You Love Me" and "We've Had Enough".

The song "The Way You Love Me" was remixed for the posthumous album Michael with the title "(I Like) The Way You Love Me", and was released as a single on July 8, 2011.

The previously unreleased content from this box set was later included in an iTunes-only collection similarly titled The Ultimate Fan Extras Collection in 2013.

Rarities

The Ultimate Collection box set also contains songs previously out of print:

  • "Enjoy Yourself" is 15 seconds longer than the original album version.
  • The full version of "You Can't Win" was originally only available on its 12-inch single.
  • "Sunset Driver" was originally recorded in 1979 and 1982 (the 1979 version remains unreleased), was left off the Thriller album. The demo version can be found on Thriller 40.
  • "Someone in the Dark" was recorded in 1982 and first released as a two-part song on the E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial double LP audiobook, and later included in a shorter version in the 2001 "Special Edition" of Thriller.
  • Both the early version of "Dangerous" and "Monkey Business" were recorded in 1989 and were previously available only on the rare 2001 Special Edition acetate of the Dangerous album, which was ultimately cancelled.
  • "Someone Put Your Hand Out" was originally recorded in 1987 and re-recorded in 1991. The song was released as a Pepsi-supported cassette single in Europe to promote the Dangerous World Tour (see below).
  • "On the Line" was recorded in 1996 and featured on the Get on the Bus movie released the same year. It was also part of the Ghosts boxset released in 1997, but containing an earlier fade out.
  • "You Are Not Alone" is 15 seconds longer than the album version, featuring more vocals.
  • "We Are Here to Change the World" is a previously unreleased song recorded in 1985 and used in the Disney World short film Captain EO.
  • "Scared of the Moon" was recorded in 1983 in the pre-Bad sessions.
  • Michael recorded a demo of We Are the World in 1984 with his vocals only.
  • Cheater was recorded in 1987 during the Bad sessions and reworked in 2001. The 2001 rework remains unreleased.
  • Fall Again was recorded in 1999 during the early Invincible sessions.
  • "In The Back" was recorded between 1994 and 2004 in the Invincible sessions.
  • "Beautiful Girl" was recorded in 1998 and 2004 in the Invincible sessions.
  • (I Like) The Way You Love Me was recorded between 1998 and 1999 during the Invincible sessions. A reworked version was released on Michael.
  • "We've Had Enough" was recorded between 1999 and 2000 during the Invincible sessions.

Track listing

Disc 1
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
1."I Want You Back"The Corporation (Berry Gordy, Freddie Perren, Deke Richards, Alphonzo Mizell)Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 52:58
2."ABC"The CorporationABC2:57
3."I'll Be There"Berry Gordy, Bob West, Willie Hutch, Hal DavisThird Album3:56
4."Got to Be There"Elliot WillenskyGot to Be There3:23
5."I Wanna Be Where You Are"Arthur "T-Boy" Ross, Leon WareGot to Be There2:59
6."Ben"Walter Scharf, Don BlackBen2:44
7."Dancing Machine" (Single Version)Hal Davis, Don Fletcher, Dean ParksG.I.T.: Get It Together and Dancing Machine2:37
8."Enjoy Yourself" (Alternate Version) (Recorded 1976, during sessions for The Jacksons album)Kenny Gamble, Leon HuffThe Jacksons3:40
9."Ease On Down The Road" (featuring Diana Ross) (From The Wiz, also unreleased from Off the Wall; recorded August 1977 and 1978, during The Wiz sessions)Charlie SmallsThe Wiz3:19
10."You Can't Win" (Alternate Version) (Recorded for single release by Epic Records, original version from The Wiz film; recorded August 1977 and 1978, during The Wiz soundtrack sessions)Charlie SmallsThe Wiz7:18
11."Shake a Body" (Early Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded August 1978, during Destiny sessions)Michael Jackson, Randy Jackson 2:09
12."Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" (Single Edit)Michael Jackson, Randy JacksonDestiny3:44
13."Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough"Michael JacksonOff the Wall6:04
14."Rock with You" (Album Version #2)Rod TempertonOff the Wall3:39
15."Off the Wall"Rod TempertonOff the Wall4:06
16."She's Out of My Life"Tom BahlerOff the Wall3:38
17."Sunset Driver" (1982 Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded 1979 and 1982, during Off The Wall and Thriller sessions)Michael Jackson 4:03
18."Lovely One"Michael Jackson, Randy JacksonTriumph4:50
19."This Place Hotel" (a.k.a. "Heartbreak Hotel")Michael JacksonTriumph5:44
Disc 2
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
1."Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"Michael JacksonThriller6:03
2."The Girl Is Mine" (featuring Paul McCartney)Michael JacksonThriller3:42
3."Thriller"Rod TempertonThriller5:58
4."Beat It"Michael JacksonThriller4:18
5."Billie Jean"Michael JacksonThriller4:53
6."P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" (Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded April and October – November 8, 1982, during Thriller sessions)Michael Jackson, Greg Phillinganes 3:46
7."Someone in the Dark" (Opening Version) (from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial audiobook)Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman, Rod TempertonE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial4:54
8."State of Shock" (featuring Mick Jagger)Michael Jackson, Randy HansenVictory4:30
9."Scared of the Moon" (Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded 1984, during Thriller era)Michael Jackson, Buz Kohan 4:41
10."We Are the World" (Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded January 28, 1985)Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie 5:20
11."We Are Here to Change the World" (from Captain EO short film) (Previously unreleased)Michael Jackson, John Barnes 2:53
Disc 3
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
1."Bad"Michael JacksonBad4:07
2."The Way You Make Me Feel" (Album Version #2)Michael JacksonBad4:58
3."Man in the Mirror"Siedah Garrett, Glen BallardBad5:20
4."I Just Can't Stop Loving You" (Radio Edit) (featuring Siedah Garrett)Michael JacksonBad4:13
5."Dirty Diana" (Album Version #2)Michael JacksonBad4:41
6."Smooth Criminal" (Album Version #3)Michael JacksonBad4:17
7."Cheater" (Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded March 1987, during Bad sessions)Michael Jackson, Greg Phillinganes 5:09
8."Dangerous" (Early Version) (Previously unreleased; recorded 1990-91, during Dangerous sessions)Michael Jackson, Bill Bottrell, Teddy Riley 6:40
9."Monkey Business" (Previously unreleased; recorded 1989, during Dangerous sessions)Michael Jackson, Bill Bottrell 5:46
10."Jam" (featuring Heavy D)Michael Jackson, René Moore, Bruce Swedien, Teddy RileyDangerous5:39
11."Remember the Time"Teddy Riley, Michael Jackson, Bernard BelleDangerous4:00
12."Black or White"Michael Jackson; rap lyrics by Bill BottrellDangerous4:16
13."Who Is It" (IHS Mix)Michael JacksonDangerous7:57
14."Someone Put Your Hand Out" (Recorded 1987, 1990 and 1991 – April 1992, during Bad and Dangerous era sessions and released as a Europe-only cassette single)Michael Jackson, Teddy Riley 5:25
Disc 4
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
1."You Are Not Alone" (Extended Version) (Recorded September and November 6 and 8, 1994 – March 1995, during HIStory sessions)R. KellyHIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I6:03
2."Stranger in Moscow"Michael JacksonHIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I5:44
3."Childhood" (theme from Free Willy 2)Michael JacksonHIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I4:28
4."On the Line" (Recorded 1995 and January – July 1996, during HIStory and Get on the Bus sessions)Michael Jackson, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds 4:53
5."Blood on the Dance Floor"Michael Jackson, Teddy RileyBlood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix4:12
6."Fall Again" (Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded 1999, during Invincible sessions)Michael Jackson, Walter Afanasieff, Robin Thicke 4:22
7."In the Back" (Previously unreleased; recorded 1994 - 2004)Michael Jackson, Glen Ballard 4:31
8."Unbreakable" (featuring The Notorious B.I.G.)Michael Jackson, Rodney Jerkins, Fred Jerkins III, LaShawn Daniels, Nora Payne, Robert SmithInvincible6:26
9."You Rock My World" (Album Edit)Michael Jackson, Rodney Jerkins, Fred Jerkins III, LaShawn Daniels, Nora PayneInvincible5:09
10."Butterflies"Andre Harris, Marsha AmbrosiusInvincible4:40
11."Beautiful Girl" (Demo) (Previously unreleased; recorded 1998 and 2004)Michael Jackson 4:03
12."The Way You Love Me" (Previously unreleased; recorded mid 1998 – 2004)Michael Jackson 4:30
13."We've Had Enough" (Previously unreleased; recorded 1999 – 2000, during Invincible sessions)Michael Jackson, Rodney Jerkins, LaShawn Daniels, Carole Bayer Sager 5:45
DVD: Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour (previously unreleased)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Jam"Michael Jackson, René Moore, Bruce Swedien, Teddy Riley8:16
2."Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"Michael Jackson5:13
3."Human Nature"Steve Porcaro, John Bettis5:02
4."Smooth Criminal"Michael Jackson6:00
5."I Just Can't Stop Loving You" (duet with Siedah Garrett)Michael Jackson4:45
6."She's Out of My Life"Tom Bahler4:53
7."I Want You Back/The Love You Save"Berry Gordy, Freddie Perren, Alphonzo Mizell, Deke Richards2:17
8."I'll Be There"Berry Gordy, Bob West, Willie Hutch, Hal Davis4:33
9."Thriller"Rod Temperton5:51
10."Billie Jean"Michael Jackson7:44
11."Workin' Day and Night"Michael Jackson10:04
12."Beat It"Michael Jackson7:24
13."Will You Be There"Michael Jackson6:51
14."Black or White"Michael Jackson, Bill Bottrell6:38
15."Heal the World"Michael Jackson8:53
16."Man in the Mirror"Siedah Garrett, Glen Ballard13:28

Limited Japanese Edition bonus tracks

Disc 1
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
11."Blame It on the Boogie"Michael G. Jackson-Clark, David Jackson-Rich, Hans Kampschroer, Elmar Krohn, Thomas MeyerDestiny3:34
Disc 2
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
6."Human Nature"Steve Porcaro, John BettisThriller4:05
Disc 3
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
3."Another Part of Me"Michael JacksonBad3:55
13."Heal the World"Michael JacksonDangerous6:25
Disc 4
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
12."One More Chance"R. KellyNumber Ones3:49
  • The Jacksons perform track 11 on Disc 1.
  • The addition of "Another Part of Me" pushes the order of tracks down by one (i.e. "Someone Put Your Hand Out" starts off Disc 4).

Sampler CD

Sampler CD
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Want You Back"The Corporation (Berry Gordy, Freddie Perren, Deke Richards, Alphonzo Mizell)2:58
2."Rock with You"Rod Temperton3:39
3."She's Out of My Life"Tom Bahler3:38
4."Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"Michael Jackson6:03
5."Billie Jean"Michael Jackson4:53
6."Scared of the Moon" (Demo) (Previously unreleased)Michael Jackson, Buz Kohan4:41
7."Bad"Michael Jackson4:07
8."Man in the Mirror"Siedah Garrett, Glen Ballard5:20
9."Cheater" (Demo) (Previously unreleased)Michael Jackson, Greg Phillinganes5:09
10."You Are Not Alone" (Extended Version)R. Kelly6:03
11."Beautiful Girl" (Demo) (Previously unreleased)Michael Jackson4:03
12."We've Had Enough" (Previously unreleased)Michael Jackson, Rodney Jerkins, LaShawn Daniels, Carole Bayer Sager5:45

"Someone Put Your Hand Out"

"Someone Put Your Hand Out" (on disc three of The Ultimate Collection) is a song originally written by Michael Jackson in 1987 for the Bad album and re-written in April 1992 with Teddy Riley, having failed to make it on to Jackson's 1991 album Dangerous. It was released May 1992 in Europe as an exclusive Pepsi promotional single, to promote Jackson's upcoming Dangerous World Tour. 500,000 copies were made available by collecting a winning token from certain Pepsi products.

A cassette single of "Someone Put Your Hand Out" was also released as part of an exclusive Pepsi promotional pack in June 1992 throughout Europe. The promotional pack also included a Michael Jackson poster, a promotional sticker, and a press release about Jackson's upcoming Dangerous World Tour.

An instrumental version of the song was played by Michael Jackson's band during some of the concerts of the Dangerous World Tour.

The Bad-era demo leaked in high quality with alternate lyrics on 28 January 2023.

Charts

Chart (2004) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[5] 60
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[6] 25
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[7] 33
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[8] 46
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 37
Italian Albums (FIMI)[10] 45
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[11] 40
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[12] 6
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[13] 29
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[14] 31
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[15] 33
US Billboard 200[16] 154

Certifications and sales

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[17] Platinum 200,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ↑ Allmusic review
  2. ↑ "Rolling Stone (2004) review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 8, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Jackson's finances continue to dwindle". Today. June 8, 2005. Archived from the original on 12 September 2017. Retrieved October 30, 2009.
  4. ↑ "RIAA Diamond Awards". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 30, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  6. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  7. ↑ "Danishcharts.dk – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  8. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  9. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  10. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  11. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  12. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  13. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  14. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  15. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  16. ↑ "Michael Jackson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  17. ↑ "American album certifications – Michael Jackson – The Ultimate Collection". Recording Industry Association of America.
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