HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I - Release and Reception

Release and Reception

HIStory received generally positive reviews. Arguably Jackson's most angry and raw, emotional album, it revealed a musician worn, torn and possibly paranoid by years of superstardom, now reportedly reacting against people who tried to bring him down. This reaction is what some people say ultimately stunted his previous skill at creating cutting edge musical trends, with Jon Pareles of The New York Times writing that "It has been a long time since Michael Jackson was simply a performer. He's the main asset of his own corporation, which is a profitable subsidiary of Sony". Some reviewers commented on the unusual format of a new studio album being accompanied by a "greatest hits" collection, with Q magazine saying "from the new songs' point of view, it's like taking your dad with you into a fight." Fred Shuster of the Daily News of Los Angeles described "This Time Around", "Money" and "D.S." as "superb slices of organic funk that will fuel many of the summer's busiest dance floors".

James Hunter of Rolling Stone gave HIStory four-out-of-five stars and noted that it "unfolds in Jackson's outraged response to everything he has encountered in the last year or so. It makes for an odd, charmless second chapter to a first that includes miraculous recordings like 'Billie Jean,' 'The Way You Make Me Feel,' 'Black or White' and 'Beat It.' In relation to "This Time Around", Hunter described it as a "dynamite jam" that's "ripe for remixes" and described "Scream" and "Tabloid Junkie," as being "adventurous" while noting that "Earth Song" as a "noble sentiments" that sounds "primarily like a showpiece". Jim Farber of the New York Daily News gave the album a generally mixed review and commented that he would give the album's first disc three stars if it was released on its own. Jon Pareles of The New York Times believed that Jackson "muttered" lyrics such as "They thought they really had control of me". Chris Willman of the Los Angeles Times said of "This Time Around", "a tough, rhythm-guitar-driven track co-written and co-produced by hit-maker Dallas Austin that sports one of the album's better grooves".

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic gave HIStory three-out-of-five stars, but commented that it was a "monumental achievement" of Jackson's ego. Erlewine remarked that on the "HIStory Begins" CD, it contains "some of the greatest music in pop history" but that it leaves some hits out, citing "Say Say Say" and "Dirty Diana" — commenting that "yet it's filled with enough prime material to be thoroughly intoxicating". Erlewine noted that "HIStory Continues" is "easily the most personal album Jackson has recorded" and that its songs' lyrics referencing the molestation accusations create a "thick atmosphere of paranoia". He cited "You Are Not Alone" and "Scream" as being "well-crafted pop that ranks with his best material". David Browne of Entertainment Weekly, gave "HIStory Begins" an "A-" grade but the album's new material a "C-", which "winds up a B" for the entire album. Browne commented that the music "rarely seems to transport him (and thereby us) to a higher plane." The album was nominated for five Grammy Awards at the 1996 and 1997 ceremonies respectively, winning one award. "You Are Not Alone" was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male, "Scream" was nominated for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals and "Scream" won Best Music Video - Short Form and "Earth Song" was nominated for the same award the following year. The album itself was nominated for Album of the Year. At the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards, "Scream" received ten nominations, winning in three categories.

HIStory debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts selling over 391,000 copies in its first week. The album was certified seven times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on October 22, 1999 in recognition of 3.5 million shipments in the United States. Multi-disc albums are counted once for each disc within the album. Because HIStory is double disc album, its CDs are therefore counted separately for certification purposes, meaning the album achieved platinum status in the United States after 500,000 copies were shipped, not one million. In Europe, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry certified HIStory six times platinum, denoting six million shipments within the continent, including 1.5 million in Germany and 1.2 million shipments in the United Kingdom. As of 2010, HIStory has sold over twenty million copies (forty million units) worldwide and, according to MSNBC, is the best-selling multiple-disc album of all-time.