Retro Tune of the Day VINYL COUNTDOWN: Bad by Michael Jackson from the Bad album, 1987.

In his 1988 autobiography, Michael Jackson wrote: ”Bad is a song about the street. Its about a kid from a bad neighborhood who gets to go away to a private school. He comes back to the old neighborhood when he’s on a break from school and the kids from the neighborhood start giving him trouble. He sings, “I’m bad, you’re bad, who’s bad, who’s the best?” He’s saying when you’re strong and good, then you’re bad.”

He later explained in an interview with Ebony and Jet magazines that the song was based on a true story about a young black kid from the ghetto who went to school in Upstate New York who was killed by jealous friends when he returned home during a school break. [via]

Pretty amazing song by MJ and even cooler video directed by Martin Scorsese with a very West Side Story feel.

Check out more music from the vinyl countdown here.