In September 2009, the extraordinary research of Reader contributor Jake Austen led to the discovery of Michael Jackson’s first studio recording, which had been lingering on a shelf for four decades. Over a year later, the Jackson Five’s rendition of “Big Boy” for One-derful Records has been rescued from tape, and you can hear a clip here.

Since I love listening to people discuss their craft, the reaction of Larry Blasingaine, then a child-prodigy guitarist and session man (or session mannish boy, I suppose) was of particular interest to me: