Butterflies

Like the previous "You Rock My World," this second single from Michael Jackson's No. 1-debuting Invincible is taking off at radio like a bat with a blow torch at its behind. But does that make it a bona-fide hit? The first release hastily peaked at No. 10 and fell out of the top 40 in just nine weeks. That's no "Billie Jean." At the least, "Butterflies," co-written and co-produced by Andre Harris, is a change of pace, offering a sassy, crawling groove amid a simple backdrop of a beat box and lone keyboard. Jackson offers some nice harmonies and a fine, soulful vocal. Yet the song never seems to crescendo; it suddenly fades out before anything exciting has happened, and you get the feeling that if it weren't Michael Jackson spinning the wheels, this song probably never would have made it to the airwaves. And that begs the bigger question: If this is the best Invincible has to offer, just how much more mileage will the curiosity factor bring to this once-vital entertainer?—CT