The first album of material from late King of Pop Michael Jackson, everyone was working with half a playbook. The producers of the singer’s first studio album since 2001 had to figure out what the notoriously detail oriented Jackson would want them to do with the grab bag of songs he was working on at the time of his death. The albums iconic cover, a Renaissance painting like mash up of iconic images from throughout Jackson’s career, was forced to go on his understanding of what Michael would have approved of.

Nelson said the ball started rolling in 2003, when Michael was working on songs for his number one collection at Marvin’s Room, the legendary Los Angeles recording studio founded by R&B great Marvin Gaye in 1975. Michael Jackson saw a pair of pain tings Nelson had made chronicling Gaye’s life and fell in love with the images. Michael Jackson’s death in June 2009, his long time friend and now estate co-executor John McClain rang Nelson up and said the gig was back on.

He said ‘It’s time for you to do that painting that Michael wanted you to do, Nelson recalled. He described it as a “panoramic celebration of Michael’s life, music and career” and said he strode to make it as perfect as possible to match the level of perfection Jackson insisted on in his music and art.

1. The king of Pop music “Michael Jackson” passes away (12 pics)