Before global stardom, Jackson was in family singing group from Gary
By David Lindquist
Posted: June 26, 2009
Indianapolis Star | Entertainment
Michael Jackson's singing career began in Gary, where he spent his earliest years in a white house
roughly the size of a two-car garage -- 2300 Jackson St. Nine children of Joseph and Katherine
Jackson lived in the house, and sons Michael, Tito, Marlon, Jackie and Jermaine became the dynamic
Jackson 5 singing group.
"Big Boy," a 1968 single released by Steeltown Records, made the Jacksons a regional sensation,
says songwriter-producer Rodney Stepp. As a member of the Indianapolis-based Diplomats, Stepp
was a fellow pre-teen in an R&B recording act.
