michael jackson

When AOL/Spinner asked Jay Brannan for his reaction to Michael Jackson's passing, he went one better. The singer-songwriter and 'Shortbus' star sat down in his New York apartment and recorded a touching acoustic take on this 1998 classic.

Brannan tells Spinner, "Whether or not you're a Michael Jackson fan, at least one of his songs, if not many, is bound to evoke the memory of a certain time, a certain place or certain people in your life. His songs earmark pages in the lives of billions of complete strangers across the globe. I find that pretty extraordinary."

Brannan's covers EP, In Living Cover, is out July 7 and his month-long tour kicks off in NYC on July 8. His cover of The Verve Pipe's "The Freshmen," which is available now on iTunes, sold over 1,500 digital tracks in just one week.   Tour dates and EP track list below...