Best album of all time The gripping thriller behind Michael Jackson's "Thriller"
"Thriller", "Beat It", "Billy Jean": Michael Jackson released his album "Thriller" 40 years ago today. Looking back, it is considered a milestone. It was his sixth album and made Jackson the King of Pop for good.
03.07.2024, 08:32
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Superlatives still apply to Michael Jackson's album "Thriller" today: it was awarded seven Grammys, sold around 100 million copies and spent more than 500 weeks in the Billboard album charts.
The King of Pop also collaborated with American director John Landis for the "Thriller" video. From then on, the world of pop music and music videos was a different one.
The names of the stars who worked on the album also ring a bell. Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney took over the second part of the vocals on the duet "The Girl Is Mine".
Thriller" was produced by jazz trumpeter, composer and music producer Quincy Jones, who has also produced for Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles. Jackson also had him under contract for the records "Off The Wall" (1979) and "Bad" (1987).
And the iconic guitar solo on "Beat It", the third single release from "Thriller", was written by Eddie van Halen. He is known from the band of the same name, Van Halen, with their smash hit "Jump". Van Halen himself once said that he recorded the solo in 20 minutes and never charged for it.
Released for the third time
The album "Michael Jackson Thriller 40", which Sony released in mid-November, is now set to build on this success story. It is the third re-release since 1982.
Unlike the original, which consisted of nine songs, this album contains some demos and unreleased tracks. It was released as a double CD.
The deluxe edition of the album, which is only available digitally, comes with 15 additional bonus tracks, including demos and various remixes. The set contains a total of 34 songs.
But the story of "Thriller", which at first glance seems like a glittering success story, also has resinous and shady moments. Jackson's record company expected sales of just a few million worldwide in 1982. Shortly after its release, "Thriller" was hardly worth a line in the media - or none at all, as "Time" magazine itself admitted.
And the initial friendship between Jackson and McCartney broke down when Jackson bought the rights to 251 Beatles recordings for 47.5 million dollars in 1985. After his death, the Jackson heirs sold these rights to Sony. And McCartney has still not managed to get them back.
Dark and creepy
The dark and creepy video for "Thriller" also met with little approval at the beginning. In 1983, John Landis based the 14-minute film on his "American Werewolf in London" (1981).
Michael Jackson had seen this film and was keen to work with Landis. One year after the release of "Thriller", the production company CBS did not want to finance the immense production costs. Jackson finally reached into his own pocket.
Landis and Jackson then shot not only the 14-minute video clip, but also a three-quarter-hour making-of. After much toing and froing, this film with its mass dance scenes was broadcast on the music channel MTV on December 2, 1983 - and went on to become one of the most legendary music videos to date.
And: Michael Jackson became the first African-American artist to appear on the channel.
The costume design and the idea for the famous red leather jacket that Jackson wears in the video came from Landis' wife Deborah Nadoolman Landis. The professor emeritus and director of costume design at the UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television at the University of California in Los Angeles accompanied Landis to the 2021 Locarno Film Festival, where he was awarded the Honorary Leopard for his work. The "Thriller" film was also remembered in this context.