Michael Jackson ‎– Thriller (1982)

Thriller is the sixth solo album by American R&B/pop singer Michael Jackson, released on November 29, 1982, on Epic Records.

Release

Michael Jackson rode high into 1982 as he recorded Thriller, his sixth solo studio album and second as an adult after 1979’s Off the Wall, which spawned two No. 1 hits: “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” and “Rock with You.” Jackson teamed with producer Quincy Jones on both albums, which feature songs by Jackson and keyboardist Rod Temperton (formerly of Heatwave).

Jackson released Thriller on November 29, five weeks after its lead single “The Girl Is Mine,” Jackson’s humorous duet with Paul McCartney, in which they argue over a girl. The single reached No. 2 and propelled the album’s modest start.

In January and February 1983, Jackson released “Billie Jean” and “Beat It” as back-to-back singles. For both songs, he filmed vivid videos that became the first two clips by a black artist to gain high rotation on MTV. By late February, Thriller became his first No. 1 album.

Thriller catapulted to new heights after Jackson’s performance on Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever, the 1983 NBC television special that celebrated the 25th anniversary of Motown Records. After the May 16 broadcast, Thriller sold one million copies per week. It spent seventeen straight weeks at No. 1 and twice returned that summer for three further weeks. In late December, Thriller commenced a second seventeen-week run at No. 1, which extended the album’s chart life to the spring of 1984.

Thriller spawned two No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: “Billie Jean” (seven weeks) and “Beat It” (three weeks). Of the album’s nine songs, seven became Top 10 singles. Thriller became the biggest-selling album of all time.

Animal House director John Landis directed the video for the epic Thriller title track. The “Thriller” video, which spoofs the werewolf horror genre, was the first long-form video for a rock song.

By 2020, Thriller sold more than 70 million copies worldwide.

“Behind the Mask”

As with Off the Wall — which contains covers of songs by Paul McCartney (“Girlfriend”) and Carole Bayer Sager (“It’s the Falling in Love,” also covered by Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Bridgewater) — Jackson prepared a cover song for Thriller. It came all the way from Tokyo.

In 1980, a quirky electronic post-disco song titled “Behind the Mask” appeared on A&M Records by the Japanese trio Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO). Despite the song’s scant stateside exposure, Quincy Jones heard it during a trip to Japan.

Jones brought the song to Jackson, who gave it new lyrics and melodic details. Unlike the original, which has a voice rendered robot-like through a vocoder, Jackson recreated “Behind the Mask” as a romantic soul-pop number with his trademark multi-octave delivery.

However, “Behind the Mask” didn’t make the final Thriller tracklist because Jackson couldn’t negotiate a royalty agreement with the song’s writer, YMO keyboardist Ryuichi Sakamoto.

As Jackson raked millions off Thriller, his version of “Behind the Mask” languished in obscurity. YMO’s original version appeared on their 1979 second album Solid State Survivor. In 1980, the song reappeared on the US version of X∞Multiplies, a YMO compilation for the Western Hemisphere.

Despite missing his chunk of the Thriller earnings, Sakamoto made royalties off “Behind the Mask” covers inspired by Jackson’s 1982 demo.

“Behind the Mask” became a 1987 UK hit for Eric Clapton, who learned of the song through Jackson’s keyboardist, Greg Phillinganes. Greg, who played on the Jackson and Clapton versions, cut an R&B version for his 1984 album Pulse.

Tracklist:
A1. “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” (6:02)
A2. “Baby Be Mine” (4:20)
A3. “The Girl Is Mine” (3:42)
A4. “Thriller” (5:57)
B1. “Beat It” (4:17)
B2. “Billie Jean” (4:57)
B3. “Human Nature” (4:05)
B4. “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)” (3:58)
B5. “The Lady in My Life” (4:57)

Credits:
Michael Jackson — vocals, drawings, writer, producer
Quincy Jones — producer, writer
Humberto Gatica — recordings
Paul McCartney — guest, vocals
Vincent Price — voice, drums
La Toya Jackson — backing vocals
Janet Jackson — backing vocals
Maxine Waters — backing vocals
Julia Waters — backing vocals
Oren Waters — vocals
Becky Lopez — vocals
Bunny Hull — vocals
Howard Hewett — backing vocals
James Ingram — backing vocals, writer, keyboards, handclaps
Louis Johnson — bass, handclaps
Steve Lukather — bass, guitar
Jeff Porcaro — drums
Leon “Ndugu” Chancler — drums
David Williams — guitar
Dean Parks — guitar
Paul Jackson, Jr. — guitar
Greg Phillinganes — keyboards, handclaps
Tom Bähler — keyboards
Paulinho da Costa — percussion
David Paich — piano, synthesizer
Larry Williams — saxophone, flute
Anthony Marinelli — synthesizer
Bill Wolfer — synthesizer
Brian Banks — synthesizer
David Foster — synthesizer
Greg Smith — synthesizer
Michael Boddicker — synthesizer
Rod Temperton — writer, synthesizer
Steve Porcaro — synthesizer, writer
Bill Reichenbach — trombone
Gary Grant — trumpet, flugelhorn
Jerry Hey — trumpet, flugelhorn
Steven Ray — handclaps
Eddie Van Halen — guest, guitar