Showing posts with label 1984. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1984. Show all posts

Thriller - song (2)

Author: Jord Posted under: , , , , , , , ,
Photo : Sportsphoto Ltd , Allstar

listen to the B-side track - Can't get outta the rain : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51zgHA1G9dQ


It was released on January 23, 1984 by Epic Records, as the seventh single from the album. The song has appeared on multiple greatest hits compilation albums from Jackson, including HIStory (1995) and This Is It (2009). It was written by Rod Temperton and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. The song, which has a voice-over rap from actor Vincent Price, had originally been titled "Starlight".
Musically "Thriller" is a dance-oriented song; the song's instruments include a bassline and synthesizer. Jackson's voice is heard in a low register while a continuous arrangement of synthesizers is heard along the bassline. In the song, sound effects such as a creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard, and the lyrics contain frightening themes and elements. "Thriller" received positive reviews from critics, though the song was outshone by its music video. "Thriller" became Jackson's seventh top-ten single on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart from the album, while reaching the top of the charts in France and Belgium and the top ten in other countries.
"Thriller" was adapted into a highly successful music video, known independently as "Michael Jackson's Thriller". At fourteen minutes the video is substantially longer than the song, which ties together a narrative featuring Jackson and actress Ola Ray in a setting heavily inspired by horror films of the 1950s. In the video's most iconic scene, Jackson leads other actors costumed as zombies in a choreographed dance routine. Though it garnered some criticism for its occult theme and violent imagery, the video was immediately popular and received high critical acclaim, being nominated for six MTV Video Music Awards in 1984 and winning three. Since its release "Thriller" has been often labeled the greatest music video ever made. In 2009 it was added to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, the first music video ever selected.

"Thriller"
Single by Michael Jackson
from the album Thriller
B-side "Can't Get Outta the Rain"
Released January 23, 1984 (1984-01-23)
Format 7", 12", CD single
Recorded 1982
Genre Dance-pop, funk
Length 4:37
(See track listings)
Label Epic Records
Writer(s) Rod Temperton
Producer Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones
Michael Jackson singles chronology
"P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"
(1983)		 "Thriller"
(1983)		 "Farewell My Summer Love"
(1984)
Thriller track listing
"The Girl Is Mine"
(3)		 "Thriller"
(4)		 "Beat It"
(5)
HIStory track listing
"Man in the Mirror"
(8)		 "Thriller"
(9)		 "Beat It"
(10)

Background

 












Photo : GETTY



"Thriller" was written by Rod Temperton[1] and produced by Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones. "Thriller" was originally titled "Starlight",[1][2] contrary to other reports of the title "Starlight Love".[3] While the song was titled "Starlight", the song's hook lyrics were "Starlight! Starlight sun...", but after the song was changed to "Thriller" the hook was rewritten to "Thriller! In the night...".[4] Temperton commented,
Originally, when I did my Thriller demo, I called it Starlight. Quincy said to me, 'You managed to come up with a title for the last album, see what you can do for this album.' I said, 'Oh great,' so I went back to the hotel, wrote two or three hundred titles, and came up with the title 'Midnight Man'. The next morning, I woke up, and I just said this word... Something in my head just said, this is the title. You could visualise it on the top of the Billboard charts. You could see the merchandising for this one word, how it jumped off the page as 'Thriller'.[2]
While Temperton was writing "Thriller" he stated that he'd "always envisioned" a "talking section at the end" on the song, but did not really know what "to do with it", until deciding "to have somebody, a famous voice, in the horror genre, to do this vocal."[2] Jones' wife, Peggy Lipton, who knew Vincent Price, suggested Price for the vocal part, which Price agreed to do.[2] "Thriller" was released on January 23, 1984 as the seventh, and last, single from Jackson's sixth studio album of the same name.

 Bruce Swedien andVincent PricePrice

Recording


Quincy Jones co-produced "Thriller".
"Thriller", along with other songs from Thriller, were recorded by Jackson over the course of eight weeks,[5] in 1982. Jackson recorded the song at Westlake Recording Studios on Santa Monica Boulevard in Los Angeles, California.[2] Bruce Swedien, the songs engineer, said of the song being recorded,
When we started 'Thriller', the first day at Westlake, we were all there and Quincy [Jones, the producer] walked in followed by me and Michael and Rod Temperton and some of the other people. Quincy turned to us and he said, 'OK guys, we're here to save the recording industry.' Now that's a pretty big responsibility - but he meant it. And that's why those albums, and especially 'Thriller', sound so incredible. The basic thing is, everybody who was involved gave 150 per cent … Quincy's like a director of a movie and I'm like a director of photography, and it's Quincy's job to cast [it]. Quincy can find the people and he gives us the inspiration to do what we do.[2]
Swedien and Jones stated that Vincent Price recorded his introduction and voice-over rap for the song in two takes; Jones, acknowledging that doing a voice-over for a song is "difficult", praised Price and described his recording takes as being "fabulous".[2] Swedien said of Jackson recording the song, that, "I tried all sorts of things with Michael - for instance, he would sing the main vocal part and we'd double it one time and then I'd ask him to step away from the mic and do it a third time and that really changed the acoustics in the room so it gave Michael's vocals a unique character … We recorded some of those background vocals in the shower stall at Westlake."[2]

Composition

"Thriller"s lyrics and sound effects pertain to frightful elements and themes.[6] Throughout the song, sound effects such as a creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard.[2] Bruce Cannon, a sound effects editor to the song, said of the sound effects in "Thriller", that, "Things like the lightning may have come from old Hollywood movies - we'll never know which movies - but the best sound-effects editors do go out in the desert and find a coyote, so I have a feeling that was a real howl..."[2]

Critical reception

"Thriller" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Ashley Lasimone, of AOL's Spinner.com noted that "Thriller" "became a signature for Jackson" and described "the groove of its bassline, paired with Michael's killer vocals and sleek moves" as having had "produced a frighteningly great single."[7] Jon Pareles, of The New York Times, noted that Thrillers tracks, "Billie Jean", "Beat It", "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "the movie in the song 'Thriller'", were the songs, unlike the "fluff" "P.Y.T.", that were "the hits that made Thriller a world-beater; along with Mr. Jackson's stage and video presence, listeners must have identified with his willingness to admit terror."[8]
Ann Powers, of the Los Angeles Times, described "Thriller" as being a song that was "adequately groovy" with a "funked-out beat" with lyrics that are "seemingly lifted from some little kid's 'scary storybook'".[9] After Jackson's death, AOL's Radio Blog released a list, entitled "10 Best Michael Jackson Songs", which placed "Thriller" at number-one on the list.[3] In 2009 Melissa Cabrera, of AOL Radio Blogs, listed "Thriller" as being the fourth best song on their "Top 100 '80s Songs" list.[10] Eliot Glazer, AOL's Radio Blogs, placed "Thriller" at number-one on a list entitled "Top 1984 Songs".[4] "Thriller" was also listed at number-two on the "10 Best Halloween Songs" and "10 Best Party Songs" lists by AOLs Radio Blog.[11][12]

Chart performance

Prior to "Thriller"'s official air-play release, in 1983, it charted and peaked at number-one on Billboard Dance Music/Club Play Singles Chart.[13] "Thriller" became Jackson's seventh, and last Billboard Hot 100 top-ten single from his Thriller album. In "Thriller"'s second week release, on the issue date February 11, 1984, the song charted at number-20 on the Billboard Hot 100.[14] After three weeks of release, on the issue date February 18, 1984, "Thriller" entered the top-ten chart, placing at number-seven, moving up 13 positions on the chart from its previous week.[14] The following week, on the issue date March 3, 1984, "Thriller" charted within the top-five, placing at number-four, the song's peak position.[15] The song was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on December 4, 1989, for shipping 500,000 units across the United States– the requirement for a gold single after 1989.[16][17] On December 4, 1989, the song was also certified platinum by the RIAA for shipping 1 million units across the United States; the requirement for a platinum single after 1989.[17]
On the issue date February 25, 1984, "Thriller" charted within the top-twenty on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart at number nineteen.[18] The following week, the song placed at number-five.[18] On the issue date of March 10, 1984, "Thriller" charted at number-three, where it peaked on the chart.[19] "Thriller" charted, and peaked, at number 24 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart.[13] "Thriller" debuted on the UK Singles Chart on November 19, 1983 at number 24, and the following week charted - and peaked, at number ten on November 26, 1983; the song appeared on the chart for a total of 25 weeks.[20] Beginning on February 5, 1984, "Thriller" peaked on the French Singles Chart at number-one; the song topped the chart for four consecutive weeks.[21] "Thriller" also topped the Belgian VRT Top 30 Chart for two weeks in January 1984.[22]
Following Jackson's death, his music experienced a surge in popularity.[23] In the week of Jackson's death, "Thriller" was Thrillers and Jackson's best-selling track, with sales of 167,000 copies on Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart.[23] On the issue date July 11, 2009, "Thriller" charted and peaked on the Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart, at number-two; the song remained in the charts' top-ten for three consecutive weeks.[24] In the United Kingdom, the week Jackson died "Thriller" charted at number-23,[25] and the following week, on the issue date July 11, 2009, the song peaked at number-12 on the UK Single Chart.[26] On the issue date July 12, 2009, "Thriller" peaked at number-two on the Italian Singles Chart.[27] "Thriller" peaked at number-three on the Australian ARIA Chart and Swiss Singles Chart and topped the Spanish Singles Charts for one week on the issue date July 12, 2009.[28] The song also placed within the top-ten on the German Singles Chart, Norwegian Singles Chart and Irish Singles Chart, charting at number-nine, seven and eight respectively.[28] "Thriller" also peaked at number-25 on the Danish Singles Chart on the issue date July 10, 2009.[29] In the third week of July "Thriller" peaked at number-11 on the Finnish Singles Chart.[30]

Music video

Main article: Michael Jackson's Thriller

Jackson dancing with the living-dead in the music video for "Thriller".
The music video, directed by John Landis, was filmed in various locations in New York and Los Angeles. Contrary to reports of $800,000[31] to $1 million dollar production budgets, Landis stated that the music video was made on a $500,000 dollar budget.[32] Jackson said of making the music video, in an interview that aired on December 11, 1999, for MTV's 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made:
My idea was to make this short film with conversation ... in the beginning - I like having a beginning and a middle and an ending, which would follow a story. I'm very much involved in complete making and creating of the piece. It has to be, you know, my soul. Usually, you know, it's an interpretation of the music. [...] It was a delicate thing to work on because I remember my original approach was, 'How do you make zombies and monsters dance without it being comical?' So I said, 'We have to do just the right kind of movement so it doesn't become something that you laugh at.' But it just has to take it to another level. So I got in a room with [choreographer] Michael Peters, and he and I together kind of imagined how these zombies move by making faces in the mirror. I used to come to rehearsal sometimes with monster makeup on, and I loved doing that. So he and I collaborated and we both choreographed the piece and I thought it should start like that kind of thing and go into this jazzy kind of step, you know. Kind of gruesome things like that, not too much ballet or whatever.[33]
Following the release of the music video, a 45 minute documentary was release that provided candid glimpses behind the scenes of the music videos production.[32] Entitled Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, it, like the music video, was shown heavily on MTV for a time[32] and was the top-selling home-video release of all time at one point, with over nine million copies sold.[34] MTV paid $250,000 for the exclusive rights to show the documentary; Showtime paid $300,000 for pay-cable rights; and Vestron Video reportedly paid an additional $500,000 to market the cassette, in "a profit participation."[35][32]

Concept

Set is the late 1950s, the video opens with a person named Michael. Michael and his unnamed date (Ola Ray) run out of a mist in a dark wooded area. They walk off into the forest, and Michael asks her if she would like to go steady, she accepts and he gives her a ring. He warns her, however, that he is "different". A full moon appears, and Michael begins convulsing in agony, transforming into a werecat.[31] His date runs away in terror, but the werecat catches up to her, knocking her down and begins lunging at her with his claws. The scene then cuts to a modern-day movie theater where Michael and his date, along with a repulsed audience, are actually watching the scene unfold in a movie called Thriller. Michael's date leaves the theater as Michael hands his popcorn to a stranger, catches up to her, and assures her that "It's only a movie". Some debate follows as to whether or not she was scared by the movie: she denies it, but Michael disagrees. They then walk down a foggy road as Michael teases her by singing the verses of "Thriller". They pass a nearby graveyard, in which zombies begin to rise out of their caskets as Vincent Price performs his soliloquy. The zombies corner Michael and his date threateningly, and suddenly, Michael becomes a zombie himself. The zombies then break into an elaborate song and dance number,[31] followed by the main chorus of "Thriller" (during which Michael was reverted back to human form), frightening his date to the point where she runs for cover. Michael (who was somehow turned back into a zombie) and his fellow corpses back the frightened girl into the corner of a nearby abandoned house. Michael then reaches for his date's throat as she lets out a bloodcurdling scream, only to awake and realize it was all a dream. Michael then offers to take her home, and she happily obliges. As they walk out of the house, Michael eerily looks at the camera, thus revealing his yellow werecat eyes, as Price offers one last haunting laugh.[31]

Reception

Leah Greenblatt, of Entertainment Weekly, commented on the music video, "Every aspect of the 14-minute horror musical, directed with creepy-comical zest by John Landis, is beyond iconic, from Michael's red leather ensemble to the immortal (no pun) herky-jerky zombie dance and bwah-ha-ha Vincent Price narration."[36] Despite the music video being met with universal praise, it also faced criticism due to its content. In 1984, the National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV) classified more than half of 200 MTV music videos surveyed as "too violent", "Thriller" was listed as one of the videos on the list, Jackson's "Say, Say, Say" was also included.[1] The Los Angeles Times quoted Dr. Thomas Radecki, chairman of the NCTV, as saying, "It's not hard to imagine young viewers after seeing 'Thriller' saying, 'Gee, if Michael Jackson can terrorize his girlfriend, why can't I do it too?'[1] The music video was nominated for six awards at the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards, winning three out of six of the nominations.[37] "Thriller" won Viewers Choice, Best Overall Performance and Best Choreography - but lost Best Concept Video, Best Male Video and Video Of The Year.[37] The music video was listed as the "Greatest Video" on VH1's "VH1: 100 Greatest Videos" in 2001.[38] MTV listed the music video as being the "Greatest Music Video Ever Made" on their list, "MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made" in 1999.[39] Patrick Kevin Day and Todd Martens, of The Los Angeles Times commented that,
"Thriller's" phenomenal success led to a breaking down of traditional racial barriers on FM radio at the time. New York's WPLJ, a "white" station, played Jackson's "Beat It" because of Eddie Van Halen's appearance on it. The song caused a wave of protests from some listeners who didn't want "black" music on their station. MTV also had a reputation for favoring white performers at the time, and its heavy rotation of Jackson videos helped alleviate the criticism.[1]

Live performances

Jackson performed "Thriller" on all three of his solo world concert tours. Despite Jackson performing multiple songs from his Thriller album, "Thriller" was not included on The Jacksons setlist during their Victory Tour in 1984. Jackson performed "Thriller" during his first world tour as a solo artist, entitled the Bad World Tour, lasted sixteen months, from 1987 to 1989, for a total of 123 shows.[40] "Thriller" was also performed during Jackson's second world tour, entitled the Dangerous Tour, which was attended by an estimated 3.5 million people. The Dangerous tour began in 1992, and was to be throughout 1993, but, after 69 shows, was cancelled early in 1993 due to health related concerns for Jackson and stress from child molestation accusations made against him.[41][42][43] Jackson performed "Thriller"[44] for all of Jackson's 82 shows during his third, and final, world concert series, entitled HIStory World Tour, from 1996[45] to 1997.
Jackson had planned to perform "Thriller" during his 50-show concert series, which would have been his fourth concert tour, entitled This Is It from 2009 to 2010.[46][47] For Jackson's performance of the song, he had planned to the stage that he was to perform on, be set up with a background that looked like a "graveyard" (which was a brief setting in the music video) with 3-D effects.[47][48][49] According to a setlist that was released in March 2009, "Thriller" was to close-out the 16-song show,[50] though, in film Michael Jackson's This Is It, which documents the concert series, and the This Is It, which had its tracks listed in the order that they were to be performed on the tour, list 18 songs and "Man In The Mirror" as the closing song for the planned shows.[51][52][53]

Cover versions

"Thriller" has been covered by multiple recording artists since its release in 1984. In 2007, Ian Brown covered "Thriller".[54] Amos Barshad and Nick Catucci, of NYMag.com, commented that "before you dismiss" the song, if you "give it a listen" Brown’s "louche, drugged-out reinvention is actually pretty great."[54] "Thriller" was also covered by Ben Gibbard, lead singer of Death Cab for Cutie and The Postal Service in 2008.[55] In October 2009, Imogen Heap covered "Thriller" for BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge.[7] Ashley Lasimone, of AOL's Spinner.com, noted that "the attitude and beat of Jackson's original version is replaced with soft vocals and some hauntingly pretty piano" and described the cover as being a "mesmerizing transformation".[7]
"Thriller"'s music video, particularly the songs dance routine in the video, have been referenced in television series and films.[56] The dance routine was mimicked in the films Donga (1985), Coming to America (1988), The Malibu Beach Vampires (1991), Dead & Breakfast (2004), Bo! in the USA (2006), I Am Zombie Man (2007) and Si j'étais toi (2007) and in an episode of television show, Alvin & the Chipmunks.[56] The song is briefly featured in film Doogal (2006) and the songs lyrics were sung by the characters in a episode, entitled "Soultaker" on the television series Mystery Science Theater 3000.[56]

Legacy

Following the success of the "Thriller" video, a Hollywood production company reportedly began serious work on trying to turn Jackson's song "Billie Jean", which is also featured on Jackson's Thriller album, into a feature film; to date no plans have ever been completed.[1] Vinny Marino of ABC News commented that "Thrillers" music video being selected as the 'Greatest Video of All Time" was a "no-brainer" and remarked that, "Michael Jackson's "Thriller" continues to be considered the greatest video ever by just about everyone."[38] Gil Kaufman of MTV described the "Thriller" video as being "iconic" and felt that it was one of Jackson's "most enduring legacies".[34] Kaufman also noted that the music video was the "mini-movie that revolutionized music videos" and "cemented Jackson's status as one of the most ambitious, innovative pop stars of all time".[34] Brett Zongker Associated Press, described the video as having an "unforgettable graveyard dance".[57] Steve Peake, of About.com, listed "Thriller" as being Jackson's eighth best song of the 1980s.[58]
In December 2009, the music video for "Thriller" was selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, "Thriller" is the first music video to ever be inducted.[59][57] The Registry explained, "because of the way the recording industry is evolving and changing, we thought it would be good to go back to the development of an earlier seismic shift, which was the development of the music video"[34][57] and described the music video as being "the most famous music video of all time".[60] The co-ordinator of the National Film Preservation Board, who decides upon candidates for inclusion in the National Film Registry, Steve Legett, noted that the music video was considered for induction for years, but was chosen mainly due to Jackson's death that year.[61]

Charts

Chart (1983/1984) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Charts 4
Belgian VRT Top 30[22] 1
Danish Singles Chart 3
Dutch Singles Chart 3
French Singles Chart[21] 1
German Singles Chart 21
Irish Singles Chart[62] 4
Swedish Singles Chart 20
UK Singles Chart[20] 10
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[13][15] 4
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[13][19] 3
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary[13] 24
U.S. Billboard Dance Music/Club Play Singles[13] 1
Chart (2009) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Charts[28] 3
Belgium 30 Back Catalogue Singles Chart (Wallonia)[63] 2
Belgium 30 Back Catalogue Singles Chart (Flemish)[64] 3
Danish Singles Chart[29] 25
Denmark Singles Top 40[28] 25
Finnish Singles Chart[30][28] 11
French Digital Singles Chart[65] 3
German Singles Chart[28] 9
Norwegian Singles Chart[66] 7
Irish Singles Chart[28] 8
Italian Singles Chart[27] 2
Japan Singles Top 100[28] 41
New Zealand Singles Chart[28] 12
Spanish Singles Charts[28] 1
Swedish Singles Chart[28][67] 10
Swiss Singles Chart[28] 3
UK Singles Chart[26] 12
U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Songs[24] 2

Chart procession and succession

Preceded by
Flashdance... What a Feeling by Irene Cara		 French Singles Chart number-one single
February 5, 1984 - February 26, 1984		 Succeeded by
Street Dance by Break Machine
Preceded by
You Are by Dolly Parton		 Belgian VRT Top 30 Chart number-one single
January 21, 1984 - January 28, 1984		 Succeeded by
Love of the Common People by Paul Young
Preceded by
Colgando en tus manos by Carlos Baute & Marta Sánchez		 Spanish Singles Charts number-one single
July 12, 2009		 Succeeded by
Colgando en tus manos by Carlos Baute & Marta Sánchez

Track listing

  1. Thriller - 4:37
  2. Things I Do For You (Live) - 3:31 (originally from the jackson album Destiny)
  1. Thriller (Long Version) - 5:57
  2. Thriller (Remixed Short Version) - 4:05
  3. Things I Do For You (Live) - 3:31
  1. Thriller (Single Edit) - 4:08
  2. Can't Get Outta The Rain (Album Version) - 4:09
  • DualDisc-Single:[68]
  1. Thriller - 4:09
  2. Thriller (Album Version) - 5:58

SOURCE : WIKIPEDIA


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Thriller - song (1)

Author: Jord Posted under: , , , , ,

 Watch and listen to the greatest music video ever made! :

1. The legendary Short film : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQ_ExkfcBao

a. The making  of THriller Part 1 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OO5lrfvCoA
b. The making  of THriller Part 2 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DPhVn63Sdo
c. The making  of THriller Part 3 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJhi8LkFm7Y
d. The making  of THriller Part 4 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8wPA2NFmdc
e. The making  of THriller Part 5 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy5BQ8SmWjc

read about the music video  here : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Jackson%27s_Thriller

2. Bad Tour (Yokohama 87') : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aN7y4GfK5c

3. Dangerous Tour : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTtq7fqWJ1o


4 This Is It Rehearsal : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgTMKm4Ts9s

Lyrics

 

It's close to midnight
something evil's lurkin' from the dark
under moonlight
You see a sight that almost stops your heart
You try to scream
But terror takes the sound before you make it
You start to freeze
As terror looks you right between your eyes
You're paralyzed

'Cause this is thriller
Thriller night
And no one's gonna save you
From the beast about to strike
You know it's killer
Thriller night
You're fighting for your life
Inside a killer
Thriller tonight, yeah

You hear the door slam
And realize there's nowhere left to run
You feel the cold hand
And wonder if you'll ever see the sun
You close your eyes
And hope that this is just imagination
Girl, but all the while
You hear a creature creepin' up behind
You're outta time


'Cause this is thriller
Thriller night
There ain't no second chance
to count the thing with the forty eyes, girl
(Thriller)
(Thriller night)
You're fighting for your life
Inside a killer
Thriller tonight

Night creatures call
And the dead start to walk in their masquerade
There's no escaping the jaws of the alien this time
(They're open wide)
This is the end of your life

They're out to get you
There's demons closing in on every side
They will possess you
Unless you change that number on your dial
Now is the time
For you and I to cuddle close together, yeah
All through the night
I'll save you from the terror on the screen
I'll make you see

That this is thriller
Thriller night
'Cause I can thrill you more
Than any ghoul would ever dare try
(Thriller)
(Thriller night)
So let me hold you tight
And share a
killer, diller, chiller
Thriller here tonight

'Cause this is thriller
Thriller night
Girl, I can thrill you more
Than any ghoul would ever dare try
(Thriller)
(Thriller night)
So let me hold you tight
And share a
(killer, thriller)

I'm gonna thrill you tonight

[Rap]
Darkness falls across the land
The midnight hour is close at hand
Creatures crawl in search of blood
To terrorize y'all's neighborhood
And whosoever shall be found
Without the soul for getting down
Must stand and face the hounds of hell
And rot inside a corpse's shell

I'm gonna thrill you tonight
(Thriller, thriller)
I'm gonna thrill you tonight
(Thriller night, thriller)
I'm gonna thrill you tonight
Ooh, babe, I'm gonna thrill you tonight
Thriller night, babe

[Rap]
The foulest stench is in the air
The funk of forty thousand years
And grizzly ghouls from every tomb
Are closing in to seal your doom
And though you fight to stay alive
Your body starts to shiver
for no mere mortal can resist
the evil of the thriller
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THRILLER - album (1982)

Author: Jord Posted under: , , , , , ,
The sixth studio album. The album was released on November 30, 1982 by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall. Thriller explores similar genres to those of Off the Wall, including funk, soul, pop, easy listening, R&B, rock and post-disco music
With a production budget of $750,000, recording sessions took place between April and November 1982 at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California. Assisted by producer Quincy Jones, Jackson wrote four of Thriller's nine tracks. In just over a year, Thriller became—and currently remains—the best-selling album of all time, with estimated sales between 65-110 million copies worldwide, and as the best-selling album in the United States. Seven of the album's nine songs were released as singles, and all reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album won a record-breaking eight Grammy Awards at the 1984 Grammys.
Thriller cemented Jackson's status as one of the preeminent pop stars of the late 20th century, and enabled him to break down racial barriers via his appearances on MTV and meeting with President Ronald Reagan at the White House. The album was one of the first to use music videos as successful promotional tools—the videos for "Thriller", "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" all received regular rotation on MTV. In 2001, a special edition issue of the album was released, which contains additional audio interviews, a demo recording and the song "Someone In the Dark", which was a Grammy-winning track from the E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial storybook. In 2008, the album was reissued again as Thriller 25, containing re-mixes that feature contemporary artists, a previously unreleased song and a DVD.
Thriller ranked number 20 on Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list in 2003, and was listed by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers at number three in its Definitive 200 Albums of All Time. The Thriller video was preserved by the Library of Congress to the National Recording Registry, as it was deemed "culturally significant".

Thriller
Studio album by Michael Jackson
Released November 30, 1982
Recorded April - November 1982
Westlake Recording Studios
(Los Angeles, California)
Genre R&B, pop, rock, post-disco
Length 42:19
Label Epic
Producer Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones
Professional reviews
Michael Jackson chronology
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
(1982)		 Thriller
(1982)		 Farewell My Summer Love
(1984)

2001 Special Edition

The slipcover for the Special Edition of the album. Current pressings of the special edition do not include the slipcover.
Singles from Thriller
  1. "The Girl Is Mine"
    Released: October 18, 1982
  2. "Billie Jean"
    Released: January 3, 1983
  3. "Beat It"
    Released: February 14, 1983
  4. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"
    Released: May 8, 1983
  5. "Human Nature"
    Released: July 3, 1983
  6. "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"
    Released: September 19, 1983
  7. "Thriller"
    Released: January 23, 1984

 

Background

Jackson's previous album Off the Wall (1979) was a critical success and received generally favorable reviews.[17][18] It was also a commercial success, eventually selling over 20 million copies worldwide.[19]
The years between Off the Wall and Thriller were a transitional period for the singer, a time of increasing independence and struggles with his family. In 1973, Jackson's father Joseph began a secret affair with a woman 20 years younger than he; the couple had a child in secret. In 1980, Joseph told his family of the affair and child. Michael, already angry with his father over his childhood abuse, felt so betrayed that he fell out with Joseph for many years.[20] The period saw the singer become deeply unhappy; Jackson explained, "Even at home, I'm lonely. I sit in my room sometimes and cry. It's so hard to make friends ... I sometimes walk around the neighborhood at night, just hoping to find someone to talk to. But I just end up coming home."[21] When Jackson turned 21 in August 1979, he fired Joseph as his manager and replaced him with John Branca.[22]
Jackson confided in Branca that he wanted to be "the biggest star in show business" and "the wealthiest". The singer was upset about what he perceived to be the under-performance of Off the Wall, stating, "It was totally unfair that it didn't get Record of the Year and it can never happen again."[23] He also felt undervalued by the music industry; in 1980 when Jackson asked the publicist of Rolling Stone if they would be interested in doing a cover story on him, the publicist declined, to which Jackson responded, "I've been told over and over that black people on the cover of magazines doesn't sell copies ... Just wait. Someday those magazines are going to be begging me for an interview. Maybe I'll give them one. And maybe I won't."[23]

Recording

Jackson reunited with Off the Wall producer Quincy Jones to record his sixth studio album. The pair worked together on 300 songs, nine of which were eventually included.[24] Thriller was recorded between April and November 1982, with a production budget of $750,000. Several members of the band Toto were also involved in the album's recording and production.[24] Jackson wrote four songs for the record: "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'", "The Girl Is Mine" (with Paul McCartney), "Beat It" and "Billie Jean".[25] Unlike many artists, Jackson did not write these songs on paper. Instead, he would dictate into a sound recorder; when recording he would sing from memory.[26][27]
The relationship between Jackson and Jones became strained during the album's recording. Jackson spent much of his time rehearsing dance steps alone.[27] When the album's nine songs were completed, both Jones and Jackson were unhappy with the result and remixed every song, spending a week on each.[27] Jones believed that "Billie Jean" was not strong enough to be included on the record, but Jackson disagreed and kept it. Jones told Jackson that Thriller would be unlikely to sell successfully like Off the Wall had, because the market had since weakened. In response, Jackson threatened to cancel the album's release.[24]
Jackson was inspired to create an album where "every song was a killer," as with Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, and developed Thriller on that concept.[28][29] Jones and songwriter Rod Temperton gave detailed accounts of what occurred for the 2001 reissue of the album. Jones discussed "Billie Jean" and why it was so personal to Jackson, who struggled to deal with a number of obsessed fans. Jones wanted the long introduction on the song to be shortened; however, Jackson insisted that it remain because it made him want to dance.[25] The ongoing backlash against disco made it necessary to move in a different musical direction from the disco-heavy Off the Wall.[29] Jones and Jackson were determined to make a rock song that would appeal to all tastes and spent weeks looking for a suitable guitarist for the song "Beat It", a song Jackson wrote. Eventually, they found Eddie Van Halen of the rock band Van Halen.[25][27]
When Rod Temperton wrote the song "Thriller", he originally wanted to call it "Starlight" or "Midnight Man" but settled on "Thriller" because he felt the name had merchandising potential.[27] Always wanting a notable person to recite the closing lyrics, Jones brought in actor Vincent Price who was an acquaintance of Jones' wife, who completed his part in just two takes. Temperton wrote the spoken portion in a taxi on the way to the recording studio. Jones and Temperton said that some recordings were left off the final cut because they did not have the "edginess" of other album tracks.[25]

Music

According to Steve Huey of Allmusic, Thriller refined the strengths of Jackson's previous album Off the Wall; the dance and rock tracks were more aggressive, while the pop tunes and ballads were softer and more soulful.[31] The album includes the ballads "The Lady in My Life", "Human Nature", and "The Girl Is Mine"; the funk pieces "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"; and the disco set "Baby Be Mine" and "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"[1][7][8][31] and has a similar sound to the material on Off The Wall. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" is accompanied by a bass and percussion background and the song's centerpiece, a climaxing Swahili chant, gave the song an international flavor.[32] "The Girl Is Mine" tells of two friends' fight over a woman, arguing over who loves her more and concludes with a spoken rap.[27][32]
Despite the light pop flavor of these two records, Thriller, more so than Off the Wall, displayed foreshadowings of the contradictory thematic elements that would come to characterize Jackson's later work.[33] With Thriller, Jackson would begin his association with the subliminal motif of paranoia and darker themes, including supernatural imagery in the album's title track.[7] This is evident on the songs "Billie Jean", "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "Thriller".[1] In "Billie Jean", Jackson sings about an obsessive fan who alleges he has fathered a child of hers; in "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" he argues against gossips and the media.[7][31] In the former song, Jones had Jackson sing vocal overdubs through a six-foot-long cardboard tube, and brought in jazz saxophonist Tom Scott to play a rare instrument, the lyricon, a wind-controlled analog synthesizer. Bassist Louis Johnson ran through his part on a Yamaha bass guitar. The song opens with a long bass-and-drums introduction.[34] In the song "Thriller", sound effects such as creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard.[27]
The anti-gang-violence "Beat It" became a homage to West Side Story, and was Jackson's first successful rock cross-over piece.[31][35] Jackson later said of "Beat It", "the point is no one has to be the tough guy, you can walk away from a fight and still be a man. You don't have to die to prove you're a man".[32] "Human Nature" is moody and introspective, as conveyed in lyrics such as, "Looking out, across the morning, the City's heart begins to beat, reaching out, I touch her shoulder, I'm dreaming of the street".[32]
By the late 1970s, Jackson's abilities as a vocalist were well regarded; Allmusic described him as a "blindingly gifted vocalist".[17] Rolling Stone compared his vocals to the "breathless, dreamy stutter" of Stevie Wonder. Their analysis was also that "Jackson's feathery-timbred tenor is extraordinary beautiful. It slides smoothly into a startling falsetto that's used very daringly".[18] With the release of Thriller, Jackson could sing low—down to a basso low C—but he preferred to sing higher because pop tenors have more range to create style.[36] Rolling Stone was of the opinion that Jackson was now singing in a "fully adult voice" that was "tinged by sadness".[37] "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)", credited to James Ingram and Quincy Jones, and "The Lady in My Life" by Rod Temperton, both gave the album a stronger R&B direction; the latter song was described as "the closest Jackson has come to crooning a sexy, soulful ballad after his Motown years" by Taraborrelli.[32] The singer had already adopted a "vocal hiccup" which he continued to implement in Thriller. The purpose of the hiccup—somewhat like a gulping for air or gasping—is to help promote a certain emotion; be it excitement, sadness or fear.[38]


Track listing

# Title Writer(s) Length
1. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"   Michael Jackson 6:02
2. "Baby Be Mine"   Rod Temperton 4:20
3. "The Girl Is Mine" (with Paul McCartney) Michael Jackson 3:41
4. "Thriller" (with Vincent Price) Rod Temperton 5:57
5. "Beat It" (with Eddie Van Halen) Michael Jackson 4:18
6. "Billie Jean"   Michael Jackson 4:54
7. "Human Nature"   Steve Porcaro, John Bettis 4:05
8. "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"   James Ingram, Quincy Jones 3:58
9. "The Lady in My Life"   Rod Temperton 4:59

Personnel

Release and reception

Thriller was released on November 30, 1982, and sold one million copies worldwide per week at its peak.[36] Seven singles were released from the album, including "The Girl Is Mine"—which was seen as a poor choice for the lead release and led some to believe that the album would be a disappointment, and to suggestions that Jackson was bowing to a white audience.[32] "The Girl Is Mine" was followed by the hit single "Billie Jean", which made Thriller a chart-topper.[39][40] Success continued with the single "Beat It", which featured guitarists Eddie Van Halen and Steve Lukather.[41] The title track "Thriller" was released as a single and also became a hit internationally.[32]
Thriller was mostly well received by critics. A four-star Rolling Stone review by Christopher Connelly described it as "a zesty LP" with a "harrowing, dark message". Despite the positive response, the title track came under strong criticism. Rolling Stone expressed a negative sentiment, criticizing its "degenerat[ion] into silly camp". The magazine expressed confusion at the use of Vincent Price over Count Floyd for the track's concluding rap.[7] The New York Times gave a positive review of the album, and dedicated a large amount of its coverage to the song "Human Nature". They described it as the most "striking" song on the record, and wrote, "this is a haunting, brooding ballad by Steve Porcaro and John Bettis with an irresistible chorus and it should be an enormous hit". Concluding their review The New York Times added; "there are other hits here, too, lots of them. Best of all, with a pervasive confidence infusing the album as a whole, Thriller suggests that Mr. Jackson's evolution as an artist is far from finished".[5]
Robert Christgau published a positive (A−) graded overview of the album a few days before its release. He acknowledged that there were "fillers" on the record but still labeled it "almost classic". He expressed the opinion that "Beat It" was the album's best track, calling it "the triumph and the thriller", but criticized "The Girl Is Mine" as "Michael's worst idea since "Ben"". He was of the opinion that the collaboration did not work well, but still praised it for "getting interracial love on the radio".[2] A year after the album's release, Time summed up the three main singles from the album, saying, "The pulse of America and much of the rest of the world moves irregularly, beating in time to the tough strut of "Billie Jean", the asphalt aria of "Beat It", the supremely cool chills of "Thriller".[36] Conversely, in a Melody Maker review, Paolo Hewitt stated "[t]his is not a good LP"; in his opinion there were only "two songs worthy of mention". "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" was praised as an "exciting", "uptempo electro-funk song", as was "Billie Jean". Hewitt's stance was that as a whole, the album could only be described as "bland", particularly the closing tracks. He summed up: "Jackson seems to have lost his talent for turning gross into gold".[42]
The album won Jackson a record-breaking eight Grammy Awards in 1984, including Album of the Year. The eighth Grammy went to Bruce Swedien.[43][44] That same year, Jackson won eight American Music Awards, the Special Award of Merit and three MTV Video Music Awards.[45] Thriller was recognized as the world's best-selling album on February 7, 1984, when it was inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records.[46] It is one of only three albums to remain in the top ten of the Billboard 200 for a full year, and spent 37 weeks at number one out of the 80 consecutive weeks it was in the top ten. The album was also the first of three to have seven Billboard Hot 100 top ten singles, and was the only album to be the best-seller of two years (1983–1984) in the US.[47][48]
On August 21, 2009 Thriller was certified 29x Multi-Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipments of at least 29 million copies in the US.[49][50] The album topped the charts in many countries, sold 3.7 million copies in the UK,[50][51] 2.5 million in Japan[52] and went 15x Platinum in Australia.[53] Still popular today, Thriller sells an estimated 130,000 copies in the US per year; it reached number two in the US Catalog charts in February 2003 and number 39 in the UK in March 2007.[45] The album is cited as having sold 110 million copies worldwide approximately; the Guinness Book of World Records lists Thriller as having sold 110 million copies as of 2009.[54][55][56][57][58][59][60]

Grammy Awards

Year Nominated work Award Result
1984 Thriller Album of the Year won
"Beat It" Record of the Year won
"Billie Jean" Song of the Year nominated
"Beat It" Song of the Year nominated
Thriller Producer of the Year - Non Classical won
Thriller Best Engineered Recording - Non Classical won
"Thriller" Best Pop Vocal Performance - Male won
"The Girl Is Mine" Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals nominated
"Billie Jean" Best R&B Vocal Performance - Male won
"Billie Jean" Best R&B Song won
"P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" Best R&B Song nominated
"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" Best R&B Song nominated
"Beat It" Best Rock Vocal Performance - Male won

Influence and legacy

Music industry

Blender described Jackson as the "late twentieth century pre-eminent pop icon", while The New York Times gave the opinion that he was a "musical phenomenon", and that "in the world of pop music, there is Michael Jackson and there is everybody else".[34][61] Jackson changed the way the industry functioned: both as an artistic persona, and as a financial, profitable entity. His attorney John Branca observed that Jackson achieved the highest royalty rate in the music industry to that point: approximately $2 for each album sold. As a result, Jackson earned record-breaking profits from compact disc sales, and from the sale of copies of the documentary, The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller, produced by Jackson and John Landis. Funded by MTV, the film sold over 350,000 copies in its first few months. In a market then driven by singles, Thriller raised the significance of albums, yet its multiple hit singles changed perceived notions as to the number of successful singles that could be taken from an individual album.[62] The era saw the arrival of novelties like the Michael Jackson doll, that appeared in stores in May 1984 at a price of $12.[36] Thriller retains a position in American culture; biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli explains, "At some point, Thriller stopped selling like a leisure item—like a magazine, a toy, tickets to a hit movie—and started selling like a household staple".[63]
At the time of the album's release, a press statement from Gil Friesen, the then President of A&M Records, read that, "The whole industry has a stake in this success".[36] Time magazine speculated that "the fallout from Thriller has given the [music] business its best years since the heady days of 1978, when it had an estimated total domestic revenue of $4.1 billion".[36] Time summed up Thriller's impact as a "restoration of confidence" for an industry bordering on "the ruins of punk and the chic regions of synthesizer pop". The publication described Jackson's influence at that point as, "Star of records, radio, rock video. A one-man rescue team for the music business. A songwriter who sets the beat for a decade. A dancer with the fanciest feet on the street. A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style and color too".[36]

Music videos and racial equality

Before the success of Thriller, many felt Jackson had struggled to get MTV airing because he was black.[64] In an effort to attain air time for Jackson, CBS Records President Walter Yetnikoff pressured MTV and declared, "I'm not going to give you any more videos and I'm going to go public and fucking tell them about the fact you don't want to play music by a black guy".[34]
His position persuaded MTV to begin airing "Billie Jean" and later "Beat It", which led to a long partnership and later helped other black music artists to gain mainstream recognition.[65] MTV deny claims of racism in their broadcasting.[66] The popularity of his videos, such as "Beat It" and "Billie Jean", helped to place the young channel "on the map", and MTV's focus shifted in favor of pop and R&B.[65][67]

Jackson in the revolutionary Thriller video
Jackson transformed the medium of music video into an art form and promotional tool through the use of complex story lines, dance routines, special effects and cameo appearances by well known personalities.[31] When the 14-minute-long Thriller video aired, MTV ran it twice an hour to meet demand.[68] The short film marked an increase in scale for music videos and has been routinely named the best music video ever.[69] The popularity of the video sent the album back to number one in the album chart, but Jackson's label did not support the release of the third music video from the album. They were already pleased with its success, so Jackson convinced MTV to fund the project.[27][68] Author, music critic and journalist Nelson George wrote in 2004, "It's difficult to hear the songs from Thriller and disengage them from the videos. For most of us the images define the songs. In fact it could be argued that Michael is the first artist of the MTV age to have an entire album so intimately connected in the public imagination with its imagery".[30] Short films like Thriller largely remained unique to Jackson, while the group dance sequence in "Beat It" has been frequently imitated.[25] The choreography in Thriller has become a part of global pop culture, replicated everywhere from Bollywood to prisons in the Philippines.[70][71]
For a black artist in the 1980s to that point, Jackson's success was unprecedented. According to The Washington Post, Thriller paved the way for other African-American artists such as Prince.[72] "The Girl Is Mine" was credited for getting interracial love on the radio.[73] Time noted, "Jackson is the biggest thing since The Beatles. He is the hottest single phenomenon since Elvis Presley. He just may be the most popular black singer ever".[36]

Contemporary appeal

Today, the album is still viewed in a positive light by critics some two decades later. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic gave the album the maximum five stars and wrote that the record had something to interest everyone. He believed it showcased harder funk and hard rock while remaining "undeniably fun". He went on to compliment "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and said, "The record's two best songs: 'Billie Jean, ...and the delirious 'Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'', the freshest funk on the album [but] the most claustrophobic, scariest track Jackson ever recorded." Erlewine gave the opinion that it was an improvement on the artist's previous album, although Allmusic was critical of the title track, describing it as "ridiculous" and as having the effect of "arriving in the middle of the record and sucking out its momentum".[1] Slant Magazine gave the album five stars and, like the Allmusic review and the original Rolling Stone review, paid compliment to the lyrics of "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'".[8]
The author Nelson George wrote that Jackson "has educated R. Kelly, Usher, Justin Timberlake and countless others with Thriller as a textbook".[74] As a sign of the album's longevity, in 2003 Thriller was ranked at number 20 on the Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, and was listed by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers at number three of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time.[75][76] In 2008, 25 years after its release, the record was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and, a few weeks later, was among 25 recordings preserved by the Library of Congress to the National Recording Registry as "culturally significant".[77][78] In 2009, music critics for MTV Base and VH1 both listed Thriller as the best album released since 1981.[79] Thriller, along with other critic favorites were then polled by the public. 40,000 people found Thriller to be the Best Album of all time by MTV Generation, gaining a third of all votes.[79][80]

Grammy Hall of Fame

Thriller was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008.
Year Nominated work Award Result
2008 Thriller Album Inducted

Reissues and catalog sales

Thriller was reissued in 2001 in an expanded set titled Thriller: Special Edition. The original tracks were remastered, and the album included a new booklet and bonus material, including the songs "Someone In the Dark", "Carousel", and Jackson's original "Billie Jean" demo, as well as audio interviews with Jones and Temperton discussing the recording of the album.[25][81] Sony also hired sound engineer and mixer Mick Guzauski[82][83] to work with Jackson on creating 5.1-channel surround sound mixes of Thriller, as well as all his other albums, for release on the then-new Super Audio CD format. Despite numerous retries, the artist never approved any of the mixes.[84] Consequently, Thriller was issued on SACD only in a stereo version.[85]
In February 2008, Epic Records released Thriller 25; Jackson served as executive producer.[50] Thriller 25 appeared on CD, USB and vinyl with seven bonus tracks, a new song called "For All Time", a snippet of Vincent Price's voice-over, and five remixes featuring American artists Fergie, will.i.am, Kanye West, and Akon.[50][86][87] It also included a DVD featuring three music videos, the Motown 25 "Billie Jean" performance, and a booklet with a message from Jackson.[50] The ballad "For All Time" supposedly dates from 1982, but is often credited as being from Dangerous sessions.[88] Two singles were released from the reissue: "The Girl Is Mine 2008" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' 2008".
Thriller 25 was a commercial success and did particularly well as a reissue. It peaked at number one in eight countries and Europe. It peaked at number two in the US, number three in the UK and reached the top 10 in over 30 national charts. It was certified Gold in 11 countries including the UK, received a 2x Gold certification in France and received platinum certification in Poland.[89][90][91] In the United States, Thriller 25 was the second best-selling album of its release week, selling one hundred and sixty six thousand copies, just fourteen thousand short of reaching the number one position. It was ineligible for the Billboard 200 chart as a re-release but entered the Pop Catalog Charts at number one (where it stayed for ten non-consecutive weeks),[92] with the best sales on that chart since December, 1996.[93][94][95] With the arrival of Halloween that November, Thriller 25 spent an eleventh non-consecutive week atop the US catalog chart. This brought US sales of the album to 688,000 copies, making it the best selling catalog album of 2008.[96] This was Jackson's best launch since Invincible in 2001, selling three million copies worldwide in 12 weeks.[97]
After Jackson's death in June 2009, Thriller set additional records. It sold more than 100,000 copies, placing it at number two on the Top Pop Catalog Albums chart. Songs from Thriller also helped Jackson become the first artist to sell more than one million song downloads in a week.[98] According to Nielsen Soundscan, Thriller was the 14th best selling album of 2009 in the United States with 1.27 million copies sold.[99]

source : wikipedia
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