[DudeAsInCool]

#20 Thriller
Michael Jackson (1982)

Michael Jackson towered over the 1980s the way Elvis Presley dominated the 1950s, and Thriller is the reason why. Still in his early twenties when Thriller was released, the R&B child star of the 1970s had ripened into a Technicolor soulman, a singer, dancer and songwriter with incomparable crossover instincts. He and producer Quincy Jones established the something-for-everyone template of Thriller on 1979's Off the Wall, on which Jackson captures the rare mania of his life -- the applause and paranoia; the need for love and the fear of commitment -- in a crisp fusion of pop hooks and dance beats. On Thriller, the pair heighten the sheen (the jaunty gloss of "The Girl Is Mine," with a guest vocal by Paul McCartney), pump up the theater (the horror-movie spectacular "Thriller") and deepen the funk. With its locomotive cadence and acrobatic-metal guitar solo by Eddie Van Halen, "Beat It" was arguably the first industrial-disco Number One. (Jackson had such an impeccable nose for the down-and-dirty that Jones called him Smelly.) But the most thrilling thing about Thriller was the autobiography busting through the gloss: the angry hiss of denial in Jackson's voice in the funk-rock noir of "Billie Jean"; the to-hell-with-haters cock strut of "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'." Jackson was at the peak of his art and adulthood. It is hard now to separate the wonder of Thriller from its commercial stature (Number One for thirty-seven weeks, seven Top Ten singles, eight Grammys) and Jackson's current nightmare of tabloid celebrity and self-destructive egomania. But there was a time when he was truly the King of Pop. This is it.

Total album sales: 26 million

Peak chart position: 1

Rolling Stone.com

[xbrodie]

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Michael Jackson is one of the kings of dance and pop music. its so sad to see what has happend over the last few years with the child sex crap. C'mon people, im sure youve all at one stage found yourself humming one of his songs, even if it was remade by a different artist like smooth criminal.
rok on wakko jakko :righteousdude: mwa

btw: really well written article thing DudeAsInCool :good job:

[DudeAsInCool]

Thanx XB, but the credit for the writeup must go to Rolling Stone.com. I would argue that Quincy Jones had as much to do with this success as Michael Jackson. I felt at the time that THRILLER was overhyped, but I did like some of the cuts, and the music video's were advanced, and were the first by a black artist on MTV.

Looking back on his career, I would say Off the Wall was his best album and an innovation at the time..

[xbrodie]

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Nice call DudeAsInCool, i agree with you 100% of the way....


sry bout tha pic, i had 2 lol

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[Shawn]

[Redneck4sure]

xbrodie, nice pic of Jackson!

nice avatar

nice sig


:) :)

[Bettybooty]

xbrodie, on Jun 3 2004, 12:05 AM, said:

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Michael Jackson is one of the kings of dance and pop music. its so sad to see what has happend over the last few years with the child sex crap. C'mon people, im sure youve all at one stage found yourself humming one of his songs, even if it was remade by a different artist like smooth criminal.
rok on wakko jakko :righteousdude: mwa

btw: really well written article thing DudeAsInCool :good job:

He was a freak in the 80's and we let him get away with it, now justice will preveil. He deserves it...The sad thing is he'll never survive in prison.

[jipper]

yea..cant have them those freaks running around being different all the time

[Bettybooty]

mr.jip, on Jun 22 2004, 02:01 PM, said:

yea..cant have them those freaks running around being different all the time

Let your Freak Flag Fly! :bigsmile:

your right what would the world be like with out the freaky people.... :P
There usually the most creative. Just don't like M. Jackson....

[jipper]

yea but i mean..he looks funny..i dont like him..

[DudeAsInCool]

Its sad he has never psychologically recovered from his abusive childhood--the plastic surgery is an outgrowth of that. I still think Off the Wall is a pretty good album..

[Umma]

you mean.... he's had plastic surgery??

[KiwiCoromandel]

but man....couldn`t he sing and dance and arrange and write.....loved eddie van halens solo in " beat it "...classic..and the video was classic as well..as i said michael jackson could move...

fav jackson track?..." don`t stop till you get enough "

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This post has been edited by kiwibank: 22 June 2004 - 08:17 PM

[Redneck4sure]

mr.jip, on Jun 22 2004, 03:19 PM, said:

yea but i mean..he looks funny..i dont like him..

Don't judge a book by it's cover. Once you get past his looks and learn what he is really like.........you'll hate him!

[xbrodie]

lol he is strange isnt he ;)