Michael Jackson: Thriller

Say what one will about Michael Jackson now, but there was a time when he was the biggest pop star on the planet. Jackson’s 1979 solo breakthrough Off The Wall established himself as a superstar, but nothing prepared him for 82’s Thriller, an album that stayed at the top of the Billboard charts for 37 weeks and had 7 of its 9 tracks become hit singles. The disc mixed ballad rock, funk, R&B, and soul so that there was something for everyone, from the dance hall mainstay “Billie Jean” to the beautifully soft “Human Nature” and the harder pop of “Beat It”, featuring an uncredited solo from Eddie Van Halen. An important cultural phenomenon, the record transcended the often fractured popular music scene and brought together everyone from the Led Zepellin arena rock fans to the Donna Summer disco lovers. Beyond its cultural impact, Thriller features some flat out solid music, which is perhaps why it is still listed as a favorite album of hip hop and rock musicians alike. Michael Jackson’s shady personal life may have caused him to fall out of favor in the public’s eye, but hopefully his music never will. As another cultural phenomenon, Dave Chappelle put it, in a skit about Jackson’s child molestation court case, when asked if he thought Jackson was guilty, “No, man. He made Thriller. [pause] Thriller.”