Thriller

Michael Jackson's Thriller is the bestselling album of all time, with 45 million worldwide sales powered by eight Grammy Awards. The 1982 album was also a success from which the pop superstar never really recovered--subsequent albums seemed to have no other goal than to beat the records set by Thriller. The highly- polished sound of Quincy Jones's production sounds almost organic compared to Jackson's more recent work, and in the same regard, Thriller was significantly slicker than its predecessor, Off the Wall. Both albums established a Jackson style that aimed for the dance floor with songs built on a state-of-the-art bed of percussion and keyboards. Elements of milestone Thriller tracks like "Billie Jean" (arguably Jackson's best-ever performance) and "Beat It" (with its hard- rock solo by guitarist Eddie Van Halen) influenced not just Jackson's records, but those of the entire dance-pop world. On the song "Thriller", Jackson indulged his taste for the juvenile and invited Vincent Price to rap in a really scary voice. With Thriller the album, Jackson created a different kind of monster--a hit album of such magnitude that it would have an irrevocable impact not just on the singer's art, but on his altogether kooky life. --John Milward