"
Thriller" is a 1984 hit
singleIn music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.-History:...
recorded by
Michael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson , known as the "King of Pop", was an American musician and one of the most commercially successful and influential entertainers of all time...
for the
EpicEpic Records is an American record label. It is owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment. The label was founded in 1953 as a jazz label, and was eventually expanded to several genres of music. The label manages several imprints as well.-History:...
label. In the U.S., it reached number four on the
Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and number one on the
Radio & RecordsRadio & Records was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It originally started out as a independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006, up until its final issue in 2009.-History:The company was founded in 1973 and...
singles charts, while in the UK, it peaked at number ten. On February 20, 2006, the single, as well as the video, was re-released as part of the
Visionary: The Video SinglesVisionary: The Video Singles is a series of Michael Jackson's biggest hit singles, released in Europe between February 20, 2006 and June 26, 2006, and then released in North America as a boxed set on November 14, 2006. They were preceded by One More Chance and followed by The Girl Is Mine 2008...
package. The 14-minute video is regarded by MTV as the greatest music video of all-time, and the song itself is considered to be one of Jackson's signature songs.
"
Thriller" is a 1984 hit
singleIn music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.-History:...
recorded by
Michael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson , known as the "King of Pop", was an American musician and one of the most commercially successful and influential entertainers of all time...
for the
EpicEpic Records is an American record label. It is owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment. The label was founded in 1953 as a jazz label, and was eventually expanded to several genres of music. The label manages several imprints as well.-History:...
label. In the U.S., it reached number four on the
Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and number one on the
Radio & RecordsRadio & Records was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It originally started out as a independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006, up until its final issue in 2009.-History:The company was founded in 1973 and...
singles charts, while in the UK, it peaked at number ten. On February 20, 2006, the single, as well as the video, was re-released as part of the
Visionary: The Video SinglesVisionary: The Video Singles is a series of Michael Jackson's biggest hit singles, released in Europe between February 20, 2006 and June 26, 2006, and then released in North America as a boxed set on November 14, 2006. They were preceded by One More Chance and followed by The Girl Is Mine 2008...
package. The 14-minute video is regarded by MTV as the greatest music video of all-time, and the song itself is considered to be one of Jackson's signature songs. The single was released slightly earlier in the United Kingdom, in November 1983.
The song remains popular as evidenced by sales of over 1,159,000 digital downloads in the U.S. alone and regularly returns to the
Billboard Hot Digital SongsThe Hot Digital Songs chart ranks the best-selling digital singles in the United States, according to Billboard.Beginning in February 2005, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboards music single charts. It was decided to do so mainly because of the dramatic rise in popularity of...
chart, since the chart's inception in 2005.
"Thriller" was covered in a episode of the "Super Mario Bros. Super Show" but was later removed after the show was canceled due to copyright issues. It also appears in the
Segais a multinational video game software and hardware development company, and a home computer and console manufacturer headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan...
Master System/Game Gear and Megadrive/Genesis adaptions of
MoonwalkerMoonwalker, also known as Michael Jackson: Moonwalker, is an American film released in 1988 by singer Michael Jackson.Rather than featuring one continuous narrative, the film is a collection of short films about Jackson, several of which are long-form music videos from Jackson's Bad album...
Michael Jackson's MoonwalkerMichael Jackson's Moonwalker is the name of several video games created by U.S. Gold and Sega in 1989 and 1990 that incorporate the personage of and were co-developed by Michael Jackson. The arcade version, home video games and home computer versions all differ in terms of gameplay, but the story...
as a dance attack song in earlier versions of the game while it is removed from later versions and replaced with "
Another Part of Me"Another Part of Me" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. Produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones for the singer's seventh solo album, Bad , the song was originally featured in Jackson's 1986 3-D film Captain EO...
" and "
Billie Jean"Billie Jean" is a dance-pop R&B song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written by Jackson and produced by Quincy Jones for the singer's sixth solo album, Thriller . Originally disliked by Jones, the track was almost removed from the album after he and Jackson had numerous...
" due to copyright issues.
From 1984 to 1986, the instrumental version was used as the theme for
Championship WrestlingWWF Championship Wrestling was the original TV show of the World Wrestling Federation. Championship Wrestling featured all the stars of the WWF, interviews and championship matches. The show lasted from 1978-1986.- Run in syndication :...
, featuring footage of
Hulk HoganTerry Gene Bollea better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American actor and retired professional wrestler....
winning the
WWF ChampionshipThe World Wrestling Entertainment Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Wrestling Entertainment . It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of three in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship and ECW Championship. It was established...
from The Iron Sheik in 1984. Coincidentally, Thriller was released as a single in the United States on January 23 of that year, the day of the championship match.
Song information
Written by
Rod TempertonRodney Lynn "Rod" Temperton is an English songwriter, record producer and musician most famous for writing a number of songs performed by Michael Jackson, including the title track of Jackson's Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time.-Biography:Temperton attended the De Aston School in...
,
producedIn the music industry, a record producer has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes...
by
Quincy JonesQuincy Delight Jones, Jr. is an American music conductor, record producer, musical arranger, film composer and trumpeter. During five decades in the entertainment industry, Jones has earned a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend Award in 1991...
, and featuring a guest
soliloquyA soliloquy is a literary device often used in drama characterized by a character's divulgence of his or her thoughts or emotions to the audience...
from
Vincent PriceVincent Leonard Price II was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:...
, "Thriller" is one of
JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson , known as the "King of Pop", was an American musician and one of the most commercially successful and influential entertainers of all time...
's signature songs, in no small part because of its music video.
The original U.S. 7" single does not feature the rap by Vincent Price.
The original name for "Thriller" single was "Starlight Love" and demos put it as "Starlight Sun". The hook was changed to "Thriller! Thriller night..." from "Starlight! Starlight sun..."
The song is included on Jackson's
ThrillerThriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. 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,...
album, which was released on December 1, 1982, and was the seventh and final single pulled from it.
A voice-over recording session of "Thriller" appears on the special edition version of the album, released in 2001. This session features additional verses of the rap performed by
Vincent PriceVincent Leonard Price II was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:...
, which were removed from the final version of the song.
The
backing trackA backing track is an audio or MIDI recording that musicians play or sing along to in order to add parts to their music which would be impractical to perform live.-Uses:...
, especially the
basslineA bassline is the term used in many styles of popular music, such as jazz, blues, funk, dub and electronic music for the low-pitched instrumental part or line played by a rhythm section instrument such as the electric bass, double bass or keyboard .Basslines in popular music often use "riffs" or...
, has certain similarities to the 1981 number-one
R&BRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
hit "
Give It to Me Baby"Give It to Me Baby" is the title of a 1981 song by American R&B / funk singer Rick James. Taken from his album Street Songs, the song charted on the Billboard Hot 100, spending two weeks at #40 in July of 1981. However, the song proved to be more successful with R&B and dance club audiences...
" by
Rick JamesRick James was an American musician. James was a popular R&B and funk singer in the late 1970s and 1980s, scoring four #1 hits on the U.S. R&B charts. Among his best-known songs are "Superfreak" and "You and I"...
.
A new edit of the song, omitting much of the intro, was made in 2003 for the compilation Number Ones.
Credits
- Written and composed by Rod Temperton
Rodney Lynn "Rod" Temperton is an English songwriter, record producer and musician most famous for writing a number of songs performed by Michael Jackson, including the title track of Jackson's Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time.-Biography:Temperton attended the De Aston School in...
- Produced by Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones, Jr. is an American music conductor, record producer, musical arranger, film composer and trumpeter. During five decades in the entertainment industry, Jones has earned a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend Award in 1991...
and Michael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson , known as the "King of Pop", was an American musician and one of the most commercially successful and influential entertainers of all time...
- Featuring: Speech by Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price II was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:...
- Co-Starring: Ola Ray
Ola Ray is an American model and actress most notable for co-starring alongside Michael Jackson in his short film for "Thriller" in 1983.-Career:...
- Synthesizers: Greg Phillinganes
Greg Phillinganes is an active session keyboardist in Los Angeles, California. He is a graduate of Cass Tech....
, Rod TempertonRodney Lynn "Rod" Temperton is an English songwriter, record producer and musician most famous for writing a number of songs performed by Michael Jackson, including the title track of Jackson's Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time.-Biography:Temperton attended the De Aston School in...
and Brian Banks (keyboardist)
- Synthesizer programming: Anthony Marinelli
- Guitar: David Williams
David Williams was an American rhythm guitarist who performed and recorded with Michael Jackson, Madonna, Herbie Hancock and the Temptations, among others....
- Trumpet and flügelhorn: Jerry Hey
Jerry Hey is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, horn arranger, string arranger, orchestrator and session musician.He is known as the Seawind trumpeter and arranger who plays with Kim Hutchcroft, Larry Williams and Bill Reichenbach....
- Trumpet and flügelhorn: Gary Grant
Gary Grant is a retired American professional basketball player at the point guard position in the NBA.Gary "The General" Grant played for Canton McKinley High School and collegiately at the University of Michigan....
- Saxophone and flute: Larry Williams
Larry Williams was an American rhythm and blues and rock and roll singer, songwriter and pianist from New Orleans, Louisiana...
- Trombone: Bill Reichenbach
William "Bill" Reichenbach Jr. is an American jazz trombonist and composer. He is the son of Bill Reichenbach who was the drummer for Charlie Byrd from 1962 to 1973. He is best known as a session musician for television, films, cartoons, and commercials...
- Vocal, rhythm and synthesizer arrangement by Rod Temperton
Rodney Lynn "Rod" Temperton is an English songwriter, record producer and musician most famous for writing a number of songs performed by Michael Jackson, including the title track of Jackson's Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time.-Biography:Temperton attended the De Aston School in...
- Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey
Jerry Hey is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, horn arranger, string arranger, orchestrator and session musician.He is known as the Seawind trumpeter and arranger who plays with Kim Hutchcroft, Larry Williams and Bill Reichenbach....
- Effects by Bruce Cannon and Bruce Swedien
Bruce Swedien is an audio engineer and music producer of Scandinavian descent born in Minneapolis in 1934. He is known for his work with Quincy Jones....
Charts
| Chart (1983/1984) |
Peak
position |
| Australian ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
|
4 |
| Belgium Singles Chart |
1 |
| Danish Singles Chart |
3 |
| Dutch Singles Chart |
3 |
| French Singles Chart The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organisation which protects the interests of the French record industry...
|
1 |
| German Singles Chart The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband der phonographischen Wirtschaft...
|
21 |
| Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data...
|
3 |
| Spanish Singles Chart |
1 |
| Swedish Singles Chart Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Grammofonleverantörernas förening. Since late 2006 the chart has included legal downloads.-The radio show:1976-2006 the sales chart was...
|
20 |
| Swiss Singles Chart |
43 |
| UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
|
10 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
|
4 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, formerly the Black Singles Chart, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues...
|
3 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Billboard's Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...
|
1 |
| Chart (2009) |
Peak
position |
| Australian ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
|
3 |
| Danish Singles Chart |
25 |
| Finnish Singles Chart |
11 |
| German Singles Chart |
9 |
| Spanish Singles Chart Productores de Música de España, a.k.a. PROMUSICAE is a trade group representing the Spanish recording industry...
|
1 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart |
7 |
| Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data...
|
8 |
| Italian Singles Chart |
4 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart |
12 |
| Swiss Singles Chart |
3 |
| UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
|
12 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Songs The Hot Digital Songs chart ranks the best-selling digital singles in the United States, according to Billboard.Beginning in February 2005, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboards music single charts. It was decided to do so mainly because of the dramatic rise in popularity of...
|
2 |