About Stefan Halley
Location: Malmo, Sweden
Occupation: Editor-in-Chief
Bio: Stefan has been writing reviews for seven years and started Pop Syndicate out of need to voice his mis-guided opinion.
Posts: 719
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Twenty-five years later and Thriller is still a great album.
Michael Jackson may have fallen hard times these days but 25 years ago, he was the world’s most popular recording artist thanks to the album Thriller. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the release of the album. With over 100 million copies sold, Thriller is the biggest selling record in the world. No other album even comes close. Record labels would love to figure out what made Thriller so successful and duplicate that magic. The truth is Thriller came out at the right time and hit a nerve with audiences the same way Titanic did in 1997. Unlike Titanic, Thriller is still as incredible today as it was 25 years ago.
In case you’ve forgotten, almost every track on Thriller was hit. From the opening “Wanna Be Startin’ Something’” to “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing), Thriller is the perfect pop album. As soon as the first song opens, it’s easy to see why the CD has sold so many copies. Jackson teamed up with Quincy Jones to blend rock, disco and pop music in a way that has never been done before or since. The album jumps from one song to the next creating an unusual blend of styles and sounds. That may be why Thriller works so well where other albums have failed. Jackson’s willingness to try different styles instead of pigeonholing himself allowed him to constantly reinvent what he wanted to be instead of allowing the record companies to do it for him.
The 25th anniversary edition of Thriller contains all the classics, “Beat It”, “Billie Jean”, “P.Y.T.”, “Thriller”, “The Girl Is Mine” and “Wanna Be Startin’ Somthin’”. The last few tracks are new interpretations of several songs from the album. Will.i.am adds his own touches to “The Girl Is Mine” and “P.Y.T.”. He shows how well the Jackson material holds up even with his inept mucking about. “The Girl Is Mine” cuts out the Paul McCartney verves and replaces them with Will says, “She’s mine, she’s mine/She likes the way I rock, the…way…I…rock.” The remix sounds amazingly good and if Will hadn’t added his two bit vocals in, it would be a standout on the album. His Black Eyed Peas companion, Fergie, joins Michael on “Beat It” providing half the vocals. This is a huge disappointment. Kanye West’s “Billie Jean” is the real standout of the remixes. He doesn’t get in the way of the song. West enhances the song but doesn’t feel the need to add his own lyrics.
The new tracks show how good the original material is and how vapid today’s music has become. Thriller is a stellar album that sounds as fresh today as it did 25 years ago. While Michael Jackson’s star may have faded, his legacy is still very strong.
While recently digging through some old boxes I unearthed my cassette tape of Thriller. It was the first album I ever bought.
Brings me back to a time when I may or may not have worn a single sparkling glove and tried to learn the moonwalk.
I always thought Thriller was before my time. Man I feel old now.