"Beat It" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson from his sixth studio album,Thriller (1982). It was written and composed by Jackson,produced by Quincy Jones,and co-produced by Jackson. Jones encouraged Jackson to include a rock song on the album. Jackson later said:"I wanted to write a song,the type of song that I would buy if I were to buy a rock song... and I wanted the children to really enjoy it—the school children as well as the college students."[6] It includes a guitar solo by Eddie Van Halen.
The "Beat It" music video,which features Jackson bringing two gangs together through the power of music and dance,helped establish Jackson as an international pop icon.[10] The single,along with its music video,helped make Thriller the best-selling album of all time. "Beat It" has been cited as one of the most successful,recognized,awarded and celebrated songs in the history of popular music;both the song and video had a large impact on pop culture.[11]
Jackson first worked on a demo version of the song with musicians at his home studio. The drum part was programmed on a drum machine,and the bass line was a combination of electric bass guitar and Bell Labs Digital Synthesizer Synergy keyboard. This hybrid bass style was retained for the main recording session.[14]
Sheet music for the song is in the key of E♭ Minor in standard time,with a moderately fast tempo. Jackson's vocal range is B♭3 to A♭5.[15]
Upon hearing the first recorded vocals,Jones stated that it was exactly what he was looking for.[11] The song begins with seven distinct synthesizer notes played on the Synclavier digital synthesizer,with Tom Bahler credited for the Synclavier performance on the song. The intro is taken note for note from a demo LP released the year before,called "The Incredible Sounds of Synclavier II" first published in 1981 by Denny Jaeger Creative Services,Inc.,and sold by New England Digital,makers of the Synclavier.[16] The drums were played by Toto co-founder Jeff Porcaro.[17] Steve Porcaro and Steve Lukather,also Toto members,participate with synthesizers,and guitar and bass guitar respectively.
Jermaine Jackson has suggested the inspiration of "Beat It" and its video came from the Jackson family experiencing gang activity in Gary,Indiana. "From our front window,we witnessed,about three bad rumbles between rival gangs."[18] The lyrics of "Beat It" have been described as a "sad commentary on human nature".[19] The line "don't be a macho man" is said to express Jackson's dislike of violence,while also referring to the childhood abuse he faced at the hands of his father Joseph.[20]
Eddie Van Halen,lead guitarist of hard rock band Van Halen,was asked to add a guitar solo.[21][22] When initially contacted by Jones,VanHalen thought he was receiving a prank call.[23] Having established that the call was genuine,VanHalen used a custom amplifier he borrowed from LA-based English guitarist Allan Holdsworth,set up to use alongside his Frankenstrat guitar and the pre-amp section of an Echoplex,then recorded the solo free of charge.[24] "I did it as a favor",the musician later said. "I was a complete fool,according to the rest of the band,our manager and everyone else. I was not used. I knew what I was doing—I don't do something unless I want to do it."[7] Van Halen recorded his contribution following Jones and Jackson arriving at the guitarist's house with a "skeleton version" of the song. Fellow guitarist Steve Lukather recalled,"Initially,we rocked it out as Eddie had played a good solo—but Quincy thought it was too tough. So I had to reduce the distorted guitar sound and that is what was released."[7] Two versions of the solo were recorded.[23] VanHalen reported in 2015 that he also rearranged the song and asked Jones to edit the chords so his solo could be in the key of E.[25] Both Lukather and Porcaro had to re-cut guitar,bass and drum parts to the song to fit around Jackson's lead vocal and the guitar solo with the help of engineer Humberto Gatica.[26]
Right before VanHalen's guitar solo begins,a noise is heard that sounds like somebody knocking at a door. It is reported that the knock was a person walking into Van Halen's recording studio. Another story has claimed that the sound was simply the musician knocking on his own guitar.[27] Jackson performed the knocking sounds himself by striking a drum case. In the song credits provided for the album,Jackson is listed as "Drum case beater."[28]
It was reported that during the marathon mixing sessions,the engineers were shocked while working on Van Halen's solo to discover that the sound of his guitar caused the monitor speaker in the control room to catch fire,allegedly causing "Thriller" songwriter Rod Temperton to exclaim,"This must be really good!" In an interview in 2016,this was confirmed to be an urban legend.[29] The solo,at its end,also contains a clever quote from Jimi Hendrix's guitar part from his version of Bob Dylan's "All along the Watchtower". Following Jackson's death in 2009,Van Halen described working with him as "one of my fondest memories in my career".[30]
Release and reception
"The uncredited guitarist who whipped out the fluttering, squealing solo on this ode to macho cowardice was Eddie Van Halen. The aerodynamic metal flight pumped crossover fuel that would boost the success of Thriller—a gimmick Jackson would flog later with spots from Slash and Carlos Santana. Without the Van Halen precedent, there might have been no collaboration of Run-DMC and Aerosmith on the 1986 rap/rock version of 'Walk This Way'."
"Beat It" was released in early 1983 to widespread acclaim, following the successful chart performances of "The Girl Is Mine" and "Billie Jean". Frank DiLeo, the vice president of Epic Records, convinced Jackson to release "Beat It" while "Billie Jean" was heading towards number one. DiLeo, who later became Jackson's manager, correctly predicted that both singles would remain in the top 10 at the same time.[7] The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on April 30, 1983. "Billie Jean" remained atop the Billboard Hot 100 for seven weeks, before being toppled by "Come On Eileen", which stayed at No. 1 for a single week, before Jackson reclaimed the position with "Beat It".[7][32]
"Billie Jean" and "Beat It" occupied top 5 positions at the same time, a feat matched by very few artists. The single remained at the top of the Hot 100 for a total of three weeks.[7] The song also charted at No. 1 on the US R&B singles chart and No. 14 on the BillboardTop Tracks chart in the US.[8]Billboard ranked it at the No. 5 song for 1983.[9] "Beat It" also claimed the top spot in Spain and the Netherlands, reached No. 3 in the UK and the top 20 in Austria, Norway, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland.[8]
In a Rolling Stone review, Christopher Connelly describes "Beat It" as the best song on Thriller, adding that it "ain't no disco AOR track". He notes of the "nifty dance song", "Jackson's voice soars all over the melody, Eddie Van Halen checks in with a blistering guitar solo, you could build a convention center on the backbeat".[33]AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine states that the song is both "tough" and "scared".[34]Robert Christgau claimed that the song has Eddie Van Halen "wielding his might in the service of antimacho".[35]Slant Magazine observed that the song was an "uncharacteristic dalliance with the rock idiom".[36] The track also won praise from Jackson biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli, who stated that the song was "rambunctious".[21]
"Beat It" has been recognized with several awards. At the 1984 Grammy Awards, the song earned Jackson two of record-eight awards: Record of the Year and Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. The track won the Billboard Music Award for favorite dance/disco 12" LP in 1983.[8][37] The single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), a few months after its release, for shipments of at least one million units. In 1989, the standard format single was re-certified platinum by the RIAA, based on the revised sales level of one million units for platinum singles.[38] The total number of digital sales in the US, as of August 2022, stands at 8,000,000.[39]
Music video
Jackson during a dance step in the music video for "Beat It"
The music video for "Beat It" helped establish Jackson as an international pop icon.[10][40] The video was Jackson's first treatment of black youth and the streets. Both "Beat It" and "Thriller" are notable for their "mass choreography" of synchronized dancers, a Jackson trademark.[41]
The video, which cost Jackson $150,000 to create after CBS refused to finance it,[37][42] was filmed on Los Angeles' Skid Row—mainly on locations on East 5th Street[43]—around March 9, 1983. To add authenticity to the production but also to foster peace between them, Jackson had the idea to cast members of rival Los Angeles street gangs Crips and Bloods.[44] In addition to around 80 genuine gang members,[42] the video, which is noted for opening up many job opportunities for dancers in the US,[45] also featured 18 professional dancers and four breakdancers.[46] Besides Jackson, Michael Peters, and Vincent Paterson, the cast included Michael DeLorenzo, Stoney Jackson, Tracii Guns, Tony Fields, Peter Tram, Rick Stone and Cheryl Song.[40][47][48] The bar location shown in the latter part of the first minute of the video was also featured 13 years earlier in the gatefold and on the back cover of the Doors 1970 album, Morrison Hotel.[49] Coincidentally, the name of that skid row bar, the Hard Rock Café, was also the inspiration for the London original of the famous chain of restaurants begun in 1971.[50]
The video was written and directed by Bob Giraldi, produced by Ralph Cohen, Antony Payne and Mary M. Ensign through the production company GASP. The second video released for the Thriller album, it was choreographed by Peters who also performed, alongside Vincent Paterson, as one of the two lead dancers. Despite some sources claiming otherwise, Jackson was involved in creating some parts of the choreography.[44] Jackson asked Giraldi, at the time already an established commercial director but who had never directed a music video,[51] to come up with a concept for the "Beat It" video because he really liked a commercial Giraldi had directed for WLS-TV in Chicago about a married couple of two elderly blind people who instead of running from a run-down neighborhood all the other white people had fled from, chose to stay and throw a block party for all the young children in the area. Contrary to popular belief, the concept of the video was not based on the Broadway musical West Side Story; in reality, Giraldi drew inspiration from his growing up in Paterson, New Jersey.[44]
The video had its world premiere on MTV during prime time on March 31, 1983;[52][53] neither "Beat It" nor "Billie Jean" were, as is often claimed,[53][54] the first music video by an African-American artist to be played on MTV.[55] Soon after its premiere the video was also running on other video programs including BET's Video Soul, SuperStation WTBS's Night Tracks, and NBC's Friday Night Videos. In fact, "Beat It" was the first video shown on the latter's first ever telecast on July 29, 1983.[56]
The video opens with the news of a fight circulating at a diner. This scene repeats itself at a pool hall, where gang members arrive and the song begins to play. The camera cuts to Jackson lying on a bed as he contemplates the senseless violence. Jackson dons a red leather J. Parks brand jacket and dances his way towards the fight through the diner and pool hall. A knife fight is taking place between the two gang leaders in a warehouse. They dance battle for an interlude of music until Jackson arrives; he breaks up the fight and launches into a dance routine. The video ends with the gang members joining him in the dance, agreeing that violence is not the solution to their problems.[40]
The video received recognition through numerous awards. The American Music Awards named the short film their Favorite Pop/Rock Video and their Favorite Soul Video. The Black Gold Awards honored Jackson with the Best Video Performance award. The Billboard Video Awards recognized the video with 7 awards; Best Overall Video Clip, Best Performance by a Male Artist, Best Use of Video to Enhance a Song, Best Use of Video to Enhance an Artist's Image, Best Choreography, Best Overall Video and Best Dance/Disco 12". The short film was ranked by Rolling Stone as the No. 1 video, in both their critic's and reader's polls. The video was later inducted into the Music Video Producer's Hall of Fame.[37]
In November 2023 the music video reached 1 billion views on YouTube. It was Jackson's third music video (after "Billie Jean" and "They Don't Care About Us") to achieve this milestone.[57]
A highlight of Jackson's solo concert tour performances of the song is that he would begin the song on a cherry picker (which he would also later use with "Earth Song" during the HIStory World Tour) after performing "Thriller". Another live version of the song is available on the DVD Live at Wembley July 16, 1988. The song would have also been performed as part of the This Is It concerts, which were canceled due to Jackson's death.
Legacy
Jackson's "Beat It" has been cited as one of the most successful, recognized, awarded, and celebrated songs in the history of pop music; both the song and video had a large impact on pop culture.[11] The song is said to be a "pioneer" in black rock music and is considered one of the cornerstones of the Thriller album.[11] Eddie Van Halen has been praised for adding "the greatest guitar solo", helping "Beat It" become one of the best-selling singles of all time.[11]
Shortly after its release, "Beat It" was included in the National Highway Safety Commission's anti-drunk driving campaign, "Drinking and Driving Can Kill a Friendship".[60][61][62][63] The song was also included on the accompanying album. Jackson collected an award from President Ronald Reagan at the White House, in recognition for his support of the campaign.[37] Reagan stated that Jackson was "proof of what a person can accomplish through a lifestyle free of alcohol or drug abuse. People young and old respect that. And if Americans follow his example, then we can face up to the problem of drinking and driving, and we can, in Michael's words, 'Beat It'."[64]
Frequently listed in greatest song polling lists, "Beat It" was ranked as the world's fourth favorite song in a 2005 poll conducted by Sony Ericsson.[59] Over 700,000 people in 60 countries cast their votes.[59] Voters from the UK placed "Billie Jean" at No. 1, ahead of "Thriller", with a further five of the top ten being solo recordings by Jackson.[59]Rolling Stone placed "Beat It" at number 337 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs in 2004,[65] and at number 185 in its 2021 update of the list.[66] The song was featured in the films Back to the Future Part II, Zoolander and Undercover Brother.[59] When re-released, as part of the Visionary campaign in 2006, "Beat It" charted at No. 15 in the UK.[59]The song was featured in The Flintstone Kids while it was performed by La Toya Jackson but as a parody with “Beat it say no” to drugs.[67]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
For Thriller 25, Black Eyed Peas singer will.i.am remixed "Beat It". The song, titled "Beat It 2008", featured additional vocals by fellow Black Eyed Peas member Fergie.[134][135] Upon its release in 2008, the song reached No. 26 in Switzerland, the top 50 in Sweden and No. 65 in Austria.[133] This was the second remixed version of "Beat It" to get an official release, following "Moby's Sub Mix" which was released on the "Jam" and "Who Is It" singles in 1992,[136] as well as the "They Don't Care About Us" single in 1996 (and re-released as part of the Visionary campaign[137]).
Reception
"Beat It 2008" received generally unfavorable reviews from music critics. Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone claimed that the song was a "contender for the year's most pointless musical moment".[138] AllMusic criticized Fergie for "parroting the lyrics of "Beat It" back to a recorded Jackson".[139]Blender's Kelefa Sanneh also noted that the Black Eyed Peas singer traded lines with Jackson. "Why?", she queried.[140] Todd Gilchrist was thankful that the remix retained Eddie Van Halen's "incendiary guitar solo", but added that the song "holds the dubious honor of making Jackson seem masculine for once, and only in the context of Fergie's tough-by-way-of-Kids Incorporated interpretation of the tune".[141] Tom Ewing of Pitchfork observed that Fergie's "nervous reverence is a waste of time".[142]
American rock band Fall Out Boy covered "Beat It". The studio version was digitally released on March 25,2008,by Island Records as the only single from the band's first live album,Live in Phoenix (2008). The guitar solo is played by John Mayer. In the United States,the song peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached No. 21 on the defunct-Billboard Pop 100 chart,also charting internationally. The band has since regularly incorporated it in their set list at their shows.
Background,recording and release
In early 2008,it was announced that Fall Out Boy were to cover "Beat It" for their Live in Phoenix album.[147] The band had previously performed the song at venues such as Coors Amphitheatre and festivals such as the Carling Weekend in Leeds.[148][149] Bassist Pete Wentz,who has claimed to have an obsession with Jackson,stated that prior to recording the song,he would only watch Moonwalker.[150] It was also announced that John Mayer was to add the guitar solo previously played by Eddie Van Halen.[151]
The band's lead singer/guitarist Patrick Stump stated that the band had not planned to cover the song. "Basically,I just started playing the riff in sound-check one day,and then we all started playing it,and then we started playing it live,and then we figured we'd record it and put it out with our live DVD."[152] Bassist Pete Wentz added that the band had not originally intended for the song to be released as a single either.[152] "'Beat It' seemed like a song that would be cool and that we could do our own take on," he said.[150] Having spent time deciding on a guitarist for the song,Wentz eventually called John Mayer to add the guitar solo. "We were trying to think about who is a contemporary guitar guy who's going to go down as a legend," Wentz later noted.[152]
Upon its digital release as a single in April 2008,Fall Out Boy's cover of "Beat It" became a mainstay on iTunes' Top 10 chart.[153] The song peaked at No. 8 in Canada,becoming another top 10 hit in the region. It also charted at No. 13 in Australia,No. 14 in New Zealand,No. 75 in Austria and No. 98 in the Netherlands.[154]
Music video
The music video for Fall Out Boy's "Beat It" was directed by Shane Drake and was made in homage to Jackson. "I think when you're doing a Michael Jackson cover,there's this expectation that you're going to do one of his videos verbatim," Stump said. "What we decided to do was kind of inspired by Michael Jackson and the mythology of him. There are specific images that are reference points for us,but at any given point,it's not any of his videos. It's kind of all of his videos,all at once,but on a Fall Out Boy budget,so it's not quite as fancy."[155] The costumes for the video were similar to the originals. "My costume is this take on one of the guys from Michael Jackson's original 'Beat It' video,like,the guy who plays the rival dancer," Wentz said during the filming of the video.[155] The music video featured numerous cameos,including a karate class/dance session being taught by Tony Hale,Donald Faison,Joel David Moore and Hal Sparks dressed up like Michael Jackson.[155] The short film later received a MTV Video Music Award nomination for Best Rock Video.[156]
Charts
Weekly charts
Weekly chart performance for "Beat It" by Fall Out Boy
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
"Eat It" parody
In 1984,American parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic released his parody song "Eat It".[176] Yankovic recorded the song with Jackson's permission.[177] The song's music video followed the "Beat It" short film scene-for-scene,with Yankovic mimicking Jackson's dance moves in a clumsy fashion.[178] Jackson received royalties as Jackson was listed as co-writer of "Eat It".[179]
Van Halen was an American rock band formed in Pasadena,California,in 1973. Credited with restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene,Van Halen was known for their energetic live performances and for the virtuosity of its guitarist,Eddie Van Halen. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.
"Billie Jean" is a song by the American singer Michael Jackson,released by Epic Records on January 3,1983,as the second single from his sixth studio album,Thriller (1982). It was written and composed by Jackson,produced by Quincy Jones,and co-produced by Jackson. "Billie Jean" blends post-disco,R&B,funk,and dance-pop. The lyrics describe a woman,Billie Jean,who claims that the narrator is the father of her newborn son,which he denies. Jackson said the lyrics were based on groupies' claims about his older brothers when he toured with them as the Jackson 5.
Thriller is the sixth studio album by the American singer and songwriter Michael Jackson,released on November 29,1982,by Epic Records. It was produced by Quincy Jones,who previously worked with Jackson on his album Off the Wall (1979). Jackson wanted to create an album where "every song was a killer". With the ongoing backlash against disco music at the time,he moved in a new musical direction,resulting in a mix of pop,post-disco,rock,funk,synth-pop,and R&B sounds,and darker themes. Paul McCartney is the first credited appearance of a featured artist on a Jackson album. Recording took place from April to November 1982 at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles,California,with a budget of $750,000.
"Eat It" is a 1984 song by American comedy music artist "Weird Al" Yankovic. It is a parody of Michael Jackson's 1983 single "Beat It",with the contents changed to be about an exasperated parent attempting to get their picky child to eat anything at all,much less to eat properly. The track was both a commercial and critical success,earning Yankovic a Grammy Award. It peaked at number twelve in the United States,making it his first top 40 hit in that country,and reached number one in Australia.
1984 is the sixth studio album by American rock band Van Halen,released on January 9,1984. It was the last Van Halen studio album until A Different Kind of Truth (2012) to feature lead singer David Lee Roth,who left the band in 1985 following creative differences. This is the final full-length album to feature all four original members,although they reunited briefly in 2000 to start work on what would much later become 2012's A Different Kind of Truth. Roth returned in 2007,but Eddie's son Wolfgang replaced Anthony in 2006. 1984 and Van Halen's self-titled debut album are the band's best-selling albums,each having sold more than 10 million copies in the United States.
"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" is a song by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson recorded for his sixth studio album Thriller (1982). It is the opening track of the album and was released as its fourth single on May 9,1983,by Epic Records. It was written and co-produced by Jackson and produced by Quincy Jones. The lyrics pertain to strangers spreading rumors to start an argument for no good reason. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" evokes the disco sound of Jackson's previous studio album,Off the Wall,released in 1979. The song is characterized by a complex rhythm arrangement and a distinctive horn arrangement.
"Thriller" is a song by the American singer Michael Jackson. It was released by Epic Records on November 11,1983 in the United Kingdom and on January 23,1984,in the United States,as the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album Thriller.
"Jump" is a song by American rock band Van Halen. It was released in December 1983 as the lead single of their sixth studio album,1984. It is Van Halen's most successful single,reaching number 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song differs from earlier Van Halen songs in that it is driven by a keyboard riff,although the song does contain a guitar solo. David Lee Roth dedicated the song to martial artist Benny "The Jet" Urquidez,of whom he was a student. In 2021,Rolling Stone ranked "Jump" at number 177 on its updated list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
"Black or White" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson,released by Epic Records on November 11,1991 as the first single from Jackson's eighth studio album,Dangerous (1991). Jackson wrote,composed,and produced the track with record producer Bill Bottrell,who provides an uncredited guest performance. Epic Records described it as "a rock 'n' roll dance song about racial harmony".
"Rock with You" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson,written by Rod Temperton and produced by Quincy Jones. It was first offered to Karen Carpenter,while she was working on her first solo album,but she turned it down. It was released in October 1979,by Epic Records as the second single from Jackson's fifth solo studio album Off the Wall (1979). It was also the third number-one hit of the 1980s,a decade in which the pop singles chart would quickly be dominated by Jackson.
"The Girl Is Mine" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson and English singer-songwriter and musician Paul McCartney for Jackson's sixth solo album,Thriller. The track was written and co-produced by Jackson and produced by Quincy Jones. The song was recorded at Westlake Studios,Los Angeles,from April 14 to 16,1982 and was released on October 18 of that same year as the album's first single. The year before,Jackson and McCartney had recorded "Say Say Say" and "The Man" for the latter's fifth solo album,Pipes of Peace (1983). Although "The Girl Is Mine" was released as a single,Jackson and McCartney never performed the song live.
"Dirty Diana" is a song by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It is the ninth track on Jackson's seventh studio album,Bad (1987). The song was released by Epic Records on April 18,1988,as the fifth single from the album. It presents a harder rock sound similar to "Beat It" from Thriller (1982) and a guitar solo played by Steve Stevens. "Dirty Diana" was written and co-produced by Jackson,and produced by Quincy Jones. The song's lyrics pertain to groupies. "Dirty Diana" has a moderate tempo and is played in the key of G minor.
"Human Nature" is a song performed by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson,and the fifth single from his sixth solo album,Thriller. The track was produced by Quincy Jones and performed by some band members of Toto with Jackson providing vocals.
"Runnin' with the Devil" is a song by the American hard rock band Van Halen,released as the second single from their eponymous debut album on May 6,1978. The lyrics were inspired by Ohio Players 1974 song "Runnin' from the Devil". In 2009,"Runnin' with the Devil" was named the 9th greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1. Chuck Klosterman of Vulture ranked it the eighth-best Van Halen song,praising the staccato bass playing as well as David Lee Roth's vocal performance.
"Panama" is a song by the American rock band Van Halen. It was the third US single released from their album 1984.
"I'll Wait" is a song by American rock band Van Halen,taken from their sixth studio album,1984 (1984). It was written by band members Eddie Van Halen,Alex Van Halen,Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth,along with Michael McDonald,and produced by Ted Templeman.
"Why Can't This Be Love" is a song by the American rock band Van Halen for their seventh studio album,5150 (1986). The song was the group's first single with Sammy Hagar,replacing founding member David Lee Roth. It was released on both 7" and 12" formats with the latter having an extended version featuring extra lyrics.
"Say Say Say" is a song by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson,released in October 1983 as the lead single from McCartney's 1983 album Pipes of Peace. Produced by George Martin,it was recorded during production of McCartney's 1982 Tug of War album,about a year before the release of "The Girl Is Mine",the pair's first duet from Jackson's album Thriller (1982).
↑ Billboard Staff (October 19, 2023). "The 500 Best Pop Songs: Staff List". Billboard. Retrieved February 16, 2024. ...a standout dance-rock track on Michael Jackson's game-changing blockbuster Thriller.
↑ "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved May 29, 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Michael Jackson".
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