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Where Off the Wall was pretty much straight good times, Thriller introduced dread into Michael Jackson’s solo work. By 1995’s HIStory, this element curdled into overwhelming self-regard and out-of-touchness, but here it’s bracing. While Thriller offers its share of cute (”The Girl Is Mine,” a duet with Paul McCartney that was the album’s first single; “P.Y.T.”), the most memorable cuts remain “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” and “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin (more…)

Amazon.com essential recording

“We wanted a tough album,” producer Quincy Jones recalls in a bonus interview on this special edition of Bad. Though the 1987 blockbuster would appear to be Michael Jackson’s most personal statement to date–9 of its 11 cuts were written solely by him–its appeal also rested more on craft than the idiosyncratic art of Thriller and Off the Wall. At the same time, most of Bad has aged well in spite of its digital brittleness and MIDI treatments of gem (more…)

Amazon.com essential recording

Given the pace of Michael Jackson’s post-Thriller release schedule, it’s striking that Off the Wall appeared between two albums with his brothers, Destiny (1978) and Triumph (1980), on which the twentysomething phenomenon was also fully engaged. Aided by richly detailed but not overdone production, Off the Wall redefined how much Michael might do. Tracks like “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough,” “Rock with You,” the title cut (all Top 10 singles), an (more…)

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Should several of the tracks on the 25th anniversary edition of Thriller find their way onto your MP3 player, you’re going to have to admit: the music holds up. “Beat It” is not about to go stale, at least not without a rumble, and neither are “Billie Jean” and “P.Y.T.” Even if you put the record-hurtling hits aside, you’re still left with the realization that without MJ, there might not have been a JT , never mind a Ne-Yo (listen closely to “Human N (more…)Sitegrinder