- 01ThrillerMichael JacksonI’m talking about Thriller .from the chapter
- 02Songs in the Key of LifeStevie WonderWhen major records came out in the 1970s, as I have explained, I was there, but I was very much under the influence of older people, parents, guardians, the lady in my father’s band who played Songs in the Key of Life in the wrong order, forever scarring me.from the chapter
- 03Off the WallMichael JacksonI can report that even after the huge commercial success of Off the Wall in 1979, Michael Jackson grew frustrated that his music was not receiving the critical acclaim he thought it deserved.from the chapter
- 04“Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough”Michael JacksonOff the Wall was nominated for only two Grammys, and won only one: best Male R&B Vocal Performance for “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough.” Jackson was certain that it had deserved Record of the Year, though it wasn’t even nominated, and he then set out to make an album that could not be denied.from the chapter
- 05“The Girl Is Mine”Michael Jackson and Paul McCartneyThe first song recorded, on April 14, 1982, was “The Girl Is Mine,” a duet with Paul McCartney.from the chapter
- 06“Barefootin’”Robert ParkerThe Jackson family band won a talent show in 1966 with dual vocalists: eleven-year-old Jermaine performed “My Girl,” supposedly, and eight-year-old Michael performed Robert Parker’s “Barefootin’.”from the chapter
- 07“She’s Out of My Life”Michael Jackson“She’s Out of My Life” had a split-screen that showed Michael from two angles at once.from the chapter
- 08“Rock With You”Michael Jackson“Rock with You” was the sharpest, because of the clothes (super-sparkly!) and the lights (green lasers!).from the chapter
- 09“Billie Jean”Michael JacksonThe song was the lead single, “Billie Jean,” which was a personal favorite of Jackson’s, a smooth funk song about an obsessed fan and a paternity claim.from the chapter
- 10“Rat Race”the SpecialsThe Specials, the two-tone band from England that combined ska and New Wave, had a Black percussionist, Neville Staple, and a black guitarist, Lynval Golding.from the chapter
- 11“1999”PrinceAnd there were even some popular artists on the channel before Jackson even made “Billie Jean.” Prince is probably the most prominent: his video for “1999,” a performance clip directed by Bruce Gowers (who had also directed Jackson’s “Rock with You”), was in reasonably heavy …from the chapter
- 12“Rosario (1999)”PrinceAnd there were even some popular artists on the channel before Jackson even made “Billie Jean.” Prince is probably the most prominent: his video for “1999,” a performance clip directed by Bruce Gowers (who had also directed Jackson’s “Rock with You”), was in reasonably heavy …from the chapter
- 13“Every Breath You Take”the PoliceIt went right to number one, Jackson’s fastest-selling single since 1970, and was beaten for bestselling single of the year, by a hair, by the Police’s “Every Breath You Take.”from the chapter
- 14“Thriller”Michael JacksonThe video was so successful that Jackson’s following videos had bigger names and bigger budgets.from the chapter
- 15Can’t Slow DownLionel RichieThey followed right on Michael’s moonwalking heels: Lionel Richie’s Can’t Slow Down in 1983; Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA , Madonna’s Like a Virgin , and Prince’s Purple Rain in 1984; Dire Straits’s Brothers in Arms …from the chapter
- 16Like a VirginMadonnaThey followed right on Michael’s moonwalking heels: Lionel Richie’s Can’t Slow Down in 1983; Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA , Madonna’s Like a Virgin , and Prince’s Purple Rain in 1984; Dire Straits’s Brothers in Arms , Phil Collins’s No Jacket Required , and Whitney Houston’s Whitney Hou …from the chapter
- 17Purple RainPrince… llowed right on Michael’s moonwalking heels: Lionel Richie’s Can’t Slow Down in 1983; Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA , Madonna’s Like a Virgin , and Prince’s Purple Rain in 1984; Dire Straits’s Brothers in Arms , Phil Collins’s No Jacket Required , and Whitney Houston’s Whitney Houston in 1985.from the chapter
- 18Brothers in ArmsDire Straits… llowed right on Michael’s moonwalking heels: Lionel Richie’s Can’t Slow Down in 1983; Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA , Madonna’s Like a Virgin , and Prince’s Purple Rain in 1984; Dire Straits’s Brothers in Arms , Phil Collins’s No Jacket Required , and Whitney Houston’s Whitney Houston in 1985.from the chapter
- 19No Jacket RequiredPhil Collins… llowed right on Michael’s moonwalking heels: Lionel Richie’s Can’t Slow Down in 1983; Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA , Madonna’s Like a Virgin , and Prince’s Purple Rain in 1984; Dire Straits’s Brothers in Arms , Phil Collins’s No Jacket Required , and Whitney Houston’s Whitney Houston in 1985.from the chapter
- 20Back in BlackAC/DCSales of that magnitude had happened only occasionally before (AC/DC’s Back in Black , Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours , or the slow-and-steady-wins-the-twenty-million-sales Dark Side of the Moon ).from the chapter
- 21RumoursFleetwood MacSales of that magnitude had happened only occasionally before (AC/DC’s Back in Black , Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours , or the slow-and-steady-wins-the-twenty-million-sales Dark Side of the Moon ).from the chapter
- 22“Say Say Say”Paul McCartney and Michael JacksonClearly, “Say Say Say” was meant to capitalize on Thriller ’s momentum, which of course it did, giving Jackson his seventh Top Ten single of the year, breaking the previous record of six (held by both Elvis Presley and the band that McCartney was in before Wings).from the chapter
- 23Pipes of PeacePaul McCartney and Michael JacksonTake the video for “Say Say Say,” a duet with McCartney that was recorded about a year before “The Girl Is Mine” but released only on McCartney’s Pipes of Peace album, which came out in October 1983, near the end of Thriller ’s string of singles.from the chapter