Thriller (song)

"Thriller"
"Thriller"
	United States 12-inch single
Single by Michael Jackson
from the album Thriller
Released	November 11, 1983 (United Kingdom); January 23, 1984 (United States);
Recorded	1982
Studio	Westlake (Los Angeles)
Genre	Disco; funk; Halloween;
Length	5:57 (album version); 5:13 (2003 edit); 4:37 (special edit); 4:05 (remixed short version); 5:04 ("Starlight" version);
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Rod Temperton
Producer(s)	Quincy Jones
Michael Jackson singles chronology
Music video
	"Thriller" on YouTube

"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.^[4]

"Thriller" is a disco song featuring a repeating synthesizer bassline and lyrics and sound effects evoking horror films. It includes a spoken-word sequence performed by the horror actor Vincent Price which begins at the 6:31 mark on the music video and 4:25 in the album version. It was produced by Quincy Jones and written by Rod Temperton, who wanted to write a theatrical song to suit Jackson's love of film.

Jackson decided to release "Thriller" as a single after Thriller left the top of the Billboard 200 chart. The "Thriller" music video, directed by John Landis, depicts Jackson turning into a zombie and dancing with a horde of them. It has been named the greatest music video of all time by various publications and readers' polls, and doubled sales of Thriller, helping it become the best-selling album in history.

It was the album's seventh top-ten single on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching number four. It reached number one in Flanders, France and Portugal and Spain, and reached the top ten in many other countries. In the week of Jackson's death in 2009, it was Jackson's bestselling track in the United States, with sales of 167,000 copies on the Billboard Hot Digital Tracks chart. It entered the Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart at number two, and remained in the charts' top ten for three consecutive weeks. "Thriller" is certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America. It appears on several of Jackson's greatest-hits albums and has been covered by numerous artists. The song has returned to the Billboard Hot 100 chart multiple times due to its popularity around Halloween and is one of the bestselling singles of all time.

"Thriller"

Jackson's song "Thriller", released as a single in 1984; Nelson George wrote that it uses cinematic sound effects, horror film motifs, and vocal trickery to convey a sense of danger.^[5]

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^ "New Singles (for the week ending November 11, 1983)" (PDF). Music Week: 30. November 5, 1983. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 13, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
^ Semigran, Aly (February 7, 2011). "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller': Story Behind the 'Glee' Cover". MTV. Archived from the original on August 14, 2022. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
^ Engel Bromwich, Jonah (October 25, 2018). "Who Actually Listens to Halloween Music?". The New York Times. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
^ McPhate, Tim (November 2, 2017). "Michael Jackson's "Thriller": For The Record". The Recording Academy. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
^ George 2004, p. 23.

[MW-1] "New Singles (for the week ending November 11, 1983)" (PDF). Music Week: 30. November 5, 1983. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 13, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2022.

[2] Semigran, Aly (February 7, 2011). "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller': Story Behind the 'Glee' Cover". MTV. Archived from the original on August 14, 2022. Retrieved September 17, 2023.

[3] Engel Bromwich, Jonah (October 25, 2018). "Who Actually Listens to Halloween Music?". The New York Times. Retrieved April 3, 2024.

[Academy-4] McPhate, Tim (November 2, 2017). "Michael Jackson's "Thriller": For The Record". The Recording Academy. Retrieved November 17, 2019.

[FOOTNOTEGeorge200423-5] George 2004, p. 23.

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