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Soul Strut 100: # 32 - Michael Jackson - Thriller

RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
edited February 2013 in The Soul Strut 100
I will slowly be unveiling the Top 100 Soul Strut Related Records as Voted by the Strutters Themselves.

# 32 - Michael Jackson - Thriller



The list so far:

# 100 - Jr. and His Soulettes - Psychodelic Sounds
# 99 - Sir Joe Quarterman & Free Soul
# 98 - Donny Hathaway - S/T (1971)
# 97 - Bernard Wright - ???Nard
# 96 - Tom Scott - Honeysuckle Breeze
# 95 - People Under the Stairs - Question in the Form of an Answer
# 94 - Harlem River Drive
# 93 - Black Moon - Enta Da Stage
# 92 - Marvin Gaye - Here, My Dear
# 91 - Muddy Waters - Electric Mud
# 90 - Les McCann - Layers
# 89 - Jimi Hendrix - Electric Ladyland
# 88 - Leroy Hutson - Hutson (1975)
# 87 - ESG - S/T (1981)
# 86 - Can - Tago Mago
# 85 - Bohannon - Stop & Go
# 84 - WILLIAM DEVAUGHN - Be Thankful For What You Got
# 83 - Power of Zeus - The Gospel According to Zeus
# 82 - Gang Starr - Hard To Earn
# 81 - The J.B.???s - Doing It to Death
# 80 - Parliament - Osmium
# 79 - McNeal & Niles - Thrust
# 78 - The Lafayette Afro Rock Band - Malik
# 77 - Earth, Wind, and Fire (1971)
# 76 - Dr. Dre - The Chronic
# 75 - Black Sabbath (1970)
# 74 - Trap Door / An International Psychedelic Mystery Mix (2006)
# 73 - Bob James - One
# 72 - Matthew Larkin Cassell - Pieces
# 71 - The Beginning Of The End - Funky Nassau
# 70 - Big Bear - Doin??? Thangs
# 69 - Steely Dan - Aja
# 68 - Quasimoto - The Unseen
# 67 - Curtis Mayfield - Curtis/Live! (1971)
# 66 - Al Green - Im still in love with you
# 65 - The Beatnuts - Street Level
# 64 - Archie Whitewater - Archie Whitewater (1970)
# 63 - Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - Mecca & the Soul Brother
# 62 - Notorious B.I.G. - Ready to Die
# 61 - The J.B.???s - Food For Thought
# 60 - Don Blackman (1982)
# 59 - Niagara - (Tiddies)
# 58 - Can - Ege Bamyasi
# 57 - Whatnauts - On the Rocks
# 56 - The Mohawks - Champ
# 55 - McDonald and Giles (1971)
# 54 - Darondo - Let My People Go
# 53 - Dorothy Ashby - Afro Harping
# 52 - Beastie Boys - Paul???s Boutique
# 51 - Mulatu Astatke - Mulatu of Ethiopia
# 50 - Lyman Woodard Organization - Saturday Night Special
# 49 - Isaac Hayes - Hot Buttered Soul
# 48 - Lyn Collins - Think (About It)
# 47 - James Brown - In The Jungle Groove
# 46 - Bill Withers - Still Bill
# 45 - Stevie Wonder - Innervisions
# 44 - Silver Apples - S/T
# 43 - Mobb Deep - The Infamous
# 42 - Lyn Christopher (1973)
# 41 - Serge Gainsbourg - Histoire de Melody Nelson
# 40 - Gang Starr - Step in the Arena
# 39 - Diamond D - Stunts, Blunts, & Hip Hop
# 38 - Terry Callier - What Color is Love
# 37 - David Axelrod - Song of Innocence
# 36 - The Invaders - Spacing Out
# 35 - Leo Sayer - Endless Flight
# 34 - Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
# 33 - DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist - Brainfreeze (Mix)

Please discuss your reactions to this record. The thread will be archived later here.

About


Nothing needs to be said about this classic record. Please share your Thriller experiences...



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  Comments

  • ketanketan Warmly booming riffs 3,170 Posts
    My favorite MJ album. Not just the music (although it's stunning); also the memories associated with this album. This album defined my childhood in many ways.
  • RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
    10 Random Thoughts on Thriller

    1. Steve Lukather became a guitar idol of mine after learning he played on this
    2. The album never gets old??? not even Billie Jean??? not even Beat It.
    3. The moon walk is / was the coolest dance move ever
    4. "The Girl is Mine" should have been dropped from this record??? corny ass tune.. Would have rather hear McCartney and Jackson on "Hot Street"???
    5. "Human Nature" as a song, as a hip hop sample, as anything is one of the most beautiful songs ever
    6. Thriller video is a choreographed masterpiece
    7. Rod Temperton
    8. Eddie Van Halen / Quincy Jones back story
    9. Does any one hate this record?
    10. "Lady in My Life" gets better each time I hear it.
  • ketanketan Warmly booming riffs 3,170 Posts
    RAJ said:
    10 Random Thoughts on Thriller
    4. "The Girl is Mine" should have been dropped from this record??? corny ass tune.. Would have rather hear McCartney and Jackson on "Hot Street"???

    I totally agree. But at the time (i.e., as a 5-year old), it was pretty awesome, especially cause my parents were really into the Beatles and we listened to their albums a lot. Plus, I will say that the background vocals and the bridge that builds off the "take you anywhere...." sequence remains beautiful.

    RAJ said:

    10. "Lady in My Life" gets better each time I hear it.

    Such an amazing tune. For me, Baby Be Mine has been the grower.
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    Toto

    b/w

    VINDICATED!!!!
  • JimsterJimster Cruffiton.etsy.com 6,955 Posts
    ketan said:
    The Girl is Mine

    There's a video to this where they are both playing Snakeoil Salesmen (Mac and Jack's Brand, IIRC). Makes it more bearable. I can give the whole tune a pass, until they get down to the talking part at the end. It reminds me how deeply Macca fell off. And how much he rests on the laurels of his past like some...

    ....laurel-resting motherf*cker.

    For me, "Lady In My Life" is THE killer... Whatever instrument you play, it's a great song to do.

    I remain steadfast in my OTW > Thriller stance, but yeah, the album is full of WIN and a blindfold needle-drop anywhere on the vinyl will result in instant smiles.
  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    J i m s t e r said:
    ketan said:
    The Girl is Mine

    There's a video to this where they are both playing Snakeoil Salesmen (Mac and Jack's Brand, IIRC). Makes it more bearable. .

    You are thinking Say Say Say, not The Girl Is Mine.
  • ketanketan Warmly booming riffs 3,170 Posts
    PYT demo is amazing in its own right

  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    RAJ said:

    10. "Lady in My Life" gets better each time I hear it.

  • RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
    ketan said:
    PYT demo is amazing in its own right


    This is fucking great BUT... this is very Off the Wall era Michael which borrowed a lot from Stevie Wonder. The fact Thriller had a whole new Stevie-less sound makes it a tad nit higher in my book.
  • RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
    HarveyCanal said:
    RAJ said:

    10. "Lady in My Life" gets better each time I hear it.


    Thes did a great job with this too:

  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    That PUTS joint is my shit.
  • JimsterJimster Cruffiton.etsy.com 6,955 Posts
    HarveyCanal said:
    J i m s t e r said:
    ketan said:
    The Girl is Mine

    There's a video to this where they are both playing Snakeoil Salesmen (Mac and Jack's Brand, IIRC). Makes it more bearable. .

    You are thinking Say Say Say, not The Girl Is Mine.



    If you turn the volume right down, and play "The Girl Is Mine" at the same time, I am right.
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    RAJ said:
    This is fucking great BUT... this is very Off the Wall era Michael which borrowed a lot from Stevie Wonder. The fact Thriller had a whole new Stevie-less sound makes it a tad nit higher in my book.

    I'd disagree that he borrowed alot from Stevie for OTW.

    All the uptempo bangers dont sound like Stevie at all. The midtempos ill give u that.

    Dude stripped it all down and added guitars for Thriller.
  • LaserWolfLaserWolf Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
    I like this record.
  • ketanketan Warmly booming riffs 3,170 Posts


    I'm sharing this slice of mediocre boogie to make a point. And that point is that it's hard to deny how engaging this song remains as played by random wedding band THE ENGAGEMENTS (apart from the little bitty LOL'ercoaster that is 0:13 and the lead singer's inability to stay in tune sometimes). And that's because of how genius the songs and arrangements on Thriller are.
  • Juan CocktolstoyJuan Cocktolstoy 216 Posts
    I remember getting this album and thought I owned a piece of Heaven. When the video for "Thriller" came out, I called all my friends, my friends called me, and our entire family sat down to watch it unfold on national TV. I think it came on right after Entertainment Tonight, I tried to dance like that for months and I got the jacket (in reverse colors though...)
  • cookbookcookbook 783 Posts
    ketan said:
    Baby Be Mine

    thats the jam for me as of late. thank you Rod!

    PYT is probably the staple in my book though
  • JimsterJimster Cruffiton.etsy.com 6,955 Posts
    Besides the stellar tunes, players and production, you have to hand it to Mike... His vocals are brilliant. No matter how inane the lyric, the f* Ker sings everything like he really feels it. So well, that he can sell you "The funk of 40,000 years" without having to put his foot in the door.

    I guess he really was feeling the tunes with the glee of a little kid.

    Bad, not so much.
  • DJ_EnkiDJ_Enki 6,473 Posts
    RAJ said:

    2. The album never gets old??? not even Billie Jean??? not even Beat It.

    This is true, and it's pretty amazing, because you wanna talk about stuff that's been played to death a hundred times over, this is it. And yet...it just doesn't get old.
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    MTV's earliest format was modeled after AOR (album-oriented rock) radio; MTV would transition to mimic a full top 40 station in 1984.
  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    DJ_Enki said:
    RAJ said:

    2. The album never gets old??? not even Billie Jean??? not even Beat It.

    This is true, and it's pretty amazing, because you wanna talk about stuff that's been played to death a hundred times over, this is it. And yet...it just doesn't get old.

    Ugh, y'all are going to make me derail every one of these threads.

    I'd rather be the lost penny from MJ's loafer than hear Beat It or Thriller ever again.
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    HarveyCanal said:
    DJ_Enki said:
    RAJ said:

    2. The album never gets old??? not even Billie Jean??? not even Beat It.

    This is true, and it's pretty amazing, because you wanna talk about stuff that's been played to death a hundred times over, this is it. And yet...it just doesn't get old.

    Ugh, y'all are going to make me derail every one of these threads.

    I'd rather be the lost penny from MJ's loafer than hear Beat It or Thriller ever again.



  • DanteDante 371 Posts
    :ehhx2:

    i was born in 1990, so MJ (and Thriller) wasn't my gateway to a world of music, it was that weird dude who used to be black and now sleeps with children.
  • walter_chronwalter_chron 347 Posts
    Dante said:
    :ehhx2:

    i was born in 1990, so MJ (and Thriller) wasn't my gateway to a world of music, it was that weird dude who used to be black and now sleeps with children.

    :face_melt:

    BAN
  • skelskel You can't cheat karma 5,033 Posts
    walter_chron said:
    Dante said:
    :ehhx2:

    i was born in 1990, so MJ (and Thriller) wasn't my gateway to a world of music, it was that weird dude who used to be black and now sleeps with children.

    :face_melt:

    BAN

    Out of the mouths of babes...
  • Juan CocktolstoyJuan Cocktolstoy 216 Posts
    Dante said:
    :ehhx2:

    i was born in 1990, so MJ (and Thriller) wasn't my gateway to a world of music, it was that weird dude who used to be black and now sleeps with children.

  • DanteDante 371 Posts

    hahaha.

    it's a great record and blah blah blah. it's just not that relevant to me. i remember seeing MJ in the TV when i was like 6 or something and he was just super weird to me. i didn't get why his face looked like that. then i was told he used to be black and that was even more confusing. then there was the thing about the kids in graceland and all. you dudes have to admit that's weird.

    then i found about J5 and OTW and Thriller and all. awesome artist, of course. great record. i'm not saying it's not. i thought we weren't exactly discussing musical merits in this list.
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    Dante said:

    hahaha.

    it's a great record and blah blah blah. it's just not that relevant to me. i remember seeing MJ in the TV when i was like 6 or something and he was just super weird to me. i didn't get why his face looked like that. then i was told he used to be black and that was even more confusing. then there was the thing about the kids in graceland and all. you dudes have to admit that's weird.

    then i found about J5 and OTW and Thriller and all. awesome artist, of course. great record. i'm not saying it's not. i thought we weren't exactly discussing musical merits in this list.
    U came to it late, fine. But to casually call it a great record and then focus on shit that has nuthin to do w/ the art is suspect.

    Sleeping w/ kids was not around when Thriller dropped.

    The impact it made on music I guarantee is amongst some the records in your collection.

    Were talmbout is arguably the greatest album ever since humans have been on the planet.

  • DanteDante 371 Posts
    [q

    U came to it late, fine. But to casually call it a great record and then focus on shit that has nuthin to do w/ the art is suspect.

    Sleeping w/ kids was not around when Thriller dropped.

    The impact it made on music I guarantee is amongst some the records in your collection.

    Were talmbout is arguably the greatest album ever since humans have been on the planet.

    i didn't want to be suspect. this list is filled with "i 'member getting this tape one summer morning and playing it on my mum's stereo. that shit was blasting out of every car at the time, you couldn't go anywhere without hearing it" moments. i thought i'd share my personal view on this one.

    indeed, i came too late and sleeping with kids wasn't around. that's just my personal association with it.
  • SunfadeSunfade 799 Posts
    Dante said:
    :ehhx2:

    i was born in 1990, so MJ (and Thriller) wasn't my gateway to a world of music, it was that weird dude who used to be black and now sleeps with children.

    :shame_on_you:
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