
Thriller
1982
Quincy Jones and Jackson remixed the whole record because the first version sounded thin, and Eddie Van Halen played his solo for free.
★ 9.5

Quincy Jones and Jackson remixed the whole record because the first version sounded thin, and Eddie Van Halen played his solo for free.

Jackson was twenty-one and wrote the two best songs on it himself. It won a single Grammy, which he took as an insult.

Prince was supposed to sing the title track with Jackson and turned it down. Five singles from it went to number one anyway.

The producer Timbaland built most of the tracks in two halves, so the songs change shape halfway through instead of repeating a chorus.

Madonna fought the label for control of her own debut and got a club DJ brought in to remix it. It sold ten million.