'THRILLER', THE BEST-SELLING RECORD ALBUM IN HISTORY

Today, The Grandma is relaxing at home and preparing a new Communication Skills course. She has been listening to some music and she has paid soecial attention to Michael Jackson's Thriller, the sixth solo studio album, that was released worldwide on a day like today in 1982 and became the best-selling record album in history.

Thriller is a single by American singer Michael Jackson. It was released as a single by Epic Records on January 23, 1984 as the seventh and final single from Jackson's sixth studio album of the same name.

Thriller is a mix of disco and funk. The song was produced by Quincy Jones and was written by Rod Temperton who wanted to write a theatrical song to suit Jackson's love of film. The music and lyrics evoke horror films, with sound effects such as thunder, footsteps and wind. It ends with a spoken-word sequence performed by horror actor Vincent Price.

Thriller received positive reviews and became the album's seventh top-ten single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number four. It reached the top of the charts in Belgium, France and Spain as well as the top 10 in many other countries. 

Thriller is certified 7x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It is one of the best-selling singles of all time, having sold over 9 million copies worldwide.

Thriller won a Grammy Award. It is often cited as a pop culture phenomenon and a Halloween anthem. It appears on several of Jackson's greatest hits albums and has been covered by numerous artists. The Thriller music video was directed by John Landis and premiered on MTV on December 2, 1983.

More information: Rolling Stone

In the video, Jackson becomes a zombie and performs a dance routine with a horde of the undead. Many elements of the video have had a lasting impact on popular culture, such as the zombie dance and Jackson's red jacket, and it was the first music video inducted into the National Film Registry. It has been named the greatest video of all time by various publications and readers' polls.

Thriller was written by English songwriter Rod Temperton, who had previously written for Jackson's 1979 album Off The Wall. Temperton wanted to write something theatrical to suit Jackson's love of film. He improvised with bass and drum patterns until he developed the bassline that runs through the song, then wrote a chord progression that built to a climax. He recalled: I wanted it to build and build -a bit like stretching an elastic band throughout the tune to heighten suspense.

With the title settled, Temperton wrote lyrics within a couple of hours. He envisioned a spoken-word sequence for the end of the song, but did not know what form it should take. It was decided to have a famous voice from the horror genre perform it, and Jones' then-wife, Peggy Lipton, suggested her friend Vincent Price. Temperton composed the words for Price's part in a taxi on the way to the studio on the day of recording.

The music video for Thriller" references numerous horror films, and stars Jackson performing a dance routine with a horde of the undead. It was directed by horror director John Landis and written by Landis and Jackson. Jackson contacted Landis after seeing his film An American Werewolf in London. The pair conceived a 13-minute short film with a budget much larger than previous music videos.

Jackson's record company refused to finance it, believing Thriller had peaked, so a making-of documentary, Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, was produced to receive financing from television networks.

More information: Mental Floss

The song that's affected me the most profoundly
is probably Michael Jackson's 'Thriller,'
or, more specifically,
the couple seconds of instrumental break
before Vincent Price starts 'rapping.'

Patrick Stump