Michael Jackson's Thriller 40 was released today. Some new and mostly previously released songs were included. The shitty remixes from years ago are digital only (thank God).



Disk 1:

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'

Baby Be Mine

The Girl is Mine

Thriller

Beat It

Billie Jean

Human Nature

P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)

The Lady in My Life

Disk 2:

Starlight (previous unreleased ?)

Got The Hots (Demo) (previous unreleased)

Who Do You Know (Demo) (previous unreleased)

Carousel (longer version here, first time in the U.S.)

Behind The Mask (Mike's Mix, Demo)

Can't Get Outta the Rain (b-side for "The Girl is Mine"; re-recorded part of "You Can't Win" from The Wiz")

The Toy (Demo) (originally intended for the Richard Pryor movie)

Sunset Driver (Demo) *

What a Lovely Way To Go (Demo) (previous unreleased)

She's Trouble (Demo) (previous unreleased)

Digital Only:

Billie Jean (Home Demo 1981)

Billie Jean (Long Version)

Billie Jean 2008

Beat It (Demo)

Beat It 2008

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' (Demo)

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' (Tommy D's Main Mix)

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' 2008

Human Nature (7" remix)

PYT (Demo)

PYT 2008

The Girl is Mine 2008

Thriller (7" Special Edit)

Thriller (Def Thriller Mix)
Thriller Megamix

*previous released on The Ultimate Collection

Missing: "Scared of the Moon" (Demo from the Thriller sessions)

Have you listened? Thoughts?

[Edited 11/18/22 19:01pm]

This was the only thing worth the trouble...

I picked up a vinyl copy from WalMart's incredible sale this past week. All vinyl in store was 15 dollars.

I had a copy when I was in high school but my unlce who was the biggest Michael fan borrowed it and it was a wrap.

phunkdaddy said:

I picked up a vinyl copy from WalMart's incredible sale this past week. All vinyl in store was 15 dollars.

I had a copy when I was in high school but my unlce who was the biggest Michael fan borrowed it and it was a wrap.

Which version of the album did you get? Was it the 40 or the original?

Is Michael officially cancelled?

I just found out that someone over at ABC got wind of a 40th Anniversary tribute at the AMA's to be performed by Chris Brown and Ciara and contacted the hire-ups to put the kibosh on it.

Not only was Chris Brown's troubling history mentioned, but also Michael's.

This is the second time I've heard of Michael's cancellation.

On an episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills a cast member asked, "Didn't everyone know Michael Jackson was cancelled", after a request for Billie Jean at a club was met with deaf ears.

CynicKill said:

Is Michael officially cancelled?

I just found out that someone over at ABC got wind of a 40th Anniversary tribute at the AMA's to be performed by Chris Brown and Ciara and contacted the hire-ups to put the kibosh on it.

Not only was Chris Brown's troubling history mentioned, but also Michael's.

This is the second time I've heard of Michael's cancellation.

On an episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills a cast member asked, "Didn't everyone know Michael Jackson was cancelled", after a request for Billie Jean at a club was met with deaf ears.

Ain't no one canceleing the King of Pop.

There's been a LOT of MJ tributes over the past few years. The BET Awards did a couple in two years in a row. One was when Anthony Anderson was in "Thriller" gear. Sometimes, it's just too much. And frankly if he's not here, how much impact does it have anyway? It's dancers mimicking his moves, everyone dressed like him. I'd honestly rather watch a Flash mob do "Thriller" for the sheer and honest joy of it.

Chris Brown - is he even making music anymore? I never hear about him. Even bad stuff.

And any quote from RHO? already renders the attempt at a cancelation as invalid.

CynicKill said:

Is Michael officially cancelled?

I just found out that someone over at ABC got wind of a 40th Anniversary tribute at the AMA's to be performed by Chris Brown and Ciara and contacted the hire-ups to put the kibosh on it.

Not only was Chris Brown's troubling history mentioned, but also Michael's.

This is the second time I've heard of Michael's cancellation.

On an episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills a cast member asked, "Didn't everyone know Michael Jackson was cancelled", after a request for Billie Jean at a club was met with deaf ears.

This always, I feel is such a crazy subject. this so called "Moral" thing we apply and its very by choice if it suits the persons narratvie that is doing the so called "Cancelling". Cancelling is a Twitter/social media thing and when its looked at, if you ask people in the street just going about there business, they will say "who cares, if I like a song, its a song" whatever the artist has done, THEY have done, I didnt do it, so by me playing "Billie Jean" we think OH the world is going to be morally better, or Elvis or Jerry Lee Lewis, I mean do we lump in James Brown and Rick James for their treatment of women in their relations. Prince slapped a woman in a film do we edit that out now, because we feel by doing so "domestic violence" will stop? really? I feel the last ten to 15 years this world has lost its shit, literally, the things I hear, the cancelling, the imposing of your morals to make you feel better is BS, time to cancel the cancel generation.

SolaceAHA said:

I feel the last ten to 15 years this world has lost its shit, literally, the things I hear, the cancelling, the imposing of your morals to make you feel better is BS, time to cancel the cancel generation.

I couldn't agree more!

LovesexyIsThe1 said:

SolaceAHA said:

I feel the last ten to 15 years this world has lost its shit, literally, the things I hear, the cancelling, the imposing of your morals to make you feel better is BS, time to cancel the cancel generation.

I couldn't agree more!

It also begs the question - how does someone really get canceled? People bully a person online for something they did? Goddamn welcome to the internet! If that's the case, then I've been cancaled about 1000 timees, at least. There have been trolls and bullies since day one. Catfish, scammers, imposters, and like. People continue to exist, live their lives, and do whatever.

Family Guy's most recent episode (their 400th) had a dual story line. One was where Stewie makes an ambiguous comment about a Jolly Farm star turned young adult singer. The singer, full of herself, took it as a fat joke, and put Stewie on blast during a concert. He was canceled, hounded by her fans. (The Bey-hive comparisons are thick, to name one.)

The episode could almost come across as preachy, but they make good points about doing something now that could cause someone to "get canceled" in 6 or 13 years down the line.

The retro-morality is ridiculous at this point.

CynicKill said:

In Germany, most popular stations still play:

Billie Jean

Earth Song

Thriller

Beat It

They Don't Really Care About Us

I Just Can't Stop Bopping You

The Mädchen Is Mine

The Way You Make Me Feel

Man In The Mirror

Say, Say, Say, etsaytra...

MJJ is not cancelled in this country!

...and

Black Or White

over n over...

motownlover said:

LoveGalore said:

motownlover said:

Who has heard the leaked ' Chicago 1945? It was recorded one week after the release of Thriller(single)

I have and I like it a lot. I tend to think some of his outtakes are pretty meh, but Chicago 1945, Nite Line, Carousel, Scared of the Moon, Behind the Mask could've been album cuts! Similarly I think Price of Fame, Fly Away, and Streetwalker should've been on Bad in place of Just Good Friends, Speed Demon, and Dirty Diana.

Hands down, "Streetwalker" should've been in the place of "Another Part of Me" or "Just Good Friends."

LoveGalore said:

Not being a huge fan of Michael though I have most of his stuff, I havent heard Chicago 1945 but I looked into it and its history, and also why its not surfacing in complete form, mastered mixed etc... The song was a collaboration with Steven Pocaro, it lists both as writers, and as we know Steve was a member of TOTO and they were a huge part of Thriller. But this song, as I read was then pushed for BAD not used, HISTORY not used, Invincible again not used, also the Victory album as a Jacksons song which was the original intention, but not making it. Porcaro was approached by the estate to use it on Xscape but he declined again saying he did not like the way the esate handles his unreleased stuff going "straight to remix" so it hasnt been blocked for now since he does have a right to veto it.

TrivialPursuit said:

motownlover said:

LoveGalore said:

TrivialPursuit said:

Hands down, "Streetwalker" should've been in the place of "Another Part of Me" or "Just Good Friends."

I'd cosign that trade! Streetwalker is so good I'm shocked they never did anything with it.

It was at the end of Moonwalker I think, but that's it. Very surprising that it was never a b-side or something. But I'm glad it was eventually released.

And what isn't the longer original cut of "The Lady in my Life" on, literally, anything except YouTube???

There was a whole verse and pre-chorus cut for the album.

Had no idea Best Of Joy was originally The Toy.

I'd so much rather have more fully realized songs like Hot Street and Niteline taking up album space vs. half-baked demos with scratch lyrics.

How long have the fake Michael album tracks been removed from streaming? The estate went through the trouble of hiring "experts" to verify it was actually MJ on those tracks, producers were pleading the authenticity of the tracks to Oprah, even though everyone knew it was BS, and then that was the end of the conversation. I'm not even a huge MJ fan like that, but was outraged that imposter tracks ended up on an official release, especially someone on the level of Michael Jackson. Now, they're gone. Did the estate or Sony ever release a statement admitting the songs were fake?

johnpiex said:

LoveGalore said:

Also I love The Toy and think Best Of Joy is dumb because the lyric makes no fucking sense and it drives me up a wall. "I'm your best of joy."???? What does that even mean.

And I cringed when he said something about "being your boy" coming from a Black man in a song about someone trying to hire a Black man as a toy.

But yeah, Fenwick and I were talking about the outtakes, what's missing, etc., and that some of these outtakes aren't great. And it's a safe assumption to say that if some of those songs were on Thriller, it'd not have been the blockbuster album that it turned into. While "Carousel" and even "Sunset Driver" (needs production etc) being good songs, they're not necessarily top shelf. BUt who knows. I do think "Carousel" could've been in place of "The Girl is Mine."

ALSO: I never knew "The Lady in My Life" had a whole other verse and pre-chorus etc that was edited out for the sake of the album run time. "Billie Jean" allegedly had a longer intro. I don't know if that's what ended up on the 12". But the longer "Lady" is pretty great.