This year marks the 40th anniversary of Michael Jackson’s landmark 1982 album, Thriller. The King of Pop’s Estate and Sony Music teamed up to release a special 40th-anniversary edition, Thriller 40.
The expanded edition, divided into two discs, includes all the original songs from Thriller, plus an entire side dedicated to unreleased tracks that Jackson recorded for the Thriller album. Fans can expect to hear surprises sequenced throughout the second CD.
Wal-Mart and Target have issued their exclusive vinyl editions. The former retailer, exclusive to the U.S., offers an alternate cover to salute Thriller‘s 40th anniversary. In contrast, the special edition at the latter company comes with a turntable slipmat.
Furthermore, a remastered edition of Thriller, courtesy of Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MoFi), is available on a One-Step 180g 33RPM LP and limited to 40,000 copies. A hybrid super audio CD (SACD) is also available.
An animated lyric video for “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” debuted earlier this week on YouTube. The album’s opening track peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week that ended July 16, 1983.
Jackson released Thriller on Nov. 30, 1982. It launched at No. 11 on the Billboard 200 in December 1982 and eventually reached No. 1 in February 1983. To date, the blockbuster album has spent 548 weeks on the main albums chart.
Thriller spawned two Hot 100 chart-toppers, including “Billie Jean” and “Beat It.” The former track stayed atop for seven weeks, while the latter did so for three weeks.
At the time of publication, Thriller maintains its hold as the biggest-selling album by a solo artist and the second-best-selling album of all time. It is now certified 34x multi-platinum. It made RIAA history in 2015 when it became the first album to be certified 30x multi-platinum.
Worldwide, Thriller has generated over 100 million in sales.
In other related-Jackson news, Chris Brown was set to perform at the 2022 American Music Awards on Sunday to honor Jackson’s Thriller. However, Brown reports his unannounced set was scrapped for “reasons unknown.”
In May, Maxwell celebrated Jackson with a rendition of “The Lady In My Life” at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards.
Listen to Michael Jackson’s Thriller 40 below.
Disc 1: Original Album
- Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’
- Baby Me Mine
- The Girl Is Mine
- Thriller
- Beat It
- Homegirl
- Billie Jean
- Human Nature
- P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)
- The Lady In My Life
Disc 2: Bonus Material
- Starlight
- Got The Hots (Demo)
- Who Do You Know (Demo)
- Carousel
- Behind The Mask ‘“ Mike’s Mix (Demo)
- Can’t Get Outta The Rain
- The Toy (Demo)
- Sunset Driver (Demo)
- What A Lovely Way To Go (Demo)
- She’s Trouble (Demo)