Michael Jackson "Thriller [40th Anniversary Edition]" [Epic/Legacy-11/18/2022]

[Motown Eddie]

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/818pBR7rIML._AC_UY500_.jpg

No description or pre-order information at this time.

[nativeNY63]

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/818pBR7rIML._AC_UY500_.jpg

No description or pre-order information at this time.

No description required! Simply the best, next to "Off The Wall". Forget about The Eagles, Thriller's still selling...40 years later!!! Thanks, Q.

[stupidactingsmart]

Despite everything... I would buy this if it's a decent package and on CD. That means for me, it must:



include the full version of the Lady In My Life [with the verse that was chopped out]
include the full version of Carousel [rightly swapped for Human Nature but a great song in its own right]
have a good selection of the other tracks that were contenders [like 'Got The Hots' and 'Night Line']
NOT have any of that Black Eyed Peas-sing-over-a-song-that-doesn't-need-fixing garbage


Any AfroJack remixes or Justin Bieber duets and they can keep it.

[daviddesper]

If any new CDs are still being released as late as November of this year, that will be terrific. So I hope this one will be and that it will inspire many other such releases. I am just not ready yet to say goodbye to the format!

[Motown Eddie]

Info from the Michael Jackson Official Store says this will be a 2CD set with Thriller on Disc One with Thriller-era bonus material unreleased material [including previously unreleased demos].

[reese]

https://www.billboard.com/business/record-labels/michael-jackson-thriller-40th-anniversary-double-cd-1235071667/

https://variety.com/2022/music/news/michael-jackson-thriller-40-anniversary-unreleased-tracks-1235267669/

[PeaceNHarmony]

It will be interesting to see how public interest in this release ends up. With all due respect to fans I will be very happy to pass on this one. For me the lp was played-out by overexposure decades ago. I still hope for an expanded edition of the first LaBelle lp.

[Motown Eddie]

Amazon USA pre-order-
Michael Jackson - Thriller 40th Anniversary - Amazon.com Music [[https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZCSVZH7/?tag=imwan-20)

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61hr84X2L0L._SL1500_.jpg

[Motown Eddie]

And this piece from SecondDisc.com about the Thriller 40th Anniversary release:

No Mere Mortal Can Resist? Speculating on the 40th Anniversary Reissue of 'Thriller' - The Second Disc [[https://theseconddisc.com/2022/05/16/no-mere-mortal-can-resist-speculating-on-the-40th-anniversary-reissue-of-thriller/)

[Guy]

I would like his original recording of "Behind The Mask," I hope it is included.

[woodward]

Amazon USA pre-order-
Michael Jackson - Thriller 40th Anniversary - Amazon.com Music [[https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZCSVZH7/?tag=imwan-20)

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61hr84X2L0L._SL1500_.jpg


$14. for a 2 CD set is relatively cheap. I would have expected it to be at least $25. Good value for your money.

[carlo]

I saw this announcement earlier today as well. Interesting. I may opt for the CD set, depending on what kind of new bonus content they include. Not a huge fan of that font they used for this new 40th anniversary cover. Looks a bit bootleg-ish. I was also curious about the audiophile vinyl release that they're putting out, but as much as I've loved collecting vinyl for the last 20+ years, I'm pretty much ready to throw in the towel, as the prices of new vinyl releases have become insane. $14 for a 2 CD release is much more enticing.

[nativeNY63]

Despite everything... I would buy this if it's a decent package and on CD. That means for me, it must:



include the full version of the Lady In My Life [with the verse that was chopped out]
include the full version of Carousel [rightly swapped for Human Nature but a great song in its own right]
have a good selection of the other tracks that were contenders [like 'Got The Hots' and 'Night Line']
NOT have any of that Black Eyed Peas-sing-over-a-song-that-doesn't-need-fixing garbage


Any AfroJack remixes or Justin Bieber duets and they can keep it.

Yeah, I hate when label do that to. Along with innumerable remixes and reimaginations. Ugh.

One exception: Maxwell's stamp on Man in the Mirror! Magnificent. [[Believe he performed it at the recent BBMA.)

[nativeNY63]

...or was it "Lady in My Life?" Not sure now. Gotta take another look see...

[RanRan79]

Will gladly pick this one up. I'm hopeful that the unreleased stuff contains something I don't have, as I already have a bunch of the Thriller demos. But still, to have the demos cleaned up and mixed will be highly welcomed.

[MichaelSherry59]

Michael's last good album, I really hope the estate does a good job with this one... Sgt Pepper and Thriller are probably the most overplayed album ever.

[RanRan79]

Michael's last good album, I really hope the estate does a good job with this one... Sgt Pepper and Thriller are probably the most overplayed album ever.

I remember buying the Bad special edition in 2001. My copy of the album had long since been lost and never replaced, so I was excited to pick this one up. Yikes! It did not age well, and that was only 2001. I found it a mostly painful listen, so much so, that I gave it to a cousin who was still into Michael Jackson everything, a phase I had outgrown some years before. I'll have to check my collection, but I don't believe I ever replaced the Bad album in any format. At some point I'll rectify this, because the album was an important album from my childhood with many great memories attached, and it'll be interesting to find if my 2001 attitude toward the set has changed in a more positive direction. The truth is that the title cut, "Mirror", "Diana", "Another Part", "Make Me Feel", "Can't Stop" are all on their own great songs. Not sure what exactly put me off in 2001.

That being said, I have to vehemently disagree on Thriller being the last good album from MJ, as Dangerous is highly regarded by me. And Invincible was a pleasant surprise, as I thought MJ had found that certain something that made him so popular and likable again. I'd say song for song, Dangerous was as good as Thriller, and Thriller was as good as Off the Wall. Thriller just happened to come along at the exact right time- the popularity of the music video and the opportunity that it brought to innovate, i.e. the Thriller video- and elevated MJ to probably the biggest entertainer ever. That's why Thriller will always have the edge with me, despite OTW and Dangerous being equally as good.

[Motown Eddie]

From SoulTracks.com-
Sony Music and the Estate of Michael Jackson announced today that MICHAEL JACKSON THRILLER 40,a double CD set comprised of Michael’s original masterpiece and an exciting bonus CD of rarities and demos, is available for Pre-Order starting today HERE [[https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmichaeljackson.lnk.to%2FThrille r40th&data=05%7C01%7Cmaria.malta%40sonymusic.com%7C3cae9 55737d84bd66be008da8814a3b5%7Cf0aff3b791a54aaeaf71 c63e1dda2049%7C0%7C0%7C637971919478184197%7CUnknow n%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMz IiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=stC8stYgHJ7UY61aNzir63onJWsHW1nvH5iEe0mdDXs% 3D&reserved=0). The titles of the ten bonus tracks will be revealed one at a time, starting after Labor Day with the last track being revealed just before release date, November 18. Additionally, 15 additional tracks which have been in limited release previously will be available as part of an expanded digital release.
The release of MICHAEL JACKSON THRILLER 40 celebrates the 40th anniversary of the biggest selling album of all time worldwide. Pop up events and worldwide activations are planned to honor Michael’s epic creation which won a record setting 8 Grammys, smashed musical barriers and changed the frontiers of pop music and music videos forever. Michael Jackson’s Thriller has spent more than 500 weeks on the Billboard album chart and has sold over 100 million albums since its release on November 30, 1982.

[stupidactingsmart]

Only ten bonus tracks? Stingey.

Naming them a day at a time? Milking it.

Giving another 15 to digital customers only? Annoying.

But they've fixed that stupid thing they did with the font on the cover so I suppose things can only get better from here.

[Motown Eddie]

And here's the ten tracks that included on disc two of the 40th Anniversary Edition of Thriller.
1. Starlight
2. Got The Hots
3. Who Do You Know
4. Carousel
5. Behind The Mask
6. Can't Get Outta The Rain
7. The Toy
8. Sunset Driver
9. What A Lovely Way To Go
10. She's Trouble

[sansradio]

And here's the ten tracks that included on disc two of the 40th Anniversary Edition of Thriller.
1. Starlight
2. Got The Hots
3. Who Do You Know
4. Carousel
5. Behind The Mask
6. Can't Get Outta The Rain
7. The Toy
8. Sunset Driver
9. What A Lovely Way To Go
10. She's Trouble

NOW I'm excited! New [to the general public] songs!

[jack020]

And digital only:
20 – Billie Jean [[1981 Home Demo)
21 – Billie Jean [[Long Version)
22 – Billie Jean [[2008 Kanye West Mix) [[feat. Kanye West) [[Thriller 25th Anniversary Remix)
23 – Beat It [[Demo)
24 – Beat It [[2008 with Fergie Remix) [[with Fergie) [[Thriller 25th Anniversary Remix)
25 – Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ [[Demo)
26 – Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ [[Tommy D’s Main Mix)
27 – Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ [[2008 with Akon) [[with Akon) [[Thriller 25th Anniversary Remix)
28 – Human Nature 7″
29 – P.Y.T. [[Pretty Young Thing) [[Demo Version)
30 – P.Y.T. [[Pretty Young Thing) [[2008 with will.i.am) [[with will.i.am) [[Thriller 25th Anniversary Remix)
31 – The Girl Is Mine [[2008 with will.i.am) [[with will.i.am) [[Thriller 25th Anniversary Remix)
32 – Thriller 7″ [[Special Edit)
33 – Thriller [[Def Thrill Mix)
34 – Thriller [[Megamix)

[Motown Eddie]

And One More Thing -
The Michael Jackson estate has restored [I]Michael Jackson’s Thriller [which was directed by John Landis] and his Beat It music video in 4K and its apparently going to release them on Digital later this week. However [and we don’t know if this is a leak or what], both are now available for free viewing on the Internet Archive [click here [[https://archive.org/details/thriller-4k) and here [[https://archive.org/details/beat-it-4k)]. And the results are pretty damn impressive.

[stupidactingsmart]

NOW I'm excited! New [to the general public] songs!
Me too. However... still wish we'd gotten the full TLIML and 'Nightline' [[which I think is better than 'Baby Be Mine').

I would have liked a third disc with Thriller - Extended, featuring the longer versions of all the songs such as the original Billie Jean, 12" mix of Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', etc.

[Motown Eddie]

Me too. However... still wish we'd gotten the full TLIML and 'Nightline' [[which I think is better than 'Baby Be Mine').

I would have liked a third disc with Thriller - Extended, featuring the longer versions of all the songs such as the original Billie Jean, 12" mix of Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', etc.

I agree that those songs would've made great additions to this set. Maybe, just maybe Sony Music & The Jackson Estate are saving them for a 50th Anniversary of Thriller.

[stupidactingsmart]

And One More Thing -
The Michael Jackson estate has restored [I]Michael Jackson’s Thriller [which was directed by John Landis] and his Beat It music video in 4K and its apparently going to release them on Digital later this week. However [and we don’t know if this is a leak or what], both are now available for free viewing on the Internet Archive [click here [[https://archive.org/details/thriller-4k) and here [[https://archive.org/details/beat-it-4k)]. And the results are pretty damn impressive.
They're now on YouTube and have replaced the previous official uploads of the videos. The colours on Thriller look amazing. I still think Beat It looks a bit fuzzy but it is 40 years old.

Re:Thriller 50
I can't believe I'm saying this, given my T40 CD should be arriving in the post tomorrow, but if they really were to give us the kitchen sink for T50: all the unreleased tracks; all the demos; all the extended versions... yes. I'd buy that too. Not sure anyone will be putting out many CDs in ten years though.

[Motown Eddie]

Re:Thriller 50
I can't believe I'm saying this, given my T40 CD should be arriving in the post tomorrow, but if they really were to give us the kitchen sink for T50: all the unreleased tracks; all the demos; all the extended versions... yes. I'd buy that too. Not sure anyone will be putting out many CDs in ten years though.

Remember, they were saying the same thing about CDs ten years ago and they're still being made. And a Thriller 50th Anniversary edition might come out the same way this one did on CD & vinyl [with even more unreleased stuff and certain tracks on available only on streaming].

[Motown Eddie]

And this bit of news about Thriller 40th from SoulTracks.com-
Immersive audio mixes of Thriller are now available at various DSPs, including 360 Reality Audio on Amazon, Spatial Audio on Apple Music, mixed by Serban Ghenea from the original masters for immersive audio, with the immersive mixes by John Hanes.
The original Thriller album, onvinyl is also available at Walmart and Target. The Walmart exclusive has an alternate cover; the Target exclusive includes a Thriller 40 Slipmat. Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab [[MoFi) has the original Thriller album available as an UltraDisc One-Step 180g 33RPM LP and a hybrid SACD. The MoFi One-Step is sourced from the original 1/2" / 30 IPS / analog master tapes to DSD 256 to analog console to lathe, pressed at RTI, and strictly limited to 40,000 numbered copies.

[Guy]

I remember buying the Bad special edition in 2001. My copy of the album had long since been lost and never replaced, so I was excited to pick this one up. Yikes! It did not age well, and that was only 2001. I found it a mostly painful listen, so much so, that I gave it to a cousin who was still into Michael Jackson everything, a phase I had outgrown some years before. I'll have to check my collection, but I don't believe I ever replaced the Bad album in any format...

I agree. I can do you one better -- I was so underwhelmed by what I heard of "Bad", and put off by the grotesque cover photo, I never purchased it in any format. It was remarkable that Quincy Jones could have produced something so mediocre after "Off The Wall" and "Thriller." And yes, it sounds very dated today.

[carlo]

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab [[MoFi) has the original Thriller album available as an UltraDisc One-Step 180g 33RPM LP and a hybrid SACD. The MoFi One-Step is sourced from the original 1/2" / 30 IPS / analog master tapes to DSD 256 to analog console to lathe, pressed at RTI, and strictly limited to 40,000 numbered copies.

I've been surprised to read a lot of negative reviews concerning the pressing quality of the MoFi Thriller vinyl release. There seems to be a divide in opinions over whether this MoFi reissue is an improvement over the original vinyl pressing. Some are also complaining about split/torn edges on the sleeves and warped discs. Others are saying they were able to easily exchange their defective copy for a perfect one. MoFi is known for its high quality releases, so you'd think they would have gotten this right, for $100+?

[Motown Eddie]

I've been surprised to read a lot of negative reviews concerning the pressing quality of the MoFi Thriller vinyl release. There seems to be a divide in opinions over whether this MoFi reissue is an improvement over the original vinyl pressing. Some are also complaining about split/torn edges on the sleeves and warped discs. Others are saying they were able to easily exchange their defective copy for a perfect one. MoFi is known for its high quality releases, so you'd think they would have gotten this right, for $100+?

That's totally messed up. I would've been very upset if I bought MoFi's edition of Thriller and gotten a defective copy. And according to this review from The Second Disc site, that's not the only problem with this collection.

Holiday Gift Guide Review: Michael Jackson, 'Thriller 40' - The Second Disc [[https://theseconddisc.com/2022/11/30/holiday-gift-guide-review-michael-jackson-thriller-40/)

[carlo]

That's totally messed up. I would've been very upset if I bought MoFi's edition of Thriller and gotten a defective copy. And according to this review from The Second Disc site, that's not the only problem with this collection.

Holiday Gift Guide Review: Michael Jackson, 'Thriller 40' - The Second Disc [[https://theseconddisc.com/2022/11/30/holiday-gift-guide-review-michael-jackson-thriller-40/)

I would have been frustrated too, Motown Eddie.

I agree with many of the points made in that review by The Second Disc. I was looking forward to this 2 CD release, but I took a listen on Spotify last week and was let down by the 'new' unreleased tracks that they included. I wasn't really feeling them. I'll have to give them another listen.