Custom «Critical Song Analysis» Essay Paper Sample

Thriller

The song thriller was sung by Michael Jackson. Michael was born to African American parents on August 1928 in Indiana. His mother was called Katherine Esther Scruse and his father was called Joseph Walter "Joe" Jackson. His father worked in a steel mill and was a performer of rhythm and blues with The Falcons band. Michael was the seventh born of nine children. He had bad relationship with his father who abused him emotionally and physically during rehearsals but later on attributed his success to his father's discipline.

Michael performed for the first time on TV with Jackson Five when he was eleven years old. He was the first solo artist to have four songs on the top ten hits on the billboard charts from one album. In 1994, Michael married Lisa Marie Presley, a singer and a song writer who was the daughter to Elvis Presley. They then divorced after only two years but they remained friendly. Michael founded a charity organization called heal the world. Michael died on June 25 2009. He was the most popular and successful pop star. His generosity, music and charity will always be cherished.

The song thriller was produced by Quincy Jones. He was born on 1933 in Chicago. He moved to Washington when he was ten years old. Quincy was playing trumpet professionally in 1951 with Lionel Hampton band. He quit playing trumpet in 1974 after a brain suffering. Jones is almost seventy five years old but he still has energy. He has been in music for more than 50 years. He is also into TV and film production, theatre and magazine publishing. He is a producer of Michael Jackson's thriller album together with others. This album sold more than a million copies in the world. The album gave Quincy and Michael a Grammy award in 1983 for the album of the year. After 2 years, he won a Grammy award for producing the best selling single; "we are the world", done Michael Jackson.

Michael Jackson's song, thriller which was a title track of his thriller album was released on January 1984. It is still a very popular song today and is one of the Michaels biggest songs. It was written by Rod Temperton. Referring from , the following are the lyrics of the song:

It's close to midnight and something evil's lurking in the dark
Under the moonlight you see a sight that almost stops your heart
You try to scream but terror takes the sound before you make it
You start to freeze as horror looks you right between the eyes,
You're paralyzed

'Cause this is thriller, thriller night
And no one's gonna save you from the beast about to strike
You know it's thriller, thriller night
You're fighting for your life inside a killer, thriller tonight

You hear the door slam and realize there's nowhere left to run
You feel the cold hand and wonder if you'll ever see the sun
You close your eyes and hope that this is just imagination
But all the while you hear the creature creepin' up behind
You're out of time

'Cause this is thriller, thriller night
There ain't no second chance against the thing with forty eyes
You know it's thriller, thriller night
You're fighting for your life inside a killer, thriller tonight

Night creatures call
And the dead start to walk in their masquerade
There's no escapin' the jaws of the alien this time (they're open wide)
This is the end of your life

They're out to get you, there's demons closing in on every side
They will possess you unless you change the number on your dial
Now is the time for you and I to cuddle close together
All thru the night I'll save you from the terror on the screen,
I'll make you see

That it's a thriller, thriller night
'Cause I can thrill you more than any ghost would dare to try
Girl, this is thriller, thriller night
So let me hold you tight and share a killer, diller, chiller,
Thriller here tonight

I'm gonna thrill ya tonight

Darkness falls across the land
The midnite hour is close at hand
Creatures crawl in search of blood
To terrorize y'alls neighborhood

And whosoever shall be found
Without the soul for getting down
Must stand and face the hounds of hell
And rot inside a corpse's shell

I'm gonna thrill ya tonight, ooh baby
I'm gonna thrill ya tonight, oh darlin'
Thriller night baby, ooh!

The foulest stench is in the air
The funk of forty thousand years
And grizzly ghouls from every tomb
Are closing in to seal your doom

And though you fight to stay alive
Your body starts to shiver
For no mere mortal can resist
The evil of the thriller

The song and the video were made in 1983 but were released in 1984. The song is one of Jackson's greatest songs and so is the video. The song was inspired by nightmares and dreams. In the video, the costumes and dance moves are also related to the theme of nightmares and dreams.

The song talks about an evil being attacking the dreamer. The dreamer is full of fear and cannot even scream as the evil stares her in the eye. In the video Michael and his girlfriend run out of gasoline as they are driving during the night. Michael reveals himself as a yellow-eyed werewolf in the light of moon. He starts to chase his girlfriend. This is closely related to the song's lyrics.

After the chase, Michael waves claws at the girl who is scared and closes her eyes. After that they walk on a cemetery and the graves start moving. The dead resurrects and they surround the couple but Michael becomes their leader. When Michael sings, he is not a zombie. It seems the singing returns his life. The zombie becomes more disturbing and the girls hide in a house. The zombies bang the door and gets in, Michael breaks the door and the girl is cornered. She then wakes up and Michael in front of her and not a zombie. It is just a dream.

The song is about an indirect message Michael sends to his lover. The monster signifies strong love that Michael has for his lover. He talks of no escaping from the jaws of the monster. By this he means that there is no going back after the love bug bites her. The words of the songs are complemented by the video which displays whatever he sings about.

Most of Michael's songs are targeted for a general audience and so is thriller. The thriller became a favorite to fans across all ages. The song appeals to children as well as adults. During his performances, his shows were filled with both children and adults. The video, though a little scary was liked by children.