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The making of Michael Jackson's Thriller
Go behind-the-scenes with engineer Bruce Swedien
Future Music, Thu 1 Oct 2009, 11:15 am UTC
Michael Jackson's Thriller is (and is likely to remain) the biggest-selling album of all time. Released in 1982, it spawned seven singles and won eight Grammy Awards, selling around a million copies a week at the height of its popularity.
One of the key players in the album's creation was recording engineer Bruce Swedien, and he recently told Future Music the story behind the making of Thriller, giving them a track-by-track guide in the process.
Startin' somethin'
It transpires that, even with all the talent involved, Bruce never thought that Thriller would go on to be so successful. "I think anyone who would have the balls to say that is a liar because you don't really know until it gets out in the public and they say 'wow this is really good'," he admits. "All we did was follow Quincy Jones down the path to the greatest music we could possibly make and with a passion for details. Quincy is such a remarkable man to work with – and Michael too. I mean we had a ball.
"Michael was never late for a session - if anything he would be early. Also, I never remember recording Michael with the lyrics in front of him. He would stay up the night before memorising the song or songs we were about to record. I don't think there are a lot of artists who do that."
"Michael was never late for a session - if anything he would be early. Also, I never remember recording Michael with the lyrics in front of him." Bruce Swedien on recording Thriller
Speaking to Bruce, it seems like the album almost flowed out of the studio: "With Michael, there weren't any difficult tracks to mix. Working with Michael and Quincy is easy as pie. They are so musical - and the passion for quality that we share has made working on these projects – especially Thriller – very easy."
Thriller was recorded at Westlake Audio in LA, where Bruce had previously worked. "I love that studio – it's just fantastic," he says. "The room you record in is just as important as the mics. When I record somewhere, I have a collection of 105 microphones – every microphone in there I bought new and no one else has ever used it. That protects my sonic integrity. I got used to that incredible sound. One thing with Westlake Audio was that they knew the value of maintaining the gear."
Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones at the 1984 Grammy Awards. Image: © Bill Nation/Sygma/Corbis
