Beat It | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| G | G | E | E | G | G |
||: D | D :|| x4
||: Ebm riff | Db riff | Ebm riff | Db riff :||
Verse 1
| Eb5 | Db5 |
They told him, “Don’t you ever come around here”.
| Eb5 | Db5 |
“Don’t wanna see your face, you better disappear”.
| B5 | Db5 |
The fire’s in their eyes and their words are really clear,
| Eb5 | Db5 |
so beat it, just beat it.
Verse 2
| Eb5 | Db5 |
You better run, you better do what you can.
| Eb5 | Db5 |
Don’t wanna see no blood, don’t be a macho man.
| B5 | Db5 |
You wanna be tough, better do what you can,
| Eb5 | Db5 |
so beat it, but you wanna be bad.
Chorus 1
||: Ebm riff | Db riff | Ebm riff | Db riff :||
Just beat it (beat it), beat it (beat it), no one wants to be defeated.
Show them how funky, strong is your fight, it doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right.
Just beat it (beat it). Just beat it (beat it). Just beat it (beat it). Just beat it (beat it, uh).
Verse 3
| Eb5 | Db5 |
They’re out to get you, better leave while you can.
| Eb5 | Db5 |
Don’t wanna be a boy, you wanna be a man.
| B5 | Db5 |
You wanna stay alive, better do what you can,
| Eb5 | Db5 |
so beat it, just beat it, uh.
Verse 4
| Eb5 | Db5 |
You have to show them that you’re really not scared.
| Eb5 | Db5 |
You’re playing with your life, this ain’t no truth or dare.
| B5 | Db5 |
They’ll kick you, then they’ll beat you, then they’ll tell you it’s fair,
| Eb5 | Db5 |
so beat it, ah, but you wanna be bad.
Chorus 2
||: Ebm riff | Db riff | Ebm riff | Db riff :||
Just beat it (beat it), beat it (beat it), no one wants to be defeated.
Show them how funky, strong is your fight, it doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right.
Just beat it (beat it), beat it (beat it), no one wants to be defeated.
Show them how funky, strong is your fight, it doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right.
Breakdown
||: Eb5 | Eb5:|| x8
Just beat it (beat it, beat it, beat it), beat it (beat it, beat it, beat it).
Beat it (beat it, beat it, beat it). Beat it (beat it).
Solo
||: Eb5 | Db5 | Eb5 | Db5 |
| B5 | Db5 | Eb5 | Db5 :||
Chorus 3
||: Ebm riff | Db riff | Ebm riff | Db riff :||
Beat it (beat it), beat it (beat it), no one wants to be defeated.
Show them how funky, strong is your fight, it doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right.
Chorus 4
||: Ebm riff | Db riff | Ebm riff | Db riff :||
||: Just beat it (beat it), beat it (beat it), no one wants to be defeated.
Show them how funky, strong is your fight, it doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right. :|| x3
Beat It’s chords, progressions, and TAB
Surprisingly similar to Ain’t Nobody, Beat It’s chords mainly move between Ebm and Db, before it goes to a B, just like Chaka Khan’s smash hit, released one year earlier.
But that’s only half the story, the main part of the chords is of course the classic riff which uses the Eb minor pentatonic, with an added 9th. Here’s TAB for the chorus riff.
Should you end up playing Beat It live, you should probably learn the original solo, note for note, unless you think you can do it better than Eddie Van Halen that is.
If you do think you can do it better than Eddie, you should still learn his solo or it will just look like you can’t do it, which may lead to that you’re told to… Beat it!
In the playlist above, there’s a video lesson on how to play the solo.
Beat It won Michael Jackson a Grammy for Best Rock Vocal
As the third single from the immensely successful album Thriller, Beat It was Michael Jackson’s attempt to write a rock song. Clearly, he succeeded as Beat It won a Grammy for Best Rock Vocal in 1984.
Perhaps the guest appearance from Eddie Van Halen, the biggest electric guitar God at that time helped. Apparently, Eddie did the session without pay, apart from a couple of six-packs of beer.
Other musicians on the now legendary recording include band members from Toto.
Initially placed at #337 on the 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time list, in 2021 it was promoted to #185.
Beat It chords | Related pages
Beat It – 5 similar tunes
Michael Jackson
The King of Pop became world-famous before he was even a teenager as he signed to Motown with his brothers as The Jackson 5.
After many hits, Michael embarked on a crazy solo career that would see him become as big as Elvis and The Beatles.
Michael Jackson on the web
