The King of Pop!
The most famous man in music, Michael Jackson started out singing with his brothers, going to local talent shows under the watchful eye of his father.
Signing for Berry Gordy’s Motown label they had worldwide success with the single I Want You Back before Michael was a teenager.
This was followed up with legendary tunes ABC, The Love You Save, I’ll Be There, Blame It On The Boogie, and Shake Your Body Down.
Towards the end of the band’s existence, they had left Motown, and Michael, who always had released solo albums alongside his family band, had by now moved on from his father as a manager and Berry Gordy as his mentor.
Instead, he had found Quincy Jones and would with him release some of the most recognizable music of the century on three albums: Off The Wall, Thriller, and Bad between 1979 and 1987.
During these golden years, tunes include Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough, Rock With You, Billie Jean, Beat It, Wanna Be Startin’ Something, P.Y.T, Thriller, Bad, I Just Can’t Stop Loving You, Dirty Diana, Smooth Criminal, The Way You Make Me Feel, and my favourite, Man In The Mirror.
With 400 million albums sold, Michael Jackson was in the ’80s as big as Elvis had been in the ’50s and The Beatles in the ’60s.
As the years went on, Michael would continue to release albums, tour the world, and pull publicity pranks to keep him on the front pages.
Unfortunately, after an accident during a Pepsi commercial shoot in 1984, his hair was set on fire, and the scarring was so painful he became addicted to various drugs.
Doomed to a life of wearing wigs and put to sleep every night using tranquillizers, just before he was about to start his 50-day residency, “This Is It” at the O2, London in 2009, he died from a drug overdose overseen by his doctor.
The world had lost its greatest-ever pop star and the 25th of June 2009, will forever be a day when most people know where they were and what they did, the day Michael Jackson died.
I was playing the Glastonbury festival and as the news spread that night, every single food outlet and stage started playing Michael Jackson’s music.
Michael Jackson Tunes | Related Pages
ABC
You can learn how to play ABC by The Jackson 5 using chords, chord analysis, lyrics, and the original recording.
| Ab | Ab |
You went to school to learn girl, things you never, never knew before…
Ain’t No Sunshine
You can learn how to play Ain’t No Sunshine by Bill Withers using chords, lyrics, TAB, chord analysis, and Spytunes video guitar lessons.
| Am7 Em G5 | Am7 | Am7 Em G5 |
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone, it’s not warm when she’s away…
Beat It
You can learn how to play Beat It by Michael Jackson using chords, lyrics, TAB, chord analysis, and the original recording.
| Eb5 | Db5 |
They told him, “Don’t you ever come around here”…
Billie Jean
You can learn how to play Billie Jean by Michael Jackson using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, and the original recording.
| F#m G#m | A G#m |
She was more like a beauty queen from a movie scene…
Blame It On The Boogie
You can learn how to play Blame It On The Boogie by The Jacksons using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, and the original recording.
| Cm7 | Eb |
My baby’s always dancin’ and it wouldn’t be a bad thing…
Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough
Learn how to play Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough by Michael Jackson using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, TAB, and the original recording.
| B B11 | B11 (A/B) | B | B (Bsus2) |
Lovely, is the feelin’ now…
I’ll Be There
You can learn how to play I’ll Be There by The Jackson 5 using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, and the original recording.
| F | C/E | Dm Dm/C | Am |
You and I must make a pact, we must bring salvation back…
Killing Me Softly With His Song
You can learn how to play Killing Me Softly With His Song by Roberta Flack using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, TAB, and the original recording.
| Fm7 | Bbm7 |
Strumming my pain with his fingers…
Rock With You
You can learn how to play Rock With You by Michael Jackson using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, and the original recording.
| Ebm9 | Ab | Bb11 | Bb11 |
Girl, close your eyes, let that rhythm get into you…
Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground)
Learn how to play Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground) by The Jacksons using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, and the original recording.
| G7omit3 G7sus4 G7 | G7omit3 G7sus4 G7 |
I don’t know what’s gonna happen to you, baby…
Thriller
You can learn how to play Thriller by Michael Jackson using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, TAB, and the original recording.
| C#m C#m7 | C#m7 F# E |
‘Cause this is thriller, thriller night…
Michael Jackson on the web
Artists & Bands
Behind every single tune you learn, there’s an artist or band with an entire catalogue of music, waiting to be discovered.
Find out more about these great Artists & Bands, and let their tunes guide you to success.
About me | Dan Lundholm
This was an article about Michael Jackson tunes, by Dan Lundholm. Discover more about him and learn guitar with Spytunes.
Most importantly, find out why you should learn guitar through playing tunes, not practising scales, and studying theory in isolation.
