“Beat It” by Michael Jackson

"Beat It" was Michael Jackson's crossover gamble on Thriller: Quincy Jones wanted a rock song on the record in the spirit of "My Sharona", and Jackson went off and wrote one he'd buy himself, something for schoolkids and college students alike. Jones produced with Jackson co-producing, Jeff Porcaro holds down the drums, Steve Lukather lays in guitar and bass, and Eddie Van Halen cuts loose with a guitar solo.

Released as the album's third single on February 21, 1983, it sat at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks and topped the Black singles chart too. The video, which put members of the rival Crips and Bloods on screen together, made Jackson a star all over the planet. It won Record of the Year and Best Male Rock Vocal Performance at the 1984 Grammys, and Rolling Stone placed it at 185 on its 2021 list of the greatest songs.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.