A heady mix of disco, R&B and funk, its nine tracks spawned seven hit singles and became the best-selling album of all time, with at least 55 million copies bought to date.
Having already experimented with video on Off The Wall, Jackson now took the new medium to new heights.
The John Landis-directed film, accompanying the album's title track, was a 16-minute big-budget extravaganza, featuring cutting-edge special effects and the voice of veteran horror actor, Vincent Price.
The Thriller video, and its companion, Beat It, also ended MTV's neglect of black artists, while making the mini-musical blockbuster de rigueur for any self-respecting pop star.
Besides his successful solo career, Jackson also recorded a series of hit duets with Paul McCartney, who had written the Off The Wall track, Girlfriend.
The two stars appeared on one another's albums with songs like The Girl Is Mine and the chart-topping Say Say Say.
Stripped-down sound
Stripped-down sound
The relationship soured, though, in 1985, when Jackson outbid both McCartney and Yoko Ono to secure the ATV music-publishing catalogue, which included the rights to more than 250 Lennon/McCartney songs.
Not for the first time, Jackson's ruthless business streak had asserted itself.
