Thomas Gilbert shows you how to play the solo to "Billy Jean" by Michael Jackson.
The Form of the Song
Billy Jean by Michael Jackson is a single off of Michael Jackson's colossal 1982 album Thriller.c
The song follows a basic form. It begins with a verse featuring the main riff. It then moves into a prechorus and a chorus, followed by another verse, a prechorus and a double chorus. The song then features the minimal-yet-iconic funk guitar solo. This is followed by another chorus before the song fades out.
The progression follows the following pattern:
Verse 1
Pre-chorus 1
Chorus 1
Verse 2
Prechorus 2
Chorus 2
Solo
Chorus 3
References
Meet Our Experts
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Thomas Gilbert
Meet Thomas, one of Mahalo's guitar experts. Thomas is an alumnus of both USC and Cal State Northridge, majoring in music education and music composition. Thomas has collaborated with composers Hans Zimmer and Mateo Messina, and worked on such film scores as "The Dark Knight," "Gladiator" and "Juno." He taught an online advanced blues guitar course for over two years with a huge online response and is a member of rock band Radius.
Guitar Chords Used in Song
"Billy Jean" by Michael Jackson is in the key of F# minor and uses the following chords: F#m, Bm, C#7 and D.
How to Play the F#m Chord
How to Play the Bm Chord
How to Play the C#7 Chord
How to Play the D Chord
