Legendary Guitarists Who Have Played with Michael Jackson

Folks, I’ve been thinking about whipping up a “guitar players that have played with Michael Jackson” list now for almost a year and a half.  Many readers know the story behind the man with Eddie Van Halen and Slash, but Michael Jackson had personally set up a great line up of legendary guitarists throughout the years.

 

Eddie Van Halen

 

Jackson was inspired to create an album where "every song was a killer," and developed Thriller with that in mind.  Jones and songwriter Rod Temperton gave detailed accounts of what occurred for the 2001 reissue of the album. Jones discussed "Billie Jean" and why it was so personal to Jackson, who struggled to deal with a number of obsessed fans.

 

Jones and Jackson were determined to make a rock song that would appeal to all tastes and spent weeks looking for a suitable guitarist for the song "Beat It", a song Jackson wrote. Eventually, they found Eddie Van Halen of the rock band Van Halen.  Legendary guitar player Eddie Van Halen was tapped to add the song's distinctive overdriven guitar solo, but was prevented by his record label from appearing in the music video. He did appear on stage with Jackson in Dallas during the Jackson brothers "Victory Tour".

 

Steve Lukather (also from toto)

 

The year 1982 turned out to be the most successful (commercially) in Toto's and Lukather's career. Steve Lukather contributed heavily to Michael Jackson's Thriller album, that turned out to be the most successful album in music history ever with over 50 million copies sold.

 

Lukather achieved notability in the 1970s and 1980s as one of the most sought-after session guitarists in Los Angeles, playing with a wide range of artists from Aretha Franklin to Warren Zevon.  He performed the guitar solo for Olivia Newton-John's biggest single ever on 1981's "Physical", which doubled as Billboard's #1 single of the 1980s. He has performed on over 1,000 records spanning 36 years.  He largely credits fellow Toto members David Paich and Jeff Porcaro for getting him exposure in the industry.

Thanks to stevelukather.net

 

 

 Orianthi

 

At 24 years old, Orianthi has already experienced what most aspiring guitarists can only dream of.  She’s opened for Steve Vai, backed Carrie Underwood, jammed with legendary guitarist Carlos Santana, and shared the stage on tour with the King of Pop, Michael Jackson.

 

 

 

Orianthi is a beautiful, but tallented Australian guitar player and singer-songwriter. She is perhaps best known for being Michael Jackson's lead guitarist for his ill-fated This Is It concert series. Her debut single "According to You" has peaked at No. 8 in Australia and No. 17 in the US; her sophomore album, Believe, received a worldwide release in late 2009.

 

Thanks to orianthi.com

  

Larry Carlton (Off the wall album)

 

During the 1970s and early 1980s, Carlton was a session musician in Los Angeles, making up to five hundred recordings a year, including albums by Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, Billy Joel, Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, The Four Tops, Christopher Cross, Barbra Streisand, the Partridge Family

 

In 1979 he played guitar on Michael Jackson's Off the Wall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Slash

 

For 1992's Dangerous, MJ decided on Guns n' Roses guitarist Slash, which left many Guns N Roses fans wondering wtf?  You can hear Slash wailing on "Black or White" and "Give it to Me".

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve Stevens (smooth criminal)

 

Steve Stevens is well known for his use of a raygun sound effect in the Billy Idol song "Rebel Yell."  This sound effect was created by using a toy raygun held up to the pickups, according to a Guitar World interview. He now uses a toy raygun equipped with a pitch bender and a repeat changer to produce the sound effect.

 

"Dirty Diana" was written by Jackson and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. It appeared on Jackson's seventh studio album, Bad. The song was released by Epic Records on April 18, 1988 as the fifth single from Bad. After "Beat It", "Dirty Diana" was the second hard rock song of his solo career, more specifically a hard rock ballad, with lyrics about a persistent groupie.  Jackson hired Billy Idol's former guitarist Steve Stevens to back him on the track.

 

Los Angeles Times' Richard Cromelin describes clearly "Dirty Diana" as a hard rock song, he says about it, "'Dirty Diana' is trying to be this year's 'Beat It'--a hard-rock song about a tenacious groupie that's sent into orbit by a Steve Stevens guitar solo"

 

 

Carlos Santana (Whatever Happens)

 

In 2000 Supernatural won nine Grammy Awards (eight for Santana personally), including Album of the Year, Record of the Year for "Smooth", and Song of the Year for Thomas and Itaal Shur. Santana's acceptance speeches described his feelings about music's place in one's spiritual existence. Later that year at the Latin Grammy Awards he won three awards including Record of the Year. In 2001, Santana's guitar skills were featured in Michael Jackson's song "Whatever Happens", from the album Invincible.