Classic Albums Live and its roster of A-list musicians perform Michael Jackson’s Thriller, note for note, cut for cut. Released in 1982, the album broke ground and redefined the possibilities of pop music. It was produced by Quincy Jones, who previously worked with Jackson on his album Off the Wall (1979). With the ongoing backlash against disco music at the time, he moved in a new musical direction, resulting in a mix of pop, post-disco, rock, funk, synth-pop, and R&B sounds, and darker themes; Jackson wanted to create an album where “every song was a killer.” Featuring iconic singles like Billie Jean and Beat It, the album set new records, becoming the best-selling album of all time, a title it still holds to this day.

Classic Albums Live

Remember when you used to listen to an entire album? Classic Albums Live does.

Classic Albums Live takes the greatest albums from the 60s, 70s, and 80s and recreates them live on stage, note for note — cut for cut. “There’s a real thirst to hear these albums performed, start to finish. For many of us this is the music we grew up with—the soundtrack of our lives.”

“All of our focus is put into the music,” says Martin. “We perform the works of The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin the same way an orchestra performs the works of Mozart. We don’t bother with imitation or impersonation. The bands are big — upwards of eleven pieces. We research these albums and go to great lengths to reproduce each and every sound live. We never use tape or computers. We’ll bring in a children’s choir, a sitar player, a string quartet, whatever it takes to get it right.”

“Joyful! Thrilling!”
-TORONTO STAR

“No cheesy costumes, no bad impersonations!”
-CBC