How Jon Anderson Helped Inspire Michael Jackson's Thriller

(Prog) Jon Anderson has recalled how the 1981 album The Friends Of Mr Cairo which he produced with composer Vangelis inspired Michael Jackson's smash hit album Thriller.

The former Yes man claims that producer Quincy Jones told him that he and Jackson took a guitar riff from the record and "made it funky" for the 1982 hit Billie Jean.

Anderson tells the new issue of Prog magazine: "The luck of the draw, I met Vangelis - a very different kind of musician, who started the trend of electronic music. Over the 80s we were evolving musically, not thinking about what was hip or what was good business.

"There's my classic story of how we inspired Michael Jackson's Thriller. Quincy Jones told me that he and Michael had been listening to our album, The Friends Of Mr Cairo.

"They took the riff and made it funky for Billie Jean. Quincy said he'd been recording our song State Of Independence with Donna Summer, and I said he had an incredible guy singing backing vocals." Read more here.

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