MJ's 'Beat It' - The Untold Story by Tom Bähler

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*ABOUT THIS VIDEO*

It's my pleasure to re-unite with my old friend Tom Bähler who generously tells us all the details of his experiences with Michael and Quincy during the making of "Beat It". This untold story is a result of Tom contacting me after seeing one of our videos about how to make the gong sound on "Beat It".
He felt it was time to fill-in some blanks in the timeline about how and when things happened and to also share some of his most intimate, inspiring moments about the creation of the song. In this segment we'll tap into a little bit of history about the Synclavier and how this game changing synthesizer got into the hands of Michael. Then you'll find out how the infamous gong sound was discovered, that it was slightly altered and who actually played it on the record. Tom is a gifted storyteller who colorfully weaves relevant and fun anecdotal sidebars in the process of describing the historical facts. He tops off this segment with the back story about Michael's incredibly drawn out search to find the perfect sound to play on the 4th beat of each bar in "Beat It". Michael had the sound in his head but needed to discover what instrument could make it. The first thing I saw when I (Anthony) arrived to play on the album was Michael hitting drum cases with 2 x 4's, but I never knew about the events leading up to that day. Now we all will. I hope you enjoy this special interview and rare opportunity to hear these personal stories directly from Tom Bähler, a living legend. And stay tuned to Anthony Marinelli Music for the other segments with Tom about Working with Michael, Working with Quincy, Arranging for "We Are the World" and writing what some consider to be their favorite song by Michael, "We are the World".

00:00 Introduction to Tom Bahler
01:33 Discovering the Synclavier
03:16 The Gong Story, Michael & Bruce
09:48 Copyright
12:35 Michael's Search for the 4th Beat of "Beat It"
19:40 Michael & Quincy Speaking in Colors
20:18 Conclusion

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*ABOUT ANTHONY*

Anthony's musical touch as both composer and performer is connected with some of the most influential creative minds over the last 40 years. He’s composed and conducted original orchestral scores for over 80 feature films including _*Young Guns*_ , _*Internal Affairs*_ , _*The Man From Elysian Fields*_ , _*15 Minutes*_ and _*Planes, Trains & Automobiles*_ , been commissioned by the *Los Angeles Philharmonic* for his symphonic work "In the Family Way", written over one thousand TV commercials in a myriad of musical styles, co-founded Levels Audio Post (LA's premiere post production facility) and performed and arranged on big-box-office films and influential hit records such as *Michael Jackson's* _*Thriller*_ .

His extensive work as a young arranger, orchestrator and performer for *Quincy Jones* , *Jack Nitzsche* , *Lamont Dozier* , *Arthur Rubenstein* and *Giorgio Moroder* was vital in launching his own career. His early years pioneering modular analog synthesizers along with his wide-ranging music scholarship positioned Anthony at the center of the music technology revolution. He attended the University of Southern California School of Music as a piano and composition major.

[djsdontdance]

Anthony I'm 56 years old and on the 9th of January this year i was admitted to hospital and as i write this in still here. I found you on YouTube 2 days into my stay. I can't explain how your videos have got me through some of my dark days. I've had smiles and tears throughout. I'm a massive music history geek and they have been so up my street. Thank you so much. Paul.

[SoundAuthor]

I love that the captions translated “synclavier” to “single beer”. I’m calling it The Single Beer from now on 😂

[MattPicsET]

I always wondered what “drum case beater” meant in the liner notes, what a great story! Thanks for having Tom share his story ✨

[lamsior]

I could easily watch this for 6 hours i'm not even kiddin.

[whatilearnttoday]

Tom is right. Thankyou for this whole thing.

I've spent my entire life knowing that surely Michael was intimately involved in every step but have never had any insight into how the studio operated with him in it.

[shanefoote]

Love this story. Michael picking out that drum case sound is what makes him a genius the general public don’t understand.

[Imetalman]

You can hear Micheal voice in your head when he tells the story. These stories really make me appreciate this album even more.

[mgpoolpromgpoolpro]

really cool story and a big part of music history... r.i.p Michael

the backbeat was a TR 808 🔉🔉🔉

[CaptainEO]

NGL, hearing Tom speak gave me a lump in my throat. What a LEGEND. I mean this guy wrote She's Out Of My Life! Thank you..

[meilstone]

Thanks for taking us back in time on such an intimate level. MJ was a genius and his legacy lives on!

[shanus]

i could listen to stories about making the songs for Thriller/Bad (anything MJ) for hours and hours. Incredible insight into how some of the greatest songs/albums of all time were made with IMO the greatest ever artist. You guys were geniuses, love seeing who was behind the sounds of my life

[MeltWithU]

It’s crazy to me to think that Michael was so in tune with the sounds he was looking for that something is simple as an accidental screwdriver falling down onto a drum case, could spark excitement into him… Truly amazing. He truly was a genius in the way, that he wanted to put these songs together. Regardless, if he had written them or not… He knew exactly what he wanted, the sound he was going for. It shows how intricate his mind was thinking… That he knew, again, the sounds that he wanted, but not exactly how to get them.

I got into a conversation about songwriting the other day with another musician and I said to him that it’s the unexpected, happy little accidents that make… that can make the biggest difference in a song for the artist. Because 98% of the people listening… unless they are listening on a pair of headphones, may never hear it. But those little things make the biggest difference to the artist recording those songs. The crazy thing is, that when you finally put that good set of headphones on, and hear those little intricacies… You realize how much that little tiny moment or sound in a song actually makes it that much better.

How it can take those happy little accidents to find them, and record them… To make that magic happen, sometimes without the artist ever knowing about it. If you listen to the beginning of Lost in Love, the intro… He will notice a sound that sounds like somebody farted into a microphone, which is probably what it is… but it is a sound that I have thought about since the very first time I’ve heard it. Was a producer pissed off at the Band that day? Or was it something the Artist did as a joke and others never picked up on it? Who knows? But it is a talking point that people can talk about for eternity.

And again, it’s amazing how a tiny little thing in a song can add so much to it. Even if unintentional. Which is the great thing about writing and recording music. As many artists will tell you, it almost seems like little gifts from God that enter your mind on a moments notice and exit just as fast. Which is why I have an app on my phone to record those little tiny moments whenever they are given to me, from wherever they come from. I know Michael did the same. The statement he made about waking up at 3 AM with a great idea and he was afraid if he didn’t write it down or record it, that God would give it to prince. LoL.

[joe-farwick]

you are saving youtube quality regarding music

[issiewizzie]

It's like going back in time. It's nice to catalogue all this for future generations
thanks to Tom Bähler

[Goettel]

These videos are little nuggets of synth nerd joy.

[MaxFury_Official]

Why is it always so funny when everyone imitates Michael's voice? No matter how weird Michael talked, people still listened to him, and that's good cause without that gong the song just wouldn't have been the same. Oh and btw Tom if you're reading this.

I used to hit on girls by jokingly imitating Michaels crying on 'She's Out of My Life' and saying how much i loved it even as a guy, always got people in general to crack up. But especially the girls they really seemed to enjoy it when admitting to listening to Michael and Spice Girls forexample. Thanks for writing it, Tom!

[fensterputzernuernberg]

That Tom Bähler had / has me fixed to the screen with his account of the way it was ! Brilliant Tom

[pandsanthi]

The video was great already, but that fourth beat "snare sound"'s story was awesome! I don't think anyone could have imagined that! lol

[ferdinandobarisciano]

Anthony, the moment Tom remember about Michael's imaginative way of comunicating i've felt so emotional and nostalgic.
Thank you for this precious material!

[darryldouglas]

So glad these stories are being captured. This is the best use of recording media since that guy in the early 1900s went around America recording people playing music on their porches in rural areas. 😃