Hvem spillede gitarsolo i beat it?
Eddie Van Halen
Beat It
Eddie Van Halen, leadguitarist i hardrockbandet Van Halen, blev bedt om at tilføje en guitarsolo. Da Jones først kontaktede ham, troede Van Halen, at det var en spøg, der ringede til ham. Efter at have konstateret, at opkaldet var ægte, lånte Van Halen en forstærker af guitaristen Allan Holdsworth og indspillede gratis sin guitarsolo. "Jeg gjorde det som en tjeneste", sagde musikeren senere. "Jeg var et komplet fjols, ifølge resten af bandet, vores manager og alle andre. Jeg blev ikke brugt. Jeg vidste, hvad jeg gjorde - jeg gør ikke noget, medmindre jeg har lyst til at gøre det." Van Halen indspillede sit bidrag efter at Jones og Jackson ankom til guitaristens hus med en "skeletversion" af sangen. Guitaristkollegaen Steve Lukather huskede: "I første omgang rockede vi den, da Eddie havde spillet et godt solo - men Quincy syntes, at det var for hårdt. Så jeg var nødt til at reducere den forvrængede guitarlyd, og det var det, der blev udgivet." Sangen var blandt de sidste fire, der blev færdiggjort til Thriller; de andre var "Human Nature", "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" og "The Lady in My Life".
Eddie Van Halen
Beat It
Eddie Van Halen, lead guitarist of hard rock band Van Halen, was asked to add a guitar solo. When initially contacted by Jones, Van Halen thought he was receiving a prank call. Having established that the call was genuine, Van Halen borrowed an amplifier from guitarist Allan Holdsworth and recorded his guitar solo free of any charge. "I did it as a favor", the musician later said. "I was a complete fool, according to the rest of the band, our manager and everyone else. I was not used. I knew what I was doing – I don't do something unless I want to do it." Van Halen recorded his contribution following Jones and Jackson arriving at the guitarist's house with a "skeleton version" of the song. Fellow guitarist Steve Lukather recalled, "Initially, we rocked it out as Eddie had played a good solo—but Quincy thought it was too tough. So I had to reduce the distorted guitar sound and that is what was released." The song was among the last four completed for Thriller; the others were "Human Nature", "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" and "The Lady in My Life".
Beat It