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Guitar Songs, Tabs & Lessons

Michael Jackson

14 guitar songs · Tabs, Lessons & Tone Guide Pop

Choose a Michael Jackson Song to Play

Beat It - Guitar Tab Guitar Tab

Beat It - Guitar Tab

YouTube Stats: 3M · 50K

Mr. Tabs Guitar Tab
10 Great Riffs - Guitar Tab Guitar Tab

10 Great Riffs - Guitar Tab

YouTube Stats: 26K · 1K

Guillaume Vrac Guitar Tab
Give In To Me - Guitar Lesson Guitar Lesson

Give In To Me - Guitar Lesson

YouTube Stats: 31K · 1.3K

GuitarLessons365SongLessons Guitar Lesson
Beat It - Guitar Cover Guitar Cover

Beat It - Guitar Cover

YouTube Stats: 9.8M · 212K

Kfir Ochaion Guitar Cover

Artist Overview

History and Guitar Legacy

Michael Jackson's catalog features some of rock and pop's greatest session guitarists. Eddie Van Halen's iconic solo on "Beat It" remains pop history's most famous guest guitar appearance. Steve Lukather, Steve Stevens, Slash, and Jennifer Batten each contributed distinctive styles across multiple albums and live tours, creating a body of work spanning clean funk rhythms, Hard Rock riffing, shredding solos, and tight Pop Rock arrangements.

Playing Style and Techniques

Jackson's songs demand diverse guitar approaches. Funk tracks like "Billie Jean" and "Rock With You" require clean single coil tones with precise muting and rhythmic discipline. "Beat It" and "Dirty Diana" shift to high gain humbucker territory featuring tapping, whammy bar effects, and aggressive vibrato. "Give In To Me" delivers pentatonic legato runs and Les Paul crunch, revealing the breadth of techniques embedded throughout his catalog.

Why Guitarists Study Michael Jackson

Learning Michael Jackson material develops a surprisingly diverse technical foundation. His rhythm parts teach groove, pocket playing, and dynamic control essential to any guitarist's foundation. The solos challenge technical ability with expressive techniques like two hand tapping and controlled whammy bar use. Studying these universally recognized songs allows guitarists to master varied styles while building repertoire that resonates with audiences everywhere.

Difficulty and Learning Path

Overall difficulty ranges from intermediate to advanced. Rhythm parts suit intermediate players with solid timing and dynamic sensitivity. Solos demand advanced skills, particularly Eddie Van Halen's "Beat It" work and Steve Stevens' "Dirty Diana" lead lines, which require fast alternate picking, two hand tapping, controlled whammy bar use, and expressive vibrato technique. Jackson's catalog rewards guitarists willing to develop comprehensive technical ability.

What Makes Michael Jackson Essential for Guitar Players

  • Eddie Van Halen's "Beat It" solo is a masterclass in two-hand tapping, whammy bar techniques, and fast legato runs. Learning it will push your fretboard dexterity and teach you how to build a solo with dynamic tension, it starts controlled and explodes into chaos.
  • The rhythm guitar on "Beat It" uses tight, aggressive palm-muted power chords with a driving eighth-note downpicking pattern. It's deceptively physical and great practice for building your right-hand endurance and timing against a synth-heavy mix.
  • "Dirty Diana" features Steve Stevens' inventive lead work combining harmonic squeals, whammy bar manipulation, and fast alternate-picked runs over a dark, minor-key groove. His use of controlled feedback and pinch harmonics makes this a great study in expressive rock lead playing.
  • "Give In To Me" is pure Slash, loose pentatonic legato, behind-the-beat phrasing, and that unmistakable Les Paul-through-Marshall midrange growl. It's an excellent track for learning blues-rock soloing in a melodic pop-rock context without needing extreme speed.
  • The clean rhythm parts on "Billie Jean" and "Rock With You" require precise funky strumming, ghost notes, and string muting with a bright clean tone. These tracks are fantastic for developing your right-hand control and learning to sit deep in the groove without overplaying.

Did You Know?

Eddie Van Halen recorded the "Beat It" solo as a favor, he wasn't paid for the session and reportedly did it in one or two takes. He even rearranged the song's bridge section on the spot because he didn't like the original chord changes.

Steve Lukather played rhythm guitar on "Beat It" and many other Thriller tracks, running his session-standard Music Man and Valley Arts guitars through a cranked Marshall. He later said the sessions were some of the most demanding he'd ever done because of producer Quincy Jones' exacting standards.

Steve Stevens used a Hamer guitar with a Floyd Rose tremolo and a customized rack rig for "Dirty Diana," getting those dramatic dive bombs and harmonic squeals that define the track's aggressive edge.

Slash's parts on "Give In To Me" were recorded at Record Plant Studios with his '59 Les Paul replica through Marshall JCM800 amps, essentially the same rig he used on Guns N' Roses records. The track was originally intended to be even heavier.

Jennifer Batten, Jackson's live touring guitarist from 1987 to 1997, was one of the first female guitarists to achieve mainstream rock visibility. She used a custom Washburn with a Floyd Rose and pioneered the use of two-hand tapping techniques in a live pop-rock context.

The iconic guitar riff in "Black or White" was played by session great Tim Pierce using a Kramer guitar. That opening riff became one of the most recognizable guitar hooks of the early '90s despite being in a pop song.

Quincy Jones intentionally brought hard-rock guitarists into Michael Jackson's pop productions to create genre-blurring tension, he wanted the guitars to sound dangerous and raw against the polished pop arrangements, which is why the guitar tones on Thriller and Bad are so uncompromisingly aggressive.

Essential Albums for Guitarists

Thriller album cover
Thriller 1982

This is ground zero for guitarists exploring MJ's catalog. "Beat It" alone gives you Eddie Van Halen's legendary tapping solo and Steve Lukather's punchy rhythm work. "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" offer tight, disciplined clean rhythm playing that will sharpen your groove and dynamics.

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Bad album cover
Bad 1987

"Dirty Diana" is the standout, Steve Stevens delivers one of the most creative rock solos in any pop song, full of whammy bar tricks and harmonic techniques. The album also features polished rhythm parts that demand precise palm muting and funky clean tones, making it a well-rounded practice record.

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Dangerous album cover
Dangerous 1991

"Give In To Me" is essentially a Slash showcase with bluesy Les Paul leads over a heavy rock groove, perfect for working on pentatonic phrasing and feel. "Black or White" has that instantly recognizable opening riff. The album bridges hard rock and new jack swing, giving guitarists both crunch and clean challenges.

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HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I album cover
HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I 1995

The new material on disc two features heavier, more industrial-tinged guitar tones alongside classic MJ pop. Slash returns on several tracks, and the rhythm guitar work throughout pushes into darker, more aggressive territory. It's great for players looking to explore distorted rhythm tones in a pop-production context.

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Tone & Gear

Guitar

Multiple iconic guitars appear across MJ's catalog. Eddie Van Halen used his famous 1984 Kramer with a single humbucker, Floyd Rose tremolo, and hand-painted striping for the "Beat It" solo. Steve Stevens played a Hamer with a Floyd Rose on "Dirty Diana." Slash brought his '59 Les Paul replica (Kris Derrig copy) for "Give In To Me." Steve Lukather used Music Man and Valley Arts superstrats for rhythm sessions on Thriller. For the opening riff of "Black or White," Tim Pierce used a Kramer guitar. If you're covering the full catalog, a superstrat with a Floyd Rose covers the solos, while a Les Paul handles the Slash tracks and a Strat-style guitar nails the clean funk parts.

Amp

Marshall dominates the MJ guitar sound. Eddie Van Halen ran his modified Marshall Super Lead (variac'd down for sag and compression) on "Beat It." Slash used Marshall JCM800 2203 heads cranked for natural tube overdrive on "Give In To Me." Steve Lukather often used Marshall heads paired with a Soldano preamp for session work. Steve Stevens used a rack-based rig with Marshall power amps. For the clean funk rhythm tones on tracks like "Billie Jean" and "Rock With You," a Fender Twin Reverb or similar clean platform amp with plenty of headroom is the right call.

Pickups

The solos are all humbucker territory. EVH's single-bridge-humbucker setup (a modified PAF-style pickup, later evolving into his Frankenstein design) gave "Beat It" its hot, compressed lead tone perfect for tapping. Slash's Alnico II Pro pickups in his Les Paul delivered that warm-yet-cutting midrange on "Give In To Me." For rhythm parts, Lukather's Music Man guitars used custom DiMarzio humbuckers with moderate output for articulate crunch. The clean funk tracks benefit from single-coil snap, think standard Strat pickups in positions 2 and 4 for that glassy, percussive tone.

Effects & Chain

Effects usage varies by guitarist but stays relatively minimal. Eddie Van Halen used an MXR Phase 90, MXR Flanger, and an Echoplex tape delay for the "Beat It" solo, the phase 90 adds that subtle swirl behind the tapping. Steve Stevens used a wah pedal, harmonizer, and controlled feedback techniques on "Dirty Diana." Slash kept it simple: wah (Cry Baby) and straight into the Marshall. For the clean rhythm tones, a touch of chorus (like a Boss CE-2) and light compression helps achieve that glossy '80s pop-funk guitar shimmer heard on "Rock With You" and "Billie Jean." Overall, tone comes from the amp and hands, these players weren't pedal-dependent.

Recommended Gear

Gibson Les Paul Standard
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

Slash wielded a '59 Les Paul replica on 'Give In To Me,' delivering that warm-yet-cutting midrange essential to MJ's hardrock guitar moments. The guitar's thick body resonance pairs perfectly with Marshall stack overdrive for Michael Jackson's most aggressive rock tracks.

Gibson Les Paul Custom
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

The Les Paul's humbucker firepower cuts through MJ's dense pop production with natural tube saturation and sustain. This guitar provides the weighted tone needed for Slash's solos and rhythm work across the Thriller-era rock-influenced catalog.

Marshall JCM800
Amp

Marshall JCM800

Slash cranked a Marshall JCM800 2203 head to achieve natural tube overdrive on 'Give In To Me,' delivering the aggressive rock punch that defines Michael Jackson's harder-edged guitar moments. The amp's responsive gain structure lets the Les Paul's humbuckers shine through dense production.

Marshall Plexi (1959 Super Lead)
Amp

Marshall Plexi (1959 Super Lead)

Eddie Van Halen's modified Marshall Super Lead (variac'd for sag and compression) powered the legendary 'Beat It' solo, creating that compressed, singing lead tone perfect for tapping techniques. The Plexi's harmonic richness made the single humbucker's output cut through MJ's production.

Fender Twin Reverb
Amp

Fender Twin Reverb

The Fender Twin Reverb's clean headroom and natural reverb capture the glassy, percussive rhythm tones on tracks like 'Billie Jean' and 'Rock With You.' This amp provides the transparent platform that lets funky single-coil snap and light chorus effects define Michael Jackson's pop-soul foundation.

Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro
Pickup

Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro

Slash's Les Paul uses Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro pickups, delivering warm-yet-cutting midrange that sits perfectly in MJ's pop arrangements while maintaining rock credibility. The pickup's balanced output ensures clarity and sustain whether driving Marshall heads or cutting through dense studio mixes.

How to Practice Michael Jackson on GuitarZone

Every Michael Jackson song page on GuitarZone includes a built-in Practice Toolbar. No app to download, no account needed. Open any song, then use the toolbar to slow the video to 0.5× speed, set an A/B loop around the exact riff you're working on, and jump between song sections instantly.

The toolbar appears automatically on every guitar tab, lesson, and cover page. Pick a song below, hit play, and start practicing at your own pace.

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