The plot thickens: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/oplkqJxev9rHhmg.html

Waiting for an ironic copyright notice claiming the Synclavier demo is "Beat It". Let's see...

I was Chief Engineer at a post production studio in Burbank CA that had 4 Synclavier IIs that were used for sound design and effects. This was before PCs were everywhere, and analog tape recorders were still used, but digital recording was crashing the party. The Synclavier was it's own computer, using hexadecimal programing, and ran voltages inside at crazy high currents. 5 volts at 20 amps was one I recall. The kind of stuff that would kill you if you touched it. They were the size of a refrigerator and made as much heat as a 1000 watt heater. Most users had dedicated air conditioned machine rooms. This studio put them in the attic to save space and they would crash multiple times a day during the summer when it would be over 100 degrees in the attic. Just a story of life in the trenches of the Entertainment Biz

I worked as a studio assistant for DJ a few years after this happened so I can speak from his perspective only. He told me it was “lifted off the record” because Michael was quite enamored with the record and played it frequently. Due to the half-step difference we think it was just replayed using the same preset but tuned down a half step in an effort to differentiate it slightly. In any case it was Denny that created that preset. Denny didn’t really care too much at the time about this rather brazen plagiarism because he was also selling the Synclavier systems, and Michael bought two of them (the commissions were substantial on systems costing well into the mid six figures-especially at the time). On top of this Michael hired Denny to work on Bad for about two months, during which time he created a lot of the sound effects sequences on that album. I don’t know the details but by that point a certain amount of money had changed hands and it was not a small amount. As far as credit is concerned, Denny is not a person to look backwards so he just forgot about the whole thing and moved on. His ambivalence is also evidenced by the fact that I can recall answering a few phone calls from Michael. Must have been in 1986-87 or so. He was trying fairly persistently to get Denny to return to LA to work on the next album as well, but Denny was by then too involved in other projects and wasn’t interested-not due to any animosity per se, and certainly not because of this Beat It sound-but just having felt that once was enough. Ultimately Denny left the music business entirely a few years later to focus exclusively on software development. Edit 4/12/21: I think it is important to clarify that although the Synclavier was known as one of the first samplers, this sound was not a sample and did not use the sampling technology per se. It was programmed by DJ from scratch using the Synclavier's onboard synthesis engine (Resynthesis and/or FM) and thus could be replayed in any key on any Synclavier without formant shifts and so on.

Nice piece of synth and pop history. Gong but not forgotten.

wow!!!! I had no idea!!!!!! Thanks for the info!!!!

I found a copy of the rather threatening letter that Denny Jaeger wrote to MJ after he heard the song on the radio: “They told him, "Don't you ever come around here" "Don't wanna see your face, you better disappear" The fire's in their eyes and their words are really clear So beat it, just beat it You better run, you better do what you can Don't wanna see no blood, don't be a macho man You wanna be tough, better do what you can So beat it, but you wanna be bad Just beat it (beat it), beat it (beat it) No one wants to be defeated Showin' how funky and strong is your fight It doesn't matter who's wrong or right Just beat it (beat it) Just beat it (beat it) Just beat it (beat it) Just beat it (beat it, uh) They're out to get you, better leave while you can Don't wanna be a boy, you wanna be a man You wanna stay alive, better do what you can So beat it, just beat it”

I bought a Synclavier II in 1981 from David Nichtern ("Midnight at the Oasis"). Brad Naples met us at David's apartment on the upper west side of Manhattan. I had it before "Thriller" came out, and after scrolling through the sounds, I dismissed that particular sound as musically useless. Then "Thriller" was released and there it was. It hadn't occurred to me to use it as an introduction, and after hearing "Beat It," I figured it was just as well, since no one would believe that I didn't plagiarize Michael Jackson. On the plus side, where that sound came from was my little secret - well, one I shared with a very small group of people - that is until this video came out. (My unit was #17, built in 1980). It was completely obsolete six months after I bought it thanks to the Yamaha DX7.

Another thought on this: If I loaded up that sound and played that exact intro and licensed it to a big brand for a Global Advertising campaign I would bet that the publisher would come straight after it saying "that's our copyright, it's Beat It". If I'd only used the intro and none of the rest of Beat It, can they sue? If not, why not? To answer the "did they sample it" question: Definitely not, because "Beat It" is a semi-tone lower and yet 8pm faster. In 1982 (when it was recorded) a sample would be lower and slower or higher and faster as this was the limit of the technology of the day. So this proves that they replayed it on the Synclavier. Also to people saying "you can't copyright a sound" ,that isn't the point being made at all. The question is whether a _composition_ used to demonstrate a specific sound can be interpolated verbatim into another composition, to the extent that you can't tell the two apart.

Hopefully the sad MJ fan in me can provide some insight here. Though there are many who argue as to whether they directly sampled the actual "Incredible Sounds of Synclavier" record or not, that's not the case (not talking about the composition, but the audio recording itself). No one is quite sure who originally heard the demo record and introduced it to Michael, but it was Tom Bahler (composer of "She's Out of My Life") who would then replay the identical parts to the demo record on his own Synclavier for the intro and some additional notes in the build up to Eddie Van Halen's guitar solo. He is credited on the Thriller album for this. As far as Denny Jaeger's later work on the BAD album is concerned, those sharp intro riser sounds to "Smooth Criminal" and "Another Part of Me" as well as a layer of the intro FX in Dirty Diana were created by Denny. Immensely talented sound designer. Sadly Michael's album credits always miss out a whole array of personnel that worked on the records. The Synclavier itself would continue to make appearances on every Michael album with the exception of "Invincible".

I received a copyright claim for presets on the D-50 from sony music back in 1998. They first claimed I was offering mp3 files for download (which was true but my own stuff), then they claimed that I was using their music as samples (which was false), then they claimed I was using presets they had "rights to". I told them to write me as soon as Stephen King pays royalties to Triumph for having written bestsellers on their typewriters.

I bought a Synclavier ll keyboard only, (no computer) in a pawn shop in Las Vegas for $100. The shop owner said it belonged to Wayne Newton and was sized in a raid by the US Gov for owning taxes and the shop owner bought it at an auction. Only in Vegas!

And here comes youtube, with a claim on the filter sweep.

don't forget that those were times when people were not that crazy about copyrighting every single bit of sounds. if you just leave those seven notes alone no one would listen to them. because they are not a song and generally speaking not are even complete motive. so being credited for sound design is one thing and raising "arrangement copyrighting" discussion is completely other. ('cause at the end you may end up appealing for copyright violations for arpeggios, gammas and intervals. but isn't this a road to nowhere?)

Loving it! Didn't know about that demonstration, I just thought it was a patch they just used and played themselves. Did you get any hits from MJ's label for using these seconds of it in this video btw?

For anyone that feels the need for a synclavier: Arturia made a virtual emulation of it. Yes, there is also the beat it preset

That blue sample record/vinyl was great; I think (and hope) I still have it. Way back in time - days of engineering old-school effects and synthesizers. Always wanted one of these synthesizers. I didn't know this story. Thanks for stirring the memory.

The sound is available in Analog Lab. It's the patch Phased Gong in Synclavier.

Ah yes the good old Cyan-claviérre 😂. Nice tidbit. I didn't look at the runtime, so I first thought my Internet had died, when it was over in a blink.

Thanks for an informative, entertaining and succinct video. There are so many other KZfaqrs who would have unnecessarily stretched this into a six day video for more watch time. It is greatly appreciated!

weirdly enough I once bought a Synclavier II in the 90´s from Chris Youdell in L.A. and it had tons of sounds and also the sequences from Beat It on there. I sold it to U96. Wish I had kept it

That's crazy how they used to occasionally release vinyls showcasing synth presets and now all we need to do is go on KZfaq and watch someone play it for a few minutes! I kinda wish companies would start doing it again just as a novelty in limited quantities.

Very cool- thanks for sharing! Would love a long form video on the synclavier and perhaps some fairlight fun too!

Highly enjoyable video Alex! No matter the controversy and conundrums, it's a very cool sound! ;-)

I'm wondering if MJ's production team thought "well Michael loves this demo, if anyone asks we can just say "oh we used the preset" and it'll be ok."

If you go and listen to Greg Philingane’s talking bout his contribution to the Destiny and Thriller albums on the red bull music academy interview, it starts to paint a picture of how MJ handled business back then...

The video itself is interesting to watch, Alex, but that conclusion definitely made it all worthwhile.

A short and sweet sample exploder. Love it. Nice work Alex!

After I did a video about famous synth presets and wrongly claimed that this sound to came out of a CMI (Thanks to Arturia misleadingly adding it to their CMI presets and me not researching that one properly) I got _loads_ of comments correcting me. After seeing this I start to think I might have been correct after all... What if 'Beat it' simply used a sampled Synclavier demo and who knows maybe they even used a CMI to do that...🤔 But its probably simply replayed on the real thing. Not exactly hard to reproduce. Whatever the truth behind it is, it's a massive sound from an amazing synth.

Ah yes the "SiGnClavur?" I love that thing

Early Hammond organs (Pre-WWII) have a notice on the serial plate that said "Licensed for experimental and amateur use only" because Hammond wanted legal limitations on who could use the instrument on recordings. One of the first violators was a pop organist name with Milt Herth.

Another great vid Alex. I do hope the BBC clock onto your videos as you would be the ideal person for a good synth music documentary. I am struggling to find a decent one and find your vids incredibly informative and entertaining. Keep up the good work.

The synclavier was also used on the jazz from hell album by Frank Zappa

I’m a little smarter today. Thanks!

0:14 Ive also often heard SIN - kluh - VEER. Another masterpiece, Alex!

Thank you for the answers about that synth that I was looking for. I've been wondering what that sound is for a VERY long time.

Frank zappa did some amazing stuff with his.

Isn't there also the famous George Harrison Moog album where the second side was just a demo by Bernie Krause (and of course only credited to George).

This synth was waaaaaayyy ahead of its time! Amazing machine!

I like this short format. Think you'll get a lot of views on these

The Synclavier also gets credited in the end titles for the film Starman!

Exactly the same preset was used by Tangerine Dream on their studio album EXIT (recorded June-July 1981), on a track called KIEW MISSION kzfaq.info/get/bejne/msmIrKZ2npybgaM.html. I'm currently working on a book listing their equipment - 114 pages so far ;)

I love this video. Short, sweet, informative and entertaining. My personal favorite use of the Synclavier is Pat Metheny’s work, but looking at the Wikipedia entry I was surprised and delighted to see it was also used by an number of my other favorite artists.

Love the short videos just as much as the longer it helps with the crippling ball fix i need

I was only telling a friend about this last week as i was trying to explain the history & relevance of each arturia v8 synth :)

I went "What? Beat it starts durdurdurndurdur durndurdur! Not GOOOONG!" Turns out, I have never heard the intro to "Beat It"... Well, before today.

YES!! I've been reading about the Synclav all week, PERFECT TIMING!

From what I read a while ago Quincy Jones heard the Synclavier demo disc, showed it to Jackson, and Michael wanted the exact sound, which was recreated in the studio. Denny Jager got to work with them later as recognition basically, and because he and Jackson clicked.

A lot of us in the "synth geeks community" knows the story of the Synclav' demo disc and MJ but it's always good to tell the story again for the the milenium youngsters.

I guess Michael got away with it because... well... this sample recording was probably so rare and niche back then, nobody would know he sampled it verbatim.

I remember reading about this incident when trying to find the synth that was used on 'Beat It'. Sounds like the Synclavier II actually is an interesting synth. Great video Alex!

Really interesting stuff, Alex. It's the second and third scenarios on what happened legally.

Much like the spanish guitar riff on The Beatles album, which I always thought was George playing it. But recently learned that was a 'demo' riff supplied on the Mellotron I guess the band all liked so much.

"Wasn't me-ee-ee! Oooh!"

Came here for the knowledge, stayed for the impression at the end... ;-) Top work again, Alex :-)

Well I'll be damn! I didn't realize that the "Beat It" intro was a sample. My mother just reminisced about the parties back in the day when Beat It would come on, the dance floor got hot.

The ‘ woooh’ at the start 😂

Ha! Kiew mission anyone? Tangerine dream....very same sound

On theThriller tour my brother was the Synclavier roadie. He mainly safeguarded the three that were used on the tour. Two on stage and one back up.

Truly fascinating. Thank you for telling this story so efficiently!

Quincy Jones said Michael stole alot of music and styles from everyone. Ijs!🤔🤫😳

Amazing Michael Jackson impression! I couldn't do that without, um...injuring myself. Hope you didn't pull a muscle. I noticed it was the last thing in the video, so maybe narration after that point was impossible. Hope you recover soon, if that's the case. On the other hand, now might be a good time to drag out that old doo-wop number you've been working on...the one with the falsetto bridge...

Finally a new video! Love your videous Alex! :)

A half step down is pretty significant in something so simple with full whole notes.

Junkie XL has a Synclavier and he used this preset with aplomb on the Deadpool score.

Quincy Jones was quoted as saying MJ was very greedy and didn't want to give anyone credit for anything.

Thanks for the gem drop Alex.

Thanks for the story and for mentioning my video - greatly appreciated :-)

😱

What if instead of the MJ estate, Denny Jaeger reached out and threatened you with a copyright violation? Would that be telling? Also, did you know that EVH's Eruption was actually written and first performed by Lawrence W. Goldstein III on the 1978 demo 8-track released for the Multimoog? 🙃

What an incredible story. I first saw and heard a Synclavier II up-close in 1982 at the Tel Aviv University electronic music lab. It was a high school class visit. It was one of those “aha” moments that turned me on to electronic music. About a year later I bought one of the first DX7s.

Attention to detail..I love it...subbed.

those are notes that exist. they are there and can be played. a a possible conbination of notes should not be able to automatically be considered an invention of which someone can claim authorship..that to my eyes it's ludicrous but.. its as if a dancing technique as spin with your body could only be reproduced by one person ,. or ..The minute that three not combination and the key Are a possibility., can be played by more than one person! this., disconcerts me quite .., but. Again, that's just my instinct. And., if anything, i can think it a nice compliment..

Obligatory "Hey, Behringer" comment for the algo.

Jack Nitzsche also used that thing for the Soundtrack of John Carpenter's "Starman". He even sampled the voice of his wife for the sweet spheric-sounding voice sound of the film's Leitmotif.

Alex Ball Entertainer........ Good video as always Alex, thank you.

So M. Jackson settled before "hee hee heee" had a lawsuit on his hands knowing he couldn't "Beat It". (Sorry I had to do it, my "BAD")

He didn't invent the "moonwalk" either... 🤷🏻

*instantly starts beatboxing when the beat it beat should come in*

I actually bought a copy of the demo on ebay after I heard it on youtube, wasnt aware of the copyright dispute. Thanks for the explanation!

Fascinating, thank you!

Wow, really cool. I had no idea. Great information, thank you.

I was just watching the VHS demonstration of the Synclavier and the dude playing it also did the exact demo.

I am fortunate enough to know someone who has many many old school and fully functioning synths/keyboards.among his faves are a hydrasynth and a fully refurbed synclavier and a few other choice bits of kit.

Wild! Hope Tom didn't get such an issue for Deadpool. Great video, thanks!

I wanted to study the Synclavier system. Thank you for posting this video.

Quick and easy. Thanks, Alex. Very nice work.

We should hope that nobody ever tries to copyright claim the "On the Run" sequence >_

This should be required viewing for people who think only hiphop has borrowed things verbatim and without proper credit

Great video! Short and entertaining!

I LOVED it! (And not just because you said NED).... What a fascinating story. Good sleuthing. I paid a lot for Jaeger's String Library waaaay back in the days.

U snapped my man, this is a really interesting video 🔥

Great work as always Alex...I did not know that :)

Jon Appleron was my good friend's uncle. We all went to the same college, though obviously Jon was the generation prior to us.

Gotta love learning something new

Top pub trivia!

Fascinating insight to one of those rumour/story here laid bare, MJ was not the first to do this sort of thing. Oh the stories I could tell! But he also will not be the last!

Really interesting video - and some really informed comments too. I remember reading a Frank Zappa interview way back when, and he said that the only person who had the full Synclavier suite was Michael Jackson. Who had two of them. You're not going to sue a customer like that. As to whether it was played or sampled, I'd say played. But then again, wasn't the Publison Infernal available in 1982? That could even do the sound manipulation on the record.

".....and most people have probably never even heard of the man who wrote it." or the synth, because let's be honest about the average listener for a second. Another great video by you!

nice and informative. The sound is like my DX-7 ;)