Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Beat It
"Beat It" is a song by Michael Jackson taken from the album Thriller. The song and its video were both parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "Eat It". Eddie Van Halen of the rock band Van Halen plays a distinctive guitar solo on this track. "Beat It" is a warning to avoid fighting and violence at all costs, especially when honour seems to be at stake ("doesn't matter who's wrong or right").
When released as a single in 1983, "Beat It" hit the number one spot in the USA and #3 in the UK.
It is often heralded as the ultimate crossover hit. Not only did "Beat It" fare well with Jackson's R&B and pop fans, but also fared well with rock and heavy metal fans because of Eddie Van Halen's contributions. Heavy metal band Metallica covered this song, along with many others, at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards.
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