Michael Jackson Signed Thriller Album With Handwritten Lyrics Up for Auction Now—Amazing if Real!

[Steve Cyrkin, Admin]

I got an email from Premiere Props last night about a Hollywood memorabilia auction they're having this weekend. The first thing they show is a Thriller album not only signed by Michael Jackson, but with the lyrics to "Thriller" inscribed in the gatefold by him.

Sure, I thought...the odds that's real are oh...maybe one in a thousand. Maybe you've seen one, but I've never even heard of one before. I think Premier Props is a good auction house, but I've never seen them sell autographs before. A lot of reputable memorabilia dealers make mistakes on autograph.

Then I checked it out. The autograph looked good to me, but there are some great forgers out there. But then I compared the lyrics handwriting to Jackson's lyrics in Autograph's August 2009 Michael Jackson special issue....

I think it's very likely genuine!

But I'm no expert. I just love autographs, especially the authentication aspect, and try to learn as much as I can. 

What do you think about the album? 

Here's the write-up:

A breathtaking find. An original, 1982 cover for the LP release of Michael Jackson's Thriller with handwritten lyrics and signature by Jackson himself. These appear on the inside of the album's gatefold cover, over the picture of Jackson reclining with a tiger cub. Jackson's script reads: "It's close to midnight, something evil's lurking in the Dark. Under the moonlight you see a sight that almost stops your heart. You try to scream but terror takes the sound Before you make it. You start to freeze as Horror looks you right Between the eyes, 'Cause this is thriller, You're Paralyzed - Michael Jackson". This item was sourced from a charity event/dinner in which Jackson participated. It was held on September 8, 1996 in Budapest, Hungary and featured several items Jackson put up for auction, with the proceeds going to children's hospitals. (12x12)

Here's the link to the listing. The auction ends Sunday.

[Grant Davis]

Wow, if real - and i am not saying it is not - what a find- however -(and if real) it is going for a high price  & rightly so)

Any spares you can throw my way!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Maria Rosenthal]

Hi, I know this is an old post - but will reply anyway. I do believe the autograph is real - but that the lyrics are not. I am no professional, but I have studied Michael's handwriting very much, and the letters of lyrics looks much too regular to be Michael's. Also, I visited the Westlake Studios (Where Michael recorded Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad) this summer - and they have loads and loads of Michael's handwritten lyrics and autographs. They are all framed on the walls. None of the lyrics of Michael's in the studio looks like the lyrics on the photo posted here.

The lyrics on this photo are fake, I believe, but the autograph is real.

Just my humble opinion.

LOVE

Betelgeuse

Also, Michael would not, I believe, have kept the writing so tightly on the white areas of the picture.

[Erick Lucas]

Michael would not write that because he was sort of afraid of getting ink on his hands, and the writing looks to neat, like slowed to make no mistakes.

The autograph is not authentic also.

[Erick Lucas]

NOt real, I am sorry.

Great try on the autograph but the writing it is not Michael's.

[Ema Dan]

Hmm, interesting find indeed. After looking thru a bunch more examples of Mike's writing, I actually think the lyrics/writing is real. I feel more confident commenting on his writing than his autograph. I think the ink on the shiny surface might be giving the writing a different look, maybe that's what's throwing you guys off (to anyone that thought the writing was fake) but all the tells I look for are there, even if he's using less random capital letters than he usually does. If that writing is fake, it's a good fake. I hope I'm not wrong.

[Ema Dan]

Gosh, on further inspection, I've never seen those F's like that before.... I would love more input also! haha