The Lyric to Dim Lights Tonight in Honour of Thriller Songwriter Rod Temperton

The lights at the Lyric Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue will be dimmed for five minutes tonight at 7.25pm before THRILLER LIVE starts to pay tribute to Rod Temperton the British writer of Michael Jackson's iconic Thriller, one of the UK's most successful songwriters, who sadly passed away last week. He was 66.

"Thank you for the music," the show said in a statement. "The Thriller Live family salute you."

The British songwriter was best known for Michael Jackson's hits "Thriller" and "Rock With You." His other hits included Jackson's "Off The Wall" and "Baby Be Mine," "Boogie Nights" for his '70s disco group Heatwave, "Give Me The Night" for George Benson, "Baby, Come to Me" for Patti Austin and James Ingram, and "Sweet Freedom" for Michael McDonald.

His songs have also been recorded by Anita Baker, Donna Summer, Aretha Franklin and The Brothers Johnson.

Temperton's tunes helped skyrocket Michael Jackson's THRILLER to best-selling album of all time in the U.S., with 32 million copies sold.

He won a 1990 Grammy Award for Quincy Jones's "Birdland" from the album BACK ON THE BLOCK and was nominated for two Academy Awards in 1986 for his work on the soundtrack for THE COLOR PURPLE.

The Recording Academy's Neil Portnow released the following statement today: "Rod Temperton's prolific songwriting talent made him one of music's most sought-after collaborators. Possessing a golden ear for pop, funk, and jazz, he worked with artists such as Aretha Franklin, Quincy Jones, Herbie Hancock, Donna Summer, among many others. Having played a large part in the success of what would eventually become the best-selling album of all time, Michael Jackson's GRAMMY-winning Thriller, Rod penned not only the iconic title track, but also 'Baby Be Mine' and 'The Lady In My Life.' We have lost a cherished member of the music community and our sincerest condolences go out to Rod's family, friends, and collaborators."