Michael Jackson with guitarist Greg Howe "Beat It" solo

[Budz6kow]

So obviously not jennifer. 1, u can tell iyts a dude not a chick. 2, she NEVER got it even half this tight. Even van halen didn't get it this tight and he wrote the solo, LOL! 1 Question, Which HIStory tour show is this from, and how many did greag fill in for?

[felipepinaud]

Amazing guitar player.

[AshStrat1]

strange how greg howe plays the solo perfect and van halen cant even get close , (smiles)

[CircaSol]

Ive been a Greg Howe fan since the Shrapnel days..Have his stuff on Vynil!

[thojyout23]

god damn HE NAILED IT!!! THE TONE ALSO!!!

[edotoyo]

Greg How is my homey, but I have never seen such crazy video! This man is reeal player!

[splattyfish]

Howe plays that so perfectly so much better than anyone else would live like that, Howe is the daddy.

[hedefter]

without the title i thought it would be jennifer batten xD

[diminished11]

once again, Mr. Howe makes my Jaw drop. He nailed it big time.

[pngaia]

Really.. That was Maestro Greg, heard him on a radio int, most should have known, how he did it. You listen and learn . Then ph rings...checkout the radio interview.. greg howe

[MWdream]

I'd imagine it was a high point for Greg on stage with MJ ripping out a solo recorded by his personal hero.

[GlassTuxedo]

Orianthi clearly didn't see this video

[realguitarist07]

makes Orianthi look stupid...

[14luisalonso]

interesting.. do you know if this was contractual? having to wear the "Batten-wig" (or maybe just a coincidence about the wig looking like Batten's 80's hairday, or maybe it was made inspired on her own) and playing his back to the crowd?.. it makes sense if the original tour was being filmed on various locations.. or if there was any photo contract agreement.. dunno.. anyone?

[WizardMagician2010]

Damn I know this is Eddie Van Halen solo but this Guy made it sounded like he made it up

[SeekNDestroy1506]

you are talling me that white haired witch is greg howe ?

[maciekfingerstyle]

@SeekNDestroy1506 he has an optical fiber wig on his head ;D

[ecurbokareka]

wow

[Cetnik77]

Oh my God!! The best live performance of Beat It solo that I've ever seen!! Greg Howe is the BEST!!

[bledsoe8]

Greg Howe is amazing. Even more amazing when you realize he had about 2 days to get over to Italy and fine-tune his playing before going live.

[returnpupix]

I LOVE YOU GREG

[TremCPS]

Greg is just amazing, no words to describe.

Check Howe II with his brother in vocals. Awesome Shit

[PKaisala]

most epic vid ever !!!

[trs4ever]

Do you guys know who that is? That's Greg Howe! There are not many people that can touch this guy, even Eddie himself! Do your research before you crap on one of the greatest guitarists ever. Check him out. You will be blown away and will likely delete your comment.

[crosafix]

its Howe in Jennifer's mask

[takeout4]

it took michaels guitarists months to "perfect" this solo, eddie recorded it in one take, most of it was improvised at the time anyway. ive seen other people on youtube play this solo better thatn this guy

[yougotmikelopez]

@takeout4 Yeah? And how many of them were playing the solo as they were walking across a stage?? Oh wait... None of em... Howe is a badass and your and idiot

[UrSkulled]

Your a fucking idiot, its called adding your own touch.

[racerx3065]

you, my friend, are talking bollocks. that guitarist is not simply "michael jackson's" guitarist, its Greg Howe. and obviously van halen played it better, he wrote the damn thing and he invented tapping for god's sake. plus, the majority of people on youtube completely fuck up the timing of this solo, which is essential and howe is walking around and playing it! that requires immense concentration!

[MikeyRB77]

Tapping was around before Eddie was born. Take a listen to Steve Hackett in early GENESIS.

[bassmajor]

the solo on the original recording was cut together from multiple takes!

[Hardysamnin]

@bassmajor - according to Van Halen, he did 2 takes, and used the second one. Everyone was happy and he walked away with 1,000,000 for half an hours work.

[Lynch34]

@Hardysamnin - actually, Eddie did it for free I believe. He didn't think the song would be much of a hit and did it as a favor.

[edthehead83]

He learned it in less than months. Michael called him and offered him an opportunity to tour with him and he had like 2 days to learn ALL of the music... he was rehearsing on the damn plane ride to wherever his first show was. Straight from Greg Howe's mouth.

[SlikkTim]

When you have a 30" video like that, you just can't be touched. I mean, "yeah I nailed the EVH solo right in front of MJ on a big ass stage." End of story haha

[MrGuitarXX]

I just got into playing music (guitar). it would be really cool if you guys could watch some of my vids comment and rate. you don't have to subscribe but that would be nice. I really would appreciate it if you could! :) thanks everybody!!!!

[fdbshh]

dude thats not howe, it's a girl called jenifer batten

[Ocelot911]

are you blind

[ponsau]

@fdbshh

No it is Greg Howe. He used to wear that wig for the shows back then.

[Starskylina87]

That's right!!!

[MrSimart]

i really like greg`s music!

[Chyea333]

Perfectly done

[ConnorShawMusic]

perfect hands down..that solo was nailed!!!

[boribf]

Greg is way better than eddie. It's the truth.

[tommyaz13]

no ones better than eddie van halen, if hey was in front of u he would destroy u and make u feel like S&*T

[Jhey172]

Hahahha.....Van Halen is good..But Not The Best.....Shawn Lane,Greg Howe,Frank Gambale,Guthrie Govan,Alex Hutchings, and Joe PAss..Those are Just A Few Of The BEst

[guthriefan777]

Agreed, those are all the great fusion players (Also don't forget Pat Metheny), but to each his own! I remember back in the early 90's EVH stopped by Los Angeles's Musicians Institute and jammed out with Paul Gilbert. Paul totally embarrassed him with his chops, and EV didn't come back again :( I was pissed at Paul because EV was my favorite back then. To me competition belongs in a place of its own. Music can be at its best when players put down their ego's and play together in harmony.

[geebizzle38]

@guthriefan777 love the last line bro, good stuff

[paulefty]

wow this is really insane!!

[rgh97]

who make howe's hair like that?

[irpas07]

@rgh97 it is a wig lol

[wesselbindt]

A genius did, because it's awesome.

[bluesjack82]

Greg can easily sub Jennifer.. Nice wig though.. :D

[HoweGreg]

I am Greg Howe's webmaster...I have posted this before and I will post this again. Yes, this is Greg Howe playing with Michael Jackson. He filled in for Jennifer Batten on the "History Tour" when she had to take a leave of absence. He was on tour with MJ for about 2 to 3 months.

[lcf34]

@HoweGreg Hey this is hell of cool I did not know that! I went to HIStory Lyon concert, do you know who played on this one? Thanks

[LetsLearnSomeGuitar]

@HoweGreg... Oooh! OK, that's why he wore the head gear..that explains it....Greg is the man... much more success to ya Bro!

[dencall]

is that really greg howe or jeniffer banten..?

[enzoangiolini]

Its greg

[scirasco]

howe nails tone everything!!!

[yourtubesteak]

He pretty much nailed it.

[KennyWrightguitarist]

awesome!!!!!

[LetsLearnSomeGuitar]

Greg is/was and will always be truly a pro.

[xaviermoyano]

buenisimo!

[bigdawg030]

people who give negative comments are morons cause EVH wrote the damn solo and he hesitates thru parts of the solo so epic fail!

[ericgenocidex2]

greg made this solo his bitch. GH RULES!

[DubCityNucca]

Mj was a total badass minus the weird sh!t .... Van Halen tore the solo and this one was ok .... I prefer the one with Van Halen and not this guy ...

[CanonPlayer1]

Sure !!

EVH is the best !

[risingwarem]

greg isn't a famous like van halen" but he is well known guitarist cause when the first time i heard his album i didnt knew that he was Michael Jackson's guitarist

greg = one of the best guitarist ever

[Funkster228]

It's a shame he's not more well known!

[siepip]

@Funkster228 greg i s black and after hendrix the door's was closed

vernon reed sliped through the cracks and that's the truth

[c1r1770]

@Funkster228 I know him, it's enough for me... amaazing!!

[KOKOESP1]

greg ...best of best

[DerekSheep]

xD i actually thought that was Jennifer Batten for a sec

[kangtheconqueror]

Ha...I thought it WAS Jenn at first. Howe is a totally awesome player, K.

[JayM1646]

lol @ mike's face in the beginning

RIP MJ

great solo too

[halnataku]

I wonder if I could play the Beat It solo while walking nonchalantly

[ElixiricEssence]

haha.. nonchalantly.. idk.. but true guitarists can play however

[edthehead83]

It's actually kind of fun.

[Andersonjones23]

Humm until today nobody knows where was this show of michael jackson with greg howe in the guitar?

This is a mystery.therefore I lowered several not yet shows of turn History and vi this with greg howe! Somebody knows q city was this show? Person in placed the video knows to say? been thankful

[neverine10]

great playin'

[SlashTheGuitarist]

nice, that must have been MJ's guitarist. The solo was made by Eddie Van Halen though.

[clungepuncher]

wow, you're knowledge is amazing.

[IbanezRG7321]

lol nice hair and playing.

[fimpudentdotcom]

il solo di BEAT IT è un vero tormento nella mia testa

the BEAT IT solo guitar is a real trip in my mind

[hitmanpersonas]

how does greg feel about the dead of michael jackson????

[1madaboutguitar]

Ow wonderful im sure. What a stupid question...

[mounlolol]

probably confused

[inkve]

i wish there were a live nersion of that song with van hallen..

[halleysing]

there is one, but is a little crappy.. i mean, the quality

[shredking001]

there is. its not very good tho

[leomanl]

there is but he comes in to early lol

[argosftw]

wow he absolutely nailed that note for note down to every pinch harmonic

[heartwork1]

yeah hes greg howe.... of course

[ashatan69]

Anyone who doesn't think it's Greg just check his website. It's on there too.

[ehnaumeh]

I Have the show in DVD "Michael Jackson HIStory tour Live in Sydney" and the Greg Howe don't play beat and yes Jennifer Batten!, what dvd have this solo, and how call is? Live in? Thanks

[Jhey172]

Dude learn some proper grammar...And then comment

[1madaboutguitar]

That video ending abruptly made me sad about Micheal

[1Kopernicus1]

Hi, on w w w . never-forget . eu /Michael-Jackson/

everyone can light a light simulating flickering candle for Michael which

will ETERNALLY shine and NEVER goes out!

[Andersonjones23]

Ours wise person q Greg did not have used this equal wig of jennifer battens. But which show of tour of michael History greg howe participated? Somebody knows? I have History tour Munich and Sweden and it do not appear.

[txt7]

no es Eddie Van Halen???

[vicus]

Greg proves to have fun with such a great solo.

[KingTabor]

GH following MJ through the stage - just a foot behind - was that a coreagrophy or just GH playing some joke to the king?

[samycool007]

Really Perfect Solo ! Greg howe you are AWESOME !

[gmangsxr750]

Why the heck is Greg Howe dressed up like Jennifer Batten?

[HoweGreg]

This is Greg Howe's Webmaster....Greg Howe filled in for Jennifer Batten for about 7 weeks on tour and he had to wear this wig, which was part of the costume and was fiber optic :)

[Strepto]

Does he still have the wig and costume as a memento ? :)

[chillichomper]

@HoweGreg Too funny. Poor greg. So nobody noticed that jennifer's playing got really good during that time? Lmao

[pdelao13]

R.I.P Micheal Jackson.

[ClaudioMariola]

Greg and Michael, two huge talents.

RIP Michael

[elerickxD]

REST IN PEACE LORD!

[racabe]

Wow... Now Jackson's gone! I can hardly believe he died! This is a nicel old video of a Guitar God, playing with a Pop, now gone, legend!

[triniguitarman]

RIP MJ.

[NonFlyingDutchman]

HAHHA nice wig. good to see he has a sense of humour.

Howe really nailed this one.. he said he was influenced by EVH as a kid, so I guess he played this solo hundreds of times before.

Imagine a young Greg Howe jamming to VH tunes on a Fender strat... I'd love to hear that.

[Fr3eStyle2]

that was really awkward at the beginning..

[squierhaslofender]

not jennifer batten?

[gebass6]

When i first heard about Greg Howe playing in M.J.'s band,I said"Alright!! Another sell out to Freakin' pop music!I've had about enough of......!"Then I settled down and thought"Well maybe he's using M.J's high visiblity to gain a little more exposure for himself.Actual,he's pretty shrewd.

[lachlan566]

i reakon greg is so under rated he is a fuckin awesome guitarist

[MaciekClockwise]

I think that Greg Howe is among greatest contemporary players (not legends yet).

[eutuxiaMJ]

Michael is legend!!

[naturaltoby]

What a guitar player has to do to get a killer paycheck!!!.....Jennifer Batten had to wear that wig and when she left for a month or 2 Greg had to wear it as well....I'll bet when Greg watches this, he busts a nut laughing!!!

[nyceonthabass]

ya greg howe is fuckin beyond killin

[ZEZIMASboyz]

very good guitarist bt i think the eddie version was better

[riskytim]

It's pretty much the same thing.

[ccy2]

not really...eddie wrote and created the solo. howe merely duplicated it.

[Subliminallll]

Eddie came up with that shit the first take aswell. It's easily one of the most memorable and best solos ever written.

[FalseWitnessScoob]

Wow! Greg Howe fans? Love it!! But the hair? I remember lovin his stuff many years ago. Still a great guitarist!

[sukkyatlife]

only thing bigger than his style is his hair

[Jmozee]

amazing

[pancon5]

Amazing!!

[paketh7]

the best in the world

MR. GOD Howe...

[remnant24]

Nothing beats the original, but this is probably the second best one yet.

[gunsnrev0lver]

no, I'm sorry but Slash has the second best! It kicks ass!! This is also great though.

[RozenTheOne]

Ok... do you realize that, this is Greg Howe right??. He was a metal shredder before, now he's a fusion player (jazz-rock) that only means one thing: music theory at his best and a lot of skill.

[mounlolol]

I don't know about your chronology

introspection was very jazz influenced, and that came from 1993 i think

then think of his 1999 album ascend, that was like entirely neo classical

but yeah hes pretty awesome

[gillan5]

He plays it 100% correct while running across the stage? - Unbelievable.

[wonderdave]

Hi greg, Hi fans! This performance rules! Is it an Ibanez? is it the "Batten"'s wig and.. WHY? is it a contract's term? it's so curious... btw, congratulations, Best solo i've heard!

[rsl84416]

I love the hair

[Lukeyboi14]

isnt this Eddie Van Halen?? or is it a cover by Howe?

[ionGuitarist]

howe played in this tour

[trex257]

I guess Michael couldn't get Jennifer Batten that year and wanted to keep the same look. If I were Greg, yeah it might have felt dorky as hell, until I cashed that big ass paycheck for playing on a Michael Jackson tour. BOOYAAAH!

[DesDrukStiv]

You're so right. We shouldn't disrespect anybody for trying to make a living. except for when they already have all the money in the world which I assume greg doesn't have

[hlmguitarsaxman]

wtf is up with his hair

[guitarttimman]

Greg Howe is awesome but I don't like MJ

[maarcel12]

the hair *.*

[AzraelNY]

you know, you people could at least look to see that this is posted by greg howe himself, sheesh... clearly it is greg howe anyway without that bit of info

[bodybagsband]

what are you say?? HE's GREG HOWE!!!

[Nutszeev]

You can see Greg face in 0:21 - 0:26.

[ciaputa]

jennifer batten!!

[Turboguitarist]

actually this is greg with a giant wig xD

[Bishn0zle]

LMAO bs thats Jen batten...

[espyoshi]

You're an idiot. This came from Gregs Personal Youtube account. It is indeed Greg.

[FischerGibson]

Please correct the title of the video.. The "guy" who plays the solo is actually Jennifer Batten, a woman, and VERY good player.

Thanks

[MellowSong]

its greg, look closer

[2ToneThomas27]

lol this is jennifer batten :S

[hardnitz74]

Perfect!!

[maarcel12]

the solo version from greg is better ;)

[budubum]

hahahaha

[maarcel12]

i love the sound from the guitar *.* Perfect =P

[maarcel12]

greg! You are a guitar god..sry for my bad english^^

[dooombringerrr]

Ha Ha!! Michael made him dress up like Jeniffer Batten. The fuckin pervert.

[mminer58]

Great solo! Didn't Eddie VH play on the original recording? Greg Howe, you is baaaad!

[markiskool92]

how come he looks the same to jenny ?

[rata373]

better that jeny . howe molt bo

[arkantoxic]

someone please tell me

[gre1990]

hahaha

its definetely howe, and thats make this even funnier...

really nice playing, though

[arkantoxic]

where can i find the full video?

[franaller]

floja melena

[MrIndeeply]

Hey HoweGreg where can I find the backing track to your song direct injection I went to your website and I could not find it can you help me out please

[Andrewkafp]

Hey don't go bagging EVH.. He invented a lot of this type of shredding and desreves respect.

[godhacker]

Greatest beat it solo!!! =)

[MrDarinWarren]

I'll bet VH Himself couldn't cover his own solo that well!! haha

[randyrhoadstheking]

he looks ridiculous. probably jacksons idea. great guitar player though

[HoweGreg]

Hey Guys....this is Greg Howe's webmaster! Just wanted to state that this is Greg Howe with Michael Jackson and not Jennifer Batten! They both played with M.J. at some point on the History Tour.