Rodney Lynn "Rod" Temperton (born 1947 in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England) is an English songwriter, record producer and musician most famous for writing a number of songs performed by Michael Jackson, including the title track of Jackson's Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time. As Temperton remembers music was in his bones from an early age; " My father wasn't the kind of person who'd read you a story before you went off to sleep - he used to put a transistor radio in the crib, right on the pillow, and I'd go to sleep listening to Radio Luxemburg and I think that had an influence." Temperton attended the De Aston School in Market Rasen and he formed a group for the school's music competitions. He was a drummer at this time. " I'd get in the living room with my snare drum and my cymbal and play along to the Test Card, which was all kinds of music they'd be playing continuously." On leaving school he started working in the office of a frozen food company in Grimsby. ...show more

Rodney Lynn "Rod" Temperton (born 1947 in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England) is an English songwriter, record producer and musician most famous for writing a number of songs performed by Michael Jackson, including the title track of Jackson's Thriller, the biggest-selling album of all time. As Temperton remembers music was in his bones from an early age; " My father wasn't the kind of person who'd read you a story before you went off to sleep - he used to put a transistor radio in the crib, right on the pillow, and I'd go to sleep listening to Radio Luxemburg and I think that had an influence." Temperton attended the De Aston School in Market Rasen and he formed a group for the school's music competitions. He was a drummer at this time. " I'd get in the living room with my snare drum and my cymbal and play along to the Test Card, which was all kinds of music they'd be playing continuously." On leaving school he started working in the office of a frozen food company in Grimsby.

He soon became a full-time musician however, a keyboard player now, and played in several dance bands, and this took him to Worms in Germany. In 1972 Temperton and guitarist Bernd Springer formed a soul cover band called Sundown Carousel. With Temperton on an old Hammond organ the band performed in clubs and GI bars in cities such as Mannheim.[citation needed] In 1974 he answered an advert in Melody Maker placed by Johnnie Wilder, Jr. and so became a member of the popular funk/disco band, Heatwave which Wilder was putting together at the time.

"He was the first British guy that I had ever met personally. He spoke kind of funny but he had a good sense of humour and he was a very friendly guy. After meeting him and then seeing him play I kind of determined he was a good enough player and entertainer and I just knew he would fit in the group", said Wilder. Temperton played tunes he had been composing to Johnny Wider, Jr. ...show less