George Michael R.I.P.

i presume his increasingly public sexuality played a big part in his lack of marketing support

Not giving a fuck about how he expressed it was a bigger part.

yeah, that's my meaning

It does seem strange seeing that Freedom '90 only managed number 28 in the UK charts, as at the time it felt somewhat bigger than that

It went top ten in the States but had a much, much larger afterlife, certainly more than the #1 "Praying for Time."

This is basically Britpop, cool that it finally made it to the Isle of Wight I guess (they can keep it)

― o shit the sheriff (NickB), Monday, 13 February 2023 12:25 (forty-three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I don't think I've actually listened to any Wet Leg before seeing this video and I wasn't prepared for how much it looks and sounds like Bis

sorry, wrong thread

wet my leg before you go-go

Wetting For Time

I have no idea what was going on with George's UK singles sales in this era.

Yeah that always puzzled me. I listened to Capital Radio a lot then and all of the LWP singles were played to death...possibly his audience at the time was more rigidly split between 'I'll just get the album' and 'I'll just tape it'.

For those who are interested in radio edits, there was 7" promo single edit of "Freedom '90" tailored for the UK, and it's a much better edit than what was done for the US market:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-zqlgyUkd0

There's basically two edits - a brief one somewhere about a minute in and then a larger one towards the end. I don't think it's ever been released on CD, not even as a promo, but if they ever release another hits compilation - the kind that leans on radio edits just to fit in more tracks - this would be a good one to use.

(instead of "there's basically two edits," I probably should have said "there's basically two sections edited out from the track")

Went to an 80s prom event this weekend and one of the songs that I was ecstatic to dance to with my wife was "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go". Just pure joyous music.

joyous

I mentioned this on the TOTP re-runs thread a while back, but the bit at 30 seconds where George jumps into frame and then a split second later Andrew does too is exactly this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIgZ7gMze7A

Browsing through old coverage on Michael, it's stunning how a lot of people never gave him a chance, at least in the U.S. It's not limited to members of the press, here's Natalie Merchant in 1990 bringing him up when discussing her departure from 10,000 Maniacs:

She said her regard for (10,000 Maniacs) and its music is so strong that it "borders on insanty." But with so many entertainers exuding self-importance, Merchant said she almost feels embarrassed to be associated with them.

She cited George Michael as a prime example of a singer who made it to the top of the music charts by cultivating a sexy, carefree image, and now is longing to be taken seriously as an artist.

"We're talking about a man here who puts his rear end in front of a camera and shakes it around," said Merchant, 26. "When he was in that incredibly hard-to-take-seriously group (Wham!), I remember seeing a picture of him walking on the Great Wall of China and thinking something wasn't quite right.

"He's trying to change his image now because it doesn't suit him anymore. Well, you can't change your philosophy midstream and then expect people to take you seriously. It just doesn't work that way."

This is utterly ridiculous. Even if Wham! really was devoid of merit (and I think their heart was in the right place even on the least of their work) there's an abundance of great artists you could wrongfully dismiss using the same misguided logic.

Hey, we can't all aspire to the deeply mystical visionary artistic heights of (checks notes) Natalie Merchant. Some artists are just about shaking they booty.

(And I say that as a sincere fan both of Natalie and of the Maniacs)

is she quoting him or is he quoting her?

Posing for another picture
Everybody's got to sell
But when you shake your ass
They notice fast
And some mistakes were built to last
That's what you get, that's what you get
That's what you get, I said that's what you get
That's what you get, for changing your mind

cf. rockism

At the time, I was put off by someone who had made a big point of how he had taken control of his own music and image just a couple of years earlier (to the point of directing his own videos) acting as though someone else had made him stand by a jukebox or wear a leather jacket. Not that pop musicians shouldn't change or become more serious, but I thought it was seriously tacky to underline it the way he did, instead of just changing.

bird - what is that Merchant interview? I don't see it online, just curious... thx

Pulled it off NewsBank through my local library's online portal. It's from the Chicago Sun-Times, October 30, 1990.

The Sun-Times critics (mostly Don McLeese who covered him the most) were consistently dismissive, but Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune was pretty supportive. Their reviews for LWP couldn't be more different.

FWIW here's an LA Times review of a 2008 show - I wish I could've caught one:

George Michael really knows his crowd. When he gave some grief to talk-show shrink Dr. Phil McGraw midway through Wednesday's show at the Forum, it seemed like simple celebrity-on-celebrity taunting. In fact, Michael was nodding to some of his most loyal fans.

"Dr. Phil is here," said Michael. "He's here with his wife, who's having a whale of a time. And he's over there making this miserable face. He's been doing it for an hour. I think maybe you should see somebody about that," he joked.

...

Fans tried several times to sing "Happy Birthday" to Michael, who turned 45 Wednesday, before he finally let it happen during his final encore. Actress Bo Derek (of all 1980s icons) brought out what appeared to be a fake cake, and just like on "Careless Whisper" and "Freedom! '90," everybody sang.

Not that pop musicians shouldn't change or become more serious, but I thought it was seriously tacky to underline it the way he did, instead of just changing.

I feel this. At the time, I was little confused about his extreme heel-turn. Like, Faith was a huge hit... what I am supposed to not be "prejudiced" about? Should I be embarrassed for enjoying the jukebox era, now that he's blown it up? It's one thing for an artist to adopt a new style, but another to say – "That old era was silly, and (by implication) it was silly for you to like it."

Christgau:

Listen Without Prejudice: Vol. 1 [Columbia, 1990]
Who has this boy been listening to? Morrissey? Anita Baker? June Christie? Harry Connick Jr.? Whatever the sleazy details, his announced decision to hold off on the dance music till next time half-proves he doesn't know as much about stardom as he thinks, and the ruminations with which he proclaims his seriousness finish the job. As a public figure he's no Bono or Boy George--he's a good-looking, replaceable teenybop idol. So only teenyboppers, and not too damn many of those, are likely to care that he feels demeaned by false fame. It's as a musician that he's won respect, and not even a pop musician--a dance musician. Ironic, isn't it, that the danciest thing here is yoked to (and undercut by) his highly unoriginal thoughts on this matter? And though the McCartneyesque "Heal the Pain" sounds like a hit ballad, most of this cocktail music is no more interesting than the cipher who sings it so "well." I'm betting it doesn't move a quarter of Faith's units, which ought to enhance his appreciation of dance music pronto. C+

To be clear, George Michael recorded serious music in 1983. "Everything She Wants" is serious music. "A Different Corner" and "One More Try" are serious music. LWP and Older aren't without their patches of dead grass, but thirty years after his death and the publicity in 1990-1991 they stand as well-wrought albums with many showcases for that protean voice. I suppose I'll cut Natalie Merchant slack for dismissing him so rudely -- she was in the scrim.

At the time, I was put off by someone who had made a big point of how he had taken control of his own music and image just a couple of years earlier (to the point of directing his own videos) acting as though someone else had made him stand by a jukebox or wear a leather jacket. Not that pop musicians shouldn't change or become more serious, but I thought it was seriously tacky to underline it the way he did, instead of just changing.

― Halfway there but for you

especially since we knew then and especially now to what degree fame obsessed George Michael. No one else wrote and produced his songs after 1983.

Was there a similar snobbishness about, e.g. Bruce Springsteen, writing "serious" records like Nebraska, but also wearing tight jeans and goofing it up and jumping off pianos etc?

Making out with the saxophonist

I speculated on Twitter: I suppose the confidence of stardom -- the confidence of a successful pop career -- gives George Michael's "Fastlove" its spritz, but I want to know why Perfume Genius, Phoebe Bridgers, John Grant, or anyone aren't writing I'm-steppin'-out songs with the bounce of its second half.

Is the bio worth checking out, btw, proofreading notwithstanding?

Little analysis of his music.

Just saw this: Frank Sinatra's "Open Letter To George Michael" from 1990.

http://www.jazzinpopculture.com/details.php?entry_id=60

Apparently a key inspiration for Phil Hartman's Sinatra impression on SNL, with certain phrases appearing verbatim in sketches.

How generous of Sinatra to take time from his schedule to write such a compassionate letter.

In the Freedom doc I think George questions whether it was even Frank's work. He ignored it anyway.

I can kind of understand the thinking of critics at the time - the blueprint for a successful long pop career back then was Michael Jackson/Madonna who stuck firmly to the dancefloor and a young fanbase, while the record biz was littered with the smoldering husks of the careers of other teenpop stars that had tried to reposition themselves as serious artists. But George Michael was no Boy George, Bros, Cyndi Lauper, A-Ha, Adam Ant, Kim Wilde or Rick Astley.

Does a-ha belong on that list?

Michael Jackson and Madonna did (try to) get serious, their attempts were just more widely accepted than the also-ran's.

Apparently a key inspiration for Phil Hartman's Sinatra impression on SNL, with certain phrases appearing verbatim in sketches.

Disappointingly, it's not the source of "I've got chunks of guys like you in my stool!"

(I don't think Sinatra ever said that, but if he did that would be hilarious)

Also Sinatra wasn't gay, and that might have been a huge part of George's problem with celebrity.

People aren't gay enough imo

Don we now our insufficiently gay apparel

The new Wham! documentary on Netflix is really good imo, paints a good picture of their friendship & George’s struggles

Will be seeing it tomorrow or Saturday for sure.

so much excellent footage! many quality pairs of neon short shorts

Well, if you're gonna do it...

I think someone needs to write a short novel/film about Lindsay Anderson and Wham! in China in 1985

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/jul/07/dead-dogs-capitalist-critique-and-only-four-songs-when-wham-squashed-lindsay-andersons-china-film

We enjoyed the documentary tremendously, especially my wife who was/is a massive Wham!/George Michael fan. It was really amazing how they made it through with their friendship relatively intact given the diverging interests the Wham! journey and Michael's solo career presented.