There have been some random GM threads lately, about the DVD, or whatever, but I figured maybe we should just have an ongoing thread about him.

Frankly, I cannot stop watching the Live In London DVD. For whatever reason, I usually get about 2-3 viewings in a week. I might just have it on while doing things around the house, or I might actually sit and watch the concert, or the I'd Know Him A Mile Off documentary.

I got to going through his discography last night in my iTunes, and just enjoyed anything that came on. I think I might actually rate him a tiny bit above Prince on my Top Male Artists list. Just a tad.

Here he is covering Adamski's "Killer", and Stevie's "As" with Mary J. Blige (awesome video). He used to do a lot of Stevie songs for sound checks, and on tours. If you think about it, he's in that same vocal range, and style at times.


Random Prince connection: On the Cover To Cover tour, he once covered Soul II Soul's "Back To Life", and had Sheila E.'s good pal Lynn Mabry (with whom she's a business partner - she also sang on Sheila's Heaven album). Of course Lynn was also in Sly & The Family Stone, and later in P-Funk, Brides of Funkenstein. She also joined Talking Heads for Stop Making Sense.

Discuss.

...wasn't he arrested by the police in a public restroom? What was that all about?

IshmaelB said:

Whoa, somebody's making a George Michael appreciation thread...


and it's not me?!

I'm really gonna miss him.

He was so awesome on the Sports Machine!!!

R.I.P. George.

I absolutely adore George Michael. He was my first musical *love*... saw him in Dallas on the 25 Live tour, wish I was seeing him in Australia next month. Fantastic artist! One of the best live vocalists -ever-, and for sure one of the greatest singer/songwriters to ever live.

My favorite song and video of ALL TIME belongs to him:

Excellent vocalist. Although not a huge fan, I am always amazed that his albums post "Faith" (or even Listen without Prejudice) are criminally ignored by the masses. I have the hits compilation, but by all accounts, everyone says "Older" is a great album as well. Where should I start?

Additionally, he always brings his A game when covering songs of other artists. He was great during the Freddie Mercury Tribute, "I Can't Make You Love Me" and his rendition of "The Long and Winding Road" is superior to the original (IMHO).

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

Why not start at the beginning? Faith and LWP are both classics, Older is great, and Patience is good (very good at times). I'm not really a fan of Songs from the Last Century.

AlexdeParis said:

I have Faith and LWP. Its the albums after that I have no idea on, but I'll definitely start with your suggestions

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

Well, there's only three of them, so you don't have that many choices.

Which hits compilation do you have?

The best living singer. Nobody could sing like him! What a great voice, very much similar to voice Freddie Mercury had Shame that his lifestyle is fucked up right now

AlexdeParis said:

Ladies & Gentleman Best of George Michael

Love George and have since I first saw him on Solid Gold I guess it was doing Young Guns. He is one of my top favorite artists and I only recently got to see him in concert and it was some of the best fun I've had at a show.

I still don't have the Live in Londond DVD.

I think his videos are as enjoyable to my eyes as his voice is to my ears.
I have so many favorite songs I won't bother to list them... well, here are some off the cuff:

Praying for Time
Cowboys and Angels
John and Elvis are Dead
Fastlove also fave video
Spinning the Wheel
Cars and Trains
As

my favorite ever from him



and from him recently



and from wham

^^^My Mother Had A Brother always makes me misty.

"Heal The Pain" is my all-time fave from him. I just love that song.

And my favorite Wham! song is "A Different Corner."

He has such a great voice.

Sometimes, I put on "Wham Rap" after a sucky day at work and yell, "Enjoy what you do!"

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

That's a great set, but also try to find the 3-disk edition of TwentyFive. Again the disks are divided into three different types of songs. The 2-disk DVD set is very comprehensive, although it's still missing a couple of Wham! songs. Both sets are worth having.

ernestsewell said:

Cool, gonna check it out. What is your opinion of his cover of "The Long & Winding Road" ? His vocals capture the song in a much more haunting manner than the original. Is this on any album?

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

I agree with AlexDeParis - just go in order. His albums really do tell what he's going through at the time. Older really reflects a lot of pain in his life, with the death of his boyfriend Anselmo, and his mum. He was also strongly in the midst of his fight w/ Sony/Epic. He wanted out of his contract because he felt his last album, Listen Without Prejudice Vol 1 wasn't promoted properly, nor did they promote his charity project like the Red Hot + Aids compilation (which is the only real album "Too Funky" was ever on until Ladies and Gentlemen, The Best Of), and that they were squelching him. He vowed to never release any "new" material to Sony if he lost the lawsuit. He sort of kept his word on that one. He was active in the business with covers and duets, but "Outside" was the only new song for Sony, and that was on the Ladies and Gentlemen compilation.

Go to the Wiki page about Older, and read up on it. Also, don't forget the Five Live EP.

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

Agreed. If you dig around online, there are a lot of live outtakes, many of which are Stevie Wonder songs, plus songs from Chaka Khan, Soul II Soul, and lots others. I think the full audio to the Unplugged show is out there as well. I've also found audio for the Faith Tour in Paris, and a 25Live show in Milan.

JackieBlue said:

GET THAT DVD! I often wonder how sound differs on a regular DVD mix and a BluRay. (I know that VHS and DVD mixes were drastically different, and I've bought both to have both mixes - case in point Janet Jackson's Velvet Rope Tour).

The only thing I miss on the DVD is "Star People '97". He did it on the tour, but it's not on the DVD. There are three bonus songs on the DVD from those last two shows he did at Earl's Court (they weren't the last two of the tour, as he still had Wembley dates, and other dates). I've had fun, being the geek I am, finding the edits they did between those two shows they filmed for the DVD. There are times he's in one spot, and a split second later, he's 50 feet away. I can't stop watching the damn thing, just for the sheer spectacle of it!

GM rules, big time!

I got his Live in London Blue-Ray the day it came out and nearly wore it out, it's an amazing show!!!

Saw him in Cologne in 2006 and had tickets to see him in Nuremberg in 2007, but the show was cancelled just a few days before

Maybe he'll change his mind after those few gigs next month in Australia and will continue touring.

His last release, December Song, was great also!

George Michael

I love love his voice

One of popular music's best gifts these past 25 years. I'm glad he never sold his integrity. Always loved this cat's music...Gotta respect him setting his own rules. I remember when him, Prince and Michael each got their own revelations about the industry. Speaking of which, who raged against the machine first out of this bunch? I think Michael's didn't come until he was pissed with Sony's promotion or the lack thereof for "Invincible." Prince and GM's were both in the early 90's right? I'm sure there's better historians on here than me.....

By the way....I still got the cassette release of "Faith". Yeah, that's right, the cassette tape. Major upgrade needed I know but....GM is my dude.