Hot damn! Everybody let's play the GEORGE MICHAEL TRACKS POLL results thread

spotify playlist

17 ballots, 73 tracks voted for, one awesome countdown

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40. I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)
61 points, three votes
single with Aretha Franklin, 1987

Well, that's a start.

I'm...surprised she let him touch her.

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39. Star People
61 points, three votes
from Older, 1996

did you count "star people 97" as a separate vote or group em together

Grouped together. There was actually a three-way tie for no.38, but there's no room for ties in this poll (except at joint no.21).

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38. Older
61 points, three votes
from Older, 1996

I'm going to aim for 20 tonight and 20 tomorrow, and see how we get on. I was initially going to limit it to a top thirty, but 31-40 seemed pretty interesting to me - lots of tracks that haven't had much attention, other than the Aretha number.

Voted for both 39 and 38. I wonder if the other two voters were also the same people :)

I didn't specify on my ballot, but I was probably voting for Star People '97 too.

No overlap between the voters, the poll's integrity remains intact.

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37. Flawless (Go To The City)
68 points, three votes
from Patience, 2005

Damn, George looked his best between 1990-1993.

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36. Hand to Mouth
73 points, three votes
from Faith, 1987

cover his chin and that could be Bono there

Kudos for the manipulated Fairlight breaths in "Hand to Mouth." He does sultry well.

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35. I Want Your Sex
77 points, three votes, one number one vote
from Faith, 1987

three votes!!!

That seems right to me, I never liked it much. I like it a lot better now but I still wouldn't call it a GM Classic.

Somebody asked in the voting thread why he hit a (relative) trough in the UK through Faith and LWP. This was the lead single from Faith, which might explain it to some extent - it was definitely frowned upon here. I don't know whether it was the same in other countries, or that was just us being uptight?

What!! There goes my #1 lol

I don't know whether it was the same in other countries, or that was just us being uptight?

there's things that you get and things that you don't

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34. Something to Save
85 points, four votes
from Listen Without Prejudice, vol.1, 1990

unexpected!

ha wow everyone hates I Want Your Sex. well played ilx, didn't make my 20.

surprised Something to Save is this low.. oh well :D

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33. Shoot The Dog
88 points, four votes
from Patience, 2005

It's one of my favourites, this. I find it super-infectious and bubbly. The production all over Patience is pretty cool.

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32. The Strangest Thing
89 points, six votes
from Older, 1996

So many great sounds on Shoot The Dog.. Love his voice in the verses and the chorus is very charming

A very curious voting pattern for The Strangest Thing - it finished last or just-about-last in five of those six ballots.

also, block out the eyes and there's something Cobain-y about that pic

I'm a fan of ILM but it has disgraced itself on this next one...

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31. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)
97 points, four votes
from Fantastic, 1983

You mean it's too high?

Certainly not. That said I could only find room for it at the foot of my own ballot.

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29=. The Edge of Heaven
99 points, five votes
single, 1986

I've never been sure if this was a stand-alone single or an album track, or a track that was lobbed onto a post-facto album, or what. Anyway, it's also too low.

Here in North America it was released as a single from their 3rd album Music From the Edge of Heaven. I think in the rest of the world it was part of a singles compilation called The Final.

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29=. Cars and Trains
99 points, five votes
from Patience, 2005

I had no idea this was going to place, but it picked up a lot of votes on the last day. I'm not hearing the special appeal of it tbh.

I checked to see whether it had even been mentioned on ILM before this poll, and suspecting that it hadn't, but I was pleased to see Josh In Chicago putting up a strong defence of it back in 2005.

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28. A Ray Of Sunshine
101 points, four votes, one number one vote
from Fantastic, 1983

I'm shocked to see Hand to Mouth so low. That's always been my favourite song on Faith.

Something to Save is just lovely. Probably my favourite vocal of his.

Happy and surprised to see Cars & Trains this high. Love the production and his delivery of some of the lyrics are so classic. "Johnny's gone and got himself a new man, he gets laid, every day". Brilliant stuff.

I don't remember anything about Ray of Sunshine. I don't know the Wham albums well apart from the singles.

It's fabulous. Whenever it comes on my headphones, I just can't keep from strutting.

I'm getting into Cars & Trains a bit more now. It's really nice actually - very slinky. I think it's the answerphone message at the beginning that put me off.

You're right anyway, the vocal is terrific. I love the "Oh, Johnny" at 1:56 - it's quite unGeorge. It reminds me of some other singer, but I can't quite my finger on who it is.

It's R Kelly! At 3:02 in Three-Way Phone Call. They're not actually particularly similar, but that little phrase led me into mind-mashing the two.

Slinky is definitely the word I'd use to describe Cars & Trains. If he ever bothers to make another album, I hope it's a whole album of songs like Cars & Trains and Precious Box. Those styles really suit him.

I'll have to re-listen to the Wham albums. Ray of Sunshine is indeed fantastic. That bass line is so good.

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27. Kissing A Fool
102 points, five votes
from Faith, 1987

Tasty Avalanches remix of Ray Of Sunshine

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=63SkCbwp1os

xp This is one of a couple of photos where George reminds me a little bit of Wayne Rooney. He's had better looks.

Oh wow, he really does look like him there. Scary.

Kissing a Fool was the last song I cut from my list. Voting in this poll made me realise just how much more I enjoy Listen Without Prejudice over Faith. I always thought Faith was my favourite album of his.

That Avalanches mix is killer, thanks. Loving the QPR shirt in the clip - Andrew inevitably rocking the authentic 80s short shorts too.

Much as I love it, Kissing A Fool should never have been a single. Baffling they didn't go with Hard Day; that seemed to be the more obvious choice and there were radio promos and remixes made (for US only?).

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26. Killer/Papa Was A Rollin' Stone
104 points, five votes
from the Five Live EP, 1993

Love "Kissing A Fool", his vocals are flawless. It was in my Top 5.

Personally I thought he looked better in the Wham! days. I was never into his daddy look from Faith onwards.

Had no idea this would place. I don't think I've heard it since 1993.

I always thought this whole EP was a joint George Michael & Queen effort, but I can't see what they'd be doing on it. I see it's down as being recorded live at Wembley Arena rather than Wembley Stadium - I assume he kept them well away from it.

Anyway I'm falling asleep here, and running out of battery to boot. I'll stop at 25 for now, and pick it back up tomorrow.

Sounds good. Great rundown so far. I've had so much fun listening to all his stuff again over the last couple of weeks because of this poll.

Yeah seconded.

It's fabulous. Whenever it comes on my headphones, I just can't keep from strutting.

Were you the number one?

Somehow I never knew "Killer..." was from a live EP and I had always thought the crowd noises were added for effect. I was out of the country in 93 and wasn't really following pop culture, but I heard it on the radio a lot. I voted for it.

Let us pause to remember Michael Buble's version of "Kissing a Fool."

A Ray Of Sunshine was my no.4 I think. The only thing that lets down the earlier Wham stuff is a certain thinness to the production. It doesn't have the craft that kicked in a year or so later, but it makes up for it by being full of life.

here's a choice youtube comment for "Killer..."

Anthony Lucasfor 2 months ago
I loved him in ER and Oceans Eleven. What an actor! And now I see he sings too.

enjoying the rollout so far, good work

thoughts:

Flawless is such a jam

Something to Save reminds me of the Smiths

Vocals on Shoot the Dog are genius

They really are. It almost feels pointless to say the vocals on x or y are brilliant, because I can't think of any track where he doesn't absolutely nail it. True Faith, maybe.

True that

does everyone who has voted for Flawless know the original?

I do not. Checking it out now. It's ... fairly similar.

As in: it's that track ft George Michael. He brings a hell of a lot to it in fairness - there's many a decent house track could turn into something spectacular with that degree of care & attention.

/It's fabulous. Whenever it comes on my headphones, I just can't keep from strutting./

Were you the number one?

No that was me. Played the first album to death when it came out. Only went back to it because of the poll and found the singles less likable than the other tracks. Hence no wham rap or bad boys on my list. Young guns placed as I love the ending. The beginning of NLTSITL is great too. Turrrn the music up...

I was a huge fan of The Ones' original version of Flawless before GM came out with his rendition. I didn't vote for it here because it's always felt more like theirs than his to me since I first fell in love with the original.

Same here.

at the time I thought it was a bit weird that GM did a cover of a house song, these days I just think his version is great in its own right

he's a good cover artist, look forward to seeing how high ICMYLM will place

I also appreciate it now, but it did feel weird at the time especially since The Ones' track had only been out for a year or two. He basically just put vocals over it, but then again why not. I'm sure there's other examples. Beyoncé's "Run The World" comes to mind.

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25. I'm Your Man
106 points, five votes
single, 1985

not anymore

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24. Hard Day
109 points, five votes
from Faith, 1987

This ended up being the only Faith cut to make my ballot

TOO LOW:

39. Star People
35. I Want Your Sex
29. The Edge of Heaven
25. I'm Your Man

TOO HIGH:

31. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)
26. Killer/Papa Was A Rollin' Stone

Not a massive fan of I'm Your Man. It's probably my least favourite Wham single.

Hard Day is a good one. Always thought it was his attempt to do something similar to Scritti Politti's Cupid & Psyche.

"hard day" is wayyyyyyyyyyyy too low

if you're gonna do it do it right

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23. Amazing
116 points, seven votes
from Patience, 2005

i think it's amazing!

wasn't able to post during the rundown yesterday so:

"i knew you were waiting (for me)": i didn't vote for this but i think i should've? i mean it's the emptiest glossiest waiting room narada michael walden production holding together a grooveless faux-gospel song and it's somehow totally thrilling regardless, prob, i'm guessing, bc of aretha and george
"older": didn't vote for this either and, like most of the singles from older, i'm stunned that it was a single and was successful in a ton of markets. to its credit i can't ever decide what the chorus is, there are like five. beautiful muted trumpet playing too
"star people": the original is still kind of inaccessible to me and feels weirdly mean, though it grooves; the single version is a rave up
"flawless": yesssss. love the original, was surprised when i listened to patience for the first time last week that it was that "flawless." tbh i was worried that no patience tracks beyond "amazing" would place.

i get how it maybe felt weirdly pointless at the time that george would sing over a year-old house song but he just stacks incredible melodies and harmonies on top of it

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21=. Club Tropicana
122 points, seven votes
from Fantastic, 1983

where's 22

21 is a tie. I didn't put the = sign on the pic for fear of diluting the purity of the image.

Club Tropicana is so classic. Those harmonies! That video!

Starting to worry that Precious Box missed out. Can't see it being higher than some of the songs that have already placed.

They got absolutely pilloried for it didn't they? In my mind it couldn't be as vacuous as was believed, so it had to be a critique of Sun City or somewhere like that (if there was anywhere 'like that'). Wikipedia elevates it to a satire on Club 18-30, which'll do I suppose.

The video does a great job of capturing how joyful the song is. I love it.

ahh ok :)

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21=. Monkey
122 points, six votes
from Faith, 1987

what kind of club serves drinks for free?

AYAYAYAYAYAYA

All that's missing is the sea,
But don't worry, you can suntan!

Always thought suntanning was a very poor replacement for the sea...

nonsense lyrics, great song

the Jan & Lewis remix of "Monkey" is one of the pinnacle of Western civ.

pinnacles too

I haven't managed to get all the images done, so I'll do another few and leave the top fifteen or so for tomorrow. Right now we move into the top twenty, with what might be George's finest vocal performance...

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20. Jesus to a Child
146 points, seven votes
from Older, 1996

I loved "I'm Your Man" when it came out, I thought the chorus was really exciting. Now it kind of feels like he was trying to make "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" part 2. Does anybody remember the extended mix that had that weird high pitch spoken part in the middle?

I had no idea "Monkey" was more liked than "I Want Your Sex". I don't hate it, but it's not my favorite.

Half the time I remember to play it I think it's pretty and boring.

"Jesus to a Child," that is

"hand to mouth": i guess this is gonna place under "look at your hands" but i prefer it in terms of underrated faith side 2 jams, the climbing/descending synth throughout, etc.
"i want your sex": i LOVE this song but it was pushed off my ballot at the last minute. part 2 really enhances part one by accessing the stevie wonder jam buried within the v stiff (heh) electro funk song
"something to save": my least favorite song on lwp (it's just melodically very narrow) but beautifully sung, very beatles-y too with the sudden cello flourishes
"shoot the dog": what a fuckin weird song
"the strangest thing": the only song i regretted not voting for, it also got pushed off my ballot at the last minute. george's best "boring" song; the house-y remix he made for the single is very nice but doesn't really add anything essential, the original is so full of smoke

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19. Young Guns (Go For It!)
150 points, six votes, one number one
from Fantastic, 1983

This always seemed like the weakest of the early singles, but I absolutely adored the Top Of The Pops performance posted on the voting thread and I love the track now. Bad Boys has taken its place as the runt for me now.

I've never heard Club Fantastic Megamix though

TOO LOW

when i was putting together my ballot i didn't listen to fantastic which is a shame bc i would've hella voted for "ray of sunshine," holy shit

I'm still trying to confirm that he's actually saying "This young gun says abortion pays" at the end of the second set of verses. That's how I've heard it all these years and no one believes me.

Either way, filthy pleasure.

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Thursday, September 8, 2005 6:24 PM (eleven years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

So Hard Day could be the highest non single?

i was like "hard day was a single!!!! i bought a copy of it a few years ago!!!!" but turns out that was just a promo single for the shep pettibone mix

I finally get Andrew Ridgeley's function: besides being the crucial inspiration for starting Wham!, he and Michael's camaraderie looks unforced and I can believe they remain good friends.

he made George more human and -- crucially when it was needed -- hetero.

I'll give a quick shout-out to Pepsi and Shirley here - they had a small but important part to play too.

As a closeted kid in the 80's I always knew me he wasn't hetero, with or without Andrew.

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18. Precious Box
155 points, seven votes
from Patience, 2005

YEAH

Patience is the only album I wasn't that familiar with before voting so this poll is helping me discover it. Nice to see a lot of people are into it.

Thanks to Brad and this thread for leading me to this fantastic song that I've played all week.

jeez why didn't i put "amazing" higher, everything about it is...amazing

19. Young Guns (Go For It!)

Too high.

patience is one of the best sounding records i've ever heard

Of course it was Dee And Shirley until Make It Big.

patience is one of the best sounding records i've ever heard

It's true. Because it's in the middle of his prolonged standards phase, it took me a long time to realise that it's got barely any MOR to it at all.

I think he means the mix. It's true -- for an early dance '00s record it has surprising warmth and fullness; it reminds me of EBTG's Temperamental.

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17. Outside
157 points, seven votes
single, 1998

yes I've been bad

I found the redhead here very enchanting. I still do.

Lord, how I adore Outside. It was my no.3.

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16. Heal the Pain
157 points, seven votes, one number one
from Listen Without Prejudice vol.1, 1990

That'll do for tonight. He's scuppered my screenshots plan for no.20 down, hence him and Macca up there (they redid Heal the Pain as a duet at some point) - I'd forgotten that the LWP tracks had no videos.

whoa that's pretty high for "heal the pain"!

It's a pretty song.

god "jesus to a child" is so beautiful. i didn't vote for it, and if i had voted for a pretty bossa nova-y george track it would've been "you have been loved," but wow

Hooray for Precious Box which was my number three. What a gorgeous song. The strings are everything.

I was hoping Outside would make the top 10. I love everything about that song. He handled that whole situation so perfectly.

I voted for "Heal the Pain."

i did too i think

oh wait nope, it got cut :\

I'm guessing "Mother's Pride" won't make it. An odd song for him to record in 1990, as if he was trying for respectability with a protest song, then it actually got airplay during the Gulf war.

i voted for "mother's pride" really high, it's sooooooooooooo beautiful

you are doing an excellent job Ismael Klata! don't know George Michael too well outside the singles, so this is an education. thanks for the Spotify as well.

I finally get Andrew Ridgeley's function: besides being the crucial inspiration for starting Wham!, he and Michael's camaraderie looks unforced and I can believe they remain good friends.

― The burrito of ennui (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 21 September 2016 21:29 (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

he made George more human and -- crucially when it was needed -- hetero.

― The burrito of ennui (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 21 September 2016 21:30 (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I'll give a quick shout-out to Pepsi and Shirley here - they had a small but important part to play too.

― Ismael Klata, Wednesday, 21 September 2016 21:32 (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I've been thinking about this non-exchange, and about the significance of Wham! being a band, rather than George starting off as a solo act. I think it's crucial - imagine the strain on him had he been this ultra-talented 22-year-old sole-centre of the nation's' attention, with a *dark secret*. It was evidently too much to bear when he did take it on, with five years' experience, and then he went off the rails often enough in later years anyway.

Also, I was only a kid at the time and too young to be really paying attention - but it did feel to me like Wham! were *an event*, rather than one-guy-plus-a-backdrop. It must have really helped.

Yeah, whether or not Ridgeley had much creative input, having two guys introduces a very different dynamic than a solo act

I #1'd Heal the Pain, a simple and beautiful song, quite an eye opener in the period a few years back when I got proper into GM

Has a good message imo

Are we getting more tracks today Ismael?

in the meantime..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRcAqItYydc

We are xp. It's a tight schedule but I'm planning to take it all the way down to no.1

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15. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
163 points, six votes, one number one vote
from Make It Big, 1984

should've been #2. This song is a delight and I've never gotten tired of it and y'all are invited to my A+ karaoke rendition but you gotta buy me shots

Never even considered voting for it. I heard it today and was staggered at how good it is.

JITTERBUG

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14. Freedom
164 points, eight votes
from Make It Big, 1984

at #14????

i couldn't fit "freedom" on my ballot but i am also surprised it's not top ten

15. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go

Ha, too low! Me and this song have a long history.

'Freedom' also too low.

Freedom's single mix is ever-so-slightly different from the Make It Big mix; the piano in the verses etc. it pops more than the album version. there's no mention that i can see anywhere of the mixes being different but you can really tell. this was just 'a thing' in the mid to late 80s it seems; giving the radio mixes a lick and polish.

and yeah Freedom.. way too low!

I should here express my gratitude to the electorate - bar one ordering query, I never had to clarify any of the ballots.

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13. Cowboys and Angels
185 points, eight votes
from Listen Without Prejudice, vol.1, 1990

incredible song

The bass

yeah you're right, it was a proper 'stop you in your tracks' record for me, never heard anything like it before or since. a flop single too; didn't go near the charts.

Freedom's single mix is ever-so-slightly different from the Make It Big mix; the piano in the verses etc. it pops more than the album version. there's no mention that i can see anywhere of the mixes being different but you can really tell. this was just 'a thing' in the mid to late 80s it seems; giving the radio mixes a lick and polish.

― piscesx, Thursday, September 22, 2016 8:23 PM (eight minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

It's in mono, too.

Wow these all seem very low, but I guess we're left with mostly huge hits now.

Alfred I'll but the shots if you let me sing "Wake Me Up" with you.

xp yeah i just read that.. weird. i wonder of that was 'a thing' too?

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12. Praying for Time
189 points, eight votes
from Listen Without Prejudice, vol.1, 1990

xpost:

Nah, definitely not - if anything, the appearance of new monophonic recordings were very unusual at that time. In a way, it makes sense that the track is in mono, though, given how the song is stylistically.

"Praying for Time" was another shock when released: it zoomed up to #1 in the United States but plummeted quickly, whereupon programmers took to "Freedom '90" almost out of relief.

I'm not fond of it as anything more than defiant gesture but given my increased political engagement I appreciate the resources that Michael pours into THE RICH DECLARE THEMSELVES POOOOAHH/THE REST OF US ARE NOT SUUURE

there's a bit on the 1990 South Bank Show docu where he goes through it line by line explaining each. i almost cringed myself inside out watching it.

I need to see that.

What do you think about George's political engagement? I was a little bit surprised, running through the catalogue, at how big-themey he is. Religion appears a lot, there's economic stuff, they did miners' benefits ... even Young Guns or Wham Rap do kids' politics in their way. It seems a bit unfair that they had the reputation as being the epitome of vacuity.

http://s19.postimg.org/59ngi2kwz/11_Waiting.jpg

11. Waiting for that Day
228 points, ten votes
from Listen Without Prejudice, vol.1, 1990

I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW YOU HEAR THESE WORDS THAT I SAY!

This song should've been #1 for three weeks.

And it's more poignant than "You Can't Always Get What You Want."

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10. Last Christmas
231 points, eleven votes
single, 1984

THIS YEAR

i guess you can't argue with the political stuff even though the way he expressed it was often cack-handed. no more so than Ronnie Talk To Russia though or whatever.

that 1990 South Bank Show in question FYI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmcJnVi30KQ

He must make so much money from this song every year. In 100 years people will still be playing it.

The only Xmas song to truly ever have my heart. I even find myself listening to the pudding mix year round.

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9. Too Funky
232 points, ten votes, one number one vote (mine!)
single from Red, Hot + Dance, 1992

YESSSSSSS

too high!

pfft nah

it is def too funky though

Not high enough more like

It's fantastic and actually made me discover "Somebody Else's Guy" back in the day.

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8. Faith
235 points, ten votes
from Faith, 1987

One thing about Too Funky - is the sound at the start lifted from the Pet Shop Boys' One More Chance? It's only a piano drag, but they sound identical to me.

I like 'Too Funky', but not only is it too high but it isn't funky enough. 'Faith' also too high!

I had to compare, and it's higher pitched in "Too Funky". (x-post)

Faith, Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go and Freedom are songs I've heard so many times I take them for granted how good they are. I didn't even consider voting for them.

I was hoping Cowboys & Angels would sneak into the top 10. Such an incredible song. Shame it was the first song he released that missed the top 40 in the UK.

I didn't have Praying For Time on the first list I made but after listening to LWP a couple of times it ended up going in my top 10. Not an obvious lead single at all.

I hope there's never a Christmas when I don't love hearing Last Christmas. That song is absolute perfection.

I don't believe I've ever heard a busker playing Faith. It feels like I should've. I heard one playing some Steely Dan a few weeks ago; I'd be surprised if they didn't keep a bit of George in their repertoire.

Primal Scream's Movin On Up ripped Faith off but Faith *blates* ripped off Close To Me by The Cure.

Just realised that Freeek probably isn't going to place now is it?

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7. A Different Corner
246 points, eleven votes, one number one vote
single, 1986

I love Waiting For That Day.. Not sure if this clip was posted earlier
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNS4xJRlMlM
Great dancing too

I can think of 7 songs that are a lock and yeah "Freeek" isn't one of them. (x-post)

what do y'all think of "A Different Corner" as confession by a gay man in love with a friend?

I tend to forget how unusual "Faith" was in 1987. One of the shorter #1s too.

A Different Corner is one of the most beautiful number one singles ever. I love it more and more as the years go by.

My mother-in-law and I were singing it together at the weekend. It'd've been her no.1, had she voted.

"Faith" really *was* unusual at the time, especially after "I Want Your Sex". Great at karaoke too! (x-post)

ADC as confession - it might well be that, but there are some songs that demand that sort of reading and I wouldn't say it was one of them. It *does* sound very specific though.

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6. Fastlove
312 points, fourteen votes, one number one vote
from Older, 1996

I didn't think so either; it was a suspicion based on the longing. It didn't seem particularly...masculine? Hetero?

Anyway, Marcello:

The giveaway comes in the lines, “I would promise you all of my life/But to lose you would cut like a knife/So I don’t dare.” In other words, he loves his best friend (“‘Cos I’ve never come close in all of these years/You are the only one to stop my tears”) but he loves him that way also, and he is tortured because he cannot bring himself to tell him (his “I’m so scared” is the reddest of excoriating wounds) – the same subtext compelled to remain within the shadows of “Johnny Remember Me” and “Have I The Right?” The music’s careful placidity is a striking counterpart to his agonised voice – and where does that “And if all that there is, is this feeling of being used” come in, when really it’s the paralysing fear of rejection that prevents him from getting close to his desired Other but also stops him from moving away; the torture of lifelong compromise – “I should go back to being lonely and confused/If I could…I would…I swear.” Then his unheard pledge also echoes into the far horizon, just as the man retreats into the greenery, walking away…in silence.

that "So I don't dare," coupled with the oceans-of-sound production is wayyyyyyy too histrionic for het feeling. It just doesn't code as a man too afraid to approach a woman.

was convinced A Different Corner had a chance for number 1

http://s19.postimg.org/jp5dgyxyb/5_Try.jpg

5. One More Try
313 points, eleven votes, two number one votes
from Faith, 1987

oh god this song

another one where the gay overtones are as loud as a snare drum

#1 R&B in America -- a rare thing then and now

I was convinced this one had a chance for #1. I thought ballads were boring when I was a kid, but I loved this. Again, his voice is just untouchable.

Wow, I assumed Fastlove would be number one. I was the number one vote. Genius song.

God I still swoon every time I hear him sing "Just trying to find some peace…" in One More Try

YES! 'Fastlove' in the Top 10, as it should be. Should have been Top 5, IMO.

'Fastlove' actually would have been my number one if I'd bothered to vote.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B5F1ihUIYAAm363.jpg

Always used to be amused at the 'FONY' part in the video.

FONY is so classic

http://s19.postimg.org/awoetactf/4_Whisper.jpg

4. Careless Whisper
333 points, fourteen votes
single, and from Make It Big, 1985

I didn't vote for CW lol

Now that I've been harping on this, I'll admit: watching George Michael in this video was my first stirrings of homolust.

Haha probably one of mine too. This is another song that will be heard 100 years from now. Doesn't get much more classic than this.

There aren't many moments in music that I love as much as the climax of Careless Whisper. The bit where he sings, "We could have been so good together, we could have lived this dance forever, But no one's gonna dance with me, please stay" is just incredible.

The Ben Folds and Rufus Wainwright cover of this is one of my favourite covers ever https://youtu.be/Q01WCVrgQaU

"Careless Whispers" is the only George Michael song I think is genuinely great, surprised it didn't hit #1 (I did not vote in this poll)

I'm not mad at any of the 3 remaining songs being #1.

Careless Whisper, Wham Rap! and Club Tropicana are Andrew's three co-writes. He's got to be pretty happy with that.

My top 3 might actually be in the top 3. This poll is amazing.

http://s19.postimg.org/6otmkjbdv/3_Figure.jpg

3. Father Figure
338 points, twelve votes, three number one votes
from Faith, 1987

I didn't vote for this. I had no idea it would be this high.

that's what the cops said in 1998

The vocals with the choir on this record are just sumptuous. Had a hard time deciding between this and my pick for number 1 as the top spot. So happy to see it place so high.

Me too. I couldn't decide if I liked "One More Try" or this better. In the end I put OMT at 2 and this at 3.

'Freedom '90' for the win!

Pretty sure it will.

http://s19.postimg.org/az8ag4ggz/2_Wants.jpg

2. Everything She Wants
403 points, thirteen votes, two number one votes
from Make It Big, 1985

Freedom's single mix is ever-so-slightly different from the Make It Big mix; the piano in the verses etc. it pops more than the album version. there's no mention that i can see anywhere of the mixes being different but you can really tell. this was just 'a thing' in the mid to late 80s it seems; giving the radio mixes a lick and polish.

― piscesx, Thursday, September 22, 2016 4:23 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

y'know, I always thought when I bought Make It Big that the version didn't sound like the one I remembered, and now you've confirmed that. listening to the 12" now and this is what I remember from the radio!

YES EVERYTHING SHE WANTS!!!

http://s19.postimg.org/5p7x2kllv/1_Freedom_90.jpg

1. Freedom '90
425 points, fifteen votes, one number one vote
from Listen Without Prejudice vol.1, 1990

is there a better, subtler song about Thatcherism than "Everything She Wants"?

xpost I want a mojito now

Both amazing songs. Still completely baffled that "Freedom '90" only made it to #28 in the UK. Even #8 in the US is low for such a monster hit.

Pretty surprised Freedom only received one #1 vote in this poll

Freedom '90 that is

FULL RESULTS

425 Freedom ’90
403 Everything She Wants

338 Father Figure
333 Careless Whisper
313 One More Try
312 Fastlove

246 A Different Corner
235 Faith
232 Too Funky
231 Last Christmas
228 Waiting For That Day

189 Praying For Time
185 Cowboys And Angels

164 Freedom
163 Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
157 Heal The Pain
157 Outside
155 Precious Box
150 Young Guns
146 Jesus To A Child

122 Club Tropicana
122 Monkey
116 Amazing
109 Hard Day
106 I’m Your Man
104 Killer/Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone
102 Kissing A Fool
101 A Ray Of Sunshine
99 The Edge of Heaven
99 Cars And Trains

97 Wham Rap!
89 The Strangest Thing
88 Shoot The Dog
85 Something To Save
77 I Want Your Sex
73 Hand To Mouth
68 Flawless
61 Older
61 Star People
61 I Knew You Were Waiting

58 As
52 December Song
48 Mother’s Pride
46 Freeek! 04
44 Bad Boys
42 I Can’t Make You Love Me
42 Jive Talkin’
40 Waiting (Reprise)
38 Do You Really Want To Know
37 Somebody To Love

36 You Have Been Loved
34 Heartbeat
30 Blue (Armed With Love)
29 Nothing Looks The Same In The Light
29 Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me
26 Come On!
26 Look At Your Hands
26 To Be Forgiven
24 My Mother Had A Brother
22 Like A Baby

21 They Won’t Go When I Go
20 White light
20 Battlestations
20 Soul Free
19 It Doesn’t Really Matter
19 Patience
18 If You Were There
18 Spinning The Wheel
18 Heaven Help Me
15 An Easier Affair
15 Happy
15 A Last Request
14 Where Did Your Heart Go?

Thank you and goodnight!

Thanks for the great poll Ismael! I hadn't listened to Wham in a long time and had a lot of fun revisiting those records especially.

Such a great poll for one of my greatest musical influences. Thank you so much Ismael!

xpost I believe you mean "Wham!"

Yes!

my mom used to sing Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go to me. fond memories

granted this was just a week ago

Great poll Ismael. Thanks a lot for running it. I didn't vote for Freedom 90 but it's still a worthy winner.

A marvelous poll. I discovered how much I've loved this man.

Inspired by it, I wrote this essay about growing up and ignoring and re-learning him.

this was so much fun. thank you ismael!! can we make a playlist of all the songs in order? (i guess i can when i get home)

also i honorable mentioned his covers of "what a fool believes" and "sign your name" because omg

i hope george is happy and resting and i hope he knows how much his music touched people

Great poll, thanks IK.

"Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" was my #1. A bit shocked it didn't make the top 10 even. And a bit surprised I seem to have been the only voter for "Spinning the Wheel".

There's a few songs here I clearly need to get to know better. Have followed the playlist.

excellent poll, great piece up there too Alfred. he's brought out the best in ILX has old George.

very good poll indeed, congratulations !
this makes me want to revisit GM's oeuvre.
I started by listening to "Freedom" earlier today.
I had forgotten how massive and unstoppable the melody is. The whole thing is like a storm (until the brilliant final with the "Penny Lane" trumpet).
a pure rush of joy !

my favourite part of the melody being the pre-chorus. this is what takes the song to another level, to me.

CAN WE TALK ABOUT "WAITING FOR THAT DAY," THOUGH????

My memory serves me far too well.

Thanks for a great poll IK. Lovely essay Alfred. It's been so refreshing to go back to old favourites and find new gems.

it's hard to love
there's so much to hate
hanging on to hope
when there is no hope to speak of

Just caught up with this. If I had voted, "Spinning The Wheel" and "Nothing Looks The Same In The Light" could well have charted.

thanks ismael. father figure was my number one. those woozy synths are an instant trip back to childhood.

I would have also voted for 'Spinning That Wheel'

One thing this poll has made me realise is just how many classics this man has written. That he has a superb voice goes without saying, but as a songwriter I feel he should be held in higher regard than he is. I'm disappointed, in a way, that he hasn't written more of them over such a long career.

"Father Figure" was my #1 too & if I could have given it all my points I would have. I mishear it systematically as "to be walking naked / in your sight" & even now that I know it's otherwise I continue to mishear it this way intentionally. I don't know what to make of my experience of a song by a gay man as the most sexually profound song I know, something of my own queerness within heterosexuality I suppose. and that I listened to it so much when age 13, coming into my sexuality. but I...identify with this song.

What do you think about George's political engagement? I was a little bit surprised, running through the catalogue, at how big-themey he is. Religion appears a lot, there's economic stuff, they did miners' benefits ... even Young Guns or Wham Rap do kids' politics in their way. It seems a bit unfair that they had the reputation as being the epitome of vacuity.

For some reason I think Andrew Ridgely wrote 'Wham Rap'. I can't remember why - presumably I read this in an interview 30 years ago.

So surprised to see Everything She Wants at #2, didn't realize it was such a hit! Think it's the only song in the countdown that didn't have my vote. Great song though.

I Can't Make You Love Me wuz robbed...

Thanks for running a great poll Ismael Klata!

Missed the poll but will have fun listening, thanks!

I honor my big brother.

Happy birthday, bro.

Happy 59th Birthday. In terms of his non-Faith tracks, "Jesus To A Child" is one of his best ballads, you can feel the loss and heartbreak in his voice, along with "Praying For Time" which is more relevant today. "Fastlove" is his best uptempo track, very addictive. "Outside" is great as well.

Damn we did this poll just before he died? Jeez i was sure it was after.