Patience is a good album, while LWP, vol. 1 and Older are great. Faith, his first solo album, is also a great pop album. As to his Wham outputs, I really like Make It Big.
Listening to LWP, 4 songs in and I'm really digging him. Sucks that he dead though, guy sounds really talented.
He was! Great to hear you are discovering his albums. As was posted add Faith and Wham's Make It Big is their best album. They have an album The Final that contains all the hits which is a very good one to have. Patience is mixed but there is good stuff there, some have to grow on you. The two tracks I liked best were Patience, Through. Would never want to discourage anyone from listening to his full albums but his Ladies and Gentlemen Best of GM is an excellent compilation, shows his range of hits and ability. Besides that in your spare time check out his covers on yt, specifically Queen's Somebody To Love, G.Knight and the Pips If You Were My Woman , Boy George's Victims, anything he did by Stevie Wonder and his gorgeous rendition of Song To the Siren. Happy listening and let us know your thoughts..
The thing about getting the greatest hits albums is that you miss some excellent songs of his other albums, such as "Like a Baby" or "A Last Request" to mention a couple of examples, but as GMfan87 mentioned L&G the Best of GM is a great compilation as well as a starting point
Why d I admit I am not familiar with most of his work, so dont doubt what you say. Sometimes the brilliance of an artist is not realised until you explore more intently. I can only speak from experience living in Britain, but he became taken less seriously with the lets go outside etc songs. Great artist though.
You guys might be interested in this rare TV episode that features George Michael and Morrissey. The striking thing here is George's enthusiasm and knowledge of music. Despite looking like a real life ken doll. Morrissey is pretty uninspiring...probably deliberately.
It's weird how Patience is consider by most as George's weakest album while the critiques considered it one of the best if not George's best album.
This youtube channel keeps posting a good videos of George's live performances. Subscribe for more! Frank Eagle
I certainly don't remember a single review saying that Patience was George's best album. Like almost all George Michael fans I consider it to be his weakest album and by some distance, most of those songs would fall apart like a cheap suit without the production. Looking back now the huge downturn happened after Ladies and Gentlemen. Yes I know it was a Greatest Hits album but it still had Outside, his last really good single. George really should have just retired and disappeared completely, he clearly wasn't happy with fame as he repeatedly told us. Instead he kind of carried on with half assed ideas like a gay dance album (yeah right, just what his fans were waiting for), none of which came to fruition. Boy George was right in what he said 'nothing ever gets done when you are on drugs' and he had first hand experience of that.
George was hugely confident and knowledgeable about pop music at this point, there was simply no stopping him. I remember he came to my friends offices for a meeting re a video my friend was producing for the next single Freedom, and George predicted the whole of top 5 for the next two weeks, including his own chart placing. He was so young and happy at this time, knowing that however successful he was now, the best was yet to come.
Liner notes were quite interesting with an interview of GM reflecting back. Disc one is tastefully remastered but disc two was louder for some reason (and as I indicated up thread doesn't round up all the singles or b-sides). DVD is okay - I would have preferred a live concert.
I remember listening to GM's interview where he said Patience has the best review album of his career something like that, I could be wrong though.
Bob60 you're right on the gay dance album thing. Doesn't seem like a creative or inspired move. I feel like ELITWorld and Easier Affair, maybe Outside are in that vein anyway. It's sad to hear how he was looking forward to things and just let himself get overwhelmed by life and later his addictions. I'm glad though that he didn't retire and went out on 25 live tour and Symphomica, sorry I missed them. I think it would of been great if he could of tried to return to any worthwhile material from the 90's that he didn't finish and release that and of course some of the live performances many fans wanted. This would of kept him busy and he wouldn't of had to struggle for 5 years to release Patience.
Just last week I said in another thread that after L&G he should have joined Queen, who were on a limb, desperate for someone to come. It would have been perfect and he would very probably still be around now.
The thing is George was a control freak so that would never have happened, but your right he had the chops to do it for sure...
May have been nice for fans if he did a short stint but besides him wanting control I don't think it would of been interesting for him to do creatively.
It is a bit harsh. He wanted to continue to be creative. Based on my readings, his mother's death really led him to depression, which he used drugs to cope with. It is never going to work of course. The depression and drug use basically blocked his creativity, which probably worsened his depression. He still did a big tour from 2006 to 2008. For his late-career songs, I really like the following songs: This Is Not Really Love Understand An Easy Affair December Song. White Light is very good too, although it is not much for celebration since he is gone.
The things you bring up are true but he said he had used drugs during Faith, smoked pot heavily in 90's and beyond. People say to lose a big court case is another kind of traumatic experience so who knows what effect that had on him, the regret he might of felt for the career choices he made. That being said , you are right he still did some good work and I, too really like Understand, December Song, This Is Not Real Love is a good duet. White Light I liked more live , seeing video of his performance in Vienna was meaningful.
Had it on it the car a few days ago actually. All last week I was in a GM mood, listening to the albums, next I want to listen to the live compilation cd I made of him.
