Wednesday, July 11, 2007

George Michael

This is a really good performance by George Michael of the classic Wham song "A Different Corner." I've said it before, but I can't think of any pop/rock singer who has a better quality voice when singing live. An interesting comparison: George Michael lip-syncing the same song over twenty years ago on British television.

UPDATE: Yes, I'm being a bit tongue-in-cheek in referring to a Wham song as "classic."

UPDATE 2: OK, here's a real Wham classic: Careless Whisper, sung live in Rio in 1991 (somehow he got through the song without whatever it is that Andrew Ridgeley used to do). "Guilty feet have got no rhythm" -- truer words have never been sung. (Guilty feet = all thumbs.)

Again, if you compare to his 1980s TV appearances, he was lip-syncing there too (look for the obvious double-tracking on the chorus, just as on the recording). I don't know why George Michael ever did this -- unlike most pop/rock singers, he really could sing live.

UPDATE 3: Unfortunately, I can't find a video or live performance of George Michael singing one of his best all-time songs: Mother's Pride. (You can hear the audio here). In all seriousness, what an incredible voice.

3 comments:

  1. George Michael is a bad ass. And that's no tongue in cheek (in any sense of the phrase), either. One of the most musical guys in pop.

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  2. Whitney Houston had a pretty good voice singing live.

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  3. Q -- I really agree. Listen Without Prejudice, IMHO, is one of the most underrated albums of all time. Great songwriting; a wonderful singing voice; plus he played many of the instruments and produced the album, if I recall.

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