I know I promised you results of the Wham! tribute album
contest, but the problem
is my dearest "Andy" is off doing
a little "formula 3 motor car racing", so we need a little
more time.
Truth be totally told, she has yet to get the
entries anyway. BUT, here are your suggestions for a
Wham! tribute album, look
for the winner to be announced
in a week or so. I will run them comment free, suffice it to
say, I did have my faves right off
the top, and will admit that
those of you who used Elton, The Artist, Madonna, No
Doubt, the Spice Girls, and Bananarama had
my heart from
the get go. When we announce the winners, Alicia and I
will divulge our own track listings.
AND AWAY WE
GO...
***************************
From: TXCowboy22-at-aol.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1) "Nothing Looks The Same In
The Light"
Toni Braxton (song seems suited to her softspoken style)
2) "Come On"
Spice Girls
(frenetic energy of the song seems to match
them too...)
3) "Battlestations"
Prince (I think this one is
fairly obvious who else could
keep the sexual intensity of the song?)
4) "Like A Baby"
Sade (Again, a
velvety track that demands a velvety voice)
5) "A Different Corner"
Whitney Houston (It kills me to say that,
but I think she
could capture the power of the song and make it sound
almost genuine)
6) "Where Did Your Heart
Go?"
Mariah Carey (Technically not a Wham! track, I
suppose, but anyway, Mariah could hit the notes at the
end
like no one else (except for George :))
7) "Club Tropicana"
En Vogue (The harmony vocals at the end (all
George,
of course) are made for them.)
8) "A Ray Of Sunshine"
No Doubt (There's enough of a ska feel here
to, once
sped up considerably, turn it into a full-fledged ND track)
9) "Blue"
Anita Baker (again, the
song would need to slow
down a bit, but Anita could give it a smoky, jazzy feel)
10) "Freedom"
Erasure
(sing it in your head and see how natural it
sounds)
11) "Heartbeat"
Gloria Estefan (light pop kind of
sound)
***************************
From: mcgary-at-intelligent-agent.com (Jeff McGary)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1.
Wake Me Up Before You Go Go
- Beck. There would have to be a new "spin" to this, that
only he could do.
2. A
Different Corner
- Toni Braxton. Beautiful.
3. Evertything She Wants
- Madonna. A "twist" in the story. A
woman demanding
"everthing SHE wants."
4. I'm Your Man
- LL Cool J and Barry White. "He's brave, He's
tough, Mr.
Cool J do your stuff."
5. Young Guns
- The Spice Girls. Today's Wham!
6. Freedom
- The Dave
Mathews Band. Slowed down to showcase
the violins and the great melody of this song.
7. The Edge of Heaven
- The
Artist... Both lyrically and musically designed for him.
8. Club Tropicana
- Jon Secada. A tropical feel.
9. Careless
Whisper
- Babyface and Seal. Production meets voice mixed with
an untouchable harmony on the chorus.
10. Where did your
heart Go?
- Boyz II Men. They could really tear this up.
11. Nothing looks the same in the light
- Maxwell. An urban
update.
***************************
From: splkzoo-at-net-link.net (Shawn Light)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OK --
Though I think they might be better suited to cover
his solo works, I think Daryl Hall and John Oates would
make a great cover
album of Wham! tracks.
Here they are:
1. Last Christmas
2. Blue
3. The Edge of Heaven
4. Everything She Wants
5.
Heartbeat
6. Credit Card Baby
7. Like A Baby
8. Nothing Looks The Same In The Light
9. A Ray of Sunshine
10. Freedom
11.
Battlestations
The Reasons: They are one of the few performers who
have the energy to match George and Andy. And Daryl's
voice
with John's harmonies. Wow!!
Shawn
P.S. Difficult to sum up in 25 words or less.
***************************
From:
max-js-at-pioneer.net (George Lewis)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Amanda and Alicia,
Striving for originality.......
Tracks..
1.
Wham! Rap
- Marilyn Manson
I think it would be one of the most halirous things ever!
I know I would buy it, just for the
laugh!
2. Wake me up before you go go
- Neil Sedaka
Remeber calender girl? Well I felt this would be another
peppy
tune for Mr. Sedaka.
3. A different Corner
- Timothy B. Schmit (eagles bassist "I cant tell you why")
This
would be the serious track. The most beautiful voice
ever, singing a beautiful song. Maybe mix in some acoustics.
4.
Nothing Looks The Same In The Light
- Hugh Grant
Buys a hooker at night. Then arrested in the light. =-)
5. Im your man
(acapella)
- The Three Tenors
Think about it. One could do the bass line, one could do
the Andrew sounds, and Pavarotti
could do George's part.
6. Last Christmas
- The Jackson 5
It could be a beautiful reunion. But with any luck, there
would
be a huge fight, and someone could get it on video.
7. Young Guns
- The remaining Beatles
With this group on
the ticket, the album would
automatically go double platinum. Plus, it falls into the
entertainment catagory.
8. The
Edge Of Heaven
- Nine Inch Nails
I would put Manson here again (title) , but for origonality
I'll put NIN. Plus Reznor
would put some awsome extra
beats and stuff.
9. Bad Boys
- Alan Jackson
Ever wonder about this song gone country, no
me
neither. Until now.
10. Everything She Wants
- Snoop Doggy Dogg
This would be good, plus he loves the opportunity
to
say "I aint got no love for hoe's."
11. Battlestations
- all the above artists (besides Timothy Schmit)
This
would, um, be quite interesting.
Theres my all star line up. =-)
Later,
George.
***************************
From:
smm-at-pequod.otago.ac.nz (Sa')
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. wham rap
- The Spice Girls
(Wham Bam! I am
wo-man...need I say ANYMORE?)
2. love machine
- Madonna
(I'm just a lurve machine...a hugging kissing fiend...)
3.
ray of sunshine
- Pet Shop Boys
(only they could make it into an electronic techno
stomper!)
4. club tropicana
-
Ace Of Base
(this is a perfect reggae-pop song!)
5. freedom
- No Doubt
(a very fab grungy guitar version required:
with femme
vox!)
6. everything she wants
- Prodigy
(I don't know what the hell you want... would make a
fabulous
sample. techno with me: uh huh uh huh -
perfect club chant)
7. credit card baby
- Bananarama
(I had to put them in
SOMEWHERE...think of it in
reference to Andy)
8. edge of heaven
- Take That
(they were born to make this song. 5
gorgeous fluffly
lads on a beach.... the perfect pop tune.)
9. i'm your man
- RuPaul & Elton John Duet
(a
fabulous follow up to their "don't go breakin' my heart")
10. Battlestations
- Mick Jagger & Jerry Hall
(this
could be an hilarious duet between the infamous -
on again off again couple.)
11. Blue (armed with Love)
- The
Eurythmics
(They've done a lot of short lyriced songs - imagine it
in a sort've "sweet dreams" electronic pop way..)
***************************
From:
JShafer999-at-aol.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Amanda--
Here are my picks for a tribute LP (and yes, I've got
strange
musical taste).
-Jaime
1. Ray of Sunshine - Stevie Wonder
=======================
An obvious singer to pick, but
add Stevie's vocals and his
trademark synths, and you've got a good cover.
2. Club Tropicana - Barry Manilow
=======================
Methinks
that 'Copacabana' and 'Club Tropicana' are
similar in title...Barry wouldn't wreck it. It'd be neat.
3. Nothing Looks the
Same In the Light - Sinead O' Connor
=======================
Sinead has a quiet voice, which is perfect for a quiet song.
Her
vocal range is interesting, and she would sound good
on the chorus.
4. Young Guns (Go For It!) - Pat Boone
=======================
Why
Pat Boone? Just because itd be funny. After all,
he covered Alice Cooper and Guns N Roses.
5. Wake Me Up Before You
Go-Go - Aretha Franklin
=======================
Another obvious one, but she could add a good gospel-
esque backing track
and really sing the song well.
6. Heartbeat - Michael Jackson
=======================
On some older tracks, I always
thought George sorta
sounded like Michael. Kind of reminds me of MJ's
'Rock With You' days.
7. A Different Corner - KD
Lang
=======================
KD Lang has a good voice and she emotes. She could
sing it with the same amount of emotion
George did.
8. Everything She Wants - The Bee Gees
=======================
Add a disco-y/techno beat, and the song works
for them.
Would make a wonderful cover and tribute, cos George
and Andrew are fans.
9. Battlestations - Savage Garden
=======================
In
a way, the whispery vocals remind me of the way they
sing. I think they'd be fitting.
10. Blue - Mariah Carey
=======================
Mariah?!?!?
*GASP*!!!!! I'm not a fan, but her voice would
work on this track (as long she doesn't do the screamy
thing. ;) )
11.
I'm Your Man - Areosmith
=======================
Strangely enough, I think I could see Steven Tyler singing
this song. It
would be interesting, for sure. :)
***************************
From: TangoScott-at-aol.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here
are my picks....
Careless Whisper
---Elton John
It's not the most daring choice, but it's a song that Elton
would
cover wonderfully. He would add his own special
flavor to it.
Everything She Wants
---Tears For Fears
Tears For Fears
would bring a funky, hip sound to this
song. Just thinking about it is cool.
A Different Corner
---Billy Joel
Check
out Lullabye on his River of Dreams album and
you'll get a hint of what he might do with this song.
Freedom (Wham! Version)
---Journey
They'd
slow the song down a bit, but I can see this. 80's
bands are coolness, and this would rock.
Blue
---Mariah
Carey
Might be risky, but her voice and style would be
awesome on this song, which is one of my favorites.
I'm Your Man
---Phil
Collins
This might be the best choice of all. Phil Collins would
spin this song, and make it his own.
Like A Baby
---Celine
Dion
She'd do it justice, with her great range. Another singer
who would make the song her own.
Wake Me Up Before You
Go-Go
---Aerosmith
The hardest song to cover, by far. But Aerosmith would
give it the fun feel it needs, with a rockin
beat.
Credit Card Baby
---Huey Lewis
Seems natural to me!
Last Christmas
---Gloria Estefan
Another choice
that just "feels right."
The Edge of Heaven
---Boston
The 70's supergroup would totally change the song, but I
can
see it
THERE YA GO!
11 tracks of gold! Have a good one, and thanks for the newsletter!!
-=Scott=-
http://members.aol.com/DanesVader
***************************
From:
skylark-at-openmail.irex.ru
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. Tony Hadley (ex-Spandau Ballet) "A Different Corner"
Being
now lonely and confused, Tony makes a good
approach to George's powerful singing. Impressed
members of SB get together again.
2.
Boy George & Mark Almond "I'm Your Man"
Two 100% gays arguing about who's whose
man....... that could be the
funniest joke of the year!
3. Madonna featuring Roland Orzaball (Tears For Fears)
"Careless Whisper"
And then
my greatest dream of hearing M & G duetting
half comes true....I'll just have to imagine that Roland's
name is George.
5.
John Travolta "Heartbeat"
He's older and he's back on the road again, having
noticed that his voice sounds similar
to George's of '84......
6. Erasure "Bad Boys"
Bad Erasure boys being stuck together for the last 12
years are
giving their 'gay' interpretation, with Andy
singing and Vince going 'to-to-to-to-to, to-to-to'.
7. Paula Abdul "Like
A Baby"
Ain't no doubt that Paula used to sing this lullaby to
her own baby. She must have practised enough I guess
not
to get out of tune.
8. Depeche Mode featuring Rick Astley "Where Did
Your Heart Go?"
With voices perfectly fit
to each other, Dave & Martin
& Rick & Andy form a new quartet called 'Astley Mode'.
Only for one song.
9.
Simon Le Bon "Everything She Wants"
And the nicest part of the cover is of course breathy
'All she wants is..' that
he occasionally puts between the
lines.
10. Cindy Lauper & Kate Bush "Last Christmas"
Putting away rock,
the ladies burst into puriest pop and
add in the end spoken part: 'What the hell were we singing
all these years?!?!?!'
11.
Pet Shop Boys "Club Tropicana"
Lyrics by Wham, music by "Se A Vida E". Video is
slightly changed according
to new lyrics.
And as a result - tribute album full of fun & '80 nostalgia.....
***************************
From:
cassu-at-inetworld.net
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi Amanda and Alicia!
I must say that I've had a HELL week, but I always
keep
my priorities straight and remember what's important...hee
hee hee. Just a couple of things about my contest
submission,
(1)
I came up with enough ideas for at least three albums,
or at least a really rad box set...but I only submitted the
"classic"
choices. I felt that it would sound more
authentic, and I couldn't bear to hear Henry Rollins and
Trent Reznor ruin the music
of my adolesence (although
they were among my choices for an "alternative / rock"
Wham! tribute album.) So the
question is, does submitting
fairly "obvious" choices count as un-original or is it simply
that I have good taste ?
(Breaking
my promise to shut the hell up, you just have
great taste Cass! AG)
(2) The No Doubt reference is NOT a kiss up to Amanda
in
any way, shape, or form. I consider No Doubt to still be
one of "my" bands no matter, and they happen to be
semi-Wham!
fans (2 members of the band, and the horn
players), and I think they'd do a good job of it !
(Alicia and I have discussed
the similiarity in style
between early Wham! and ND, so we knew they'd be a
factor in choosing the winner. AG)
(3) are
you going to post everyone's lists (GOOD GOD
GIRL !...I can't imagine how long that e-mail would be!),
or just the winner /
runner up lists?
(This has a byte size of twice the norm... AG)
Have fun sorting through the masses of e-mails! I can't
wait
to see what everyone else has come up with!
Cass
1. Nothing Looks The Same In The Light
Carly Simon
She and George
share a birthday and have been
mutual fans for years, and the song suits her voice well.
2. Careless Whisper
Elton John
Probably
the most known and loved Wham! song
ever, done by a master songman and friend.
3. Last Christmas
Spandau Ballet
Old
friends, and it's a song full of memories.
(Remember the video...sigh.) The brothers Kemp would
make us all wish it was
December...or not.
(Shirlie can't vote on this Cass... AG)
4. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
Queen
I think
Freddie would've been proud to be involved
in this project, and it's the kind of sing-along fun song
that they do so well !
5.
Blue
Alison Moyet
A close friend of the band, a song that suits her.
6. Young Guns
Bananarama
The irony of the
lyrics is COMICAL, as the girls
were and are friends and lovers of our favorite duo.
7. Club Tropicana
No Doubt
This
band has the energy and sense of fun to
make this work...if they raise the volume on the boys'
mikes a little (they're not bad
!)...and they already
have horn players built in !
8. I'm Your Man
RuPaul
Again, irony and humor is key here. Also,
we
all know of the boys' affinity for dressing in drag
(whether intentional or not ... ) Can you imagine
the video ?!?!?!
9.
A Different Corner
k.d. lang
Lyrically ambiguous and melancholy, this song
with her voice is an amazing combination. She
has
the range, control and style to make us weep.
10. Everything She Wants
Simon LeBon & John Taylor
hee hee
hee...I'm not explaining my reasons...
make up your own !
(The fact that Simon and John have married models? The
fact
that they always reminded me of George and Andrew?
AG)
11. The Edge Of Heaven
Gavin Rossdale of Bush
If anyone's
voice could give this song an edge,
Gavin's is it. Also, Gavin was once in a Wham! cover
band, and is a friend of George's.
BONUS
! -- Hidden track #12:
12. Wham! Rap
Paul Ridgeley & David Austin
Two of the people who were there for the boys
from
the very beginning, Paul was once the drummer
for them, and David (formerly Mortimer) was one of
their childhood friends, and
a member of The
Executive...talk about a tribute song !
***************************
From: RHUNTLEY-at-catawba.edu (DALLAS)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Amanda,
I
am hoping I get this in on time. I thougt this would be
an easy contest to do, but what was I thinking? This
is probably the
hardest George related contest I have
ever entered.
Thanks for the challenge. :)
The hardest part with finding people
to cover the
songs is that we are not in the same place we were
when Wham! was together. It is hard to comprehend
how much
has changed since then.
This is what i came up with. I hope you see the humor
and respect in it.
Thanks,
Dallas
1.
"Bad Boys"
- Frank Gifford and Merv Albert (Both have been accused
of "immoral and somewhat illegal"
actions involving women.)
2. "I'm Your Man"
- RuPaul and The Crying Game's Jaye Davidson (need I
say more?)
3.
"Everything She Wants"
- Donald Trump (Do you think that he will ever find a woman
to love him just for him? Or when
she divorces him not ask
for a penny w/o a pre-nup?)
4. "Carless Whisper"
- Garth Brooks and Ty Herndon (Garth
cheated on his wife
w/other women, Ty on his fans w/drugs. Both admitted it
and were forgiven.)
5. "Wham Rap (Enjoy
What You Do)"
- Dennis Rodman and the 80's Madonna (You either loved
them or hated them, but there is no mistaking the
fact that
they are/were having fun.)
6. "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go"
- Marky Mark (He already has the
experience needed to
remake the video.)
7. "Come On"
- Rosie O'Donnell and John McD and the McDLTs (She
has
mentioned on numerous occassions how she would
love to get George on her show, why not let her be part
of the tribute? Besides
she could give the song the
lightness it needs.)
8. "Blue"
- Boy George (I can't think of anyone else who's
music
has been the victim of the press asking too many
questions. I think he could pull this song off to the
"fans"
of both Goerge's better than anyone.)
9. "Last Christmas"
- Sylvester Stallone (What did he think would happen
when
he marries a woman that sends him a lifesize
poster of herself naked? Then again Mark Gastenou
didn't learn by Sly's mistakes
either.)
10. "Young Guns (Go for It?)"
- The Spice Girls (with New Kids on the Block as backup)
(The Spice
Girls have the attitude, and NKTOB need
the work. A few words may need to be changed, but if
Whoopi can pull it off, why not?)
11.
"Battlestations"
- Prince (Can you imagine what Prince could do with
this song, with The Artist Formally Known as
Prince's
ability? I don't think the video could be seen in the states.)
***************************
From:
Cozemodo-at-aol.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OK, Amanda here goes. (By the way, your sarcastic
comments in YM are great. You
make me laugh.
Y'know, in a good way. No this isn't sucking up.)
(Why? I accept bribes quite readily. I am pursing a
career
in the music industry, and appropriate acceptance
of payola is a valuable asset.... AG)
WHAM TRIBUTE COLLECTION
1.
CLUB TROPICANA - STING AND QUEEN
Sting's vocals would lend a dreamy / surrealistic feel for
this song. Queen's
musicianship also a plus.
2. I'M YOUR MAN - ELTON JOHN AND BOY GEORGE
OK. A little over the edge, but hey, what's a
little '80's
revival between friends.
3. WHAM! RAP - LL COOL J AND BARRY WHITE
Interesting is better. Just listen to
Barry White moan the
lyric..."hey jerk, you work. This boy's got better things to
do." Plus, you can never get too
funky.
4. WHERE DID YOUR HEART GO - VANESSA WILLIAMS
I love this song and I love Vanessa. This combination
works for
me.
5. LAST CHRISTMAS - BANANARAMA
They could add a little fun - pop sound to a kind of sad
song. Just imagine the
video. Damn, I want it to snow, now.
6. EVERYTHING SHE WANTS - MELISSA ETHERIDGE
AND SOPHIE B. HAWKINS
I saw them do
Damn I wish I was your Lover on VH 1 and
this duo could ignite the stage if they sang this one. "How
could you settle for
a girl like me..."
7. BAD BOYS - AXL ROSE
I'm not a big fan of his, but the sandpaper voice belting this
song
sounded intriguing. And, he wears those little shorts,
so they wouldn't have to recast the part for the video.
8. A RAY OF
SUNSHINE - STEVIE WONDER
A funky, piano sounding Wonder version would be cool.
Less bass and more hand claps.
9. THE
EDGE OF HEAVEN - MADONNA
Madonna singing this line... "there's a place for us in a
dirty movie, 'cause no one does it
better than me and you..."
'Nuff said.
10. A DIFFERENT CORNER - TORI AMOS
A co-worker of mine saw this
combination and thought
it would be fantastic. Tori on the piano singing this one
would give me chills. Love is a magical
thing.
11. CARELESS WHISPER - JON SECADA
Somewhat similar, I know, but some of those lyrics in
Spanish would sound
cool.
Well, there it is. My tribute album. I wanted to include,
The Spice Girls singing Wake me up before you go-go,
but
I thought if I did, I'd have no chance. Let me know
how I did.
Thanks and Love,
MIKE
***************************
From:
winnie7-at-earthlink.net (Jennifer Maline)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi Amanda and Alicia-
Here it is. Sorry if it
is not all that creative or original,
but it is coming from one of the most non-creative people
in the world. I figured I
would try to put a list together and
submit it anyway. I had fun doing it, and here it goes...
1. I'm Your Man
-Boy
George
It just seems fittng because he has the energy and
sometimes reminds me of The Man Himself.
2. Wham Rap
-
Erasure
I saw these boys (Andy Bell and Vince Clarke) play here
in L.A. about 2 months ago and they also have the energy
and
spunk (??) that it would take to do this one.
3. Young Guns
- Barenaked Ladies
Their own lyrics are pretty funny and I
would get a kick
out of seeing them do this one. If you know who they are,
I think you'll understand.
(Being a Canuck, I
can understand. AG)
4. Blue
- Chris Isaak
Chris just has the voice. No other explanation. (Except
that a lot of his
songs are about being "blue".)
5. Where Did Your Heart Go?
- Celine Dion
Again, she just has the voice. She
can hit some of those
incredibly high notes. Seems like it would fit in her 'type' of
song lyrics.
6. Different Corner
-
Sarah McLachlan
Ditto-the voice fits the song. Seems like her type of song.
7. Club Tropicana
- Jimmy Buffett (sp?)
Flows
with Margaritaville (theme, tone...) Fun songs,
could do a Margaritaville sampling or something mixed in.
8. Last Christmas
-
Fiona Apple/Alanis Morissette duet
These poor girls (although I admire their music very much)
always seem to be having such
heartaches and guy
problems. Sounds like it fits.
9. Freedom
- Tina Turner
This woman is unbelievable and has more
energy than any
other 50+ woman I know of. She would do an incredible
job. Just fits.
10. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
-
No Doubt
With Gwen's energy, she could do this, no prob. They
could speed it up a little and make it kinda ska-ish, ya
think?????
12.
Saved the Best for Last: Careless Whisper
- Elton
Nobody else deserves to do this song. Elton has
the honor. Need I say
more?
Okay, that's it. Hope you liked it. Hey, in looking at it I
just realized now how many Canadian artists there are.
Amazing.
Have a good one and can't wait for the George
Weekend!
-Jen :)
***************************
YOGD-at-aol.com (De) writes:
------------------------------------------
Greetings
Amanda and all Yoggers ... I really tried to enter
this contest. Had no trouble coming up with 11 songs.
But in no way could I
come up with 1 let alone 11 people
who could cover them. Just couldn't hear anyone singing
them but George and Andy. Lack of
imagination, I suppose.
Let's all celebrate the 28th. Is celebrate the word I want?
It somehow doesn't seem to fit. De
(I
spend the day reflecting on a band that never had the
chance to become a band that "was great back when...".
They
went out with a bang, and for that reason, will never
be looked at as a band that wore out it's welcome! AG)
***************************
To
Wrap it Up:
If you entered this contest and don't see your track listing,
please re-submit it immediately!
Andy:
JUDGE AWAY! Send me a first, a second, and an
honourable mention if you please.
"Everybody say Wham!"