OK, so here we are yet again. Don't know if anyone caught Ellen tonight, but
it
contained an interesting line of dialogue. Ellen picks up a newspaper and
says "Oh look, George Michael's at the Forum. I
was hoping he'd tour again."
OK, George, Ellen is asking, we're begging, so PLEASE!?!?!?!?!?
AND AWAY WE GO...
********************************
Anita.Patel-at-bowne.com
(Anita Patel) writes:
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Amanda..
Here's some more GM
news to share (it's old but I know that many fans
like to read/get all they can on George).
Thanks,
(THANKS TO YOU
FOR TYPING ALL THIS STUFF OUT! AG)
Anita Patel
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
George Michael
releases first CD in six years
By DAVE FERMAN
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
You remember George Michael: Pretty voice,
tiny derriere, great stubble,
risque videos, "I Want Your Sex," "Father Figure." ... Ring a bell?
Sure
it does.
The former Georgios Kryiacos Panayiotou became THE male pop singer in
late 1987 and '88 as his first solo CD,
"Faith" - virtually a one-man show of
singing, songwriting, playing and production - spawned an incredible six Top
10
singles and sold more than 7 million copies in the United States.
Michael grew into such a cultural icon that Dana Carvey
parodied him
regularly on "Saturday Night Live" in tandem with Phil Hartman's Frank
Sinatra. Carvey-as-Michael
yelping
"Frank! Look at my butt! It's perfect!" became Monday morning
water-cooler fare
nationwide.
Then "Listen
Without Prejudice Vol. 1" came out in 1990: Darker, heavier
topics, less fun and less sexy. But still not a bad effort. Good
enough for
sales of a million-plus copies Stateside and two Top 10 singles.
And then ... virtual silence.
For
almost six years.
Tuesday, Michael released "Older," his first CD of new material since
fall 1990, a layoff
caused by legal wranglings with his former label, Sony.
Unhappy with his multi-CD contract and how "Prejudice" had
been
marketed, Michael refused to record for Sony and spent weeks in English
courtrooms, trying to leave the label.
Since
1990 he has released only a duet with Elton John, a single from
the "Red, Hot & Dance" AIDS benefit CD and a
charity EP worth of duets to
benefit the Freddie Mercury Phoenix Trust.
He lost the case and was appealing - at a career
standstill -unwilling
to record for Sony, until DreamWorks SKG (the new label formed by Steven
Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg
and David Geffen) and Virgin Records bought
his contract, clearing the way for the new CD.
Michael now has a two-CD
contract. He will be distributed by DreamWorks
in the United States and Virgin in the rest of the world.
Although he's not
the only musician to wrangle with a record label, he
is certainly the only mega-high-profile one to disappear for so long as a
result.
The
industry will be watching.
The questions, of course, are whether Michael can regain his popularity
and what the effects of
his decision will be.
Steve Jarchow, a Dallas lawyer who teaches a course in entertainment law
at the Southern Methodist
University School of Law, describes the Michael
case as a "relatively major" one that should remind performers that
"when
you're starting your career, that's when you need the lawyer most, and
if you sign a short-term contract, you probably won't
regret it."
"He wasted a lot of time and money," Jarchow said. "He could have gotten
to where he
needed to be if he would have negotiated."
Pete Dekom, a Beverly Hills entertainment l Worth's
Performance
magazine. "It's a dangerously long time to be gone; it's like a
rebuilding process. He's
going to have to be reintroduced
to the market."
The first single from "Older," the six-minute ballad "Jesus to a Child,"
hasn't
helped, radio experts said. "Jesus" briefly did well and hit No. 7 on
the U.S. singles charts. But it fell quickly and
is out of the Top 80 after
less than three months. A second, far poppier single, "Fastlove," came out in
April, but
Michael is not off to a smoldering start.
"That first song was not real appropriate," said Kim Ashley, music
director
for Dallas' KDMX/ (Mix 102.9) FM. "The second one is much more
radio-friendly. At this point, I think his core following has
dwindled to
about 50 percent of what it was. That's my guess. People are leaning to what
was a little more alternative than
what he is - Hootie and Collective Soul
and Dog's Eye View. Years ago, the video to "I Want Your Sex" was pretty edgy
but
compared to what's on MTV now, it's nothing."
Still, Michael is only 32, and he does have a large, and worldwide, fan
base.
Don't forget that he was able to make a spectacularly successful
transition from teeny-bopper poster boy as half of Wham! to a
respected, very
adult solo artist.
So, despite the long wait and the relatively poor showing for "Jesus,"
all
is not lost.
"I think he still has a strong following as a person," Ashley said. "But
he needs to put out
some really good stuff and get out there and tour and
support it. If he gets good
record company support and works the record
hard, he'll probably be fine."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
More....for those fans in Germany, or
who understand German..
(So will someone translate for those of us who don't? AG)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Der
"Sklave" mit den Millionen-Eink|nften George Michael
Die beiden Schulfreunde Andrew Ridgeley und George Michael
(b|rgerlich:
Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, geboren am 25.06.1963 in Finchley) gr|nden 1981
Wham. Das Duo erobert mit munteren
Pop-Nummern wie "Bad Boys" oder "Wake Me
Up Before You Go Go"die Charts und George Michael ist bald der
erkldrte
Schwarm der weiblichen Teenager. Bereits 1984
startet Michael seinen ersten Solo-Versuch: die sanfte Ballade
"Careless
Whisper", von ihm selbst als Siebzehnjdhriger geschrieben, belegt auf der
britischen Insel gleich den
ersten Platz. Schon 1986 trennen sich Wham
aufgrund unterschiedlicher musikalischer Vorstellungen.
George Michael macht
solo weiter und ist erfolgreicher als bisher.
Sein LP-Deb|t "Faith" wird ein Mega-Album, verkauft weltweit |ber zehn
Millionen
Exemplare und fast jeder Titel wird ein Single-Hit. Die verdiente
Anerkennung: "Faith" erhdlt einen Grammy als bestes
Album1988, und George
Michael legt das ihm ldstige Image als Teenystar und Sexsymbol ab. Auf dem
Folgealbum "Listen
Without Prejudice Vol.1" verarbeitet er erneut Einfl|sse
aus Rock'n'Roll, modernem Pop und Soul, kann aber nicht ganz den
Erfolg von
"Faith" wiederholen.
F|r Schlagzeilen sorgt ab 1990 George Michaels Kampf gegen seine
Plattenfirma
Sony. Der Popstar f|hlt sich als "Sklave" seiner Company und von
ihr ausgebeutet, seit er wei_, da_ Kollegen wie Elton
John an ihren Produkten
prozentual weit besser beteiligt sind. George Michael betreibt
Arbeitsverweigerung und lehnt es ab,
sein Album "Listen Without Prejudice" zu
promoten oder Video-Clips daf|r aufzunehmen. Im Gegenzug rdcht sich Sony mit
einem
Marketing-Boykott. Es kommt zur Klage (Streitwert: 50 Millionen
Dollar). In der Zwischenzeit ist der K|nstler George Michael
blockiert. Er
trvstet sich mit dem Dreh eines Werbespots, bei dem er in zwei Tagen 3
Millionen Dollar verdient, und Auftritten
bei prestigetrdchtigen
Gro_veranstaltungen w ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
George Michael
Die beiden
Schulfreunde Andrew Ridgeley und George Michael (b|rgerlich:
Georgios
Kyriacos Panayiotou, geboren am 25.06.1963 in Finchley)
gr|nden 1981 Wham.
Das Duo erobert mit munteren Pop-Nummern wie "Bad Boys" oder "Wake Me Up
Before You Go
Go"die Charts und George Michael ist bald der erkldrte Schwarm
der weiblichen
Teenager. Bereits 1984 startet Michael
seinen ersten Solo-Versuch: die sanfte
Ballade
"Careless Whisper", von ihm selbst als Siebzehnjdhriger geschrieben,
belegt
auf der britischen Insel gleich den ersten Platz. Schon 1986 trennen sich
Wham aufgrund unterschiedlicher musikalischer
Vorstellungen. George
Michael macht solo weiter und ist erfolgreicher als bisher.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GEORGE
MICHAEL
Warum lacht dieser Mann denn nie? "Older" hei_t das neue Album von
George Michael. Ein wirklich
treffender Titel. Seit seinem letzten Werk
"Listen Without Prejudice" ist der
Brite, der in wenigen Wochen 33 wird,
ganze sechs Jahre dlter
geworden. Eine Ewigkeit im sich
immer schneller drehenden Pop-Karussell. Doch niemand hat ihn
vergessen und
das nicht nur wegen des Prozesses gegen seine Ex-Plattenfirma, der sich |ber
Jahre hinzog und den K|nstler von
seiner Arbeit, dem Songschreiben, abhielt.
Alles wartete geduldig auf ein neues musikalisches Statement
des Mannes, der als
einer der profiliertesten Songschreiber unserer Zeit
gilt, bereits mit 19 in seiner damaligen Band Wham! Welterfolge feierte und
zu
den reichsten Menschen im Britischen Kvnigreich gehvrt. Bereits die beiden
Vorboten, die schmacht ige Weihnachtsballade
"Jesus To A Child" und das
fetzige, an beste Wham!-Zeiten erinnernde "Fastlove" sprangen von Nichts auf
Platz
Eins der englischen Charts. "Older" wird dieses Kunstst|ck zweifellos
weltweit wiederholen. Das von Michael |berwiegend
in ruhigen und beddchtigen
Song-Farben gemalte Werk wird alte Fans wie
Neueinsteiger gleicherma_en |berzeugen. Eigentlich
kvnnte er ja auch mal
lachen. Tut
er aber nicht. Auf Fotos und im Booklet sieht man George Michael immerzu
schwarz
gekleidet, mit schwer nachdenklicher Mimik. Er sieht beinahe aus wie
seine eigene Wachsfigur. K|hl, unnahbar und mit strengstens
geschnittenen
Konturen bei der Kopf- und Gesichtsbehaarung. F|r ein Ldcheln scheint in
seinem Gesicht kein Platz zu sein. Ist
er wirklich so traurig oder ist das
neue Outfit des gertenschlank gewordenen Sdngers ein bewu_ter Image-Kontrast
zur
"Zwei-braungebrannte-Jungs-vergn|gen-sich-am-Strand"-Nummer mit Andrew
Ridgeley bei Wham! und zum aufgesetzt wirkenden
Macho-Gehabe bei seinem
ersten Solo-Album "Faith"? Vermutlich beides. "Die letzten f|nf bis sechs
Jahre waren
die wahrscheinlich schwierigste Phase in meinem Leben, sowohl
persvnlich als auch privat", sagte Michael bei einer kurzen
Ansprache vor
Medienleuten in London. "Ich hoffe, ich mu_ nie wieder so viele schlimme
Dinge durchmachen." Einer
seiner engsten Freunde starb an Aids, die
berufliche Misere allerdings brach Michael letztlich selbst vom Zaun, indem
er seine
Plattenfirma vor Gericht zerrte. Er
bezichtigte Sony unter anderem der "k|nstlerischen Sklaverei" und warf der
Firma
vor, am Flop von "Listen Without Prejudice" Schuld zu sein, weil sie
nicht genug daf|r geworben haben soll. Quatsch,
sagte die Firma, Michael
selbst sei Schuld gewesen, wegen seines blvden Rumgezickes. Er hatte sich
unter anderem geweigert, in
seinen eigenen Videos aufzutreten und Interviews
zu geben (was er |brigens nach wie vor ablehnt). Da sich der Rechtsstreit,
den
Sony schlie_lich gewann, hinzog, sang der Songwriter im Wartestand nur
bei Benefiz-Veranstaltungen und in Duetten mit Elton
John
und Lisa Stansfield. Das unschvne Intermezzo vor Gericht - bvse Zungen
beschuldigten Michael d den f|r wei_e Musiker als
unzugdnglich
geltenden amerikanischen Black-Music-Markt. Bei seiner eigenen Vermarktung
hat
George fraglos ein ebenso
goldenes Hdndchen bewiesen wie beim Verfassen von
Songs. Die Hitstrdhne setzte sich fort bis zu Beginn der 90er Jahre, dann sah
man
sich vor Gericht. "Mir ging es mies zu dieser Zeit. Ich war kurz
davor, den Glauben an
mich selbst zu verlieren",
sagt er r|ckblickend. "Aber die Leute, die ich auf
der Stra_e und im Supermarkt traf - jawoll, ich gehe selbst einkaufen!
-
haben mir unheimlich viel Mut gemacht." Mut machten ihm auch Plattenbo_ David
Geffen, Disney-Bo_ Jeffrey Katzenberg und
Film-Bo_ Steven Spielberg, die ihn
f|r 70 Millionen Dollar einkauften und ihm versprachen, er d|rfe auf seinem
neuen Album
machen, was er wolle. "Older", an dem Michael nach diesem
Happy-End 18 Monate hart arbeitete, ist kein |berraschendes
oder gar
trendiges Album geworden. Statt die St|cke mit modernen Mdtzchen unnvtig
aufzumotzen, verld_t sich der K|nstler
lieber ganz auf sein
songschreiberisches Ausnahmetalent. "Ich habe mir immer den Kopf dar|ber
zerbrochen, wie ich auch
die Leute |berzeugen kann, die mich nicht mvgen. Das
habe ich aufgegeben. Bei dieser Platte habe ich versucht herauszufinden, was
ich
am besten kann und habe das dann noch besser gemacht." Kann man so
stehenlassen. "Older" prdsentiert einen in
jeder Hinsicht gereiften George
Michael, der qualitativ in einer Liga spielt, in die die meisten Kollegen
niemals aufsteigen
werden. So elegant, edel und teuer wie sein du_eres
Erscheinungsbild sind auch die neuen Songs. Das Titelst|ck etwa, das an
"A
Different Corner" erinnert, wird mit einem gediegenen Saxophon
angereichert, Elemente aus Swing, Jazz und Soul
ziehen sich durch das gesamte
Album. Der Gesamteindruck ist recht ruhig, vielleicht ein wenig zu balladesk
geraten. Das Tempo
zieht Michael nur zwei bis dreimal richtig an ("Star
People" klingt beinahe rockig), ansonsten dominieren Entspannung
und
Harmonie, eingebettet in zeitlose Kompositionen und eine sehr saubere,
bisweilen perfektionistische Produktion. Wdre
"Older"
kein Album sondern ein Wein, man w|rde einen reifen
sanft-vollmundigen Tropfen genie_en.
Von Nichts auf Platz Eins Die
letzten Jahre waren schwierig Jawohl, ich
gehe selbst
einkaufen Elegant, edel und teuer
von Steffen R|th
(I'm
more than willing to share foreign articles with people, if anyone want
to type them up. I hope I didn't mess anything up with my
editing, but it
was taking up too much space as was. AG)
********************************
Anita.Patel-at-bowne.com (Anita
Patel) also writes:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Vous le Vous.....:
Hi
amanda,
Just thought I'd share a funny story, that indirectly relates to
George's presence in my life...
My younger
sister and I lived in Philadelphia back in the late
80's with our family. I was around 18 and my sister was 14. Well, we
had
gone to three FAITH shows in Philadelphia and New York/New Jersey
and from there memorized everything George said and sang in
concert.
(Sisters unite for Yog, it seems to be a trend. Me and my sister, Alicia and
hers... AG)
Soon after the
FAITH shows, EAGLE 106 - a radio station in Philadephia
- had a contest where the 106th caller who could get through and speak
French
would win a four-day paid trip include airline tickets and
hotel accomodations at the luxurious "CHATEAU FRONTENAC" in
Quebec
City and SKI rental/Lift passes. Well, I was just studying in my
bedroom and decided to play the game and got through
as the 106th caller.
Now, I lived in Canada (Montreal and Windsor) from ages 2 to 8, and
learned a little French then, but
had forgotten it all. So, when the Now how were two little girls on a trip that
they had won from a radio station supposed to
convince security guards
that barely spoke English (and seeing the limited amount of French
that George had taught me - I
think I would have landed us in more
trouble had I tried to converse!!) that they were contest winners.
None-the-less, my
sister and I look back at this and roll of the
ground laughing until we're in tears. Just picturing the expressions
on our
faces when we were hand-cuffed was hilarious...
(I apologize for our over ambitious customs people. AG)
Memories
...light the corners of my mind...
Waiting for that day..when George comes back and helps create some more
fabulous
memories..
(OK, but try not to get arrested this time... AG)
Love,
Anita
********************************
mindy1-at-terraport.net
(Jason Levy) writes:
-------------------------------------------------------------
Hi, I would be interested in getting some
rare tracks of GM. If any has a CD
compilation let me know.
Jason
********************************
jrobinson-at-odyssey.on.ca
(Jim Robinson) writes:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
For so long I have wished to
find a group of people who appreciate GM as much
as I do: other than my mom who probably likens him to Cliff Richard; a
comparison
to make any GM fan cringe. But then again maybe I've just opened
another can of worms because even Cliff is still not married to
this day..oh
oh. Any thoughts on this Amanda?
(Thanks but no. AG)
You can post this if you wish , I don't mind
bearing my soul in cyberspace as
long as
someone on the other end is willing to reciprocate, and from what I've read
in
Yogmail so far this seems to be the case.
George has been a source of inspiration to me for many years. His yearning to
be
loved, his search for professional respect, his attempt to keep everything
in balance. This is me! I too wish to find a balance
in my life.
Love,Fame,Money, and Faith are all entwined together, and very hard to
juggle. Too much of one can upset the
other. At certain times during the
last ten years it has been GM's music that has inspired me to new heights and
pulled me
back from a crumbling precipice.
I fell in love with my wife (Cheri) listening to George. I learned to love
all people and
dropped the redneck attitude thanks to George. I was able to
resist the attentions of a femme fatale and realize what was most
important
to me, thanks to George. These experiences have been major turning points in
my life, and in some small way George's
music was always there to help.
If listening to Careless Whisper doesn't stir the emotions of a cheating
heart, then that
heart is cold and will never know what it is like to be
loved, or how it feels to truly love
someone (mind, body, and soul).
(This
is my mom's favourite song, and she has said the same things you do.
AG)
Sorry to ramble on and sound so melancholy, I
guess this could be called the
musings of a recent member to the 30's club. Thanks Amanda, you're a
darling, for taking the
time to listen.
(Your eloquence is welcome to grace--read "class up"--YOGMAIL anytime James.
AG)
A Yog fan
forever....... James.
P.S. If anyone is interested in a taped copy of Faith or The Southbank Show
from
laserdisc let me
know by e-mailing me directly. Both are NTSC format so any
foreign requests should take note.
********************************
yog-at-khi.compol.com
(Rehan) writes:
------------------------------------------------------
Dear Amanda and YOG fans,
I don't understand
until now, why you people are so much talking about
George Michael's personnel life. HE IS NOT GAY and It shouldn't important for
us
(GM Fans) that he is gay or not. I GM ones but everything so
I guess this is my luck.
(Sorry to hear it. AG)
Well I
have never ever heard of this rare bootleg before so if anyone else
knows about it let me know and if that store does get anymore
in which I kind
of doubt I will let you all know. Anyway on a happier note the new GM single
is out in the UK Dec, 9Th and any
American fans or Canadian fans needing this
can now Pre-order the two cd set from EQS just call them at 315-252-1999 or
e-mail
them at eqs1999-at-ix.netcom.com or visit there web address at
http://www.tyrell.net/~eqs1999/
Hope this helps some of you
out and sorry to those who were interested in
that bootleg I wish my mate would have gotten there sooner but as luck would
have
it he actually got hit from behind on the way there (he is Ok). Oh
Well.
(Sorry to hear about the accident, but maybe he
saved himself from being
arrested... AG)
btw Star People was very cool loved the energy of the performance!!
Cheers!
Brent
********************************
bellaj-at-BIOMED.MED.YALE.EDU (april) writes:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Amanda,
I
am new to this list and I have been away for a few days. Can you tell me
if anybody has the transcript of this interview? I'd
love to get it and know
what the hell everyone is talking about.
(I trust you received it as part of the resend. Full
interview will run in a
couple of weeks. AG)
Is there a YOGMAIL archive somewhere?
(Yes there is thanks to Tim. You
can find it at
http://ozemail.com/au/~alhatu/archive.htm AG)
Thanks in advance,
April
********************************
syn7-at-airmail.net
(Mike Little) writes:
------------------------------------------------------
Let me begin by saying that there is noone in
this world that has expressed
their thoughts in an artistic form so brilliantly than George. I have
listened to George since
the Wham days and still to this day cannot go
without listening to one of his songs daily. In public occurances I find
myself
defending him when people make fun of my listening to wham. I reply
you must listen before you judge. I am from America and have
done some
traveling in my time Worldwide.
(I can go more than a day, but I do at least have to hum his music daily.
AG)
You'll
find that people in general don't give George a chance because of him
not being mainstream. Only to there loss..... George has
had an extreme
emotional impact on my life and I'm sure he will continue to do so ?(as long
as those albums continue hint
hint)
I am not a heavy internet usage type person but couldn't resist searching
for George. I would like to be part of any
possible activities and/or
involvelments with George and his
life. Thanks and don't you dare stop writing songs
George!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(Welcome
to the list, and I hope we can keep you informed. AG)
I desperately need to know when or if George is going to be on tour?
More
specifically if he is going to be touring to Dallas,Texas USA. or anywhere
near. I will fly to a performance if it is in
the USA. I have never seen
George in concert and will no leave this earth till I do!!!!!!!
(Well then you're just gonna
have to stick around a while longer. No
definite tour plans yet. I'm guessing next summer though. AG)
********************************
To
Wrap it Up:
I'm still trying to get all your postings taken care of. May have to make
Friday a two-parter.
Also,
George in Australia tells me that the Australian school term is coming
to an end, and some e mail addresses are about to become
invalid. If you
don't have another form of e mail, drop me a line telling me when the account
expires, and I'll remove you
until you get back online. Thanks.
Lastly: Someone was making fun of George in the NanaNews, should I do
something about
it?
Lis