RIP George Michael

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naturalplastic
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25 Dec 2016, 8:20 pm

Kiprobalhato wrote:

i can enjoy careless whisper equally as much when slowed down to 33 RPM.

You mean that you have a copy of the seven inch vinyl single made to play at 45 RPM, and that you have played it at 33?

Interesting.

I have done the exact opposite with Joe Jackson's "Breaking Us In Two": taken the vinyl lp track, that you're supposed to play at 33, and played it at 45. That turns the song from a sad introspective soft rock song to a frenetic Latin booty shaker ala Gloria Estefan (the percussion and the vibes leap out at you).

Anyway "Careless Whispers" is probably my favorite of his songs. Slow, sad, but also sexy. That saxophone solo hits it out of the park. Saxophonist Dave Koz did a good cover version of it.

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25 Dec 2016, 9:45 pm

As George Michael was only a few years older than me, his music was very much something in my life that I took for granted that it would always be there. RIP, good sir.

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26 Dec 2016, 5:10 am

My wife loves GM and we drive through Goring a lot as we live one side of it and our family is on the other side. It's always been a tradition in our car to sing WHAM and GM songs as we pass through, which my 7 year old joins in with too!

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26 Dec 2016, 5:53 am

He passed away on Christmas, whilst his song Last Christmas was plying on radio stations around the world.

CyclopsSummers
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26 Dec 2016, 6:32 am

smudge, you are not alone; he was also my all-time favourite singer. The first album I owned was The Final, a greatest hits compilation of Wham!, plus including some newer songs like 'The Edge of Heaven' and 'A Different Corner'. But I got it in 2000, when I was 13, so George was already well into his solo career at that point. While I was already a fan and was familiar with his singles, at that point I quickly tracked down his music catalog, and fell in love with it. Like you, I find it difficult to pick favourite songs of his, but some songs that I consider to be exceptionally good are 'Cowboys And Angels', 'Freedom 90', 'Jesus to A Child', 'Father Figure', 'A Different Corner', 'Waiting for That Day', and 'Kissing A Fool'.

He also knew how to write great dance tunes, like 'Look At Your Hands', 'Too Funky', and 'Ray of Sunshine'.

His live performances were also excellent; he was great with Wham! in China, where they did an awesome version of the album track 'Blue (Armed with Love)', as well as at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert, and the MTV Unplugged show in 1997.

It's a great loss to have him snatched away at the age of 53. My thoughts go out to his family and friends. His music will be eternal.

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26 Dec 2016, 7:01 am

So, as I'm listening to his songs, I come across this one:

And it really takes me back, not to the 1980s, but rather to a time when I was in a relationship and I was listening to this song a lot. It's amazing how many memories can be attached to a song. I got very close to choking up when I heard it.

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BirdInFlight
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26 Dec 2016, 9:23 am

I just ran across this story of George Michael making a random act of incredible kindness.

Apparently he was a fan and regular viewer of a TV game show, and one day a contestant mentioned what she hoped to win the game show money for.

http://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/breakingnews/george-michael-donated-%c2%a315000-to-deal-or-no-deal-contestant-who-announced-she-wanted-ivf/ar-BBxzyxk?li=BBoPOOl&ocid=iehp

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26 Dec 2016, 9:36 am

CyclopsSummers wrote:

Thank you CyclopsSummers, it makes me feel better to know I am not alone. Although it's hard for me to think of favourites, I would say those few you mentioned, "Cowboys And Angels" to "Kissing A Fool" were definitely in the top of my list of favourites.

My favourites were: Cowboys And Angels, Careless Whisper, Jesus To A Child, Strangest Thing (both versions), Spinning The Wheel, Kissing A Fool, Freedom! '90, I Knew You Were Waiting, Father Figure...yeh, you can see why it's hard for me to pick favourites too.

I think a few Wham! songs were exceptional too, especially Where Did Your Heart Go and The Edge Of Heaven. I like a bunch of Wham! stuff. I also have The Final album.

I had a good cry last night, anyway.

He really has helped me through some rough times. His voice, and his music, are so beautiful. They *really* touch me, especially when I'm down. I love him.

*Hugs to all the fans* I even hugged my sister's partner today, I kinda needed one.

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26 Dec 2016, 9:41 am

BirdInFlight wrote:

Awwwww, bless him. How nice of him to do that for that lady. Thank you for sharing that BirdInFlight.

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26 Dec 2016, 9:49 am

It's really hard not to tell people taking the piss out of his death, "F*ck you".

(Nobody here)

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26 Dec 2016, 8:13 pm

I've been a George Michael fan since I was 16. The first single I ever bought was Star People 97 and the first album was Older (both on audio tape). Absolutely stunned by the news.

I'm listening to his post 2010 singles a lot at the moment (December Song, True Faith and White Light). With the extra tracks, instrumentals and remixes thrown in, it's a bit like having another album.

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26 Dec 2016, 11:45 pm

smudge wrote:

redrobin62, I thought the same thing, that maybe he had AIDS or something.

BirdInFlight: Those are amazing tracks. I'm not even sure if I have favourites, I like so much of his stuff. Careless Whisper reminds me of where I used to live in London. I remember my mum playing the old record, and it sounded incredible. His voice, the music, it's all so beautiful to listen to.

We had an aspie over who had synesthesia. My mum played the song to her and she said my voice was a similar caramel colour to George Michael's.

Michael in fact had gained quite a bit of weight before he died, making it unlikely that he had AIDS. In fact, his weight gain might explain his heart attack.

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27 Dec 2016, 3:20 am

I had not heard Edge of Heaven since it came out, when I was about 5-6 years old.

The song "Everything She Wants" has the distinction of having played on virtually every non-country station here in Houston at some point.

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smudge
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27 Dec 2016, 10:17 am

Kraichgauer wrote:

smudge wrote:

Michael in fact had gained quite a bit of weight before he died, making it unlikely that he had AIDS. In fact, his weight gain might explain his heart attack.

Hmm, good point.

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