Write Away Magazine Dec 2019

George Michael
We’vetaken a look at the Christmas classic but there was so
much more to George Michael and Wham! So let’s take a
little time to discover the iconic 1980’s pop duo.
George Michael and Andrew Ridgley first burst on the
scene way back in 1983 with their debut single “Young
guns , go for it” The first of many of what would be one of
the most commercially successful pop acts of the 1980’s.
Michael and Ridgley first met at Bushey Meads School
in Bushey near the town of Watford in Hertfordshire.
For a short time they formed a SKA band called The
Executive with a few other class mates before forming
Wham! in 1980.
Michael took on the majority of roles and responsibilities
within the band—composer,
producer, lead singer, and occasional instru
mentalist. Still teenagers, they promoted
themselves as hedonistic youngsters,
proud to live a carefree life without
work or commitment. This was
reflected in their earliest singles
which, part-parody, part-social
comment, briefly earned Wham! a
reputation as a dance protest
group.
In order to move to a recording
contract with Sony label Epic,
Wham! was forced to walk away
from most of the royalties from
their debut album, Fantastic.
None of that mattered when their
1984 single, “Wake Me up Before
You Go Go,” became a worldwide hit,
accompanied by a video of the pair
cavorting in their sportswear. Almost
immediately, George Michael started thinking
of a solo career, and released “Careless
Whisper,” issued in the U.S. as George Michael of
Wham! The duo embarked on a much-publicized trip to China
and enjoyed considerable success in America.
Andrew Ridgley
also tried to go it solo but could
not recover from the Wham! split-up. He tried
his hand at Formula 3 motor racing but, again, without much
success.
George Michael’s popularity continued to grow despite the
adverse headlines until Christmas Day 2016 when at the age of
53, he died of a heart and liver condition.
Owing to the delay in determining the cause of death, Michael’s
funeral was held 29 March 2017. In a private ceremony, he
was buried at Highgate Cemetery in north London, near his
mother’s grave. That summer an informal memorial garden
was created outside his former home in Highgate. The site, in a
private square that Michael had owned, is tended by fans.
Like us all, George Michael had his issues. But his talents
coupled with his integrity, generosity+and honesty made him
one of the best loved superstars of the 1980’s and 1990’s. His
Christmas hit, ‘Last Christmas’ will ensure that he will live on
in our hearts for many years to come. The group ‘Wham’ still
remains today as an influence to any young musical act and the
ultimate in the fun of music.
Wham!’s end came rather suddenly, in 1985, reputedly when
the group’s manager, Simon Napier-Bell (later to manage Take
That), decided to sell a share of his management to a
South African entertainment conglomerate.
Supposedly, as part of a stand against South African
politics, George Michael immediately announced
Wham!’s breakup. They gave their farewell performance
before a sold-out audience of 72,000 fans at London’s
Wembley Stadium.
George Michael embarked on a solo career which rarely
saw him out of the press, not only for the amazing music
he was producing but also a few embarrassing incidents in
which he was involved in public sex acts and other
misdemeanours involving the law.
GEORGE MICHAEL
1963 - 2016
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