Older (George Michael album) explained

Older
Type:studio
Artist:George Michael
Cover:George Michael - Older album cover.png
Released:13 May 1996
Recorded:1994 – 5 January 1996[1]
Studio:Sarm West (London)[2]
Length:58:56
Prev Title:Five Live (with Queen and Lisa Stansfield)
Prev Year:1993
Next Year:1998

Older is the third studio album by English singer-songwriter George Michael, released on 13 May 1996 in Europe by Virgin Records and Aegean Records. The American release, which occurred one day later, was the first album released by DreamWorks Records. It was Michael's first studio album since 1990's Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 – the five-and-a-half-year gap was due to the legal battle that Michael experienced with his former record company Sony Music. Michael dedicated two years to the recording of Older, and the album found him exploring new musical territories in a more serious fashion compared to his previous work.

At the time of release, the album was a huge commercial hit, particularly in Europe.[3] In the UK, the album was particularly notable for producing a record six top three hit singles in a two-year span.[4] The high sales of the album prompted a re-issue of the album, titled Older & Upper, eighteen months after the original release.[5]

Background

Following the release of Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (1990), George Michael accused record label owners Sony Music of failing to promote the album as well as lacklustre support for his charity recordings (particularly contributions to the Red Hot AIDS Benefit Series) and requested to be released from his contract.[6] A bitter legal battle ensued through the courts, ultimately resulting in a loss to Michael. During the court battle, Michael stated that he would refuse to release any new material through Sony under his name should he lose the lawsuit.[7] Whilst essentially holding true to his word, Michael was not completely absent from the recording world during the six years between Listen Without Prejudice and Older.

After a huge hit with a live duet with Elton John on "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (that reached number one in both the UK and the US), Michael contributed several tracks to the charity album Red Hot + Dance in 1992 (with one song, "Too Funky", being released as a single and reaching worldwide top 10 positions). The same year, he performed live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium; in 1993, an EP of Michael's performances with Queen and Lisa Stansfield, entitled Five Live was released, and reached in the UK.[8]

Musical style and composition

Older found Michael experimenting with new musical styles and expanding his artistic horizons. Particularly notable was the jazz flavour of the album's sound.[9] The album marked a departure from the synthesised production of his previous projects, delivering a more organic sound with the inclusion of brass and strings.[10] Michael was particularly inspired by the music of Brazilian composer Antônio Carlos Jobim. Another big influence was the album's producer, Jon Douglas, who has mixed several George Michael songs as B-sides. They first met when Douglas produced Lisa Moorish's version of "I'm Your Man" in 1995, to which Michael provided backing vocals. Michael and Douglas began to work together soon after, and they co-wrote "Spinning the Wheel" together and also co-wrote and produced "Fastlove". Douglas also played keyboards on those tracks. The album is dedicated to Anselmo Feleppa, Michael´s lover who died from AIDS before the release of the album.

Overall, the style of the album was melancholy, dark and sad. Michael complemented this departure making a dramatic change of his clothes, hair style and overall appearance. The long blonde hair, beard and jeans that Michael was known for during the late eighties were replaced with a buzz cut black hair and mostly leather clothes. Michael commented, on The Oprah Winfrey Show, about his new appearance:[11]

"The way my image changed in Europe was that I looked very different, I had very short hair—I had really a kind of gay look in a way. I think I was trying to tell people I was okay with it [being gay], I just really didn't want to share it with journalists. The album I made in the middle nineties called Older was a tribute to Anselmo, really; there was a dedication to him on the album and fairly obvious male references. To my fans and the people that were really listening, I felt like I was trying to come out with them."

Michael grew back a longer hair style during 1998, as was first shown on the video he recorded for "Outside", premiered near the end of that year.

Reception

Upon release, Older was met with widespread acclaim from music critics.

Commercial performance

Older was a huge commercial success, especially in the European markets. In the UK the album debuted at with 281,000 copies sold in its first week, becoming one of the biggest debuts ever in British history (it currently ranks as the 23rd fastest-selling album in the UK). At that point, it was Virgin's fastest-selling album of all time; it was later surpassed by the Spice Girls.[12] It became Michael's biggest-selling album in his homeland, achieving over 1.8 million copies sold, and receiving a 6× Platinum certification by the BPI on 5 December 1997. In the UK, it spent a total of 147 weeks inside the top 200, 99 of them on the top 75, and 35 of them on the top 10 (including 23 consecutive weeks).[13] The steady sales of the album were the result of good promotion market and the release of six hit singles throughout a two-year period. All of these singles (except for the one for the title track) were released and promoted as EP's, in two available formats, most of them containing previously unreleased material (including live tracks, alternate versions and, in the case for the Spinning the Wheel EP, two new studio recordings of brand-new George Michael compositions). None of these singles were promoted with live performances at Top of the Pops only music videos were recorded for the four first singles and were played there. All of this helped to push the album sales from one week to another, with the album usually returning to the top 10 in the British charts. For example, when "Star People '97" was released in mid-1997, Older achieved a 21–14–10–7 progression on the charts. Very much the same happened when "You Have Been Loved/The Strangest Thing '97" was issued as the sixth single (sixteen months after the original release of the album), and Older showed a 24–14–7 move on the UK charts. As of April 2019, Older was the 97th best-selling album of all time in the UK.[14]

In the United States, however, the album somewhat stalled and was received with lukewarm success. There (and in Canada), the album release was particularly notable as it was the first album released by the now-defunct DreamWorks Records. Despite leading singles "Jesus to a Child" and "Fastlove" reaching the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, debut sales for the album were disappointing. The album debuted and peaked at on the Billboard 200 the week of 1 June 1996 with 99,000 units sold, the next week it dropped to and remained on the chart for 24 weeks, it was certified platinum by the RIAA on 21 August 1996 for shipments of one million units.[15] [16] [17] As of October 2006, it has sold 881,000 copies in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[18] By February 1997, the album is said to have sold 5,000,000 copies worldwide, according to Billboard.[19]

Singles

Older was particularly notable for the release of its six singles. All of them reached the UK top 3, hitting a record for the most singles in the British top 3 released from a single album. At the time of release of the fifth of them, "Star People '97", chart specialist James Masterson noted George Michael's success on the UK Singles Chart, writing: "Ironically enough denied by the very man who some say he is trying to emulate (Gary Barlow), George Michael nonetheless makes an impressive top 3 entry with this single. The Older album has now proved itself to be far and away his most commercially successful recording ever. Five singles now lifted and every single one has been a top 3 hit. Compare this with the two top 3 hits produced by Faith and Listen Without Prejudices scant total of one top tenner and one single which missed the top 40 altogether. This sustained single success has, of course, been achieved with a little help from marketing tricks such as remixes – or in this case a new recording of the album track which gives it a much-needed transformation into a deserved commercial smash."[20]

Awards and live shows

In 1996, George was voted 'Best British Male', at the MTV Europe Awards and the BRITs; and at The Ivor Novello Awards, he was awarded the prestigious title of 'Songwriter of The Year' for the third time.[22]

At the beginning of October 1996, George performed his first live shows for five years with a gig for Radio 1 FM followed by an Unplugged Session for MTV. The Radio 1FM audience consisted of just 200 people and the MTV Unplugged session slightly larger at 500. Both audiences included competition winners, some of whom had flown to London from all over the world, as well as various specially invited guests.[23]

Re-releases

The album was re-released on 1 December 1997 in a CD box set titled Older & Upper including two discs, both in gold (instead of the original black from Older):

  1. the original album;
  2. an extra disc, titled Upper, packaged in a cardboard sleeve with the same cover as the box (which was a close-up of Michael's green eye from the original Older album).

Alongside interactive elements, the Upper compact disc includes six tracks previously released on the singles from the album, notably featuring a version of "Fastlove (Part II)", only found on the second "Fastlove" promo single as "Fully Extended Mix – edit", differing both from the one included on the "Fastlove" single (running at 9:27) and from the edited version (4:39) included on the first "Fastlove" promo.

When released, Older & Upper was not listed in the UK charts as a different album than the original Older, and helped the album to jump from No. 65 to No. 36 during the competitive Christmas season.

The album received a remastered expanded edition reissue on September 30, 2022 from Sony Music and Michael's own label, Aegean Records, comprising the original Older album, the Upper disc and three bonus CDs, containing remixes and live recordings of Older-era tracks.[24] The album charted at number 2 on the UK Official Albums Chart Top 100 on 7 October 2022.[25]

Track listing

All tracks written and produced by George Michael, except where noted.

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1996–2017)!scope="col"
Peak
position
Canadian Albums (The Record)[26] 5
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[27] 3
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)1
European Albums (Billboard) 1
Irish Albums (IRMA)2
Italian Albums (FIMI)2
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[28] 3
Portuguese Albums (AFP)1
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)1

Year-end charts

Chart (1996)!scope="col"
Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[29] 15
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[30] 14
Canadian Albums (RPM)[31] 15
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[32] 26
European Albums (Top 100)[33] 5
French Albums (SNEP)[34] 12
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[35] 19
Italian Albums (Hit Parade)[36] 4
Japanese Albums (Oricon)116
New Zealand Albums (Recorded Music NZ)[37] 16
Norwegian End of School Period Albums (VG-lista)[38] 3
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[39] 4
Swedish Albums & Compilations (Sverigetopplistan)[40] 21
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[41] 11
UK Albums (OCC)[42] 5
US Billboard 200[43] 99
Chart (1997)!scope="col"
Position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[44] 83
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[45] 26
European Albums (Top 100)[46] 35
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[47] 89
UK Albums (OCC)[48] 13
Chart (1998)!scope="col"
Position
UK Albums (OCC)[49] 121

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Did you know the final studio day on 'Older' was 5th January 1996? By the end, George and his team had clocked up 127 days in Studio Two at SARM West. . George Michael . 30 September 2022 . 14 April 2024 . Facebook.
  2. Web site: Cunningham . Mark . Recording George Michael's 'Older' Album . . July 1996 . 29 December 2023.
  3. Web site: George Michael Biography . Monsters and Critics . 8 July 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100903140718/http://www.monstersandcritics.com/people/George-Michael/biography . 3 September 2010.
  4. Web site: Making George Michael: Older. 19 July 2021. 14 October 2021. 28 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211028170557/https://www.classicpopmag.com/2021/07/george-michael-older/. live.
  5. Web site: Griffiths . George . 29 September 2022 . The chart legacy of George Michael's Older: In celebration of 26 years of the pop superstar's third album and release of deluxe, limited-edition boxset . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20240201194807/https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/the-chart-legacy-of-george-michaels-older-in-celebration-of-26-years-of-the-pop-superstars-third-album-and-release-of-deluxe-limited-edition-boxset__37484/ . 1 February 2024 . 31 May 2024 . Official Charts . en.
  6. Web site: The Long GOODBYE (article for a US magazine explore Michael) . https://web.archive.org/web/20100409010146/http://www.georgemichael-tribute.com/USMagazine.html . 9 April 2010 . 9 April 2010 . 1 June 2012.
  7. News: New York Times:George Michael Loses Lawsuit Against Sony . The New York Times . 22 June 1994 . Richard W. . Smith . 8 July 2011 . 23 January 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100123194345/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/22/arts/george-michael-loses-lawsuit-against-sony.html . live .
  8. Web site: Wade . Ian . 7 July 2022 . Making George Michael: Older . 30 May 2024 . Classic Pop Magazine . en-US.
  9. Web site: George Michael 'Older' Album Review, New album reviews and latest album releases on Yahoo! Music . https://web.archive.org/web/20060117103135/http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/l_reviews_a/11083.html. 17 January 2006 . Yahoo! Music UK . 15 April 1996 . 8 July 2011.
  10. Web site: Harnell . Steve . 19 July 2021 . Remembering George Michael's Older . 30 May 2024 . Classic Pop Magazine . en-US.
  11. Web site: The Oprah Winfrey Show: A Time of Patience, from the show George Michael . unfit . https://web.archive.org/web/20070820170742/http://www2.oprah.com/tows/slide/200405/20040526/tows_slide_20040526_02.jhtml . 20 August 2007 . 30 May 2024 . Oprah.
  12. Web site: GMA: Albums Index . https://archive.today/20120713033258/http://members.lycos.co.uk/georgeography/gmalbums_index.htm . dead . 13 July 2012 . Members.lycos.co.uk . 8 July 2011 .
  13. Web site: GEORGE MICHAEL – The Official Charts Company . Theofficialcharts.com . 8 July 2011.
  14. Web site: Copsey . Rob . 11 April 2019 . The best-selling albums of all time on the Official UK Chart . 30 May 2024 . Official Charts . en.
  15. Mayfield. Geoff. 1 June 1996. Between The Bullets. Billboard. 108. 104. 0006-2510. 4 January 2018. 22. 15 January 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230115150920/https://books.google.com/books?id=rwkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA104. live.
  16. News: Top 200 Albums. 8 June 1996. Billboard 200. Billboard. 4 January 2018. 19 February 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180219204505/https://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200/1996-06-08. live.
  17. George Michael Chart History (Billboard 200). Billboard. 4 January 2018. 17 November 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211117170248/https://www.billboard.com/artist/george-michael/chart-history/tlp/. live.
  18. Answers to Readers' Questions About George Michael, Christmas Albums and Pink. Caulfield. Keith. 27 October 2006. Billboard. 4 January 2018. 25 April 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180425162432/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/56816/ask-billboard. live.
  19. Book: Billboard . 1997-02-22 . Nielsen Business Media, Inc. . en . 13 August 2022 . 15 January 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230115150921/https://books.google.com/books?id=sQ4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA46 . live .
  20. Web site: GMS: Star People '97 . https://archive.today/20120710171332/http://members.lycos.co.uk/georgeography/gms_starpeople.htm . dead . 10 July 2012 . Members.lycos.co.uk . 8 July 2011 .
  21. Web site: Lyrics: George Michael Older. www.george.michael.szm.com. 18 October 2017. 16 October 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171016180242/http://george.michael.szm.com/Lyrics/lyrolder.html. live.
  22. Web site: George Michael . Gaylife.about.com . 25 June 1963 . 8 July 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20051220111840/http://gaylife.about.com/od/gaycelebrityprofiles/p/georgemichael.htm . 20 December 2005 .
  23. Web site: George Michael on . Tv.com . 20 December 2008 . 8 July 2011 . 22 December 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091222080434/http://www.tv.com/george-michael/person/130286/summary.html . dead .
  24. Web site: Staff . Wonderland . Sony Music Celebrate George Michael's Iconic Album, Older . Wonderland . 30 September 2022 . 16 September 2022 . 30 September 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220930180359/https://www.wonderlandmagazine.com/2022/09/16/sony-music-george-michael-older/ . live .
  25. Web site: Official Albums Chart Top 100 07 October 2022 - 13 October 2022. Official Charts. 7 October 2022. 11 November 2022. 16 October 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221016032457/https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/albums-chart/20221007/7502/. live.
  26. Hits of the World. Billboard. 80–81. 8 June 1996. 17 May 2016.
  27. Top National Sellers . . 13 . 25 . 22 June 1996 . 16 . 29800226 . World Radio History . 6 May 2021 . 8 March 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210308063433/https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1996/MM-1996-06-22.pdf . live .
  28. Web site: http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/artist/88084/ranking/cd_album/ . ja:ジョージ・マイケルのアルバム売り上げランキング. ja. Oricon. 17 May 2016. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20121023190051/http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/artist/88084/ranking/cd_album/. 23 October 2012.
  29. Web site: ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Albums 1996. Australian Recording Industry Association. 17 May 2016. 5 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160305091948/http://aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-top-50albums-1996.htm. live.
  30. Web site: Jahreshitparade Alben 1996. de. Hung Medien. 17 May 2016. 2 August 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150802112558/http://austriancharts.at/year.asp?id=1996&cat=a. live.
  31. Web site: Top Albums/CDs – Volume 64, No. 18, December 16 1996. RPM. 17 May 2016. 5 April 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140405002422/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?brws_s=1&file_num=nlc008388.9732&type=1&interval=24&PHPSESSID=mhe12pta2k83e08udtq66ot062. live.
  32. Web site: Jaaroverzichten – Album 1996. Hung Medien. nl. 17 May 2016. 19 September 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150919044116/http://dutchcharts.nl/jaaroverzichten.asp?year=1996&cat=a. live.
  33. Web site: Music & Media 1996 in Review: Year End Sales Charts. Music & Media. 12. 21 December 1996. 27 May 2022. 14 October 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221014064811/https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1996/MM-1996-12-21.pdf. live.
  34. Web site: Classement Albums – année 1996. Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. 17 May 2016. fr. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131211135524/http://www.snepmusique.com/fr/pag-259376-Classements-Annuels.html?year=1996&type=2 . 11 December 2013 .
  35. Web site: Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts. de. GfK Entertainment Charts. 17 May 2016. 23 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160323170255/https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-1996. live.
  36. Web site: Chart Watch – Top Selling Albums of 1996. 14 June 1997. Billboard. 17 May 2016. 15 January 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230115150921/https://books.google.com/books?id=2w8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA58. live.
  37. Web site: Top Selling Albums of 1996. Recorded Music NZ. 17 May 2016. 4 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304101035/http://nztop40.co.nz/chart/albums?chart=3885. live.
  38. Web site: Topp 40 Album Skoleslutt 1996. VG-lista. 17 May 2016. no. https://web.archive.org/web/20160617035752/http://lista.vg.no/liste/topp-40-album/2/dato/1996/periode/skoleslutt. 17 June 2016. dead.
  39. Book: Fernando Salaverri. Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002. 1st. September 2005. Fundación Autor-SGAE. Spain. 84-8048-639-2.
  40. Web site: Årslista Album (inkl samlingar), 1995. sv. Sverigetopplistan. 27 May 2022. 21 January 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210121055746/https://www.sverigetopplistan.se/chart/42?dspy=1995&dspp=1. live.
  41. Web site: Swiss Year-end Charts 1996. Hung Medien. 17 May 2016. 24 February 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150224101124/http://swisscharts.com/charts/jahreshitparade/1996. live.
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  49. Web site: Najlepiej sprzedające się albumy w W.Brytanii w 1998r. pl. Z archiwum...rocka. 28 July 2014. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120927002617/http://uktop40.republika.pl/najlep%20sprzalbumy%20uk%201998.html. 27 September 2012.