Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

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MICHAEL, George

(b Yorgos Kyriatou Panayiotou, 26 June 1963, Finchley, N. London; d 25 December 2016, Goring, Oxfordshire) Singer, songwriter, top MOR artist and control freak. During a stellar career as half of a pop duo with Andrew Ridgeley (see Wham!) he parted with Simon Napier-Bell over the manager's deals with South African interests, later ordered his investment counsellors to sell shares in a U.S. arms firm and sued somebody else over the investment in his pension plans, and had not released an album for years because of wrangling with Sony, his new label. Having had successful solo singles while still a duo, he duetted with Aretha Franklin ('I Knew You Were Waiting For Me' '87 from album Aretha was a no. 1 single). His first solo album Faith '87 included hit 'I Want Your Sex' '87, banned here and there despite his plea that it was a paean to monogamy. The album was no. 1 in the USA for twelve weeks and won a Grammy as Album of the Year (i.e. biggest seller of the year); his next was called Listen Without Prejudice '90 and only reached no. 2 in the USA.

Having allegedly renegotiated terms with Sony twice, he put his career on hold and sued the company to get out of his contract entirely, complaining that recording artists were slaves. He lost '94, the judge seeing clearly that Sony/Columbia had put up an investment that had made Michael very rich. The trial was said to cost him £7m; he said he would appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, but the industry breathed easier. Then he parted with manager Rob Kahane, described by the judge as 'a thoroughly unreliable and untrustworty witness', his testimony full of his 'intense dislike' of Sony. Meanwhile Michael appeared on Five Live EP '93 on Queen's Hollywood label, with that group and singer Lisa Stansfield, tracks from a '92 tribute concert for Freddie Mercury and from a concert tour in which he sang only covers of black songs, profits from the album going to various AIDS charities; he had also worked producing and writing for various other artists.

Sony and Virgin made a deal so that Sony could be rid of Michael; the album Older '96 on Ægean/Virgin (Dreamworks in USA) was described by David Sinclair in The Times as 'obsessively honed elegance. In his quest for perfection, Michael has ended up in a fantastically stylish limbo.' Among the slow breathy ballads, 'Jesus To A Child' was nearly seven minutes long, 'Fastlove' accompanied by a soft-porn video. In April '98 he was arrested alone in a public lavatory for 'a lewd act'.