George Michael: The biography
Page 22
Cameron, Chris
Pianist, assistant
Cameron, who last played piano on Patience, has been busy working with Lesley Garratt, Tina Turner, Take That and the Stereophonics.
Craymer, Chris
Photographer
Craymer launched a highly successful career after working on the early Wham! photo shoots as he moved into fashion, beauty and lifestyle photography.
Dean, Mark
Innervision label boss Mark Dean eventually vanished and has not been heard of since.
DeMacque, Helen ‘Pepsi’
Dancer / backing vocalist
Formed Pepsi and Shirlie with Shirlie Holliman and went on to produce two albums, Heartache (1987) and Change (1991). Pepsi later took part in the 1993 revival of Hair. She was most recently spied working in a gift shop in New Zealand.
Estus, Deon
Bassist
Deon worked with George Michael from early Wham! days until Older in 1996. In 1989 he released a solo album, Spell, from which came a US Top 10 single, ‘Heaven Help Me’. He also played on Andrew Ridgeley’s Son of Albert in 1990. He currently lives in California.
Eyre, Tommy
Keyboardist
Sheffield-born Eyre was another long-time Michael collaborator before quitting during the Faith tour in 1988. During a long career in which he also worked with Joe Cocker and Gerry Rafferty, he logged an impressive list of session appointments. He passed away due to cancer in May 2001.
Franklin, Aretha
Collaborator
Franklin has issued seven albums since working with George Michael two decades ago. She continues to produce award-winning work and more recently has collected Grammys in 2004 and 2006, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005. She was named ninth in the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine in 2004.
Georgiou, Andros
Cousin Andros seemed to fall out with George Michael after the failure of their Aegean record label. He has not been spotted since appearing on the Channel 5 ‘documentary’ Careless Whiskers.
Gomersall, Paul
Engineer
As well as working with George Michael from the days of Wham! to his more recent solo albums, Gomersall spread his wings to work with some of music’s biggest names. Some of his credits include Blur’s Parklife, Prefab Sprout’s Jordan: The Comeback and Kate Bush’s The Sensual World. After leaving Sarm Studios he set up as a freelance producer/engineer. He has lived in Australia since 1998.
Gregory, Steve
Saxophonist
Responsible for the instantly recognisable sax part to ‘Careless Whisper’, Gregory has since worked with Chris Rea, Maxi Priest and Queen. He issued a solo album called Bushfire, which included special guests Georgie Fame and Queen’s John Deacon.
Holliman, Shirlie
Dancer/backing vocalist
Holliman married Spandau Ballet’s Martin Kemp in 1988. In the 1990s she and daughter Hayley appeared in the video for the Spice Girls’ song ‘Mama’. The couple also have a son, Roman. Along with Pepsi, Shirlie added backing vocals to Geri Halliwell’s number one solo single ‘Bag It Up’ in 2000.
Kahane, Rob
Manager
After his split from George Michael in the wake of the Sony court case, Kahane signed rock band Bush and promoted their US career, making them stars in the 1990s.
Lewis, Martin
Film producer
Lewis has been all over the pop culture map during the last two decades. He has written one-man comedy shows, hosted radio and TV shows, managed the Portsmouth Sinfonia and discovered Alexei Sayle.
Morahan, Andrew
Video maker
Londoner Morahan spent most of the period 1984 to 1996 working on music videos and TV commercials. His award-winning ‘Cheat’ ad for Guess? Jeans, featuring Juliette Lewis and Harry Dean Stanton, made his name. He has also produced commercials for Carling (‘Football’), Lynx (‘Wild Women’) and Rimmel. In 2002 he founded Bikini Films with Kate Elson.
Mortimer, David (aka Austin, David)
Friend
Mortimer’s brief attempt at a solo career in Japan came to nothing, but he is still close friends with Michael and has co-written with him on occasion during recent years, as well as popping up in the documentary A Different Story.
Napier-Bell, Simon
Manager
Now in his seventh decade, Napier-Bell is still working in the music industry and has written several highly acclaimed books on different aspects of his lengthy career in the business.
Panos, Jack
Father
Still owns Mr Jacks and enjoys breeding horses at the stud farm purchased for him by his son. He has occasionally given TV interviews about his son in recent years, admitting that he had ‘blinkers’ on when it came to Georgios’ obvious talent.
Pope, Tim
Film-maker
Pope had one of the most illustrious directing careers in music video history before moving into feature films. His debut was The Crow: City of Angels. In 2005 he moved back into the world of music promos and produced videos for KT Tunstall and the Kaiser Chiefs.
Ridgeley, Andrew
Partner
After attempting to launch a solo career with the album Son of Albert, Ridgeley returned to the UK from Los Angeles. Retired from music, he now runs a surfing equipment business in Cornwall, where he lives with ex-Bananarama singer Keren Woodward. A keen surfer himself, he frequently campaigns on environmental issues relating to water quality around Britain’s coasts.
Ross, Jonathan
Interviewer
Ross has become something of a cult icon on radio and TV. He currently has a highly rated, irreverent talk show on Friday night BBC television.
Sealey, Diane (D.C. Lee)
Dancer/backing vocalist
Having left Wham! to join the Style Council, Lee had two children, Leah and Nathaniel, with husband Paul Weller before they divorced. In the mid-1980s her album Shrine produced three singles, the best of which, ‘See The Day’, reached number three in the UK and was later covered by Girls Aloud.
Summers, Jazz
Manager
Summers continued managing in the music business after Nomis folded. He has since worked with the Verve, Badly Drawn Boy and Snow Patrol.
Wexler, Jerry
Producer
Wexler was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. His later work included Francis Ford Coppola’s movie The Cotton Club and the Bob Dylan albums Slow Train Coming and Saved. He continued to work as he reached his seventies, producing Etta James’ The Right Time.
THANKS AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
By my own admission I wasn’t the world’s most knowledgeable George Michael fan when I started researching this project. Most of the Wham! years only scratched the surface of my consciousness, though my sister and my wife remember more of the details than I do. So it was interesting in this year-long odyssey to revisit those early songs; I found that the best of them stand the test of time very well and are finely crafted pieces of pop. The George Michael solo years were much more familiar, but it was still reassuring to know that the tabloid bluster of the last few years was just that, bluster. George’s recent tours have proved that beyond any doubt.
On a personal level this has been an exceedingly difficult book to complete and I must say a big thank you to Alice, Judy and everyone at Piatkus for their patience and support. The last year has had more ups and downs than is probably good for my health. Much love goes out to Carolyn and Milan. As usual my thanks go out to all who worked on the book, submitted information and agreed to interviews; you know who you are. Thanks also to Gino Farabella, Rob North and Graham Palmer, not forgetting Tim Abbott for the discography grind and Claire ‘25 Pence’ Allcock at ‘The Allcock Office’.
Rob Jovanovic
The Edge of Heaven
March 2007
PICTURE CREDITS
Every effort has been made to identify and ackn
owledge the copyright holders. Any errors or omissions will be rectified in future editions provided that written notification is made to the publishers.
p.1 (top) © Frank Hopkinson (bottom) © Neal Preston/CORBIS; p.2 (top left) © Alan Davidson/EMPICS (top right) © Rex Features (bottom) © Andre Csillag/Rex Features; p.3 (top) © Alistair Grant/AP/PA Photos (bottom left) © Fiona Hanson/PA Archive/PA Photos (bottom right) © Duncan Raban/EMPICS Entertainment/PA Photos; p.4 © Rex Features; p.5 (top left) © Getty Images (top right) © David Buchan/Rex Features (bottom) © Wire Image/Getty Images; p.6 (top left) © Getty Images (top right) © Getty Images (bottom) © Junji Kurokawa/AP/PA Photos; p.7 (top left) © Chapman/Rex Features (top right) © Richard Young/Rex Features (bottom) © Ken McKay/Rex Features; p.8 (top) © Andy Rain/epa/CORBIS (bottom) © AFP/Getty Images
INDEX
25Live tour 186–8
ABC 46, 50
Adams, Bryan 112
Aerosmith 120
Ahwai, Robert 54, 106
AIDS 80, 103, 113, 130, 132, 135, 151, 184
concerts for awareness 131, 139, 145, 217
Anderson, Lindsay 81, 83, 84, 85, 222
Atkins, Paul 56
Austin, David 20, 21, 29, 32, 34, 36, 38, 45, 48, 52, 62, 67, 87, 92, 103, 111, 113, 119, 225
‘Bad Boys’ 6, 54–5, 56
Bananarama 76, 226
Band Aid 76, 89
Baptiste, David 81
BBC 32, 49, 51, 58, 75, 82, 84, 91, 92, 104, 105, 146, 169, 171, 174, 191, 227
Beatles, The 3, 13, 32, 102
Bee Gees 31, 56, 112
Big tour 74–5
Blair, Tony 169–170, 171, 174, 187, 192
Blige, Mary J. 164
Bono 76, 98
Bourke, Toby 150, 221
Bowie, David 32, 128, 139
Bragg, Melvin 123, 127, 189, 222
Burns, Hugh 71, 81, 106, 119
Bush, George W. 167, 169, 187
Bushey Meads School 24, 27, 28, 29, 33, 37, 53
Bywaters, Lesley 32, 34
Bywaters, Tony 34–35, 91
Camamile, Carina 67, 68
Cameron, Chris 106, 223
‘Can’t Get Used To Losing You’ 36
Capital Radio 62, 153
‘Careless Whisper’ 6, 39–40, 44, 47, 60, 63, 66, 67, 68, 70–1, 73, 78, 82, 85, 90, 107, 128, 188, 224
Cassio Sixth Form College 33, 37
CBS Records 46, 47, 50, 67, 71, 84, 100, 121, 129, 139, 140
Charles, Ray 60
Chic 32, 62
China 3, 5, 80–5
Chrysalis 45
Clapton, Eric 145
Climie, Simon 101
Club Fantastic tour 62–4
‘Club Tropicana’ 6, 45, 47, 56, 57–9
Collins, Phil 75–6
‘Come On!’ 45, 56, 63
Cosby, Bill 85
Cover To Cover tour 128, 129–130, 186
‘Cowboys And Angels’ 129
Cray, Robert 105
Craymer, Chris 56, 223
Crowley, Gary 32, 62, 63
Culture Club 53, 64, 71
Cummings, Danny 81
Curiosity Killed The Cat 105, 109
Curtis, Tony 162
Dann, Trevor 104
Dean, Mark 36–7, 45–6, 47, 49, 50 63, 67, 223
Dee, Kiki 86
DeMacque, Helen (‘Pepsi’) 6, 59, 62, 69, 77, 81, 92, 102, 223
Diamond, Anne 109
Diana, Princess of Wales 6, 38, 72, 145, 156
‘Different Corner, A’ 6, 90
‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ 75–6, 86, 89
‘Do You Really Want To Know’ 132
D’Oliveira, Raul 81
‘Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me’ 130
Dreamworks SKG 146
Dudley, Anne 54
Duncan, Trevor 81
Duncan-Smith, Iain 171
Duran Duran 3, 53, 64, 65, 71, 74, 127
Dylan, Bob 61, 98, 165, 227
Epic 67, 71, 76, 100
Estus, Deon 54, 62, 71, 81, 106, 121, 220, 223
Eurythmics 112
‘Everything She Wants’ 5, 73, 76–7, 80, 111, 126, 152
Executive, The 35–7
Eyre, Tommy 71, 81, 87, 223–4
‘Faith’ 106, 107, 111, 126, 174, 188
Faith 106–9, 113, 115, 120, 121, 124–5, 147, 174
Faith tour 96, 110–113, 117, 145, 186
Fantastic 55–6, 57, 60, 63, 68, 71, 91, 93
‘Fastlove’ 148, 149, 150, 152, 168, 187
‘Father Figure’ 107, 109, 114, 139, 152, 187
Feleppa, Anselmo 128–132, 134, 136, 142, 144, 150, 154, 155, 163, 178
Fila 61
Final, The 93
Final, The (show) 3–5, 91–3, 102–3
‘Flawless (Go To The City)’ 179, 187
Frankie Goes To Hollywood 65, 70, 71, 103, 127
Franklin, Aretha 61, 101–2, 109, 224
‘Freeek!’168, 178
‘Freedom’ 6, 72, 73, 78, 83–4, 88, 106, 128, 176
‘Freedom 90’ 125, 126, 128, 139, 145, 152, 188, 192
Frost, Sir David 140, 169
Gallagher, Noel 167, 170, 177
Geldof, Bob 3, 74, 75, 109
Georgiou, Andros 20, 77, 111, 117, 150, 160, 189, 224
Georgiou, Dimitrios ‘Jimmy’ 14, 15
Glitter, Gary 5
Gomersall, Paul 106, 147, 224
Goss, Kenny 151, 152, 154, 158, 167, 175, 178, 180, 183
Guns ’N’ Roses 128
Hallett, Janey 81
Halliwell, Geri 33, 158–9, 225
‘Hand To Mouth’ 107, 152
‘Hard Day’ 107
Harrison, Lesley Angold see Panos, Lesley
‘Heal The Pain’ 129
‘Heaven Help Me’ 223
Heyward, Nick 5
Holliman, Shirlie 6, 37, 38, 47, 50, 52, 57, 58, 59, 62, 65, 69, 77, 81, 92, 102, 225
Hollywood Reporter 98
Houston, Whitney 106, 112, 114, 221
Hucknall, Mick 139
Human League 42, 46
‘I Knew You Were Waiting’ 101–102
‘I Want Your Sex’ 102–6
‘Imagine’ piano 167, 178
Innervision Records 46, 51, 53, 61, 63, 67, 99, 140
Island Records 60
Isley Brothers, the 73
‘It Doesn’t Really Matter’ 150
‘I’m Your Man’ 6, 88, 89, 92, 112, 188
Jackson, Janet 110, 114
Jackson, Michael 2, 54, 97, 110, 115, 120
Jam, The 31, 136, 178, 179,
‘Jesus To A Child’ 144, 147, 149
Jeung, Kathy 99, 104, 109, 111
John, Elton Sir 4, 6, 22, 29, 32, 65, 72, 78, 86, 89, 92, 109, 127, 153, 181, 184
Kahane, Rob 100–101, 142, 225
Kemp, Martin 225
Khan, Chaka 86
‘Kissing A Fool’ 108, 114
Knight, Gladys 112, 128
Kunick Leisure 98
Laine, Frankie 15
lang, k.d. 139
‘Last Christmas’ 6, 66, 76, 89, 189
Le Beat Route, club 42
Le Bon, Simon 6, 74
Leahy, Dick 87, 137
Leaver, Andrew 34, 56
Lee, D.C. see Sealy, Diane Lee, Spike 115
Lennon, John 124, 179
Listen Without Prejudice 120–122, 129, 130, 138–9, 148, 176
Live Aid 86, 112, 238
‘Look At Your Hands’ 108
‘Love Machine’ 56, 63, 82
‘Love’s In Need Of Love Today’ 110
Madness 35
Madonna 2, 97, 110, 114, 115, 121, 127, 132, 165
Make It Big 71, 73–4, 91
Mandela, Nelson 27, 112, 179
Mercury, Freddie 2, 7, 29, 130–1
Tribute Concert 131–2, 135
Michael, George
arrest in Los Angeles 159–163
as a DJ 38–9
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br /> at school 22–32, 38
autobiography 116–7
battles with father 23, 36
busking 32–33
court case against Sony 136–142
death of mother 152–4
early childhood 17–21
ends Wham! 87
Faith image 107
first demos 39–44
meets Andrew Ridgeley 24–5
move to the US 116
relationship with music press 69
sexuality 58, 89–90, 100, 104–6, 117, 134, 162–4
solo career 100
throat surgery 113
views on the Iraq war 169–171, 174
‘Monkey’ 108, 113
Mooney, Janet 81
Morahan, Andy 83, 109, 114, 225
Morgan, Piers 171
Morrell, Trevor 54, 71, 81
Mortimer, David see Austin, David
‘Mother’s Pride’ 124
MTV Unplugged 152
Muscle Shoals Studios 61, 101
Music From The Edge Of Heaven 93
Napier-Bell, Simon 60, 80, 87, 89, 98–9, 226
Nomis Management 60, 61, 63, 67, 81, 98, 99, 100, 227
‘Nothing Looks The Same In The Light’ 56
Ohga, Norio 134
‘Older’ 149–50, 155
Older 147–150, 156, 175, 176
‘One More Try’ 107, 112, 152
Osbourne, Leroy 81
‘Outside’ 164, 168, 188, 192
Panayiotou, Georgios Kyriacos see Michael, George
Panayiotou, Kyriacos see Panos, Jack
Panayiotou, Melanie 16, 22, 40, 62, 67, 81
Panayiotou, Yioda 16, 22, 62, 81
Panos, Jack 13–16, 18–24, 27, 28, 30, 34, 36, 55, 77, 136, 161, 226
Panos, Lesley 15–16, 17–18, 19, 21, 22, 27, 28, 30, 34, 77, 152–3
‘Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone’ 135
Parkinson, Michael 22, 107, 123, 163, 177, 180
Parsons, Tony 116, 144, 154
Patience 17, 175, 177, 178, 184
Pointer Sisters 86
Police, The 55
Pope, Tim 50, 226
‘Praying For Time’ 124
Presley, Elvis 15, 106
Prince 97, 103, 110, 114, 125, 127
Public Enemy 115
Queen 2, 7, 29, 128, 130–2, 135, 220, 224
Quiffs, The 35, 45
Radio 1 32, 49, 51, 52, 104
‘Ray Of Sunshine, A’ 56, 63
Red, Hot & Dance 130, 132–3
Ridgeley, Albert 27, 44
Ridgeley, Andrew 226