Older (George Michael album)
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 three 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.
Older
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[edit]
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 No. 1 in the UK).
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 Prejudice's 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."[26]
Awards and live shows[edit]
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.[28]
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.[29]