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Wham!

Wham!

27 articles

Audio interviews

George Michael (1987)

Interview by Adam Sweeting, Rock's Backpages audio, November 1987

On the release of his solo debut Faith, George Michael talks about his complex relationship with the press; his split from Simon Napier-Bell's management; his confidence from an early age and what excited him starting out; his run-in with miners' leader Arthur Scargill, the miners' benefit debacle and his personal politics; the crazy Wham! fame days; Boy George's attempts to out him as gay; the new album and its songs, including 'I Want Your Sex'... and his general outlook on life.

File format: mp3; file size: 59.5mb, total interview length: 1h 02' 00" sound quality: ***

George Michael (2007)

Interview by Steve Pafford, Rock's Backpages audio, June 2007

The man born Georgios Kyricacos Panayiotou talks at length about his family's attitudes towards homosexuality; his relationship with his mother; coming out to his parents; on his own gayness, and not being part of the gay community; on Wham! bandmate Andrew Ridgeley; on songs and videos such 'Wham Rap', 'Club Tropicana' and 'Young Guns'; manager Simon Napier-Bell's shenanigans; the L.A. cruising incident and his American career; meeting Anselmo Feleppa; meeting Kenny Goss; his love of David Bowie; the rivalry between the Brit MTV bands; the state of current pop, and how he sees his future.

File format: mp3; file size: 109.1mb, interview length: 1h 53' 40" sound quality: ***

List of articles in the library

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Wham!

Interview by Neil Tennant, Smash Hits, 28 October 1982

Two 19-year-olds from Bushey, Herts, who play all-British rap and funk? I meet all sorts in this job, claims Neil Tennant. ...

I See London

Report by Betsy Sherman, Boston Rock, 30 March 1983

IF YOU'RE keen to witness a major cultural capital in hibernation, try being in London the week between Christmas and New Years. Just about everything ...

Wham!: Bad Boys Stick Together

Interview by Dave Rimmer, Smash Hits, 12 May 1983

THROUGH THICK AND THIN, IT SEEMS. WHAM! MET EIGHT YEARS AGO AND HAVE BEEN VERY HARD TO SEPARATE SINCE. ANDREW TALKS ABOUT QEORGE. GEORGE TALKS ...

Wham! Teen Dreams Come True

Interview by Paolo Hewitt, New Musical Express, 18 June 1983

A sense of humour? Clubs, parties and late nights? Five months to write 'Bad Boys'? What is with these WHAM! guys? PAOLO HEWITT steps into ...

Wham!: The Sundance Kids

Interview by Ian Birch, Smash Hits, 18 August 1983

A year ago Wham! made records and simply had fun. Now they've got managers, gossip columns and solo careers to worry about. Ian Birch hears ...

What Simon Says: Simon Napier-Bell

Interview by Barney Hoskyns, New Musical Express, 29 October 1983

MODESTY, TACT AND DISCRETION ARE NOT THE QUALITIES OF '60s POP ENTREPRENEUR SIMON NAPIER-BELL. BARNEY HOSKYNS FINDS OUT WHAT ARE. ...

Wham!: Hammersmith Odeon, London

Live Review by Max Bell, The Times, 31 October 1983

WATCHING WHAM! perform live confirms the suspicion that 1983 has marked the return of the teenybopper. Wham! fans, the majority young girls, possess all the ...

Wham!: Hammersmith Odeon, London

Live Review by David Quantick, New Musical Express, 5 November 1983

HEY, SUCKER — welcome to the George Michael Show... ...

Wham!: Lyceum, London

Live Review by Helen Fitzgerald, Melody Maker, 26 November 1983

WHAM! TRAP! ...

Wham!: The Beach Boys

Report and Interview by Neil Tennant, Smash Hits, 24 May 1984

A sun-soaked story of sea, sand, shorts, shuttlecocks and snogging. Yes, Wham! are back. Your travel guide in Miami: Neil Tennant. ...

Into Battle: Declaring War On The Pop State

Essay by Ian Penman, New Musical Express, 8 September 1984

IAN PENMAN goes over the top, typewriter at the ready, and asks, Can one speak of the state of pop without protecting the interests of ...

Wham! Style Council: Miners' Benefit, Royal Festival Hall, London

Live Review by Adam Sweeting, Melody Maker, 15 September 1984

Pit-Head Ballet ...

Wham!, Style Council et al: Miners' Benefit Finale, Royal Festival Hall, London

Live Review by Nick Kent, New Musical Express, 22 September 1984

SLAG! ...

Wham!: "We're No Con!"

Interview by Ian Birch, Smash Hits, 27 September 1984

... but they used to be. Wham! now think that their whole ''Bad Boys" look is "pathetic" and they "can't believe how many people bought ...

Wham!: Make It Big (Epic)

Review by Paolo Hewitt, New Musical Express, 10 November 1984

LET'S START with Barry White. Now there was a man that I loathed. At the height of his success, I used to watch his videos ...

Wham!: Make It Big (Epic)

Review by Helen Fitzgerald, Melody Maker, 10 November 1984

MILD NOISE ...

Wham!: The Bigger They Come, The Harder They Bite

Interview by Colin Irwin, Melody Maker, 17 November 1984

In an historic encounter, Colin Irwin confronts WHAM! on such burning issues as sexism, politics, wallyism and taking your shirt off in public. ...

"Will George Michael Ever Appear On Stage Again"

Report and Interview by Chris Heath, Smash Hits, 3 January 1985

Of course he will. But that didn't stop people asking questions like that on the news the day he strained his back and Wham! had ...

Chris Ruocco: A Stitch In Times

Interview by Deanne Pearson, No. 1, 2 March 1985

Chris Ruocco makes the striking stage outfits of many of today's top pop stars. Deanne Pearson talks to the tailor whose creations turn up on ...

Wham!: Wembley Stadium, London

Live Review by Adam Sweeting, The Guardian, 30 June 1986

George's time to go-go: Adam Sweeting on Wham!'s farewell concert at Wembley ...

Wham!: The Final

Review by David Quantick, New Musical Express, 12 July 1986

RONNIE BARKER: "What's it all about, then? Life, I mean. What's it all about, eh?" Ronnie Corbett: "Something to do, I s'pose." ...

Johnny Rogan: Wham! Confidential – Death of a Supergroup (Omnibus)

Book Review by Hugh Fielder, Sounds, 12 December 1987

NO, NOT another tardy teenybopper cash-in but an investigative peek at the rock business machinations that caused Wham!'s meteoric rise and fall. ...

Bare: George Michael, His Own Story by George Michael and Tony Parsons

Book Review by Lloyd Bradley, Q, November 1990

The Life Of George: from self-conscious childhood, to soul boy suburbia, to immense wealth, incredible fame and alarming desirability – all between hard covers. ...

George Talks: His Frankest Interview Ever

Interview by Steve Pafford, Richard Smith, GAY TIMES, July 2007

ALTHOUGH IT'S probably not what George Michael would like to be remembered for, something happened a year ago that summed him up beautifully. George was ...

Andrew Ridgeley: Wham! George & Me (Michael Joseph)

Book Review by Graeme Thomson, Event Magazine, 26 October 2019

Despite being crushed' at his bandmate's death, Andrew Ridgeley's memoir, Wham! George & Me, is merely a bland look at the duo's career. ...

see also George Michael

see also Pepsi & Shirlie

see also Andrew Ridgeley

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