Pink Floyd, The #54 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Continued from Part One)

 

Pink Floyd enlisted the help of engineer Alan Parsons for their next album, a concept release about lunacy.  The band released the album The Dark Side of the Moon in 1973.  The single "Money" stalled at #13.  

The group was able to add many sound effects with a new 16-track recorder.  But it wasn't like the digital recorders of today.  They still had to take a razor blade and splicing tape and splice the effects in.  Waters produced the cash register tape loop that plays throughout, with the sounds of tearing paper and bags of coins thrown into an industrial food-mixing bowl.  Waters achieved the loop by meticulously splicing and cutting the tape in a rhythmic pattern.  

 

The album briefly topped U.S. charts before falling.  But rather than completely dropping off the chart, it simmered for months, which became years.  In 1987, The Dark Side of the Moon finally dropped out of the Billboard Top 200 for the first time in 14 years.  It has now sold over 45 million copies worldwide.  

Waters was working on "Brain Damage" after the American portion of the Meddle tour.  Most of the song (then titled "The Dark Side Of The Moon") had been written while Pink Floyd was recording Meddle.  That title became that of the new album.  It's theme is inspired by former member Barrett and his mental breakdown.  We feature it here with "Eclipse".

 

Dark Side of the Moon was produced by Parsons in the same Abbey Road studio that he engineered several of the Beatles albums.  The group featured music from the album on an extensive world tour.  

 

Pink Floyd's masterpiece concept album includes things that can drive someone crazy.  One of three astounding songs on the album that are all included in The Top Tracks of the Rock Era*--This is "Us And Them".  Gilmour's plaintive, simple message about the futility of war is complemented perfectly by Wright's music, which conveys a bluesy feel at the open thanks to the saxophone solo and builds to a frenzied finish.

 

We also have "Time", a song about how time can slip by for all of us, and we don't realize it until it is too late.  Like its counterparts on Dark Side..."Time" also explores the pressures we deal with, in this case, mortality.  Wright and Gilmour share lead vocals.

Pink Floyd went through numerous approaches to this next song.  First, the song was an organ instrumental with spoken-word samples from the Bible.  When the song became a piano piece, the group attempted several different sound effects over the music, including splicing a sample of NASA astronauts communicating to each other in space, but none seemed to fit.  Just two weeks before the album was due to be finished, the group decided a female singer was what the song needed.

 

Parsons suggested Clare Torry, a 25-year-old session vocalist he had worked with previously.  Torry was brought in and performed three takes of the magnificent vocals.  All three takes are spliced in on "The Great Gig In The Sky", another of The Top Tracks of the Rock Era*.

Now having disagreements with EMI affiliate Capitol Records, which had made them rich, Pink Floyd switched to Columbia Records.  Waters wrote the songs on the group's next album as a tribute to Barrett, their former bandmate.  They had become a huge success with Dark Side of the Moon and with that masterpiece still in the Album charts, there was a good deal of pressure on the band to produce another outstanding project.

Barrett had recorded solo albums in an attempt to recapture his previous magic, but he was lost.  Even though Pink Floyd had been immersed in a three-year tour, Barrett's absence affected them deeply.  Centered on Water's lyrics, the group recorded another concept album, this time focusing on a chief theme of absence, Waters draws a sharp contrast between the band in its early days when they were a tight-knit group to the present, when, although they were superstars, the relationships between band members was strained.

Pink Floyd previewed songs from the album during an appearance at the Knebworth Festival before releasing the album Wish You Were Here in 1975.  Barrett wandered into Abbey Road studios on June 5 when engineer Brian Humphries was finishing the mix of the album.  Barrett had gained so much weight that others did not recognize him for several minutes.  Waters was shaken to see his former bandmate so disengaged from the world and Barrett's refusal to accept reality.  

 

The outstanding title track about Water's mixed feelings about both concern for Barrett as well as knowing the group made the right decision to oust him is another of The Top Tracks of the Rock Era*.

"Have A Cigar" is Waters' blistering critique of the music industry.  At the time they were recording the track, the voices of Pink Floyd members were hoarse, and they were about to abandon recording for the night.  Roy Harper, who was recording an album in the studio next to them, volunteered to sing the song, and that is how Harper wound up singing lead vocals on a Pink Floyd song.

 

The album has now sold over six million copies in the United States alone.  "Welcome To The Machine", written about the money-hungry managers, producers, and company executives asserting control over the band, is another Top Track*.

 

Yet another of Pink Floyd's entries in The Top Tracks of the Rock Era* is the nine-part "Shine On You Crazy Diamond".  Legend has it that Barrett stumbled into the studio while the band was finishing this song.  Waters recalled later, in the Charlie Kendall book Shades of Pink - The Definitive Pink Floyd Profile,

     Roger was there, and he was sitting at the desk,

     and I came in and I saw this guy sitting behind him – 

     huge, bald, fat guy. I thought, "He looks a bit... 

     strange..." Anyway, so I sat down with Roger at the

     desk and we worked for about ten minutes, and this 

     guy kept on getting up and brushing his teeth and

     then sitting – doing really weird things, but keeping 

     quiet. And I said to Roger, "Who is he?" and Roger 

     said "I don't know." And I said "Well, I assumed he 

     was a friend of yours," and he said "No, I don't know

     who he is." Anyway, it took me a long time, and then                 suddenly I realised it was Syd, after maybe 45 

     minutes. He came in as we were doing the vocals for               "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", which was basically 

     about Syd. He just, for some incredible reason 

     picked the very day that we were doing a song which 

     was about him. And we hadn't seen him, I don't think,

     for two years before. That's what's so incredibly...

     weird about this guy. And a bit disturbing, as well, I

     mean, particularly when you see a guy, that you

     don't, you couldn't recognize him. And then, for him to

     pick the very day we want to start putting vocals on, 

     which is a song about him. Very strange.

 

The group bought a church in Islington and launched their own 24-track recording studio.  In 1977, Pink Floyd released the bleak album Animals, the lyrics of which place society in three classes:  dogs, pigs and sheep.  "Pigs On The Wing, Parts I & II" is a standout track.  Waters said the final verse "is a nod towards the idea of safety and succor in the arms of a loved one.  It's the idea that we're not alone and that we have a responsibility to one another in a global society."

 Animals has sold over four million copies in the U.S. and is approaching five million worldwide.  In this song, and more largely on the album, pigs represent people who are wealthy and powerful who think they have the right to dictate to those below them on the social ladder how to live.  Sheep, then, are those who obey or conform to the pigs' rule, while the dogs represent business people who are opposed to the pigs but have their own agendas and will use whatever methods necessary to get their way.  Although two of the "pigs" referred to in "Pigs (Three Different Ones)" are unknown, the last pig is morality preacher Mary Whitehouse.

 

The "dogs" in this scenario are businesspeople who use their position to continue to get richer and more powerful on the back of others.  At the end of this song, "Dogs", they get old and fat and die of cancer.

Gilmour was beginning to develop as a talented songwriter, but Waters refused to recognize this and his material continued to dominate the group's albums.  This caused strife with not only Gilmour but Wright. 

On Pink Floyd's tour to promote the album, Waters arrived at each venue by himself and left immediately following each performance.  At the Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Waters spat on a group of fans in the front row who had "irritated him".

Be sure to catch Part Three!

Pink Floyd, the #54 Artist of the Rock Era, Part One

"Pure, beautiful, unfiltered art."

"One of the best bands ever."

"It's a Journey to another dimension... classics, man, classics."

"An incredible band which influences the lives of so many people on a daily basis."

"Some of the best music ever."

"Classical music meets progressive rock...amazing."

"Original and innovative music--Pink Floyd is incomparable."

"So much is said in the absence of words rather than their presence. That's what i love about their music."

"One of the best groups of all-time."

"I believe Pink Floyd is the only group that succeeded to capture real emotions not only with their lyrics but also with their musical choices."

"Pink Floyd will be remembered in the same regard as Mozart or Beethoven."

"Can't get much better than this!"

"The majesty of Pink Floyd is unsurpassed."

"Some of the best music I've ever listened to."






This legendary group blended experimental electronics with all manner of sound effects to create a sound that defied labels and pushed music to the outer limits.

This groundbreaking group formed in London in 1965 with guitarist and lead vocalist Syd Barrett, bassist Roger Waters, drummer Nick Mason and keyboardist Richard Wright.  The band can trace their origins to a group called Sigma 6, which originally included Waters and Mason.  Wright joined Sigma 6 later in the year, and in 1964, guitarist Bob Klose joined.

    Clockwise: Nick Mason , Syd Barret , Roger Waters , Richard Wright , David Gilmour

The band went through numerous name changes before deciding on the Tea Set.  When two of the original members left, Waters encouraged his friend, Barrett, to join.  In 1965, the group secured a gig at the Countdown Club in London and played three sets of 90 minutes each.  Klose left shortly thereafter, when Barrett assumed lead guitar duties.

In 1966, another group calling itself the Tee Set formed and was set to perform on the same stage.  Barrett came up with the name Pink Floyd Sound from two blues artists in his record collection, Pink Anderson and Floyd Council.

The group played at the famous Marquee Club in March, where Peter Jenner saw them.  With friend Andrew King, Jenner started Blackhill Enterprises, which bought new instruments and equipment for the band and became their managers.  About this time, the band dropped "Sound" from their name and became Pink Floyd.  Continuing to play at clubs in the London area, the group began to add long instrumental sections to their songs, which were mostly covers of R&B songs.  

In 1967, Pink Floyd recorded a demo and signed with EMI Records.  

Gradually, they began to mix in originals from Barrett and started attracting a following at the UFO Club.  Two singles charted in the U.K., but success was limited there.  But Wright's "Paintbox", the flip to "Apples And Oranges", is a better song.  The band mimed to the song on a bridge in Brussels, Belgium.

 

"See Emily Play" was a non-album single, #6 in the U.K. and #10 in Ireland.  Barrett used a Zippo lighter as a guitar slide.  He supposedly wrote the song about a girl that Barrett claimed visited him while he was sleeping in the woods.  According to the book A Saucerful of Secrets:  The Pink Floyd Odyssey by Nicholas Shaffner, Emily is Emily Young, daughter of Wayland Young, 2nd Baron Kennet, who was given the nickname "the psychedelic schoolgirl" at the UFO Club.

Pink Floyd played three times on the television show Top of the Pops, with Barrett clearly in another world.  Drugs were beginning to ruin his life.  

At one UFO Club performance, Barrett stood lifeless on stage with his arms hanging down.  The group had to cancel a planned appearance at the prestigious National Jazz and Blues Festival, which King blamed on Barrett's "nervous exhaustion".  The public would soon see through the lies.

 

Pink Floyd released their debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, in 1967, reaching #6 in the U.K.  The album, named after a chapter in Barrett's favorite childhood book, The Wind in the Willows, has since gone Gold.  "Astronomy Domine" is the top song on the album, and shows that the most experimental group of the Rock Era was already plotting their course.  "Domine" is a word frequently used in Gregorian chants.  The song starts with Peter Jenner, one of the group's managers, reciting names of planets, stars and galaxies through a megaphone.

 

"Lucifer Sam" is a fan favorite.  Although on the surface it seems to be written about Barrett's cat Sam, it more likely refers to another man who had a relationship with Barrett's girlfriend, Jenny Spires.  The band toured the United States for the first time, but in an appearance on The Pat Boone Show, Barrett did not answer questions and simply stared into space.  Barrett did not mime the words to "See Emily Play", leading King to cancel the rest of their tour and send the group home.

Things didn't get better when they opened for Jimi Hendrix in England, and in December, Pink Floyd added guitarist David Gilmour.  By this time, the drugs had caused several side effects in Barrett, including depression.  For the moment, the other members kept him in the band as a songwriter.  But less than a month later, it was impossible to continue to work with him and Barrett was out.  On January 26, 1968, the band drove to a concert at Southampton University and did not pick up Barrett.

Managers Jenner and King opted to stay with Barrett and terminate their relationship with Pink Floyd.  Steve O'Rourke became the group's new manager and Waters became the chief songwriter.

 

It didn't take long for Pink Floyd to prove their former managers wrong.  In 1968, they released the album A Saucerful of Secrets, which featured the title song.  Unlike their debut in which Barrett controlled everything, all of the group members contributed to this project.  And they moved away from Barrett by introducing long instrumental sections with ethereal sounds.  

We also want to feature "Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun", which was performed in live sets until 1973.  It is the only track on the album in which all five members contributed.  Waters borrowed the lyrics from a book of Chinese poetry during the Tang Dynasty.

"Cymbaline" is a song featured in the movie More, though the album version is different from the one in the movie.  Not only are the lyrics different, but Waters sang lead on the movie version while Gilmour provided vocals for this version.  The lyrics tell of a "nightmare", which was the song's original title when it was introduced in the group's live suite The Man and the Journey.

The group returned in 1969 with the double album Ummagumma, with half recorded live at the Manchester College of Commerce and Mothers in Birmingham and the other featuring experimental pieces from each member.

Ummagumma has sold over one million copies.
 

In 1970, the band released the album Atom Heart Mother.  The album is known for not including Pink Floyd's name or the name of the album, just a cow standing in a field with a picture of the band embedded in its flank.  Members of the group didn't like it, even though it became a #1 album in the U.K.  However, it has only gone Gold.  

Pink Floyd was more in demand on a full tour of North America than Europe. 

Working on their next album, they began experimenting with basic sounds or notes and added sounds of everyday household objects into their recordings, a formula they would revisit for several years.  In 1971, the band released the album Meddle.  Waters played the acoustical guitar parts, using open tuning in G Major taught to him by Barrett on "Fearless".  The song fades into the Rodgers and Hammerstein song "You'll Never Walk Alone" from Carousel, sung by fans at a Liverpool soccer match.

Meddle has now sold over two million copies.  In 1972, the group released the album Obscured by Clouds, which includes "Echoes", not just a song but a musical experience that linked a series of riffs.  Wright's memorable organ solo was reportedly inspired by "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys.  As Gilmour explained in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, the screaming sounds in the middle of the song were achieved when Gilmour plugged into a wahwah pedal backwards, an accidental mistake.  But as always, the group capitalized and exploited their "mistakes".  

Gilmour said that in his guitar work featured throughout the song, he was trying to portray "the potential that human beings have for recognizing each other’s humanity and responding to it, with empathy rather than antipathy.”

The album was the soundtrack to the French movie La Valee.  "Free Four" is a song about how our lives pass by, most of the time with no real effect on the cycle by which we all live and pass.  But this line of thinking is grossly wrong.

Gilmour wrote this one--"Childhood's End", which is the title of Arthur C. Clarke's science novel, though the song has nothing to do with the book.  It is the last song that Gilmour wrote the lyrics to for 15 years.

 Water's song "Wot's...Uh The Deal" is another solid track.  The phrase is reportedly one uttered often by roadie Chris Adamson.

There is much more to the Pink Floyd Story--join us for Parts II and III!

George Michael, The #55 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Three

 

(Continued From Part Two)

After those two singles, Michael released the album Older, his first in six years and third in the 10 years since he began his solo career.  Further singles from the album were far more successful in the U.K., where Michael achieved six Top 3 hits.  The album did manage to reach Platinum status in the U.S.

 "Spinning The Wheel" reached #2 in the   U.K.

 

  

"Star People '97" gave him a third smash in the U.K. from the album. Older climbed to #1 on Album charts throughout the world, with the only exceptions being #2 in Ireland and Switzerland, #3 in West Germany and #6 in the U.S.

 "Older" hit #3 in his native country.

 

"I Can't Make You Love Me", which Bonnie Raitt first enjoyed a hit with, was covered and was part of a double A-sided hit.

 

"You Have Been Loved"/"The Strangest Thing '97" also landed at #2 in the U.K.

 Although public questioning of Michael's sexual orientation persisted throughout his career, he was arrested on April 7, 1998 in Beverly Hills, California for "engaging in a lewd act" in a public restroom.  Michael said that it wasn't the way he wanted to make an announcement, but later said that "hiding his sexuality made him feel fradulent".  

George released the compilation Ladies & Gentlemen:  The Best of George Michael on two CD's.  The album, which fulfilled a remaining obligation with Sony, became a #1 album of eight weeks in the U.K. and has sold over nine million copies worldwide.  

Two new songs gave Michael his 18th and 19th Top 10 songs in the U.K. "Outside" is George's public response to his arrest.

 

"Outside" and "As", the latter a duet with Mary J. Blige and a remake of the incredible song by Stevie Wonder, both hit the Top 5 in the U.K.

 

The next year, Michael released an album of covers called Songs from the Last Century, which was nominated for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the Grammy Awards.  In 2000, George recorded "If I Told You That" with Whitney Houston, a #9 hit in the U.K.

Michael patched up differences with Sony and re-signed with the label in 2003, with the album Patience hitting stores the next year.  The album went to #1 in the U.K. and became one of the fastest-selling albums there.  The album also attained Gold status in the U.S. and has sold over seven million copies around the world.

"Freeek!" became a big hit, going to #1 in Denmark, Italy, Portugal and Spain and reaching the Top 10 in the U.K. and Australia.

The single "Shoot The Dog" was critical of U.S. President George W. Bush and U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair for their roles in the 2003 invasion of Iraq.  The song charted in the Top 15 in most European countries.

 

"Amazing" is a song Michael wrote about his partner Kenny Goss, whom he was with for over a decade.

 

Both "Amazing" and "Flawless (Go To The City)" reached the Top 10 in the U.K.

In 2004, the Radio Academy announced that Michael was the most-played artist on British radio from 1984 to 2004.  

Michael released the compilation album Twenty Five in 2006, marking his 25 years in the music business.  It contains songs both from his solo career and from his work with Wham!  Michael toured the United States for the first time since 1989 and performed before 1.3 million fans around the world.  But George has not enjoyed any further worldwide Top 10 hits.

In 2008, Billboard ranked Michael #40 on its Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists list.  Michael made his American acting debut on the television series Eli Stone.

Michael followed with his first concerts in Australia since 1989, and released the album Symphonica in 2014.

On December 25, 2016, Michael died in bed at this home in Goring-on-Thames at the age of 53.  His partner, Fadi Fawaz, found his body.  The coroner ruled that George's death was due to dilated cardiomyopathy with myocarditis and a fatty liver.  His funeral was March 29, 2017.

An incredible 15 of 17 Michael singles reached the Top 10, making him one of the most consistent artists ever.  Six songs went to #1.  

Michael has won two Grammy Awards among eight nominations, three American Music Awards from five nominations and three MTV Video Music Awards from nine nominations.

Michael has sold over 80 million records worldwide.

George Michael, The #55 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Continued from Part One)

 Michael found stardom uncomfortable, and, unlike most artists, did not release a yearly album to keep current.  Although he waited three years before his next release, Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 was another masterpiece.  Michael wrote substantially deeper lyrics than at any time in his career.  Weary from his world tour, Michael did not at first record any music videos.  Nevertheless, the single "Praying For Time", about the injustices of the world, climbed to #1 in the U.S., #3 in Ireland and #6 in the U.K and Switzerland.

 

The album hit #1 in the U.K. and #2 in the United States, Australia, France and the Netherlands.  Michael decided to record a video for "Freedom '90", though he didn't appear in it.  The song reached #8 in the U.S., sold over one million units and was nominated for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards and Best Male Video at the MTV Video Music Awards.

 

The lack of promotion didn't work on the next single, "Waiting For That Day", which stalled short of #20 in both the United States and the U.K.  

 "Mother's Pride" received considerable airplay during the Persian Gulf War of 1991.  Unreleased as a single, it still reached #46 solely on the basis of that airplay, and remains as one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

 Michael was so red-hot on these back-to-back classic albums that there was very little filler.  Another Top Track* is "Something To Save".

 

Listen Without Prejudice contains numerous other gems, leading to eight million in sales.  "Cowboys And Angels" was a minor European hit.

 Michael toured the United States, England, Japan and Brazil.  On March 25, 1991, he joined Elton John at Live Aid for a performance of Elton's hit "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me".  The song was recorded and released as a single, reaching #1 in the U.S., the U.K., France, the Netherlands and Switzerland.   The single sold over one million copies.

 Michael also recorded a cover of the Temptations hit "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone", which won the International Viewer's Choice Award and was nominated for Best Male Video and Breakthrough Video at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Later that year, Michael released his autobiography entitled Bare.

 Meanwhile, Michael became embroiled in a dispute with Sony Records.  Michael complained that Sony had not properly supported his second album, while Sony claimed that Michael's refusal to promote it with music videos was the reason why it had not matched Faith in sales.  The court battle that followed cost Michael an estimated $7 million and resulted in a judgement in favor of Sony.  

In any case, Michael scrapped his follow-up album and instead donated three songs to the album Red Hot + Dance, which raised money for AIDS awareness.  "Too Funky" was released as a single and reached #4 in the U.K. and #10 in the United States.

 

In 1994, music mogul David Geffen rescued Michael by financing a buy-out of his contract with Columbia and enabling George to sign a recording contract with DreamWorks Records.  He released the single "Jesus To A Child", which he wrote about the death of his partner, Anselmo Feleppa, although this fact didn't come out until Michael confirmed that he was homosexual in 1998.  It zoomed to #1 in the U.K., Australia and Ireland, #2 in the Netherlands and Sweden, #4 in Switzerland and #7 in the U.S. and France.  The single sold over one million units. 

 

The follow-up was "Fastlove", which rose to #1 for three weeks in the U.K., #1 in Australia and #8 in the United States.  Michael was nominated for Best Dance Video at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Be sure to check out Part Three!

George Michael, the #55 Artist of the Rock Era, Part One

"George Michael is great!"

"Michael is a genius with amazing range and emotional depth."

"One of the all-time greatest artists."

"George is incredibly talented."

"Powerful voice with passion."

"All-time legend."

"One hell of a talent!"

"Magical voice."

"I can never get enough of his music."

"There's a depth of soul in his music that is beyond compare."

"Simply timeless."

"This man is an outstanding artist."




This artist served his early years in the pop duo Wham!, the most popular teen-oriented act of the '80's.  While his time in that group made him a pop idol, it presented him with a significant challenge--how does one with that background make the transition from that image to one of a respected musician?  How he pulled that off, and the unquestionable success with which he did, places him at #55.

Georgios Panayiotou was born June 25, 1963 in East Finchley, London.  After the family moved to Radlett, Georgios went to Bushey Meads School, where he met Andrew Ridgely.  Panayiotou played clubs while working as a DJ and formed the group The Executive with Ridgely, Ridgeley's brother Paul, Andrew Leaver and David Mortimer. 

Changing his stage name to George Michael, he formed the duo Wham! with Ridgeley in 1981.  The group enjoyed considerable success, especially with the Make It Big album in 1985.  None of those hits factor into this ranking, although "Careless Whisper" essentially was Michael's first solo release.

Michael sang on the Band Aid charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?", which went to #1 in the U.K.  

George also donated profits from his single "Last Christmas" to charity. 

He sang backing vocals on Elton John's big hit "Nikita".   Officially, Michael began his solo career with "A Different Corner" in 1986, a #1 song in the U.K., #2 in Ireland and the Netherlands, #3 in Switzerland, #4 in Australia and #7 in the United States.

 

The next year, Michael teamed with Aretha Franklin for a #1 song on both sides of the Atlantic, "I Knew You Were Waiting".  The pair won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance, Duo or Group with Vocal.

Now fully entrenched as a star in his own right, Michael set out to record his first solo album.  He wrote and produced every song except one, which he co-wrote, and played most of the instruments on the album as well.  With leather, shades, and his customary stubble in tow, Michael released the landmark album Faith in 1987.

Even though Michael insisted that the lead single "I Want Your Sex" was about monogamy and not casual sex, it was censored from many radio stations.  Despite that, it still reached #1 in Ireland and the Netherlands, #2 in the United States and Australia, #3 in the U.K. and West Germany, #4 in Switzerland and #8 in Sweden.  The single sold over two million copies.

 

But Faith had plenty of other songs to play.  The title song followed, and it climbed to #1 for four weeks in the U.S., #1 in the U.K. and the Netherlands and Top 10 in every major country in the world except Ireland.  "Faith" also sold over one million copies.

 

Faith remained on the best-seller list for 51 weeks, including 12 weeks at #1 and remains as one of The Top 100 Albums of the Rock Era*.  Arguably the strongest song on the album, however, was "Father Figure", another #1 smash that climbed to #2 in Ireland and the Netherlands and was nominated for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards.

Michael gave 137 shows on a world tour. George won Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards and American Music Awards for Favorite Album, Favorite Male Pop/Rock Vocalist and Favorite Male Soul/R&B Vocalist.  He was also nominated for AMA's for Favorite Male Artist and Favorite Pop/Rock Album and won the Video Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards.  George also released "One More Try", #1 in the U.S. and Ireland, #4 in the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland, #5 in France and #8 in the U.K.  The single sold over one million copies.


 

Faith has been certified as selling over 10 million copies in the United States and has sold over 25 million units worldwide, according to Yahoo.  "Monkey" became the fourth consecutive #1 song from the album and the fifth straight in the Top Two.  

"Kissing A Fool" peaked at #5 in the United States and #9 in Ireland.  Faith became just the ninth album in history to contain five Top 10 hits and the fifth ever to yield five Top 5 hits.  Today, there are 25 albums to generate five Top 10 singles.

Join us for Part Two!