SOMETIMES, you just need to relax, sit back and let the chocolate slip down. That's what this George Michael show is like – he was last in Ireland for his ass-shakin' greatest hits tour a few years ago, but this time he has left the rock band behind, hitched up with a symphonic orchestra, surrounded himself with a semi-oval stage set that reeks of the best kind of five-star boudoir, and set about reconditioning tracks that can be found across his solo studio albums and, particularly, his 1999 covers album Songs from the Last Century. We're in Paris, at a venue (the Bercy) that is like Dublin's old Point except bigger.
It is a scorching late autumn evening, but the venue is chilled by a performance that can only be described as subdued, sublime and very, very polished.
It’s an interesting experience watching a once in-the-eye-of-the-storm pop star (just two years shy of his 50th birthday) reflectively place his cards on the table. Not the most prolific of songwriters (he has released a mere four albums of original material in the past 25 years), Michael nonetheless retains residual affection from the public. He’s a class pop star, yes, but with highly publicised human failings and frailties that he battles with on an ongoing basis. A tour such as this, however, can either shield or expose star quality, and it is to Michael’s credit that he achieves the balance of confession (through his song choices) and reserve (effectively, between-song silence).
He starts off with crooner standard My Baby Just Cares for Me, follows with his own Cowboys
& Angels, and then chases these with the first real surprise – a terrifically calm version of New Order's True Faith. So far, so suave, with not a hair out of place or a careless whisker to be seen. Next comes a creamy-kissed version of Terence Trent D'Arby's Let Her Down Easy,his own Kissing a Fool,and then another fine choice cover, Rufus Wainwright's Going to a Town.
For the next hour or so, this sweat-free pattern continues: originals such as the new song Where I Hope you Are(dedicated to his former partner, Kenny Goss), John and Elvis are Deadand A Different Cornerare interspersed with songs from artists such as Rihanna ( Russian Roulette), The Police ( Roxanne), Amy Winehouse ( Love is a Losing Game), Nina Simone/David Bowie ( Wild is the Wind)and, er, Frank Ifield ( I Remember You). The latter, in particular, is slowed down, stunning and sung – as is all of the material – to a backdrop of an orchestra that knows its timpani from its tempo, and sophisticated visual effects that are as close to eye candy as it's possible to get. In other words, it's all quite classy and swish, full of verve and velvet. There's an intermission, too. Very posh, altogether.
George Michael plays Dublin’s O2 on November 1/3
BY GEORGE: THE LIFE AND TIMES
1963:Born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, June 25th, North London.
1981:Forms Wham! with Andrew Ridgeley, who he met at Bushey Meads School in the late 1970s.
1983: Debut album, Fantastic, reaches no 1 in the UK.
1984: Follow-up album Make It Bigfeatures global hit singles, Wake Me up Before You Go-Go, Freedom, Everything She Wantsand – Michael's debut solo single – Careless Whisper.
1986: Wham! split, following commercial success of George Michael's solo singles Careless Whisperand 1986's A Different Corner.
1987: Releases debut solo album Faith. Instant controversy is unleashed with the success of the album's first single I Want Your Sex.
1988: Following vigorous promotional duties for Faith,Michael informs Sony, his record label, that for his second solo album he will make no videos and conduct very few media interviews.
1990: Releases solo album number two Listen Without Prejudice Vol 1.Plans for a Vol 2 are nixed due to a lawsuit with Sony.
1994: Following a period of retreat from public life, Michael resurfaces in November at the inaugural MTV Europe Music Awards, where he debuts Jesus to a Child, a tribute to his deceased lover, Anselmo Feleppa, who had died the previous year.
1996: Releases third, aptly titled solo album Older.
2004: Releases fourth solo album Patience. Michael announces that this will be his last record of original material for sale to the public.
WHO'S A NAUGHY BOY
1998:Arrested by an undercover policeman in a public park in Beverley Hills for "engaging in a lewd act".
2006: Admitted to cruising for anonymous sex, following a News of the World"expose" of an incident with a 58-year-old man on Hampstead Heath.
2007:Revealed on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discsthat his use of cannabis was "a problem". Daily intake? Upwards of 25 joints per day.
2008: Arrested in a public toilet in the Hampstead Heath area for possession of Class A and Class C drugs.
2010: July 4th, crashed his car into the Snappy Snaps store, Hampstead. August 12th, charged with possession of cannabis and driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. August 24th, pleaded guilty to the charge at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court. September 14th, sentenced to two months in prison. October 11th, released from Highpoint prison after serving four weeks.
