100 ESSENTIAL GEORGE MICHAEL SONGS. Today: #3. More: tomorrow.

3 LAST CHRISTMAS Wham! 1984- Music From The Edge Of Heaven George Michael wrote “Last Christmas”. At the time, Wham! was one of the hottest acts in pop music. He was confident that the single would be the coveted Christmas No. 1 on the British chart. The disc was issued in early December. George’s instincts would have proven to be precise had it not been for another release also featuring his vocals. Both songs came out in the same week. The other track was an all-star recording featuring the cream of British pop. Along with George, the disc included vocal contributions from Bono, Sting, Boy George, Simon Le Bon, Bananarama, Paul Weller and Phil Collins. “Last Christmas” proved to be a popular song. No doubt, it would have reached #1. Instead, the Wham! release peaked at #2 in Britain for 5 consecutive weeks. The song that kept it out of the top position was Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”. Both singles raised funds for famine relief. George’s prediction did finally come true in 2020. A re-issued “Last Christmas” topped the UK chart that year. It repeated the same feat 2 years later. The single remains a perennial Christmas favourite.     Caffè Lattè presents a tribute to one of pop music’s greatest performers. In 2023, he would have celebrated his 60th birthday. A Netflix special looks back on his days with Wham!. Here are his best songs ranked in order of impact & quality - as a soloist and with Andrew Ridgeley….             THE 100 ESSENTIAL SONGS OF   GEORGE MICHÆL         Hear the songs on this countdown on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/76x5LEvMMiHkCHV6KebTCB?si=d4117e5ec7184cd3&pt=d3407dd39de41c44d1e6f43d49df2914