Wham, one of the most successful British pop bands of the 80s, consisted of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. George Michael, whose real name is Georgios (Yorgos) Kyriako Panayiotou, gives the impression that he is of Greek origin, but the artist is British. They changed their name Executive, which they used until 1982, to Wham and started looking for a record company to release their albums.
The duo first signed with Mark Dean and later met music publishers Dick Leahy and Bryan Morrison. They shared the stage with Amanda Washbourn and Shirlie Holliman. Meanwhile, they completed their track “Wham! Rap”. Although this track brought them a certain popularity, they could not make it into the charts. But the follow-up, “Young Guns”, reached the Top 10 in the UK.
In “Bad Boys”, the duo had a more macho and young rebel image. But this image was not liked by the record company. Michael said that they would change this image, and for this purpose, Jazz Summers and Simon Napier-Bell gave Wham the “Nouveau Riche” style that later became symbolized by them. Their next hit after Bad Boys, “Club Tropicana”, began to be played in London’s most elite clubs.
Meanwhile, Wham, who was in court with his former record company, left Innervision in an eventful manner. “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go” and “Careless Whisper”, which they released on their new record label Epic, reached the top of the UK charts in a very short time. By 1984, the duo added “Freedom” and “Last Christmas” to their list of hits.
When they went on their China tour the next year, the band was known all over the world, including America. Wham played their last concert at Wembley Stadium on 28 June 1986 in front of 72,000 fans. The duo, whose last album was called “The Final”, parted ways. While George Michael later took off with his solo career, Ridgeley could not achieve the same rise.
Wham! Top 10 Greatest Hits ~ Full Album
01. Last Christmas
02. Wake Me Up Before You Go-go
03. Everything She Wants
04. Club Tropicana
05. I’m Your Man
06. Wphere Did Your Heart Go
07. The Edge of Heaven
08. Freedom
09. Bad Boys
10. Wphere Did Your Heart Go
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