2016 has been one Grim Reaper of a year. Poor Carrie Fisher currently flirts with stepping off this plane of existence, and now we hear that George Michael, formerly of the 1980s group Wham!, is dead of undisclosed causes (heart attack? we're not sure) at the tender age of 53. Michael's distinctive vocal stylings were a major part of the backdrop of my teen years. As he faded into the postmodern multimedia babble from the 90s onward, going from lead singer to soloist, his personal life came to be of more interest than his music—in particular, his sexuality (in the 90s, he admitted to being gay after much tabloid speculation) and his various run-ins with authorities thanks to a combination of drugs and driving.
Here in Korea, some stores will obsessively put Michael's "Last Christmas" on repeat around this time of year, and even though he's probably most famous for "Careless Whisper," I'm rather partial to his "Freedom." I also recently found and watched his "Praying for Time," which was quite good in a contemplative, philosophical kind of way.
RIP, Mr. Michael.
I was a big Wham! fan back in the day, and I was shocked and sad to see this news earlier.
ReplyDeleteI can't stand stores playing "Last Christmas" at this time of year, though. Just because a song has "Christmas" in the title/lyrics does not mean it is a Christmas song. Grr.
I'm never gonna dance again.
ReplyDeleteCharles,
ReplyDeleteHow do you feel when people mention "Die Hard" as "one of my favorite Christmas movies"?
Ruth,
At least... not the way I danced with you.
K,
ReplyDeleteI almost added to my original comment "...just like people who say that Die Hard is their favorite Christmas movie."
Die Hard is awesome, no doubt. It also takes place at Christmas. If you want to watch it and enjoy it at Christmas, that's awesome. But it is not a Christmas movie.
(Although I'm just realizing that there are perhaps two ways to interpret "Christmas song/movie/etc." The way that I have been interpreting it has been "a song/movie/etc. that is about Christmas and/or espouses 'Christmas values.'" But I suppose you could also interpret it to mean "a song/movie/etc. that is enjoyed during the Christmas season." According to the latter definition, both "Last Christmas" and "Die Hard" could be considered Christmas fare.