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Wham!
2,552,705 plays (445,408 listeners)
(1981 – 1986)
Wham! (often written WHAM!) was a pop band formed in 1981. They were briefly known in the United States as Wham! UK due to a naming conflict with another band.
George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley met at Bushey Meads School in Watford, England. At first, they performed in a short-lived rock and roll band called The Executive. They then changed their name and signed with Innervision Records. Soon after a legal victory over Innervision, the duo was signed to CBS, Columbia Records in the United States and Canada and Epic Records for the rest of the world.
Further information: Artist development deal
Michael took on the majority of roles and responsibilities within the band— composer, singer, producer, and occasional instrumentalist— but the contribution of Ridgeley as the group’s image specialist and spokesman was crucial to the band’s initial success. Ridgeley convinced a reluctant George that Wham! needed to change their image and sound frequently, from the leather-clad moody singers of “Bad Boys” and “Young Guns (Go For It!)” to the more fashionable pop superstars of “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.”
Still teenagers, they promoted themselves as hedonistic youngsters, proud to live a carefree life without work or commitment. This was reflected in their earliest singles. Such works as “Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)” have been seen as sarcasm advocating the other point of view.
The first record to be released by the band was “Wham Rap!”. It was a double-A side with a Social Mix and Anti-social Mix. The record was banned for general release in the UK due to the profanity in the Anti-social Mix.
George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley met at Bushey Meads School in Watford, England. At first, they performed in a short-lived rock and roll band called The Executive. They then changed their name and signed with Innervision Records. Soon after a legal victory over Innervision, the duo was signed to CBS, Columbia Records in the United States and Canada and Epic Records for the rest of the world.
Further information: Artist development deal
Michael took on the majority of roles and responsibilities within the band— composer, singer, producer, and occasional instrumentalist— but the contribution of Ridgeley as the group’s image specialist and spokesman was crucial to the band’s initial success. Ridgeley convinced a reluctant George that Wham! needed to change their image and sound frequently, from the leather-clad moody singers of “Bad Boys” and “Young Guns (Go For It!)” to the more fashionable pop superstars of “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.”
Still teenagers, they promoted themselves as hedonistic youngsters, proud to live a carefree life without work or commitment. This was reflected in their earliest singles. Such works as “Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)” have been seen as sarcasm advocating the other point of view.
The first record to be released by the band was “Wham Rap!”. It was a double-A side with a Social Mix and Anti-social Mix. The record was banned for general release in the UK due to the profanity in the Anti-social Mix.
Top Albums
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The Best of Wham!: If You Were There...
Wham!Buy- Download Album
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Last Christmas
Wham!
Buy- Download Album
- Amazon MP3 $9.99
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Make It Big
Wham!Buy- Download Album
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- iTunes $8.82
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The Final
Wham! Buy- Download Album
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Top Tracks
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Last Christmas
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Everything She Wants
full track
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Freedom
full track
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Young Guns (Go for It!)
full track
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Shoutbox
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consequences__ wrote:
Everything she wants.. is Wham!
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dnednedne wrote:
Wham! is more than Last Christmas. [56499808]
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petershaman wrote:
ohmyjulian - Denifitely, my favs are "Everything She Wants" and "Wham Rap".
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ohmyjulian wrote:
Wham! is more than Last Christmas.
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ofhinshaw wrote:
Check it out! --> www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5Aix07MLHE
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MadDennis wrote:
omg too many last christmas on the top tracks.... WTF?? Correct your tags everybody
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x3Candice wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [40]
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NamelessUser wrote:
Wham!/George Michael is fantastic, and Last Christmas is brilliance personified. My favorite Christmas song without a doubt, right next to Paul McCartney's Wonderful Christmastime.
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matlin1 wrote:
Because he is tranvestit.
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prz_rulez wrote:
why song about a slut cannot be a Christmas song? ;)
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matlin1 wrote:
Last Christmas is not a Christmas Song! [3] It's a song about a bitch! :-P
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thenktor wrote:
Last Christmas is not a Christmas Song! [2] It's a song about a bitch! :-P
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JDonn wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [40]
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plcnlc wrote:
Last Christmas is not a Christmas Song!
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love-again wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [39]
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logan26121987 wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [38]
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TheNordBeraht wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [37]
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Paulina_H wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [36]
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be-mad wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [35]
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mari96 wrote:
Last Christmas is the best song for christmas, and I prefer the original to all of the other covers. [34]
Videos
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Listeners
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Recent Activity
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GobyMafrend, McCoyMcFlyer, ashleygz and 2 other people added Wham! to their libraries. 5 hours ago
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Claudi267 tagged Wham! with ‘pop’. yesterday evening
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abhjos, tjw2010, trevorloke and 7 other people added Wham! to their libraries. yesterday morning
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A deleted user unlinked Wham! from Destroy Angst-Rock. Monday morning
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A deleted user connected Wham! to the group Destroy Angst-Rock. Monday morning
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daxdavis, Dmigar, twoturtlenecks and 39 other people added Wham! to their libraries. Monday morning
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TerminusMadison tagged Wham! with new age, pop rocks, easy listening and one other tag. last week
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judills, lmk15, tvanbuskirk and 9 other people added Wham! to their libraries. last week
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Hayley_Music tagged Wham! with ‘london’. last month
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dove7568, taraspence, MrDreamweaver and 3 other people added Wham! to their libraries. last month
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